Microsoft is rolling out a fresh build of Windows 11 and it comes with new improvements

Microsoft has released a new preview build of Windows 11 (number 22000.100) which comes with a number of new features and bug fixes. This new build aims to improve Windows 11’s stability and has been made available to members of the Microsoft Insider Program on the Dev Channel (Early Access). For starters, developers have started implementing the Chat application that is built on the basis of Microsoft Teams and is located in the taskbar. This is currently available to only a limited number of insiders and it is going to be gradually expanded as testing progresses.

Developers have also started updating the appearance of the pop-up menu of hidden icons that are located in the lower right corner of the taskbar. This feature helps make the menu look more consistent with the overall design of Windows 11’s user interface. Now, the design of the menu will not always change after an upgrade and in some cases, you might need to change the skin for the pop-up menu to get the new look.

With this new firmware, access to the “Focus to Attention” function settings have been simplified and you can now access them directly through the “Notification Center”. Additionally, when the background activity of an application requires your attention, the icon on the taskbar is going to flash. The action of this “attention-grabbing” tool has changed and the flashing automatically stops after a while. However, the concerned icon will remain highlighted till the user does not click on it and checks what needs to be done.

Devs have also adjusted the touch keyboard icon on the taskbar to make it match better in size with the other elements. The Calendar pop-up menu on the taskbar, with the new firmware, now completely collapses when you click on the corresponding button on top. This frees up additional space for notifications.

In the current version of the Microsoft Store for Insiders, navigation has been improved and animated for easier tracking of the content that is being viewed. Besides this, developers have brought in a lot of other fixes that aren’t so visible. They have fixed a bug that was making the explorer crash, and have also fixed the “Date and Time” feature under “Focus to Attention” that was previously not working. Devs have also fixed an issue that was causing the clock on the taskbar to periodically freeze and not sync correctly with the network time. Missing icons for the context menu that appears when you right-click on the network icon in the taskbar have also been added.