Windows Subsystem for Linux 2, and the xmahjongg app.

If you don’t want to invest in an Alexa or Google-powered smart speaker, there’s one right in front of you within your PC. I’ve become a simplistic Cortana user, asking her to do simple math, set a reminder, or simply let me know when 20 minutes has expired so I can run a new benchmark. But Cortana is still there, and you can configure her to always listen if you so choose. Microsoft’s smart, personalized assistant, Cortana, is now an app, as she has been for the last few months. It’s a little bittersweet to write this, but Cortana isn’t part of Windows proper any more, and hasn’t been for some time. Why not try it and see what happens? Cortana (Microsoft has said before that you might be offered a trial of Game Pass, too, for example.) Windows 11 includes a link that supposedly will explain this a bit more, but it’s a bug that goes to this Azure page instead.) Still, we may see this particular setting fleshed out more over time. Windows 11’s Device usage hides within the Settings.ĭon’t expect profound changes to your PC as a result: switching on “Gaming,” for example, seemed to prompt my PC to download some simple gaming apps that I’d downloaded before, such as an HTML5 version of Spelunky, an exploration game. That’s annoying, though it’s unclear how common this will be. Apps will still require updates within Windows 11, and you may see apps pause to download and apply updates after you’ve opened them. In real-world terms, that means that Microsoft can download and apply updates to apps like the Windows Subsystem for Linux quietly, in the background, without the need for a reboot. Remember, too, that Microsoft is separating more and more applications from the main OS. (And remember, you can schedule them for after hours, too.) You’ll see the new estimated times within Windows 11’s Windows Update section within the Settings menu.

(We haven’t tested this specifically to see if the estimates are accurate.) This may be a tad gimmicky, as anyone who has tried to transfer files within Windows understands-Microsoft’s estimated time to completion can vary dramatically, even within the same file transfer! Still, the new estimated times should at least give you an idea of whether you need to hunt down another cup of coffee while you wait.

If your device needs to be updated for any reason, Windows 11 will now try to guess how much time the update will require.

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