Microsoft has once again decided that your idle mouse isn’t doing enough, and your reading skills could use a gentle nitrous boost, unleashing a series of distinctive new features for Copilot+ PCs in the latest Windows 11 Preview. If you thought your PC couldn’t get any more helpful (or intrusive, depending on your point of view), strap in for a whimsical ride through reading coaches with digital red pens, distraction-free immersive readers, AI-powered cloud image search, and the unsung glory of custom voice access dictionaries.
Let’s be honest—nobody ever said, “I wish my context menu had fewer features.” Microsoft, in an admirable bid to fill even the smallest exposé of blank space in our workflow, is giving Copilot+ PCs a shiny new pair of Click to Do tricks:
The concept of getting feedback from a disembodied app on your reading fluency and pronunciation is both endearing and—let’s face it—prime meme fodder. Just imagine: “Your pronunciation of ‘supercalifragilisticexpialidocious’ gets a 6/10. Try again!” At least, in an age when in-person humiliation is less fashionable, we now have AI for that task.
Meanwhile, “Read with Immersive Reader” is Microsoft’s latest move to acknowledge that the modern world is wall-to-wall distractions (most of them involving notifications from other Microsoft products). Click this option, and boom—you’re in a pristine, customizable reading mode. Tweak your text size, spacing, fonts, background themes, and—if you’re determined to let your inner linguist out—have your nouns, verbs, and adjectives highlighted. You can even split up syllables for extra educational flair or let the app serenade you with text-to-speech.
On one hand, this is a victory for accessibility and lifelong learning. Reading Coach stands out for its combination of real-time feedback and individualized instruction, doing what most teachers wish was possible with large classes: every user, a one-on-one intervention. But therein lies the concealed risk—will users start measuring their self-esteem by how many words per minute a non-sentient machine can approve? And what of the inevitable frustration when the app corrects your accent or suggests yet again that “aluminum” is really “aluminium”?
IT administrators, parents, and those with an aversion to being corrected by artificial intelligences might want to keep an eye on this one. For the right user—especially language learners or people with dyslexia—this could be life-changing. For everyone else, expect your PC to act as the digital equivalent of that overeager friend correcting your grammar at dinner.
From the perspective of productivity, Immersive Reader is Microsoft’s existential answer to the question, “Can you actually finish a paragraph before your attention span evaporates?” By offering customizations for text size, spacing, and color schemes, plus the gentle reading of text aloud, this feature makes accessibility mainstream. Syllable splitting and grammatical highlights are clever touches too, though one wonders how long until marketers find a way to sneak in “Buy Now” buttons between your adjectives.
In a workplace, this could mean fewer excuses for misreading emails—no more blaming the font size for missing a deadline. For educators, it’s a chance to bring tailor-made reading environments to students. And for distracted adults, it might finally tip the scales and let them finish that three-paragraph memo.
On paper, it’s one of those “Why wasn’t this a thing already?” moments. Image search has long been the domain of the web, so bringing it to your personal files is a logical next step. The real world ramifications, though, are delicious: no more endless scrolling through vacation photos to find the one where Uncle Bert is photobombing the Eiffel Tower. For IT pros, it’s going to raise interesting questions about privacy, indexing, and just how much metadata Microsoft scrapes while pretending to be helpful.
One can easily imagine office scenarios turning into “search the boss’s cloud” competitions to find that vital screenshot. The lurking risk is for anyone whose “summer picnic” shots are less HR-friendly than they’d like to admit. For the forgetful, overworked, or simply disorganized, this is a winner. For privacy skeptics? Time to start naming your cloud files “DefinitelyNotWorkRelated.jpg.”
This staggered rollout is reminiscent of those school science experiments where only the front row got a whiff of the exciting chemicals. Microsoft promises AMD and Intel users won’t be left out forever, but for now, it’s a Snapdragon love-in. The subtext here: if you wanted software parity, perhaps you should have read the fine print before buying “just any old PC” for your fleet.
For IT professionals, this means a new era of feature fragmentation when deploying or supporting Windows 11 in the enterprise. The upside? You get to experience what mobile phone users have felt for years as Android updates meander ever so slowly to your particular model. The downside? More troubleshooting. Bonus points if someone pings you for why “Click to Do” is missing from their Intel ultrabook.
This matters. IT teams working in culturally and linguistically diverse environments know the frustration of dictation tools mangling local terms, product names, or even cutting-edge lingo (try getting “Copilot+” right on the first try). The ability to tune the dictionary elevates voice access from gimmick to practical tool, especially in industries where verbal communication is vital.
But, as with all things customizable, expect some creative mischief. Personal dictionaries will soon be full of inside jokes, acronyms, and, let’s face it, words that would make a sailor blush. At least now, your PC will understand you even if your colleagues don’t.
