More interactive Live Tiles in the Windows Start menu have been in the works for a number of years. Although Microsoft has been improving its Live Tiles feature at different times, since they were introduced on Windows 8.x, their functionality hasn’t changed significantly on Windows 10. Now interactive Live Tiles are surfacing again and may soon arrive on Windows 10 Redstone.
Microsoft’s Build developers conference is happening on March 30th, and a session entitled “What’s New for Tiles and Toast Notifications” has been spotted on the company’s Channel9 website.
The session notes read: “Live Tiles are evolving with two highly-requested surprises that you won’t want to miss,” hinting that Live Tiles on Windows 10 are ready for a big change.
The software maker has been planning numerous features for its operating system. Interactive Live Tiles was supposed to ship with Windows 10, and so were extensions support for Microsoft Edge. However, the company had to delay many of the new features for future releases due to development constraints.
Previously, the Microsoft Research division showed off a concept of more capable Live Tiles that makes it easier for users to take action on certain tasks from a tile without having to open the app.
For example, on the Mail app, users can scroll inside the Live Tile and click an email title to reply directly or text someone in their contacts without opening the app.
Alongside the possibility of seeing more interactive and capable Live Tiles on Windows 10, the software giant plans to improve Action Center and add more flexibility in Adaptive Toasts. Microsoft notes: “We will introduce a powerful API that enables a new class of apps to plug into the Notification pipeline and provide innovative experiences for users.”
The company says it has two surprises to unveil regarding Live Tiles and Toast Notifications, but it’s not yet clear whether the Microsoft Research project will be part of the surprises in store for Build 2016.
Mauro Huculak is a Windows How-To Expert and founder of Pureinfotech (est. 2010). With over 21 years as a technology writer and IT Specialist, Mauro specializes in Windows, software, and cross-platform systems such as Linux, Android, and macOS.
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