Bing chatbot now allows you to change the response style. You can choose from three options, including “Creative,” “Balanced,” or “Precise.” However, depending on the tone, the chatbot may produce less accurate responses. Microsoft is proactively updating its Bing Chat before it becomes available to everyone, and now, the company is testing an option to change the tone of the responses. If you have already signed up to access the new Bing , the next time you are on the Chat page, you will find a new “Choose a conversation style” setting to change the tone to “Creative,” “Balanced,” or “Precise....

Windows 11 build 26220.5790 (KB5065779) in the Dev Channel and build 26120.5790 in the Beta Channel introduce fluid dictation for Voice Access, expanded Studio Effects for more cameras, and new File Explorer hover commands. The updates also address fixes for Taskbar previews, File Explorer flickering, Settings hangs, and performance issues, while listing known problems such as audio failures and Xbox controller crashes. Microsoft is now rolling out Windows 11 build 26220....

Windows 11 build 27842 is now rolling out in the Canary Channel, featuring several new features and changes specifically to the Taskbar, mouse pointer, and system. According to the official changes , Windows 11 build 27842 introduces new iconography for the battery icon in the System Tray. In addition, the company is rolling out an updated version of the Green Screen of Death experience, and it’s updating the Windows Security app to show more information about the Microsoft Pluton TPM chips, including the manufacturer and version....

Clean install Windows 11 on Copilot+ PC devices by downloading the ARM64 ISO, creating a bootable USB drive, and starting the computer from the USB to begin setup. The process wipes the drive completely, removes all apps and files, and reinstalls a fresh version of Windows 11. It delivers the cleanest, most stable installation for ARM-based Copilot+ systems. A clean installation of Windows 11 on a Copilot+ PC is not much different than the same process on a traditional computer, but if you have a device featuring an ARM-based Qualcomm Snapdragon processor (such as Surface Laptop 7th Edition and Surface Pro 11th Edition), you’ll have to download a special version of the installation files, and the Out-of-box Experience (OOBE) will be slightly different....

Microsoft is now rolling cumulative update KB4016240 for those PCs running the newly released Windows 10 Creators Update (version 1703). The new update doesn’t include new features, but it addresses a number of issues with the OS. KB4016240 bumps the version number of Windows 10 build 15063.250, and it brings fixes to memory leak problem with Internet Explorer, and display issues when starting Windows 10 on an external monitor. This new update also promises to address an issue on apps and games in full-screen that causes a computer to become unresponsive....

On Windows 11 build 22635.3420 , the Start menu hides a new design for the “All Apps” menu, and in this guide, I’ll show you the steps to enable the new design. Microsoft is working on updating the “All Apps” menu with a new design that arranges the apps like the “Pinned” section of the Start menu, with larger icons and a left-to-right alignment instead of the list menu design style and without the speed dial option to jump to a specific section in the menu....

Microsoft continues previewing more visual changes for File Explorer. The latest update brings a new “Home,” redesigned header, tab tearout, and new image importing option. This is in addition to previously announced changes, including new “Gallery,” “Details,” and new code base. Microsoft rolls out various visual changes for File Explorer on Windows 11 . During its Build 2023 developer conference, the company teased upcoming design changes for File Explorer, and some of them are already available for testing for Insiders with devices enrolled in the Dev Channel ....

Microsoft discontinued Windows Media Center in Windows 10 , but it’s not stopping enthusiasts to manage and bring back the entertainment hub to the latest operating system. Originally, the software maker introduced Windows Media Center in Windows XP, and an updated version was released with Windows Vista. Windows 7 included the software, but without any changes, and on Windows 8, Microsoft continued offering Windows Media Center as an additional add-on, but again it was the same version originally released with Vista....

To reverse the mouse scrolling direction on Windows 11, open Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Mouse and choose the “Down motion scrolls down” or “Down motion scrolls up” option. To change the scrolling direction with the Registry, open the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Enum\HID path, select the “Device Parameters” key, set the “FlipFlopWheel” value to “1,” and restart the computer. UPDATED 9/27/2024: On Windows 11 , it’s possible to change the scrolling motion of the mouse in at least two ways, depending on the version of the operating system installed on your computer, and in this guide, I will explain how to complete this configuration....

To change the Taskbar color on Windows 11, open Settings > Personalization > Colors , select “Custom” for “Choose your mode,” choose “Dark” for the Windows mode and “Light” for the app mode, turn on “Show accent color on Start and taskbar,” and select the new color. UPDATED 10/20/2023: On Windows 11 , the Taskbar uses the light color scheme by default, and while you can always switch to dark mode , you can also choose virtually any color you want....