For the enterprise, these changes offer true productivity boosts and a subtle culture shift. Suddenly, “user enablement” means more than just resetting forgotten passwords—it’s about empowering users to read better, learn faster, and find files they lost last quarter. The introduction of cloud-based AI search and customizable dictionaries redefines what it means to “know where everything is” in modern digital workspaces.
Of course, the risks are palpable, too. A device that can correct your pronunciation, read your documents aloud, and search your private photo stash is a device to watch closely. Digital transformation always comes wrapped in privacy concerns, user training headaches, and countless “Why doesn’t mine do that?” tickets.
Such is the rhythm of Windows innovation: promise another layer of automation, drop a hint of AI flair, and leave the door ajar for future upgrades. For every feature that makes a teacher smile or a student learn a bit faster, there’s a system administrator somewhere scrambling to explain why only “some” users have it. And as we venture into this new era of Copilot-powered PCs, the big question looms: will our machines make us more competent readers and speakers, or simply even more reliant on their ever-watchful gaze?
In the meantime, may your Reading Coach be forgiving, your Immersive Reader extra-zen, and your AI photo searches never, ever return that picture from last year’s holiday party. Welcome to the new Windows, where there’s always another click to do.
Source: gHacks Technology News Microsoft unveils new Click to Do features for Copilot+ PCs - gHacks Tech News
Click to Do: Because Right-Click Menus Just Didn’t Have Enough Options
Let’s be honest—nobody ever said, “I wish my context menu had fewer features.” Microsoft, in an admirable bid to fill even the smallest exposé of blank space in our workflow, is giving Copilot+ PCs a shiny new pair of Click to Do tricks:- Practice in Reading Coach
- Read with Immersive Reader
The concept of getting feedback from a disembodied app on your reading fluency and pronunciation is both endearing and—let’s face it—prime meme fodder. Just imagine: “Your pronunciation of ‘supercalifragilisticexpialidocious’ gets a 6/10. Try again!” At least, in an age when in-person humiliation is less fashionable, we now have AI for that task.
Meanwhile, “Read with Immersive Reader” is Microsoft’s latest move to acknowledge that the modern world is wall-to-wall distractions (most of them involving notifications from other Microsoft products). Click this option, and boom—you’re in a pristine, customizable reading mode. Tweak your text size, spacing, fonts, background themes, and—if you’re determined to let your inner linguist out—have your nouns, verbs, and adjectives highlighted. You can even split up syllables for extra educational flair or let the app serenade you with text-to-speech.
Reading Coaches: Bringing the Red Pen to the Digital Age
Microsoft’s Reading Coach doesn’t just want to see if you can read; it wants to make you better. As if spelling bees and awkward school memory aren’t enough, now your PC will gently nudge you towards literary prowess. The Copilot+ integration means this experience is both personalized and relentless.On one hand, this is a victory for accessibility and lifelong learning. Reading Coach stands out for its combination of real-time feedback and individualized instruction, doing what most teachers wish was possible with large classes: every user, a one-on-one intervention. But therein lies the concealed risk—will users start measuring their self-esteem by how many words per minute a non-sentient machine can approve? And what of the inevitable frustration when the app corrects your accent or suggests yet again that “aluminum” is really “aluminium”?
IT administrators, parents, and those with an aversion to being corrected by artificial intelligences might want to keep an eye on this one. For the right user—especially language learners or people with dyslexia—this could be life-changing. For everyone else, expect your PC to act as the digital equivalent of that overeager friend correcting your grammar at dinner.
Immersive Reader: Zen Mode for the Text-Addled
Decrying distraction while causing notifications is the paradox of modern computing. Immersive Reader, though, is genuinely a breath of digital fresh air. By stripping away the background noise of windows, pop-ups, and social-media sidebars, Microsoft invites users to actually focus on…well, reading.From the perspective of productivity, Immersive Reader is Microsoft’s existential answer to the question, “Can you actually finish a paragraph before your attention span evaporates?” By offering customizations for text size, spacing, and color schemes, plus the gentle reading of text aloud, this feature makes accessibility mainstream. Syllable splitting and grammatical highlights are clever touches too, though one wonders how long until marketers find a way to sneak in “Buy Now” buttons between your adjectives.
In a workplace, this could mean fewer excuses for misreading emails—no more blaming the font size for missing a deadline. For educators, it’s a chance to bring tailor-made reading environments to students. And for distracted adults, it might finally tip the scales and let them finish that three-paragraph memo.
AI Image Search: The Future of “Where Did I Put That Meme?”
