In a shock move from nowhere, it seems Microsoft is finally giving Windows 11 users the ability to configure the right-click menu

• Windows 11 is getting changes for the right-click menu
• A Microsoft exec says the context menu will be more streamlined by default
• It'll also load faster and be "configurable to what you use most", we're told

Windows 11 is getting another major change for the interface — and apparently we're going to be able to customize the right-click menu to our liking.

Windows Latest noticed that Microsoft's Marcus Ash, who is VP of Design and Research for Windows + Devices, responded to a complaint on X pointing out that the right-click menu — which offers context-sensitive options relevant to the file you're clicking — is way too long and unwieldy in general.

Ash said that Microsoft is "working on making context menus faster, simpler by default, configurable to what you use most. More will be shared on our approach soon."

These would be very welcome changes, streamlining and cutting back on the number of entries on the menu by default, and making it appear more swiftly, but it's the comment about configuration that's attracted the most attention.

Analysis: taming the context menu

(Image credit: Windows/Unsplash)

The reference to 'configurable' is presumably about giving the user control over what's present in the context menu, although Ash doesn't go into any explanation of how that might work.

Indeed, my slight concern here is that Ash doesn't explicitly say the user will have actual control, leaving a little room for doubt that maybe the menu might configure itself somehow to the apps or functions you use the most. I don't think that's the case in all honesty, but it's a slight grey area I'd like clarified.

Also, how much control will the user have, exactly? Presumably there would still be default choices that would stay firmly planted in the context menu regardless of any customization.

At any rate, as the Microsoft exec indicates, more clarification will be coming "soon" and I look forward to that.

Microsoft continues to surprise me — no, 'shock' might be a better word — with just how far it's going with the changes to improve Windows 11 this year. This latest move effectively comes out of the blue, and it's been a request that's high on the wish list of many Windows 11 users when it comes to the central pieces of the operating system's interface.

Notably the campaign to fix Windows 11 also involves revamping the Start menu to allow for a much greater level of customization — way beyond what I expected — and removing some of the rusty old legacy elements of the OS.

Yes, granted, all this should have been in the works a long time ago in my opinion (and in the view of others), but I'm still glad Microsoft appears to be serious about making Windows 11 better. All this even gives me hope that the company could even tackle some of the biggest long-standing grievances I have with the OS.

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