UPDATED 1/30/2025 : On Windows 10 , apps acquired from the Microsoft Store receive regular updates to enhance performance and introduce new features. Although updates install automatically, you might sometimes need to check an app’s version number to confirm whether you have the latest release, perhaps to verify a bug fix or access a newly added feature. Regardless of the reason, Windows 10 offers multiple ways to complete this task using the Settings app, the Settings and About pages from within the app, and you can also use the Windows Package Manager (winget) command tool....

To check hard drive health on Windows 11, open Settings > System > Storage > Advanced storage settings > Disks & volumes . Open the properties for the hard drive and check the health status. The status will show the estimated remaining life, available spare, and temperature. Windows 11 has a storage health monitoring feature that can detect hardware problems on hard drives and notify you ahead of time to give you enough time to create a backup of your data, and in this guide, you will learn how to use it....

To check if Windows 11 24H2 is installed on your computer, use the “Windows key + R” keyboard shortcut, enter the “winver” command, click “OK,” and confirm the version number is equal to or greater than 26100.1742. Another way is to open Settings > System > About and confirm whether version 24H2 is installed in the “Windows Specifications” section. UPDATED 9/2/2024: On Windows 11, you can check whether version 24H2 is already installed on your computer using at least two methods, and in this guide, I’ll show you how to complete the process ....

TRIM is a critical SSD maintenance command that helps Windows 11 maintain speed and reduce unnecessary wear on Solid-State Drives. Windows 11 automatically enables TRIM and runs it weekly, but users can check, enable, disable, or run it manually. You can verify TRIM support using the Command Prompt with the fsutil behavior query DisableDeleteNotify command. On Windows 11 , you can check, enable, or disable TRIM support for Solid-State Drives (SSDs), and in this guide, I’ll outline the steps to complete this process....

To create a full backup of Windows 11, open the “System Image Backup” settings in the Control Panel, click “ Create a system image,” s elect the external storage destination, and start the backup. You can also use the “wbAdmin” command to create a Windows 11 backup with Command Prompt. On Windows 11 , creating a full backup to an external USB drive ensures you have a security copy of the entire system (including from secondary hard drives), which allows you to restore your computer in case of critical system problems, malware attacks like ransomware, hardware failure, or when upgrading the primary storage drive....

In this tutorial, you’ll learn step-by-step how to create a VPN server in Windows 7 with a built-in tool, which will do a great job if you are the kind of person that is always traveling to different locations, e.g., coffee shop, hotel or any other public places and you need remote access to personal files or programs. If you ever wanted to get access to your computer content (e.g., documents, music and even videos) while away without the need of storing them in the Cloud or connect to your home computer securely, there are different ways to do this, such as, using your Windows Home Server or using a Windows Live Mesh account, and many others solutions....

On Windows 11 , in addition to the built-in tool, you can create a full backup to an external USB storage using different third-party applications, such as Veeam. Veeam is an enterprise-level backup solution, but the company also offers a free edition of the app for Windows 11 users. Although the app is limited, it includes the necessary features to create a full backup on the entire system, including primary and secondary drives, allowing you to recover the setup and files in case of hardware problems, malware attacks like ransomware, or when replacing the system’s hard drive....

To create a local administrator account on Windows 11, open Settings > Accounts > Other users , click the “Add account” button, select the “I don’t have this person’s sign-in information” option, and click the “Add a user without a Microsoft account” option to create an administrator account. Finally, select the local account, click the “Change account type” button, and choose the “Administrator” option. UPDATED 12/24/2025: On Windows 11 , a local administrator account gives the user full access to the device, allowing them to change personal and system settings, install applications, and manage other users....

To disable Microsoft account notifications on Windows 10, open Settings > Privacy > General , and turn off “Show me suggested content in the Settings app,” “Show me account-related notifications. When Off, required notifications are still shown,” and from the “Start” settings, turn off “Show account-related notifications. When off, required notifications are still shown.” Windows 10 now shows notifications banners in the Settings app and Start menu about related account information and actions you may have to take on your Microsoft account....

On Windows 10, starting with the November 2019 Update, version 1909 , when you open the Start menu and hover over the left pane will automatically expand to reveal the name of the items in the list. Although Microsoft has found positive results adding this feature, it’s not something that everyone wants, because it can get in the middle when navigating the menus, and it can make it more difficult to access the power options....