performance

  1. Disable the Windows Copilot Button: Privacy, Performance, and Control in Windows 11

    Microsoft's Copilot button on the Windows 11 taskbar was designed to be a single, always-available gateway to AI assistance — but for a sizeable and vocal segment of Windows users, that convenience has become a nuisance, a privacy risk, and a reason to disable the feature entirely. Background...
  2. Xbox PC App Becomes an Aggregated Gaming Hub for Windows 11

    Microsoft has quietly reworked the Xbox app on Windows 11 into a genuine one‑stop hub for PC gaming, and the implications reach well beyond a refreshed launcher: the app now aggregates installed titles from multiple storefronts, lets you launch non‑Microsoft games without opening third‑party...
  3. Azure as a Single-Cloud AI Platform: PT Study on Performance, Cost, Governance

    A new Principled Technologies (PT) study—distributed as a press release via EIN Presswire and reported on partner channels—claims that adopting a single‑cloud approach for AI on Microsoft Azure can deliver measurable benefits in performance, manageability, and cost for enterprise AI projects...
  4. Windows 11 SCOOBE: Full-Screen Renewal Prompt in Insider Builds

    Microsoft’s latest Windows 11 Insider builds are shipping a new, full-screen renewal prompt aimed at lapsed Microsoft 365 subscriptions — an eye-catching SCOOBE (Second‑Chance Out‑of‑Box Experience) screen that insiders and early reports describe as a full‑screen nag to renew rather than a...
  5. Windows on Arm: 90% of user minutes in native apps signal maturity

    Microsoft’s claim that Arm-based Windows PCs now see most user minutes spent inside natively compiled apps marks a pivotal moment for the platform — a transition from compatibility-first survival to native-first performance and efficiency. Microsoft executives point to a figure that will shape...
  6. Gaming Copilot Beta: AI Assistant in Windows Game Bar for Play & Tips

    Microsoft has begun rolling out Gaming Copilot (Beta) to Windows PCs via the Xbox Game Bar, an in‑overlay AI assistant that promises real‑time, voice‑first help, screenshot‑aware guidance, achievement tracking, and personalized game recommendations — with mobile Xbox app support scheduled for...
  7. Gaming Copilot in Windows 11 Game Bar: Microsoft's AI Coach for Xbox Insiders

    Microsoft has quietly folded an AI coach into the Windows 11 Game Bar: Gaming Copilot (branded as Xbox Copilot in some builds) is rolling out to Xbox Insiders now, promising voice, screenshot and context-aware help without leaving the game — and the early beta exposes both a practical leap in...
  8. Windows 11 Widgets: Quick Guide to Add, Customize, and Use

    Windows 11’s Widgets board is an underused but powerful way to surface the information you need without opening full apps — and adding, customizing, or removing widgets is straightforward once you know where to look and what to expect. This guide distills the practical steps for adding and...
  9. VLink Earns Microsoft Solutions Partner for Digital & App Innovation (Azure)

    VLink today announced it has achieved the Microsoft Solutions Partner designation for Digital & App Innovation (Azure) — a formal recognition that positions the company as a validated provider of cloud-native application development, application modernization, and DevOps-led delivery on...
  10. Five Windows 11 Defaults to Disable for Privacy, Performance & Focus

    If you just unboxed a new Windows 11 laptop, there are five settings you should consider turning off right away to tighten privacy, reduce distractions, and reclaim background resources for the tasks that matter most. Background / Overview Windows 11 ships with a range of convenience features...
  11. GPU-Accelerated D3D12 Encoding in Chrome and Edge on Windows 11

    Google’s Chromium team is rolling out support for Windows 11’s Direct3D 12 (D3D12) video encoding path to Chrome and Microsoft Edge, a change that shifts real‑time video encoding for browser-based calls and screen sharing from the CPU to the GPU — promising smoother video, lower CPU utilization...
  12. Google Labs Windows App: Floating Spotlight Search with Lens & AI

    Google’s experimental Windows app aims to remove the friction of switching windows to look something up — a floating, Spotlight‑like search bar you summon with Alt + Space that can search local files, installed apps, Google Drive, and the web, and that folds in Google Lens and the company’s AI...
  13. Windows 11 24H2 Throttling Explained: Why Windows 10 Feels Faster

    A programmer’s deep dive into Windows 11’s behavior has given a clear, if uncomfortable, explanation for why many users say Windows 10 still feels faster: aggressive background throttling tied to window focus and power-management policies on some hardware, combined with UX regressions in File...
  14. WSL2 vs Native Ubuntu on Windows 11 25H2: Real-World Performance

    Microsoft’s own preview of Windows 11 25H2 may ship as a tiny enablement package, but running Ubuntu under WSL2 on that same Windows build is not indistinguishable from a native Ubuntu install — Phoronix’s fresh tests show a measurable, workload-dependent performance cost that deserves close...
  15. 5 Windows 11 Settings to Disable Right After Setup for Privacy and Speed

    When you unbox a new Windows 11 laptop the out‑of‑the‑box experience is deliberately full‑featured — but many of the conveniences Microsoft enables by default trade away privacy, clarity, and system headroom. A short, safe checklist of five settings you should disable right after setup can...
  16. Why Microsoft Defender Antivirus Is the Practical Free Windows Security Stack

    Windows’ built‑in antivirus has quietly become the practical choice for millions of users, and the recent pushback against paid suites is no accident — the free Windows security stack now combines deep OS integration, modern cloud and AI detections, and targeted anti‑ransomware controls that...
  17. Speed Up Windows 11 by Taming Start Menu Recommendations and Ads

    Windows 11’s sleek redesign promised speed and simplicity — what many users didn’t bargain for was a steady stream of promotional content running inside the shell, quietly consuming cycles, network bandwidth, and attention. Recent reporting and large-scale user tests show Microsoft’s...
  18. Windows 11 23H2 Release Preview: Build 22631.5982 Reliability Fixes

    Microsoft has pushed Windows 11 Build 22631.5982 (KB5065790) to Insiders in the Release Preview Channel, delivering a broad set of reliability fixes and quality updates aimed at version 23H2 users and administrators. Background Windows Insider channels exist to stage changes before they reach...
  19. .NET 10 RC Go-Live: Enterprise-Grade Performance Without Code Changes

    Microsoft's .NET 10 has taken a major step toward general availability with the release of its first release candidate and a go‑live license, bringing production‑grade support to developers and signalling that upgrading to the upcoming Long‑Term Support (LTS) platform is now a realistic option...
  20. WP Engine Launches Enterprise WordPress on Azure in Dubai for Data Residency

    WP Engine’s announcement that it is launching its enterprise platform in the United Arab Emirates — enabling customers across the Gulf to run managed WordPress workloads on Microsoft Azure in Dubai — is a material expansion for enterprise WordPress hosting in the region and a pragmatic answer to...