Windows power users, PC builders, and admins have a new tool at their disposal that makes it easy to restore a PC after reinstalling Windows or setting up a new PC. The app, called Endstate, streamlines the process of reinstalling applications and can also restore your settings and preferences within supported apps.

Endstate is a free app designed for Windows, though Linux and macOS support are on the way. You can grab Endstate through GitHub.

I spoke with the developer of Endstate to better understand where the app is now and where it could evolve in the future.

Endstate uses WinGet and Chocolatey, which allow it to install a massive library of applications available across those package managers. But the real standout feature is that Endstate can capture the settings of your app into a zip file to make restoration simple.

When you reinstall Windows or set up a new PC, you have to install your required apps as well. A package manager like Chocolatey or WinGet can streamline that process, but the restored applications will be set to their factory defaults. All the toggles and settings you spent time customizing are reset to their base state.

Endstate supports settings restoration on 357 apps right now. Among those supported are some big-name apps such as MSI Afterburner, Adobe Lightroom Classic, VS Code, Windows Terminal, PowerToys, Git, Obsidian, OBS Studio, Notepad++ and ShareX.

Settings restoration is separate from app restoration. If an app is available through Chocolatey or WinGet but does not support settings restore, Endstate can still install the app.

Restoring settings is also done on a per-app basis.

You can use Endstate without an account and the app works offline.

Windows vs iOS and Android

Despite any Apple marketing campaigns about how many apps there are on iOS, Windows trounces all other operating systems when it comes to app selection. That is in part because everything from ancient programs to modern web apps works on Windows 11.

Because of the legacy support on Windows 11, we don't get all the benefits of modern applications on PCs. For example, any iOS or Android user may have read this article and been confused because saving and restoring app settings is commonplace on smartphones.

But on Windows 11, Endstate fills a notable gap. With only 357 apps that support settings restoration, Endstate has a ways to go before matching the native experience on iOS and Android, but it's still nice to see. I hope more app developers embrace Endstate and make it possible to save and restore settings.

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Microsoft Whiteboard will still be available after August 22, 2026, but you may not be able to use it. After that date, the app will require a Microsoft Business account. Users with personal accounts will still be able to view and export previously created content for a short time, but they will not be able to create or edit whiteboards. After September 5, 2026, personal users will have their content deleted.

The change is happening because Microsoft is moving storage for Microsoft Whiteboard to OneDrive for Business. That transition will also bring new features and other changes. A side effect is that people without a business account will be left out of the Whiteboard experience.

If you are signed into Microsoft Whiteboard with a personal account, you'll be met with the following message when you open the app:

"Microsoft Whiteboard for Microsoft account is being retired

Starting from August 22, 2026, you will no longer be able to create or edit whiteboards. However, you can continue to view and export them until September 5, 2026, after which they will be permanently deleted. Please export any whiteboards you'd like to keep."

Reddit user "DownhillHasASign" asked about the warning message and others were quick to clarify the situation.

Best Microsoft Whiteboard alternative on Windows 11

Earlier this year I took a closer look at Markerpad as an alternative to Microsoft Whiteboard. Markerpad is a lightweight app that's incredibly snappy.

Markerpad is a native application that feels more responsive than Microsoft's offering, but it comes with tradeoffs. The biggest one is that Markerpad is for local use. It does not support syncing to the web or online collaboration.

If you just want a whiteboard app for quick sketches or content you plan to share through another app, Markerpad is an excellent choice.

I need to test alternatives for Microsoft Whiteboard that support online collaboration. One of the most popular choices is Miro, though that app requires a monthly subscription to use more than three boards. I would appreciate suggestions for which apps to try, so please share in the comments.

Of course, if you're a business user you can continue to use Microsoft Whiteboard. It's a solid choice for those already in the Microsoft ecosystem and that have a Microsoft Business account.

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Microsoft will place another meeting feature behind a paywall. Outlook's Meeting Insight feature will be retired by early September 2026. After that date, meeting insights will not appear in event details and Outlook users will not see relevant files and emails brought up by Meeting Insight.

The replacement to Meeting Insight is the "Prepare for this meeting" experience. That feature summarizes relevant content for a meeting, such as tasks and documents.

