7 ways to make Windows 11 less annoying

tigerwillow1

Known around here
Jul 18, 2016
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10,944
USA, Oregon
Seven of many reasons why I use windows 7 and linux.

"Increasingly, Microsoft is treating Windows as a giant billboard where it can promote and cross-sell other products."
"Adoption of Windows 11 will both provide better experiences for users and monetize our applications and services more effectively. We have significant room to improve the adoption and monetization of key high-value services on Windows PCs"

1. Silence account notifications
2. Turn off OneDrive backup
3. Uninstall third-party app shortcuts
4. Turn off recommendations
5. Hide ads in Microsoft Edge
6. Remove ads from the Widgets feed
7. Hide Windows Copilot
 
One annoying thing I have found with WIN11 has to do with downloading photos from my iPhone.

I recently replaced my old laptop with WIN10 on it to one with WIM11 on it. I take a few photos with my iPhone 12 (IOS 17.3.1) and connect it to the laptop via USB/lightning cable. The laptop will then bring up a File Explorer window and I can navigate to the folder with the new photos I want to download. I open up a second File Explorer window with the destination folder open. I then drag and drop the new photos from the iPhone to the laptop folder.

Now here is where the WIN11 problem happens.

On the old WIN10 laptop, the files come over as JPEG files, having the file extension of JPG, but on the WIN11 laptop, they come over as HEIC files with the extension of HEIC.

The problem is that not all applications recognize the HEIC files. One cannot even post them to online forums. The only workaround I have found is to open the file on the laptop with a picture app like One Photo Viewer and then save it as a JPG file. But that is a pain for lots of photos and duplicates each one.

Any ideas on how to just get them as JPGs like in WIN10?
 
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Windows 11 also has small Scrollbars...here is how to get larger Scrollbar sizes...


I found -330 is the sweet spot, well I read that it is the sweet spot :) it is the right size for me.

For Browsers look for Extensions/Add-Ons to change their Scrollbar size...

HTH
 
The MS giant billboard is the reason I converted to Mac many years ago. I paid a little more up front but no bloat and and no constant advertising. Also, no Copilot and Recall to spy on me (at least not yet). Macs aren't perfect. They do come with some widgets but they are only a couple and much easier to remove than MS.

Only Windows PC now is the one for Blue Iris. Really wish they would offer Linux.