This Microsoft PowerToys repair lastly makes Net Search usable

I do not shrink back from the truth that I really like Windows 11. Is it good? No, nevertheless it will get lots of issues proper, and in my over twenty years of Home windows expertise, it has been my favourite OS so far (sorry Windows 7).

That stated, there are issues about Home windows 11 that typically drive me nuts. And Microsoft Edge is one in all them. Each time I do a contemporary set up of Home windows or arrange a new Windows 11 laptop, I am reminded that Microsoft does not need me to put in my most popular browser of selection. Each time I am downloading Google Chrome it barrages me with the message that “there isn’t any have to obtain a brand new net browser” as a result of Edge is a “quick, safe, and fashionable net expertise.” I do not hate Edge essentially, I’ve simply been utilizing Chrome for too lengthy, and it is already synced throughout all my units.

As a fan of Microsoft’s PowerToys app, one factor that has aggravated me lately when utilizing its Net Search function within the Command Palette is that it solely makes use of Edge for net searches, and ignores my default browser. This was a bug that solely affected folks utilizing Home windows 11 24H2 (through XDA), and it has been driving me loopy since I began utilizing Command Palette, which solely lately launched in Might.

Fortunately, this challenge has now been fastened within the newest PowerToys replace, PowerToys v0.92. Now, once you carry out a Net Search within the Command Palette, it makes use of your default net browser, whether or not it is Chrome, Firefox, or some other browser as a substitute of Edge. The patch notes for the newest replace state, “Mounted a difficulty the place Net Search at all times opened Microsoft Edge as a substitute of the person’s default browser on Home windows 11 24H2 and later.”

What’s Home windows Command Palette?

You may run instructions and open apps shortly

Should you’re unfamiliar with Command Palette, it is a newer, extra environment friendly model of PowerToys Run. The function provides a macOS-like Highlight search to your PC, making it straightforward to run instructions, discover recordsdata, open apps, or search the net shortly.

When you obtain PowerToys, you may open the Home windows Command Palette by urgent the Home windows Key + Alt + Spacebar. You may change this keybinding to one thing extra accessible within the PowerToys settings, positioned underneath System Instruments > Command Palette. If you open Command Palette, you may seek for something in your PC, and if you cannot discover it, you may conduct an online search, which can now use your default browser as a substitute of Edge robotically.

Along with fixing the Command Palette’s net search bug, the newest model of PowerToys consists of different updates for Command Palette, resembling improved efficiency, higher hotkey dealing with for a “smoother person expertise,” and enhanced visible readability “by styling essential context gadgets accurately.” If you would like to learn all of the PowerToys patch notes, yow will discover them on GitHub.

Microsoft PowerToys is on the market without spending a dime from the Microsoft Retailer. After putting in it in your Home windows 11 PC, you may unlock a wide range of useful productivity features, resembling file preview with Peek, multitasking with the At all times on Prime window instrument, choosing any coloration in your PC utilizing the Shade Picker utility, and notably the Command Palette, much like macOS’s Highlight. If you have not tried PowerToys but, I extremely advocate giving it a shot. You do not should be a developer or a Home windows professional to take pleasure in its distinctive options.

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These PowerToys instruments have boosted my productiveness on Home windows 11, and you must attempt them out too.