Most Absurd Windows 11 Quirks

My candidate is the new File Explorer context menu and the lack of a GUI Settings or Control Panel\File Explorer setting to revert to the traditional context menu. Especially when all that’s needed to make this change is documented at https: // www-dot-sordum-dot-org / 14479 / windows-11-classic-context-menu-v1-0 / (Forum doesn’t like urls).

Conversation 13 comments

  • erichk

    Premium Member
    30 October, 2021 - 11:53 am

    <p>The simplification of the area at the top that used to be the ribbon is what confused me at first. That and the fact that if you want to open up a new instance, I have to right-click the File Explorer icon in the taskbar and choose … wait for it … "File Explorer" from *that* context menu. :)</p><p><br></p><p>Unless somebody knows of a better way.</p><p><br></p><p>I had another issue after I upgraded: Chrome notifications for new YouTube videos, when clicked on, would lead me to a 404 Not Found page. That seems to have fixed itself.</p><p><br></p><p>But then, an issue I had *prior* to upgrading fixed itself: In Windows 10, before I got to the PIN sign-on screen, there would be about a 20 second delay. Just total darkness. Now it goes to the lock screen instantly.</p>

    • hrlngrv

      Premium Member
      01 November, 2021 - 2:13 am

      <p>| <em>Unless somebody knows of a better way.</em></p><p><br></p><p>Keep pressing [Win]+E. Especially in Windows 11, the keyboard is your friend.</p>

      • erichk

        Premium Member
        01 November, 2021 - 10:56 am

        <p>Ah yes! I wasn’t aware of that shortcut. Thank you.</p>

  • simont

    Premium Member
    30 October, 2021 - 12:52 pm

    <p>Applies to Windows 10 as well, but when you setup Windows, you tell it what region are you in, but Windows still defaults back to Pacific Standard Time</p>

  • StevenLayton

    30 October, 2021 - 4:00 pm

    <p>Please, please, please someone mention the minimum specs. I feel like it’s not been mentioned enough ;)</p>

  • polloloco51

    30 October, 2021 - 6:55 pm

    <p>Windows 11 is like, a popular restaurant you see driving everyday.</p><p><br></p><p>You go in, it’s minimalistic, expensive, tiny proportions and disappointing. </p><p><br></p><p>Windows 11 honestly, isn’t worth upgrading to, currently. The UI is a step backwards from Windows 10, in many respects. Especially, the dumbed down start menu, "show more" right click context menus, removed right click taskbar menu, and the strange default centered icons. </p><p><br></p><p>I actually like, Windows 10, much more than 11! Hopefully, Microsoft listens to feedback from users for future Windows 1UI changes. </p>

    • rob_segal

      Premium Member
      30 October, 2021 - 10:38 pm

      <p>For some people, Windows 11 is closer to what they want than Windows 10 is and for them, it’s well worth the upgrade. I’m looking for a capable OS that is simple and consistent. Windows 11 is closer to that than Windows 10 is. There is still more work to do to make Windows a consistent and simple experience. It’s not at a point to make me regret moving to MacOS, but it could get there in the years to come.</p>

      • polloloco51

        31 October, 2021 - 8:39 am

        <p>Windows 11, is further away from Windows 8 in design. For that, it is a really nice thing.</p><p><br></p><p>There are still, alot of things that could use refining and polishing up still. Microsoft should definitely, bring back the taskbar right click menu (w/ task manager), and change the show more context menus too.</p><p><br></p><p>Windows 11 is definitely more polished than previous releases. It still has ways to go! </p><p><br></p><p>I feel Windows 11 could have just been an feature update to Windows 10. There is nothing truly enormously compelling in it’s present state. Enough so to warrant a clean install. </p><p><br></p><p><br></p>

        • rob_segal

          Premium Member
          01 November, 2021 - 11:29 am

          <p>If something looks different that the new design language Microsoft is using for the new Windows 11 UX, it should be updated. This should include things like more uniformity in font sizes. If there is a right click menu that isn’t consistent with the one Microsoft introduced in Windows 11, it has to change. If something doesn’t respect dark mode, that has to change. If there are in-box utilities or applications that don’t use modern UI elements and layouts, those have to be updated. That should be the goal. It’s an impossible goal, but one that would accomplish the most.</p>

