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The Star Letter writer wins a Computeractive mug!
Give feedback and Microsoft will
perform more Windows U-turns
W
indows 11 has been available for
long enough now for a pattern to
have emerged in Microsoft’s behaviour.
It can be summarised
as: if enough people
complain, Microsoft
will change what you
don’t like.
There have been lots
of small examples
since it launched, but
the most significant
change is simplifying how you can
switch the default browser (see Issue
629, page 6, pictured).
This must have been a painful
decision for Microsoft. I bet they hate
that Google’s Chrome is so much more
popular than their own Edge. But
they’ve buckled under pressure and
now make it easier to switch. It is, as
you rightly say, a U-turn. Just as in
politics, companies perform U-turns
when they realise that people disagree
with a policy so much that it might
prompt them to take their business
elsewhere.
Microsoft must be worried that
Windows 11 has earned a reputaton for
being a highly restrictive operating
system. It has already put off millionsof people by demanding that their
computers have TPM 2.0, which is
probably why growth of the system has
stalled. Allowing
users to switch from
Edge as their default
allows Microsoft to
say they’re listening
to feedback from
users.
The recent
announcement of
tabs for File Explorer (see page 6) is
another sign that Microsoft wants to
be seen as reacting quickly to user
feedback. Eventually, I think they will
backtrack on all the little irritants that
are dissuading people from upgrading,
such as not being able to customise the
taskbar to your liking.
To help nudge Microsoft, vote with
your fingers by giving them your opinion
through the Feedback app. I’ve been
doing this since upgrading in November,
and everything I’ve asked for has
subsequently been implemented, or is
about to be. It’s not always been the
case, but with Windows 11
Microsoft really is listening
to the ordinary user.
Oliver Moult(page 62), but must provide a warning. I
tried to set up my wife to use Apple Pay
on her iPhone via Barclays. The bank
immediately blocked her card, thinking it
was a scam. The only way to unlock the
card was to visit the bank, a trip of 30
miles each way (many branches have
closed in our area).
We then had to queue for 40 minutes,
only to be told that the manager was the
only person who could help. That person
took us to her office and had to use the
same number, to contact the fraud
department, as any member of the public
would. After 20 minutes waiting on the
phone, we eventually got the card
unlocked. I haven’t tried again to set up
Apple Pay on her phone.
Norman Marrisonlike the revamped registry (pictured above),
which no longer looks so intimidating.
Seb CallaghanBank blocked card after
setting up Apple Pay
I was very interested in Issue 628’s
‘Pay with your phone’ feature- guess what – Openreach was working
in the same conduit. Fixing that took a
week, with three missed appointments,
one of which was blamed on the storms.
They even suggested that the damage was
caused by Storm Eunice, despite the cable
being underground. In our cases, February’s
storms did less damage than Openreach.
Steven Millard
If Windows ain’t broke,
don’t fix it!
All the reviews of Windows 11 seem
to focus on how it looks. Frankly, I
don’t care how my icons look or where
the Start menu is. Most of these ‘new’
features can be incorporated into Windows
10 using third-party apps anyway. Even
the forthcoming addition of Android apps
will not be as good as using Bluestacks
(www.bluestacks.com), because only
apps from the Amazon Appstore will be
available.
So what counts as a new operating
system? To me it’s changes in the
underlying code to improve speed and
stability, and I’ve not seen this explained
in any review. Cosmetic changes do not
make a new operating system, and I happen
to find the new Start menu dreadful and
the change in Context menus unnecessary.
What on earth was wrong with them
before? If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!
I also have two major grouses which
Microsoft has not addressed. The first is
File Explorer, which has had no serious
upgrade for years. It is about time we had
tabbed directories, letting us compare,
copy and sync without opening it twice.
Second, the search function is appalling,
sometimes taking minutes to scan a drive
for a particular string. Please Microsoft,
don’t make changes just for the sake of it.
Francis NortonIs this what Windows 12
will look like?
I was interested in Issue 626’s
‘Question of the Fortnight’ on
whether Microsoft is already working on
Windows 12, because it seems to me that
Windows 11 is very much a work in
progress and I’ll probably skip it and wait
to see if the next operating system is better.
I hope it looks like this Windows 12
‘concept’ video (www.snipca.com/41574),
posted on YouTube in March by a
developer (not someone who works at
Microsoft). It’s unofficial and speculative,
but it’s an intriguing glimpse at what
Windows 12 could look like. I especiallyIssue 630 • 27 April – 10 May 2022STAR LETTER