New Windows Insider Preview Build Brings Networking, Calculator Improvements

A new Windows Insider Preview build for the Fast ring (20H1) brings improvements to Network settings and the Calculator app.

“Today we’re releasing Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 18956 (20H1) to Windows Insiders in the Fast ring,” the Microsoft announcement notes.

Windows Intelligence In Your Inbox

Sign up for our new free newsletter to get three time-saving tips each Friday — and get free copies of Paul Thurrott's Windows 11 and Windows 10 Field Guides (normally $9.99) as a special welcome gift!

"*" indicates required fields

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Build 18956 includes the following changes:

Redesigned Network status page in Settings. The revamped Network status page provides more information about the PC’s connectivity, combining data from several pages to provide one clear view of how you are connected to the internet. Among the changes is an integrated data usage display for each network connection which looks particularly useful.

Calculator updates. The Calculator app now offers an Always on Top display mode.

Traditional Chinese IME improvements. The traditional Chinese Input Method Editor (IME) offers functional and performance improvements.

Notification settings improvements. Announced for a previous build, these changes are now rolling out to all Fast ring users.

New Cortana experience. Also announced for a previous build, the new Cortana experience is now available to half of all Fast ring users using US English.

Share post

Please check our Community Guidelines before commenting

Conversation 9 comments

  • wbhite

    Premium Member
    07 August, 2019 - 2:57 pm

    <p>I'm sure I've read an explanation for this before, but why would app updates (e.g. Calculator) need to be part of the wider Insider program? I understand why for large-scale app changes, but why would an "always on top" enhancement ever be consider beta and not just rollout to everyone immediately?</p>

    • jimchamplin

      Premium Member
      07 August, 2019 - 3:53 pm

      <blockquote><em><a href="#447892">In reply to wbhite:</a></em></blockquote><p>Just that the build is shipping with a new version in the image. </p>

  • jchampeau

    Premium Member
    07 August, 2019 - 3:44 pm

    <p>Are there networking improvements or just a redesigned network status page?</p>

  • hrlngrv

    Premium Member
    07 August, 2019 - 5:41 pm

    <p>At the risk of seeming a Luddite, what's the advantage of an always on top calculator? I may be the wrong person to see any benefits from this since I usually have both Excel and GNU R running all day at work. The only thing I use the Calculator app for is hexadecimal calculations (Excel is way too limited in that regard).</p>

  • wright_is

    Premium Member
    08 August, 2019 - 8:55 am

    <p>I'm hoping they have sorted out the new settings pages, I've lost count of the PCs where I, as an administrator, don't have the rights to open the network properties from the settings page, yet open the old control panel and you can open the adapter settings.</p><p>The same goes for adding/removing printers and other devices and removing apps, often I'll click on remove app and it'll tell me I don't have the privileges to remove, again, open the Software (Add/Remove Programs?) control panel page and I can remove it.</p><p>On other machines it all just works. Very frustrating, but at least the old method is there, for when the new settings pages are borked.</p>

    • siv

      10 August, 2019 - 4:26 pm

      <blockquote><em><a href="#448059">In reply to wright_is:</a></em></blockquote><p>I wish they would make the option to change the network status from Public to Private on that first page, I don't know why they make it so difficult to change this as it seems to happen a lot where you have some kind of networking glitch and then users start moaning that they can't connect to shares and other stuff and you find that the domain has been lost and it's gone to some random public network? At least in the new settings as opposed to Control panel when you figure out where they have buried it you can change it with a few clicks. To me it should be on the main page. If they are worried about end users exposing themselves on public Wi-Fi why not put some warning up saying if you make this network private then your may expose your files to other people on the network.</p>

Windows Intelligence In Your Inbox

Sign up for our new free newsletter to get three time-saving tips each Friday

"*" indicates required fields

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Thurrott © 2024 Thurrott LLC