Though the first views of Windows 11 may feel a little different from Windows 10, Microsoft has not really changed much between operating systems. There are a few technical improvements under the hood, but the initial things you'll probably notice are visual. If you’re new to Windows 11, the information below should help you get comfortable and get up to speed quickly on the new features.

One of the biggest changes is that Microsoft has moved the taskbar icons to the center, when they used to be in the left corner. The Windows "Start" button is now the leftmost icon, shaped like window panes, next to a search box. Clicking on Start will get you a newer-look menu with pinned and common apps up top, and recommended/recently used files below. To view the "classic" Windows 10 view of apps, you can click on "all apps" to see them in a more standard view. Conveniently, the "search" menus in both the taskbar and in the start menu will point you at applications installed on your computer.

You’ll also see weather information and a dynamic button at the bottom left of the task bar. This widget provides customized information based on your location, and opens common feeds for news, weather, and sports for any user of the computer. By signing in with a Microsoft account, you can customize this to your preferences. For your convenience, OIT has also created a custom “Windows 11 Declutter application” that helps to toggle some of these features on and off.

The main technical improvements of Windows 11 are the better search functions from the toolbar, and more integration with Microsoft Copilot, the AI assistant within the operating system. 

Brown has activated Copilot so that you can sign in to your Brown account (in Microsoft's “username@ad.brown.edu” format) and use Copilot without having your data “train” the AI. You still shouldn't put personal information into this search, but it’s otherwise “safe” and available for general use with Level 1 data.