We’re always keeping a watch on the early beta versions of Windows 11 to see what’s coming up, so we’re delighted to see two minor but useful changes on the way, which should be available to everyone shortly.
First and foremost, it appears like Microsoft will finally include an option to hide the news feed from the widgets box. This has been enabled in version 26058 (via XDA Developers), allowing you to check the weather or sports scores without being overwhelmed with the newest news from around the web.
The new view is simply named My Widgets, and the thought is that it may have been implemented in part to placate EU authorities, who are keen to allow consumers as much flexibility as possible. However, based on Windows 11’s Dev and Canary channels, this modification will be available worldwide.
To access widgets, click the widgets icon on the taskbar. It should be to the left of the other icons and may already be displaying dynamic information (such as the weather or a traffic alert); otherwise, it is a white rectangle adjacent to a blue rectangle.
Clearer cutting, copying, and pasting
Second, in accordance with Build 26058 (via MSPowerUser), Windows 11 adds text labels to the cut, copy, and paste icons that display when you right-click in File Explorer. If you’ve ever peered at a pop-up menu to figure out where to click, you’ll understand how useful these labels are.
Of course, you can still use the familiar keyboard shortcuts if you like, but for those of us who utilize File Explorer’s context menus, this should make a major difference in preventing files from being moved or copied to the wrong location.
For further information, see Microsoft’s blog post on the latest update. Another feature to keep an eye out for is a new crosshairs option for the cursor (see above), which is designed to help low vision users select items more accurately.
As always, Microsoft’s plans are subject to change, and features that appear in preview versions of Windows are not necessarily made available to all users. However, these fixes appear to have a high chance of reaching it, so we’re looking forward to seeing them arrive.