According to Microsoft, the change is being made to "provide a more intelligent and context-aware meeting preparation experience." That may be true, but it comes with the side benefit to Microsoft of requiring a paid Microsoft 365 Copilot license.

Meeting Insight within Outlook did not require a Microsoft 365 Copilot license.

Microsoft detailed the change through the Microsoft 365 Message Center (archived here):

"Microsoft is retiring Outlook's Meeting Insights by early September 2026, replacing it with Microsoft 365 Copilot's meeting preparation features for licensed users. Meeting Insights will be removed across platforms, with no action required but recommended communication, documentation updates, and user training. No compliance issues noted."

Meeting Insight in Outlook and the "Prepare for this meeting" experience are somewhat similar, but I wouldn't call the switch a one-for-one swap. Meeting Insight brings up the actual files and emails related to a meeting. The "Prepare for this meeting" experience creates a summary of relevant content.

While summaries can be useful, they are not replacements for source material. That's even more the case if users already include summaries in relevant documents and emails.

Curbing Copilot

I thought Microsoft had seen the light when it came to Copilot. The company appeared to be shifting away from the term in some spaces, such as Copilot+ PCs. Several of the latest Windows laptops are not marketed as Copilot+ PCs even if they are.

Microsoft cancelled plans to ship several Copilot-branded AI features to Windows 11 earlier this year.

But the company's near obsession with Copilot still permeates through Microsoft 365, often behind a paywall. Back in April, Microsoft started requiring a Microsoft 365 Copilot license to use Copilot Chat in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote.

Now, more functionality that was once free will require payment.

With Copilot, it always felt like Microsoft thought it had a good idea and decided to run with it everywhere. There are almost 80 distinct products labeled as Copilot, though that figure is in flux.

Heck, Microsoft had a Copilot OS in the works at one point, though it's not known if that was ever meant to see the light of day.

Now that Microsoft has thrown every type of Copilot against the wall to see what sticks, the company will start squeezing money from users where it can. Over time, I think we'll see more useful features moved behind paywalls and free equivalents removed or stripped down.

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A new clipboard manager for Windows 11 is here, and it's better than Microsoft's in a few key ways. "Edge Drop" is still in its early stages of development, but the current preview build is very promising.

Edge Drop is a clipboard manager that can also be used for some light file management. It stays tucked away on the left side of your screen until you swipe your mouse over it or use a keyboard shortcut (Alt + C).

The app supports text, images, and several file types. Any item you copy on Windows 11 is added to Edge Drop by default. You can also drag items into Edge Drop.

Drag and drop functionality makes it easy to grab a few files, place them in Edge Drop, and then paste them somewhere else.

Edge Drop supports stacking content together, which I find useful for organizing projects. I'd love to see stacks work with different content types, such as text and images.

The developer of Edge Drop, AdiArtist, shared the app on Reddit. You can download Edge Drop through the app's website and read more about it on GitHub.

As a quick note, I wouldn't get used to the name of the app. Microsoft already has a feature named "Edge Drop." Even though that browser feature is being retired, I suspect Microsoft will want to protect the name.

Windows 11 Clipboard vs Edge Drop

Windows 11 already has a robust, built-in clipboard history that you can summon with Win + V. It supports pinning items, syncing across devices, and has been an integral part of my workflow for years. Even with Edge Drop installed, I'm not abandoning it.

Where Windows 11's clipboard is heavily keyboard-driven, Edge Drop is more built for the mouse. If you're working on a creative project, dragging and dropping items into organized stacks feels completely natural.

It reminds me of when I reviewed the HyperSpace TrackPad Pro (which, sadly, was canceled). Using that trackpad shifted my workflow; editing video with it felt entirely different than navigating a webpage. It didn't replace my mouse, but it became a perfect companion tool.

I feel the same way about Edge Drop. It’s a convenient, mouse-oriented clipboard manager that’s always just a gesture away, and it has earned a permanent spot right alongside Windows 11's default clipboard.

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The day when AI isn't completely polarizing feels like it'll never arrive, and there's a definite divide between those for and those against.

This drama has now spilled into the Linux kernel, prompting a lengthy and firm response from its creator, Linus Torvalds (via GamingOnLinux).

