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phantomofearth.bsky.social
phantomofearth ☃️
@phantomofearth.bsky.social
940 followers 170 following 1.1K posts
I take a look at #WindowsInsider builds and older Windows betas, with some randomness and bad jokes here and there.

Twitter: @phantomofearth
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phantomofearth.bsky.social
phantomofearth ☃️ @phantomofearth.bsky.social · 25d
Want to try out the Xbox Full Screen Experience (FSE) on a desktop/laptop running build 26220.7271 without waiting an eternity for the gradual rollout?

Run vivetool /enable /id:59765208, reboot and enjoy!
Windows 11 desktop with Full screen experience settings present. The feature is enabled, and in the task view hover flyout is the option to switch to the FSE. A Winver window on the left shows that the OS version is build 26220.7271. Gaming Task View in Windows 11, used in the Full Screen Experience. The Xbox app is visible. To the left is Settings, and to the right is Winver (About Windows).
phantomofearth.bsky.social
Yay, I am tired and thought today was Sunday for... some reason?
December 16, 2025 at 6:12 PM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
Video on build 28020.1362 youtu.be/DPkEbwFjGHQ
Windows 11 Canary Build 28020.1362 - What's New?
YouTube video by phantomofearth
youtu.be
December 16, 2025 at 1:51 AM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
🧑‍💻🐟 26220.7522, ETA ??? (2 hours?)

You would think it would be out at the usual time, wonder why it isn't.
December 12, 2025 at 6:05 PM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
🧑‍💻🐟 26220.7522, ETA ??? (2 hours?)

You would think it would be out at the usual time, wonder why it isn't.
December 12, 2025 at 6:02 PM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
If you want to try out the new MIDI bits in the latest Insider Dev/Beta build (26220.7344), enable feature ID 38679741 with vivetool.
Windows MIDI Services We’re excited to announce the highly anticipated production release of Windows MIDI Services, going to the Dev and Beta Windows Insider channels today, and then to retail Windows in the next few months. This is our update of MIDI on Windows with a focus on a great experience for musicians using MIDI 1.0 or MIDI 2.0. Thank you to all the Insiders who provided feedback on the February 5, 2025 Canary Channel Windows Midi Services preview: Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 27788 (Canary Channel) | Windows Insider Blog. Your feedback, bug reports, and testing have been invaluable! New features in this release include: Full support for WinMM MIDI 1.0 and WinRT MIDI 1.0, complete with in-service translation, enabling any API to use any MIDI 1.0 or MIDI 2.0 device. This means your existing applications will use the new service and gain important new features like the ability for more than one app to open a MIDI port at the same time, custom port names, and more. New loopback and app-to-app MIDI support. Lots of performance improvements and bug fixes thanks to our vibrant community. Thank you!
December 11, 2025 at 9:47 PM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
Video on Canary 28000.1340 youtu.be/MkkvExKHKzk
Windows 11 Canary Build 28000.1340 - What's New?
YouTube video by phantomofearth
youtu.be
December 10, 2025 at 12:55 AM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
If you want to enable the change where AI Actions no longer appears in FE context menus if no actions are available/enabled in build 26220.7344, enable feature ID 59193521
December 7, 2025 at 11:35 AM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
Quick video on 26220.7344 youtu.be/HHI7RkUfiZM
Windows 11 Dev/Beta Build 26220.7344 - What's New?
YouTube video by phantomofearth
youtu.be
December 6, 2025 at 1:10 AM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
Friendly reminder yet again that I am not a Microsoft employee, so directing complaints like "how about YOU fix the OS?" at me is not a good use of your time.
December 5, 2025 at 9:29 AM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
Windows 11 is getting a modern Run dialog! Build 26534 ships with bits for it, here's a first look:
Modern Run dialog in Windows 11. The icon and name are visible in the bottom left, with a Run button in the bottom right and recents at the top. A "Type the name of a command to run" text box is also visible.
December 4, 2025 at 7:35 PM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
Ah yes, 32-bit Windows 11 in 2025, totally.
Windows Insider Preview download page incorrectly labelling the download button for build 27924 in English as a download for the 32-bit version of the build. The button is supposed to say 64-bit download.
December 4, 2025 at 11:59 AM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
For those of you who like to keep track of build numbers, 29500 is now a thing.

10.0.29500.1000 (rs_prerelease.251202-1358)
December 3, 2025 at 10:05 PM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
Happy 20th birthday, Xbox 360 💚
Photo of my Xbox 360 consoles, each with a controller on top. A Kinect and media remote are also featured in the image.
November 22, 2025 at 9:54 PM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
Video on Dev/Beta build 26220.7271 youtu.be/iYACmsnwp50
Windows 11 Dev/Beta Build 26220.7271 - What's New?
YouTube video by phantomofearth
youtu.be
November 22, 2025 at 3:04 PM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
Want to try out the Xbox Full Screen Experience (FSE) on a desktop/laptop running build 26220.7271 without waiting an eternity for the gradual rollout?

Run vivetool /enable /id:59765208, reboot and enjoy!
Windows 11 desktop with Full screen experience settings present. The feature is enabled, and in the task view hover flyout is the option to switch to the FSE. A Winver window on the left shows that the OS version is build 26220.7271. Gaming Task View in Windows 11, used in the Full Screen Experience. The Xbox app is visible. To the left is Settings, and to the right is Winver (About Windows).
November 21, 2025 at 7:00 PM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
Point-in-time restore pre-preview (video demo) youtu.be/qA6ISfYOQy8
Windows 11: Point-in-time restore first look (pre-preview demo)
YouTube video by phantomofearth
youtu.be
November 18, 2025 at 7:11 PM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
Point-in-time restore recovery feature was announced today, here's a first look at the settings page for it
Point-in-time restore settings in Windows 11, with options for restore point frequency, retention and maximum usage limit.
November 18, 2025 at 4:36 PM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
Video on Dev/Beta 26220.7262 youtu.be/ZXNKoz8m6Ug
Windows 11 Dev/Beta Build 26220.7262 - What's New?
YouTube video by phantomofearth
youtu.be
November 18, 2025 at 3:01 AM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
Just a normal Recovery settings page, nothing special.
Recovery settings page in Windows 11, listing multiple options including Fix problems using Windows Update and Reset this PC.
November 17, 2025 at 11:48 PM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
November feature bundle, last one of 2025, heading to RP now. (KB5070311/26x00.7296)
November 17, 2025 at 10:06 PM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
Dialog asking the user whether they want to turn on experimental agentic features, warning that although agents can help you get things done performance or security may be impacted.
November 17, 2025 at 9:24 PM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
Video on the upcoming November feature bundle, including dark mode file operation dialogs and a bunch of Settings additions youtu.be/t7ShLKt4jSw
Windows 11 November 2025 Update (KB5070311) - Everything New!
YouTube video by phantomofearth
youtu.be
November 14, 2025 at 1:40 AM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
New mouse haptic signals options in Settings coming soon (hidden in the latest Dev/Beta build)
Mouse settings page in Windows 11. Options for haptic signals are visible, including a toggle to turn them on or off (currently On) and a slider to adjust the signal intensity (set to 2).
November 9, 2025 at 11:23 PM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
Windows 11's Snipping Tool is finally getting the ability to insert text when editing screenshots! Here's a look at the feature:
November 9, 2025 at 8:03 PM
phantomofearth.bsky.social
Quick video on 26220.7070 youtu.be/yJ7uneKEHnk
Windows 11 Dev/Beta Build 26220.7070 - What's New?
YouTube video by phantomofearth
youtu.be
November 8, 2025 at 3:13 PM