Windows 11 finally lets users move the taskbar to different directions on the desktop – as you can do with Windows 10 – instead of locking it to the bottom of the screen, if a new clue in the preview is anything to go by .
Noted Microsoft leaker Albacore posted on Twitter to show that with Windows 11 preview build 25309 it is possible to tweak a bit and make the taskbar appear at the top of the screen.
Turns out you can put the fully XAML taskbar on top, the experience isn’t that great though 😅 pic.twitter.com/NmGjOVK0gRMarch 6, 2023
However, as the clip in the tweet shows, you get a broken implementation of the taskbar. Yes, it’s at the top, but when you click icons in the bar, their respective functions appear floating at the bottom of the screen (where they normally would be with the taskbar in its default position at the bottom).
In short, it seems that Microsoft is now laying the first foundation for a movable taskbar in preview, but it is very early stage indeed. Whether any of this will come of it, well, we’ll have to keep our eyes peeled and fingers crossed – or those who want the ability to slide the taskbar, at least will.
Analytics: A challenging change for Microsoft?
There may be people who yell at their monitors – why the hell would you want the taskbar on top? However, this has been a highly requested feature addition for Windows 11, with many users voting for the functionality to be brought to the desktop.
And choice is never a bad thing – some people want a vertical taskbar, which also runs down the side of the screen, as well as the ability to swing the bar upwards. It really comes down to allowing for more customization of the basic desktop interface and retaining the same features offered by Windows 10, allowing the bar to slide as desired.
If MS Power User (opens in new tab) – who saw Albacore’s tweet – notes, however, that this is something Microsoft has indicated it will not pursue. Despite the call for a more mobile taskbar, Microsoft has said there are a “number of challenges” associated with its implementation, and that the percentage of users who want this change is small compared to other features. The latter claim is certainly debatable based on what we’ve seen, but please…
So the long and short previous statements seem to be that Microsoft thinks it would take a lot of effort for not much result – but the perception of the ability to move the taskbar up, however rudimentary, certainly lends hope to the idea that there a movable taskbar arrives.
Until then, if you really want to mess with the Windows 11 environment, you’ll have to resort to a third-party customization app. (It’s worth bearing in mind, though, that these apps caused serious problems with the last major Windows update, “Moment 2”).
Meanwhile, Microsoft recently introduced a nifty ability on the taskbar (during testing), which is the ability to kill a process right there on the bar (instead of having to mess around by going into the Task Manager).