It emerged as a topic referencing using AI and a tool called "Sashiko" for agentic reviews of changes to the Linux kernel. Then in swoops Torvalds to firmly put his foot down.

The full transcript of his response is below:

"Yes.

And no, that's not the position of the Linux kernel. I realize that some people really dislike AI, but this is an area where I'm willing to absolutely put my foot down as the top-level maintainer.

Linux is not one of those anti-AI projects, and if somebody has issues with that, they can do the open-source thing and fork it.

Or just walk away.

AI is a tool, just like other tools we use. And it's clearly a useful one.

It may not have been that "clearly" even just a year ago, but it's no longer in question today.

There are other questions around AI (like what the economy of it will actually look like in the end), but "is it useful" is no longer one of those questions. Anybody who doubts that clearly hasn't actually used it.

Yes, it can also be a somewhat painful tool, both for maintainer workloads and just from a "it keeps finding embarrassing bugs" standpoint.

But the solution is not to put your head in the sand and sing "La La La, I can't hear you" at the top of your voice like some people seem to do.

The solution is to make sure those LLM tools _help_ maintainers instead of just causing them pain. There's no question on that side.

We're not forcing anybody to use it, but I will very loudly ignore people who try to argue against other people from using it.

And no, AI isn't perfect. But Christ, anybody who points to the problems at AI had better be looking in the mirror and pointing at themselves at the same time.

Because it's not like natural intelligence is always all that great either.

The kernel project has been and will continue to be about the technology.

Sure, the social angle of working on open source is important and often a very motivating part of the project, but in the end that's a side benefit, not the _point_ of the project.

This is *NOT* some kind of "social warrior" project, never has been, and never will be.

In the kernel community we do open source because it results in better technology, not because of religious reasons.

And so we make decisions primarily based on technical merit. Not fear of new tools.

Linus"

I can already see the pitchforks rising, but let's take a step back. While Torvalds does appear to be flexing some muscle, if you read carefully, he's also not actually advocating for AI.

"AI is a tool... And clearly a useful one." There's no ideology behind it. He's not suddenly saying that the Linux kernel is going to be built using AI. More that if it can be used to make certain parts of the process better, then it will be.

And as he says, human intelligence isn't exactly perfect, is it?

It's a sticky wicket and sure to provoke some discussion. Linux is where many of the most serious enthusiasts go, and plenty just have a fundamental opposition to AI. I'm not getting into that, because it's exhausting, and we've been round and round on the topic plenty.

I do like Torvalds' approach in addressing this, though. Unlike, say, Microsoft, there are no business interests to push and bank accounts to swell by pushing the general public into using AI. There's also an alternative; if you don't like it, you can fork it and make your own. There are already plenty of custom kernels on Linux.

He's simply being pragmatic. The genie is free from the lamp; AI is here, and ignoring it simply isn't an option. Everyone can have their own opinion, but as he states, Linux isn't a "social warrior" project. They're just trying to make the best software, and increasingly, that's going to mean folks leveraging AI. Like it or not.

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If you ever feel like you need a break from social media and influencers, you may long for the more fun-focused video content of yesteryear. Windows Movie Maker was a simple program for creating videos, and it can now be yours once again.

The folks at The Internet Archive uploaded Windows Movie Maker 6.0, making it easily accessible and preserving it. The app has been tested on Windows 7, Windows 10, and Windows 11.

Downloading ancient technology can be a fun way to see how far things have changed over the years. Generally, Windows and its built-in apps have improved since the year 2000. But the modern movie-making app on Windows, Clipchamp, falls short of Windows Movie Maker in one key area.

Clipchamp now requires you to sync content to OneDrive to edit video projects. Media within your projects can be stored locally, but the projects cannot be edited unless you save the project to OneDrive.

That controversial change arguably broke Clipchamp. The app still works, but it does not feel like an app that should be bundled with Windows 11. Instead, it feels like a cloud-based app you should download alongside Microsoft 365.

Windows Movie Maker may lack the modern features of Clipchamp, but at least it works offline.

Perhaps Microsoft could justify requiring OneDrive to edit videos if projects could easily extend across devices, but that's not the case. Microsoft retired Clipchamp for iOS last month, meaning you can no longer export video files from that app. Users are now encouraged to uninstall Clipchamp from any iOS devices.

