Five years later, Windows 11 brings back the missing options (and more)

When Windows 11 launched in 2021, we really liked its refreshed look – the rounded corners and sleek menus were a nice change from the flat colors and hard corners of the Windows 8/10 era. But its changed function and Start menu came with several changes from Windows 10 versions. Some of these were quickly addressed; others continue to be delayed.

The new version of Windows Insider Preview that is released to testers includes a new update that fixes the long-term regression when testing new features.

Most importantly, the Windows 11 taskbar can now be positioned at the edge of your window, including left and right, something that was possible in Windows 10 (and many older versions of Windows) but has been missing in Windows 11 since its launch. Users can change the behavior a little differently for each function – if you want to put a different icon or left/right icon above the up/down button, or if you want different settings for fonts and groups of icons, you can choose different options for each location and Windows will remember them.

Microsoft says there are a few things that aren’t perfect yet – the touchpad can’t be hidden in any other position, and the “optimized desktop” with large icons, fingertip gestures and gaps isn’t supported. Touching with the search box doesn’t work anymore. All this is coming at a later time; they are not ready now. Microsoft is “evaluating additional features such as different taskbar positions on the monitor” in the implementation of the monitor.