Microsoft has released a new Spotlight launcher application for Windows 10. Designed to replace and modernize the existing Win + R shortcut, the new PowerToys Run launcher includes a quick search for applications and files on Windows, plugins like a calculator and the possibility of finding running processes.
This first version will take care of the basic search tasks which are generally managed by the integrated search functionality of the Windows Start menu. But it is planned to make it a more powerful launcher, similar to Alfred on macOS and more functional than Apple’s Spotlight search. In the case of Spotlight, by pressing Alt + Space, a search field appears in the center of the screen. You can write the name of an application, a file, a folder or even a process (therefore an open application). The results appear gradually.
The current Win + R functionality is basic and used by experienced Windows users to launch cmd, regedit prompts, PowerShell instances and even shortcuts to Windows areas like Control Panel. This new PowerToys Run launcher will take care of all the same commands as Run (Run on Windows in French) currently in Windows, but Microsoft is collaborating with an open source community which contributes to make it much more powerful.
In addition to PowerToys Run, Microsoft has also released a PowerToy keyboard manager. It’s a simple keyboard remapper that lets Windows 10 users redefine the keys on a keyboard. The keys will be remapped as long as the keyboard manager and PowerToys are running in the background, and you can change individual keys and even Windows shortcuts.
The keyboard manager is part of the latest version 0.18 of PowerToys, available on the GitHub distribution from Microsoft.
PowerToys Run and Keyboard Manager are among the many PowerToys that Microsoft is developing. Last year, Microsoft brought back PowerToys to allow anyone to upgrade Windows 10 for experienced users, and the first set arrived in September. Developers have since released several new versions and integrated new tools into PowerToys. Tools such as Power Rename, Image Resizer (which allows you to easily resize images from the explorer) or the alternative Alt-Tab Window Walker are now part of PowerToys.
PowerToys were originally developed for Windows 95 and the concept was followed until Windows XP. The apps were a quick way for Windows engineers to test the functionality of the prototypes, and Microsoft quickly packaged some of the best in PowerToys packs. Their development was abandoned until 2019, where Microsoft announced the release of these tools for Windows 10 PCs.
At the same time, the American company has published the source code of these tools for users on GitHub so that they can improve them. Developers have since released several new versions and integrated new tools into PowerToys. This is how we have some tools that are now part of PowerToys like:
- Tweak UI: this tool allows you to fine-tune many parameters of Windows appearance (icons, start menu, Internet explorer) and even to repair certain system functions.
- ClearType Tuner: this tool allows you to fine-tune the ClearType smoothing parameters.
- Open Command Window Here: add a context menu in the explorer opening the command line window in the current directory.
- Alt-Tab Replacement: replaces the Alt-Tab command which allows you to change the active window, by displaying an overview of the windows (as Windows Vista does).
- Power Calculator: a powerful calculator for graphing.
- Virtual Desktop Manager: allows you to create virtual desktops.
- Taskbar Magnifier: puts a small magnifying glass in the task bar.
- Timershot webcam: allows you to easily control a webcam.
- Image Resizer: allows you to easily resize images from the explorer
Source: Microsoft
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