Microsoft never even made an Android version of Clipchamp, so the company has effectively restricted the app solely to the desktop. There is a web version of Clipchamp, but it is optimized for desktop use.

How to download Windows Movie Maker for Windows 11

Windows Movie Maker was not meant for modern versions of Windows, but it can run on Windows 11 or Windows 10. The download link for the program is available through the Internet Archive.

As a warning, I had to refresh the page a few times to get the link to work. The Internet Archive claimed it was a bad link for some reason, but it does work after refreshing.

The file is available in several formats. I'd argue the easiest to use is the executable file because many people have clicked to install one of those before.

To install Windows Movie Maker, you'll need to click through the installation steps, agree to some terms, and click finish.

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Microsoft Edge may soon let you force any website into dark mode. The option is one of several features in testing that are part of "Web Remix" within Edge.

Web Remix allows you to customize the look of a webpage. With a few clicks, you can change a page's color, font size, and toggle it to dark mode.

But the feature is about more than appearances. Web Remix can convert prices that appear on a page to local currency, summarize a page, or simplify a long article.

Here's what you can do with Web Remix, according to Microsoft:

• Simplify a long article for easier reading
• Add a summary to a detailed page
• Turn a recipe into a shopping list
• Convert prices to your local currency
• Update the appearance of a webpage

Web Remix runs locally and functions similarly to Read mode in that you can click a button in the address bar to enable it or disable it.

Since this feature is in preview testing, there's always a chance that it does not ship. Just last week, I covered the development of a great Microsoft Teams feature being paused while in preview.

You can enable Web Remix in Edge Canary by enabling the "Web Remix" and "Web Remix Internals" flags.

You can use Web Remix to force any website into dark mode, even if the site does not support the feature natively. However, the results will not be perfect. Converting a site to dark mode is more complex than it may appear, since there are many elements that need to remain unchanged.

Leo Varela, who spotted the feature on Edge, was kind enough to show Windows Central swapped to dark mode through Web Remix. The feature does an okay job, though I'd argue it was too aggressive in inverting certain elements. For example, the social media icons and the home bar should not be changed to black and grey, respectively.

The reason extensions like Dark Reader and Dark Mode - Night Eye cost money for full functionality is that converting sites to dark mode requires fine controls and nuance. Those extensions and similar extensions on other platforms let you customize dark mode and give more control than Web Remix.

But for a free tool that's still in early testing, Web Remix does a nice job. Its other features are a nice bonus as well. But I've been obsessed with dark mode since the days of Windows Phone, so I care most about that.

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A great feature won't make it to Microsoft Teams, at least anytime soon. Microsoft began testing two minimized views in Teams earlier this year, but development of the features has been paused.

The idea was that when an active meeting window was minimized, Teams would show a minimized window with shortcuts to perform actions like raising your hand or sharing a reaction. One option called Expanded view showed up to four participant videos, while the Compact view focused on quick actions and settings.

"Updated July 7, 2026: We have paused release to GA at this time. We will communicate via Message center when we are ready to proceed. Thank you for your patience," reads the Microsoft 365 Message Center (archived here).

The views were meant to start rolling out in May 2026, but they now sit stuck in the development pipeline. Neowin spotted that the feature was paused.

There's always a chance that preview features will be changed significantly before release or cancelled. Microsoft also needs to work out any issues before shipping a change to Teams.

Microsoft did not share why it paused the development of these minimized views. They both seem like worthwhile additions to Teams that make multitasking easier. I hope Microsoft ships them to Teams eventually.

Teams gets new features regularly. The communication platform gets so many updates that Microsoft has to list changes in a monthly blog post.

But the most talked about Teams feature this year was omitted from the last roundup. Teams now has a controversial feature that lets your boss see where you are if you're connected to Wi-Fi networks at work.

Microsoft was accused of making Teams a "lapdog for your boss," but the company has made changes to the feature since first unveiling it. Microsoft delayed the rollout of that feature, changed the name of the option, and added better privacy controls.

The minimized views within Teams may go through a similar journey. We could see them in the future with altered controls, a new name, or in the same form but at a later date.

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