Microsoft PowerToys is still the first app I install on every Windows PC

I’m trying to be better about counting my blessings, and Microsoft’s PowerToys must surely number among them.

Maybe that seems strong, but I’ve been using the open source utility pack more recently as part of a few projects and I’ve been reflecting on how nice it is to have an easily accessible pack of Windows upgrades readily available direct from the developer.

I appreciate that some of the functionality of various PowerToys has been integrated into vanilla Windows, but I continue to find new reasons to be grateful it’s one of the first things I install on any new PC. Recently, for example, I’ve really been reminded how nice Power Display is for streamlining display management after switching back to a dual-monitor setup.

As it turns out, I’m pretty sure PowerToys will turn 30 this year. The original release shipped for Windows 95 in November of ’96, and I can remember thinking the older kids in the computer lab at school were so cool when I heard them talking about what their PowerToys could do—I thought it was a computer game.

But these bad boys are no game. I love being able to quickly search for things via the Command Palette or sneak a peek at stuff in File Explorer via Peek, two of the 30 or so PowerToys you can currently download for free straight from Microsoft. I’m still discovering new ways to utilize these tools after years of use, and they feel like a lovely little free upgrade for Windows users in the know.

I only wish Microsoft would do a better job letting people know PowerToys exists. Here are some of our favorite PowerToys.

Do you have a favorite way to use PowerToys, or a favorite open-source project in general? I’d love to hear about it in our Discord community!

In this episode of The Full Nerd

This week PCWorld’s Brad Chacos rejoins cohosts Alaina Yee and Adam Patrick Murray to chat about AMD’s new Radeon RX 9050 and Adam’s visit to the company’s AI event here in San Francisco — next-gen Ryzen could be an absolute monster — as well as some Windows news.

As always, they also answered your questions on everything from AI use by game developers to where you buy your games.

Nerd news of the week

Here’s your weekly roundup of the most interesting news I saw this week, touching on everything from robot farmers to AI-powered treasure hunters.

• Humanoid robots the ‘next stage’ in farming: An engineering professor in Shropshire has been running a project to study how humanoid robots could potentially do agricultural work, and now he sees real potential for mixed human-robot workforces on farms in the future. I’ve already seen a startup offering cleaning services by humanoid robots controlled by a mix of AI and human control here in San Francisco, so it seems like the tech is moving fast!
• The US is banning foreign-made humanoid robots and power inverters: …guess those robots won’t be coming from China for a while!
• Actually, Starliner might fly into space this year: Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft initiative seemed grounded after the 2024 crewed flight to the International Space Station had some engine trouble, but now it sounds like “the redesign of the Starliner deficiencies is going quite well” and the bigger hold-up might be working out the schedule with NASA.
• Firm that uses AI to locate ancient lost shipwrecks is hiring a literal pirate to salvage sunken treasure, paying up to $500,000 a year: You can add AI-driven treasure hunter to the list of future jobs we lived to see in the 2020s.

That’s your Full Nerd for this week! For more, be sure to bookmark PCWorld and subscribe to the PCWorld YouTube channel

This newsletter is dedicated to the memory of Gordon Mah Ung, founder and host of The Full Nerd, and executive editor of hardware at PCWorld.