Beta Channel Just Gets Windows 11 Bug Fixes

With the Windows Insider moving on to Windows 11 2.0, the Beta channel is stuck with testing some bug fixes as we march towards the initial release of Windows 11 1.0 on October 5.

Oh, and a curiously pandering explanation of how to remove the Search, Task View, Widgets and Chat icons from the taskbar now that the taskbar context menu has been hobbled to single item, “Taskbar settings.” Hint: You can do this now from Taskbar settings. Go figure.

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Let’s be honest here. Neither of these things—the list of bug fixes nor the explanation—is of any interest. But I think we’ve learned something today. And that’s that Windows 11 1.0, for lack of a better term, is “done,” and that we’re just a few series of bug fixes away from this thing heading out to PC makers.

Tied to that, a bit of speculation: Microsoft is not unexpectedly moving forward with the next release of Windows 11, 2.0 for lack of a better term, and this may really just be a series of cumulative updates that will release over time before next October. As always, I guess we’ll see what happens. Since Microsoft never explains itself clearly, at least when it comes to Windows.

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Conversation 10 comments

  • lvthunder

    Premium Member
    02 September, 2021 - 2:13 pm

    <p>I wouldn’t call it being stuck testing some bug fixes. I’d call it the channel that is getting the product ready to ship. No one is stuck. You can always join dev to get the new stuff.</p>

  • bart

    Premium Member
    02 September, 2021 - 2:24 pm

    <p>Microsoft has never used Cumulative Updates to get to the next branch / big update, right? What makes you speculate about this Paul?</p>

  • Aaron44126

    02 September, 2021 - 2:36 pm

    <p>Microsoft has explicitly stated that multiple versions of Windows 11 will be supported simultaneously (2 years from launch for Home/Pro, 3 years from launch for Ent/Edu), so Windows 11 "2.0" as you call it will not be delivered as a cumulative update or a series of them.</p><p><br></p><p>He may be suggesting that 22449 will be the base for the "next" version of Windows 11, and we will only see cumulative updates piled on 22449 over the course of the next year. I doubt that this will be the case. In Microsoft’s blog post they state that 22449 isn’t tied to any particular release of Windows 11. (Basically what they said for later Windows 10 dev channel builds.)</p><p><br></p><p>I’d prefer to call the next one Windows "11.1", as "11 2.0" doesn’t really make sense. 11 is the version number (sort of). 🙂 I wish they’d actually update the internal version number (seen in command prompt, browser user agent string, etc.).</p>

  • hrlngrv

    Premium Member
    02 September, 2021 - 2:51 pm

    <p>Isn’t clear communications with the public a firing offense among the Windows team?</p><p><br></p><p><em>If you have no way to obfuscate, say nothing at all.</em></p>

  • hrlngrv

    Premium Member
    02 September, 2021 - 8:56 pm

    <p>FWIW, 22000.176 is FUBAR. EXPLORER.EXE doesn’t function correctly. Store apps, including Settings, Calculator, Notepad, Paint can’t be launched. Autorun software doesn’t (either .LNK files in traditional Start menu Startup subdirectory or values under HKCU and HKLM Run keys). The only ways to run anything are using Task Manager to display the Run dialog ([Win]+R does nothing) or using a complete replacement desktop shell, and Cairo Desktop Environment is the only one I’ve found with works under Windows 11.</p><p><br></p><p>Yes, some instability is to be expected, but this is alpha-level instability.</p>

    • danmac

      Premium Member
      02 September, 2021 - 9:22 pm

      <p>I and a few others are having the same experience at the moment it’s sooo broken</p>

    • waynerobinson

      02 September, 2021 - 10:46 pm

      <p>Same. Empty taskbar. Nothing works. Rolled back to last build. Booted up OK but a few seconds later, it reverted to the "problem". Tom Warren posted a workaround on Twitter, just as I was downloading the ISO to do a clean install. Beautiful timing, Tom! CtrlAltDel to Go the task manager&gt;File&gt;Run:</p><p><br></p><p>timedate.cpl</p><p><br></p><p>Change the date to a week later. Reboot. All is good again. But, Jesus, guys!</p><p>(I’d love to know who figured that out, tho)</p>

    • trevorl

      Premium Member
      02 September, 2021 - 11:06 pm

      <p>No problems with .176 here.</p>

    • sentinel6671

      Premium Member
      03 September, 2021 - 12:37 am

      <p>Been working in .176 for a couple of hours this evening, since applying the update. Didn’t really stress it out, but had Edge open and did some work stuff in a remote desktop window to my office PC. Opened a few of the apps you flagged and for me they were fine. Certainly not experience the generall "Foobaridness" that you are. I’m in a VM though, not bare metal. Too bad, was going to make the leap and move to Win 11 on a secondary laptop. You’ve given me pause though…I think I’ll just wait till next month.</p>

  • thetsart

    03 September, 2021 - 3:14 am

    <p>I’m running Win 11 in Parallels on an M1 Mac. I just got the message mentioned in the last Windows Weekly about my device not meeting the minimum requirements and needing to go back to 10. (I never even tried to get 11, I just restarted one day and I had it.) I’ve listened to WW again, I still don’t understand what to do, and if that even applies to the ARM version. I’m still getting updates for 11. I was hoping they would release 11 on ARM for sale eventually, I wanted to buy, but I guess that idea is out the window now too.</p>

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