Now for the bit that truly sounds like science fiction: users in the European Economic Area can now search for images they’ve saved to the cloud using natural language—directly from Windows Search. Just type “European castles” or “summer picnics,” and AI will ferret through your files to find the matching images.On paper, it’s one of those “Why wasn’t this a thing already?” moments. Image search has long been the domain of the web, so bringing it to your personal files is a logical next step. The real world ramifications, though, are delicious: no more endless scrolling through vacation photos to find the one where Uncle Bert is photobombing the Eiffel Tower. For IT pros, it’s going to raise interesting questions about privacy, indexing, and just how much metadata Microsoft scrapes while pretending to be helpful.
One can easily imagine office scenarios turning into “search the boss’s cloud” competitions to find that vital screenshot. The lurking risk is for anyone whose “summer picnic” shots are less HR-friendly than they’d like to admit. For the forgetful, overworked, or simply disorganized, this is a winner. For privacy skeptics? Time to start naming your cloud files “DefinitelyNotWorkRelated.jpg.”
Who Gets the Goodies First? Snapdragon, You’re Up
Here’s a classic Redmond move—release an exciting new feature, but only to a select few. This time, it’s Snapdragon-based Copilot+ PCs that get first dibs, with AMD and Intel users left tapping their touchpads in anticipation.This staggered rollout is reminiscent of those school science experiments where only the front row got a whiff of the exciting chemicals. Microsoft promises AMD and Intel users won’t be left out forever, but for now, it’s a Snapdragon love-in. The subtext here: if you wanted software parity, perhaps you should have read the fine print before buying “just any old PC” for your fleet.
For IT professionals, this means a new era of feature fragmentation when deploying or supporting Windows 11 in the enterprise. The upside? You get to experience what mobile phone users have felt for years as Android updates meander ever so slowly to your particular model. The downside? More troubleshooting. Bonus points if someone pings you for why “Click to Do” is missing from their Intel ultrabook.
Voice Access: Let’s Get Personal (With Your Dictionary)
Buried in the update is a quietly powerful enhancement—users can now add custom words to the voice access dictionary, improving accuracy for voice recognition. It seems minor, but for anyone uttering names that aren’t “John” or “Mary” (read: 99% of the world), it’s a godsend.This matters. IT teams working in culturally and linguistically diverse environments know the frustration of dictation tools mangling local terms, product names, or even cutting-edge lingo (try getting “Copilot+” right on the first try). The ability to tune the dictionary elevates voice access from gimmick to practical tool, especially in industries where verbal communication is vital.
But, as with all things customizable, expect some creative mischief. Personal dictionaries will soon be full of inside jokes, acronyms, and, let’s face it, words that would make a sailor blush. At least now, your PC will understand you even if your colleagues don’t.
The Bigger Picture: Accessibility, AI—and a Few More Notifications
Let’s zoom out for a moment. What Microsoft is signaling here is a consistent march toward AI-infused, ever-more-accessible computing. These Click to Do enhancements, like the Reading Coach and Immersive Reader, are clearly aimed at leveling the playing field for users with different needs, learning styles, and life stages.For the enterprise, these changes offer true productivity boosts and a subtle culture shift. Suddenly, “user enablement” means more than just resetting forgotten passwords—it’s about empowering users to read better, learn faster, and find files they lost last quarter. The introduction of cloud-based AI search and customizable dictionaries redefines what it means to “know where everything is” in modern digital workspaces.
Of course, the risks are palpable, too. A device that can correct your pronunciation, read your documents aloud, and search your private photo stash is a device to watch closely. Digital transformation always comes wrapped in privacy concerns, user training headaches, and countless “Why doesn’t mine do that?” tickets.
Final Thoughts: The Road Ahead Is Contextual, Conversational, and Sometimes a Little Nosey
Microsoft’s Copilot+ enhancements are simultaneously overdue, surprising, and slightly unnerving. They represent a world where your PC isn’t just a tool, but a companion—ready to coach you, read to you, and dig through your digital closets. For IT professionals, they’re both a blessing (accessibility! productivity! engagement!) and a curse (rollout chaos, cross-platform inconsistency, privacy implications, did we mention more notifications?).Such is the rhythm of Windows innovation: promise another layer of automation, drop a hint of AI flair, and leave the door ajar for future upgrades. For every feature that makes a teacher smile or a student learn a bit faster, there’s a system administrator somewhere scrambling to explain why only “some” users have it. And as we venture into this new era of Copilot-powered PCs, the big question looms: will our machines make us more competent readers and speakers, or simply even more reliant on their ever-watchful gaze?
In the meantime, may your Reading Coach be forgiving, your Immersive Reader extra-zen, and your AI photo searches never, ever return that picture from last year’s holiday party. Welcome to the new Windows, where there’s always another click to do.
Source: gHacks Technology News Microsoft unveils new Click to Do features for Copilot+ PCs - gHacks Tech News