      • hrlngrv

        Premium Member
        01 November, 2021 - 2:25 am

        <p>Be more precise in what you mean by <em>consistent</em>.</p><p><br></p><p>Anyone using, say, 15-year-old freeware that’s was developed using Delphi will <strong><em>never</em></strong> appear consistent with any version of Windows (and it wasn’t <em>consistent</em> running under either Windows XP or Vista back when it was new either). Same is true for FOSS using Qt or Gtk: it’ll be consistent in terms of looking the same under Windows and Linux, but it’s not going to look consistent with, say, MS Office or even Notepad.</p><p><br></p><p>If you mean everything bundled with Windows should look the same, I figure that’s simply isn’t going to happen with whatever remains in Control Panel (which will remain as long as there are significant numbers of users using OLD peripheral hardware which only has .CPL configuration applets, especially modems in those parts of the world in which dial-up networking remains common). I’d be willing to bet you there’ll be no significant changes to Windows dial-up networking in Windows 11 by the time Windows 10 reaches EOS. I suspect the Microsoft Management Console will also remain free of change for consistency’s sake. I doubt anyone’s going to touch EUDCEDIT either.</p><p><br></p><p>The greatest scope for consistency is likely to be making Notepad, Paint, Wordpad and Task Manager fully respect dark theme.</p>

        • rob_segal

          Premium Member
          01 November, 2021 - 11:22 am

          <p>One can look at macOS and understand what I mean by consistent. A common design language and vision throughout the operating system and all of its applications. A design language that is consistent across most 3rd party apps. UI elements that are the same across the OS and apps. Even looking at font sizes Apple chooses for macOS, you can tell thought was put there. Dark mode is everywhere, even in every utility. So much so, that all websites should abide by light/dark mode system settings and I’m going to push that at my job. A website that doesn’t have dark mode sticks out so much because of the details put into the operating system.</p><p><br></p><p>Windows 11 is a positive step forward in creating consistency across the system. Unfortunately, this has been ignored for so long, it’s become a daunting task. Using Microsoft services in MacOS is a great user experience and Windows may not get to the point to convince me to switch back.</p>

          • hrlngrv

            Premium Member
            02 November, 2021 - 5:51 pm

            <p>| <em>all of its applications</em></p><p><br></p><p>I don’t use Macs. My wife has an old one (gotta be over 10 years old), but it may not be representative of the latest macOS. At the very least, Firefox on that Mac looks more like Firefox under Windows or Linux than it does like Safari. I figure any FOSS based on Qt or Gtk would be similarly <em>inconsistent</em>.</p><p><br></p><p>Since I don’t use Macs, I pay no attention to how much FOSS is used on Macs. OTOH, I have a much better idea of the amount of FOSS, old shareware and abandonware used under Windows, and it’s a fair amount. Little of it is EVER going to use a single, Windows-only design language. I want RStudio and GNU R to look and work the same under Windows and Linux <strong><em>a lot more</em></strong> than I want RStudio to look like Settings or GNU R to work like Powershell under Windows.</p><p><br></p><p>That said, it’d be a very good thing if ALL Windows applications used the same Open and Save As dialogs, and MSFT would do well either to make Office use the same dialogs as Notepad, or provide the Office dialogs <strong><em>as defaults</em></strong> for any Visual Studio project.</p><p><br></p><p>Tangent: should individual applications include options to ignore system theme settings? Serious question. If so, should such idiosyncrasies be held against the OS? </p>

            • rob_segal

              Premium Member
              02 November, 2021 - 10:31 pm

              <p>In a consistent OS, if a 3rd party individual app ignores system theme settings or system UI conventions, it will stick out to the point where users will request the app is updated to match the user experience and system theme of the OS. An app setting to ignore system theme settings would not be well-received or used.</p><p><br></p><p>MacOS apps should work a certain way because the OS and first-party apps work a certain way. Everything is much more consistent, so when I see Edge using right-click menus that look more like a Windows menu than a macOS menu, it really sticks out and I don’t want to use it. On Windows, with no consistency, even with Microsoft’s own apps, it’s easier to just gloss over and ignore. There is no consistent UI element design, menu layout, or user experience to follow. That should be held against the OS. The OS and all its first-party apps should be consistent. Then, third-party apps will follow. Users will begin to expect third-party apps to follow.</p>

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