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By Steven P.
How to force News and Interests to use your default browser
by Steven Parker
Microsoft is going to start rolling out the News and Interests widget that appears in the Windows 10 task bar for everyone on version 1909 or later from next month's Patch Tuesday's update. Although we already have an article on how you can disable it if you think "this is not for me, be gone!", there are other people who love such things, like easy access to a customized feed of news and interests.
However, the popup widget works like most other app links within Windows, it completely ignores default browser choice. In this article we are going to help you ensure that the links in the News and Interest widget open in your default browser.
It requires a third party app called EdgeDeflector, so you have to be okay with installing that. I personally have used it for years when my default browser was Chrome.
Download the latest EdgeDeflector_install.exe from the Releases page on GitHub, Install it by choosing Yes at the User Account Control prompt, Go to All settings > Apps > Default apps, Scroll to the bottom and click Choose default apps by protocol, Locate MICROSOFT-EDGE in the list and click on the program icon to the right of it, Select EdgeDeflector from the list. Confirm the change if asked to. The above process is also detailed here, which also lets you reverse the above steps, if needed.
You can only select Microsoft Edge browser or EdgeDeflector for the MICROSOFT-EDGE protocol.
Now, as can be seen above, whenever you click a link in the News and Interest widget it will open in your default browser. This is also the case for any other links throughout Windows 10, such as Windows features like the Cortana assistant and built-in help links that normally totally ignore your default browser choice.
Just to be clear, you will not need all of the above if your default browser choice is already Edge, this is for people who prefer to use Chrome, Firefox, or some other browser like Opera, Brave or Vivaldi.
To roll back, you just need to uninstall EdgeDeflector, but if you find that links suddenly no longer open at all, you will need to ensure that MICROSOFT-EDGE in Choose default apps by protocol is set back to Microsoft Edge.
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By indospot
Windows Package Manager 0.3 lets you export and import package lists, upgrade packages
by João Carrasqueira
Microsoft has released a new version of Windows Package Manager - or winget - for users trying out the preview. This update brings it to version 0.3, and it includes a handful of useful additions, most notably the ability to export a list of your installed packages, as well as the ability to import a list so you can quickly set up all your apps in a new PC or installation.
Interestingly, the export feature is considered experimental, while the import feature is already enabled by default. To enable the export feature, you'll need to execute the winget settings command and add this to the JSON file that opens:
"experimentalFeatures": { "export": true }, Once enabled, you can export your current list of installed packages into a JSON file, using the winget export [filename].json command, replacing [filename] with whatever name you prefer for the file. Then, you can copy that file to another machine and import it using the winget import [filename].json command, and winget will automatically install all the packages on the list.
Another new feature in this release is support for group policy management, meaning IT admins can manage the use of Windows Package Manager. You'll need to import the policies from an .admx and .adml file, both of which are provided in the releases page on GitHub.
Aside from those features, almost everything in this release is still considered experimental, but there are some noteworthy additions all the same. To enable each experimental feature, you'll need to add them to the JSON file as we described above for the export feature.
First, there's the list feature, which lists all the installed packages on your PC, including packages from the Microsoft Store and any apps you may have installed through other methods. Once enabled, you can use this by simply executing winget list. The export feature mentioned above will try to export all of these packages, too, but because a lot of them aren't on the winget repository, you'll see a lot of errors.
Next up is upgrade, which does exactly what you'd expect. It's a quicker way to update your installed packages, and it's used by running the winget upgrade [package name] command. Finally, there's a an uninstall feature that was announced earlier this year, which works the same way, and in this case, it doesn't even matter how you initially installed the app, winget will still remove it.
You can find a list of all the configuration names you need to add for each of the experimental features available on this page.
Looking forward, the Windows Package Manager team says its focus is going to be on highly-requested features, which right now include support for installing zip files, package dependencies, and native PowerShell support. The team is still working towards the first major release, version 1.0, and we can probably expect most of this to be added by then, though it's unclear when that will happen. If you're interested in trying out the preview, you can download it from GitHub or sign up for the Windows Package Manage Insider program, so you get updates for it through the Microsoft Store (through the App Installer listing). If you're running a Windows Insider build, you'll already be getting these updates, too.
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By anmol112
How to turn off the News and Interest widget on taskbar in Windows 10
by Anmol Mehrotra
Last night, Microsoft officially announced that it will be rolling out News and Interest to Windows 10 users in the coming weeks.
In case you don't remember, Microsoft officially announced News and Interest in January 2021. The feature was later rolled out to Windows Insiders in Dev channel. It is essentially a news feed that sits on your taskbar and lets you access news headlines, weather information, watchlists, and sports updates. However, if you are not interested in using it, then you can easily turn it off by following the steps below:
Right-click anywhere on the taskbar on Windows 10 Click or hover over News and Interests Click on 'turn off' to hide the News and Interest widget Apart from turning off the widget, Microsoft also provides some handy options to customize the widget. The options include reducing the widget size to just an icon, thereby hiding the weather information. The company also allow users to reduce taskbar updates as well as disable 'Open on hover' which will require users to click on the icon to open the widget. Lastly, users can also choose news sources so they can follow their favourite media outlets.
Microsoft will also allow organizations to control the News and Interest feature. Organization admins can open Group Policy and navigate to "Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > News and interests > Enable news and interests on the taskbar" in order to enable or disable the News and Interest widget.
Microsoft has confirmed that News and Interest will be an ad-free experience, and that it's going to evolve over time based on user feedback.
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By Usama Jawad96
Sony still in talks with Microsoft, but cloud strategy to be 'only on PlayStation'
by Usama Jawad
The cloud is the next frontier which tech giants such as Microsoft, Sony, Google, and Amazon seem to be interested in conquering. Microsoft and Sony even signed a strategic partnership back in 2019, which included the use of Azure, AI solutions, and more for content streaming. The deal caught many by surprise given the firms' rivalry in gaming but nothing tangible has emerged so far.
Now, PlayStation boss Jim Ryan has confirmed that Sony is still collaborating with Microsoft, but its cloud strategy will be solely about the PlayStation.
In an interview with Nikkei (paywall, Japanese, translated by VGC), Jim Ryan went on to say that:
The statement is vague enough to be open to anyone's interpretation. To us, it seems like Sony will use Microsoft's Azure-based infrastructure for technical tooling, but at the end of the day, the solution will solely be for the benefit of PlayStation gamers rather than a cross-platform audience. Of course, plans like these can change anytime.
When asked about the future of cloud gaming and its potential to disrupt console release cycles, Ryan emphasized that "history shows that sales peak in the third or fourth year. At the end of the cycle, the cloud may play some role." When it came to the question about whether the PlayStation 5 will be the last console from Sony, Ryan understandably did not give a straightforward answer and stated that the company is currently evaluating how gamers are enjoying the console, and only after its own investigation is complete will it be able to "think about the future of PlayStation".
Importantly, Sony did boost its PlayStation Now infrastructure recently with support for 1080p gaming, so the firm is definitely interested in the potential of the cloud. That said, only time will tell whether it is ready to go all-in on its cloud strategy, whatever that may end up being.
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By Jay Bonggolto
Microsoft is rolling out News and Interests on the Windows taskbar in the coming weeks
by Jay Bonggolto
Earlier this year, Microsoft began testing a new feature on the Windows taskbar with Windows Insiders on the Dev channel. It's called News and Interests, which is basically a widget where you can glance at personalized content including weather updates and the latest news based on your interests.
Today, Microsoft announced that it's rolling out the new feature to some consumers over the next few weeks. A wider rollout is also scheduled in the coming months. The feature allows you to quickly gain access to news, sports, traffic, and stocks from various sources. And if you hover over the weather icon, you'll see the latest weather info in your area without having to open your browser or launch an app.
The widget sits in the taskbar and it's automatically updated. This means all topics of interest to you will show up in the taskbar without you manually finding these pieces of information in disparate places.
You can also choose what type of information appears in the widget. To personalize your content, you can pick the topics you'd like to see or select the sources you trust. You can also adjust the weather update display type as either an icon only or an icon with text. There's an option, of course, to disable the icon.
Microsoft previously released improvements and fixes to the News and Interests widget as part of the Windows 10 Insider Preview build 21292 a few days after putting it to the test.
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