What you need to know
- Microsoft is working on a quick launcher for PowerToys.
- The feature will allow users to control various tools within the app in a similar layout to the Windows quick settings menu.
- The quick launcher is still in the early stages of development, but Microsoft has shared a video of it in action.
Microsoft PowerToys has a growing collection of tools. As that library expands, it can become a bit of a hassle to manage which features are enabled or disabled. An upcoming addition to PowerToys should ease that process.
The developers of PowerToys are working on a quick launcher for the app. It will present activated modules that can be opened through the launcher. The feature will hide disabled modules to reduce clutter.
The quick launcher is still in the early stages of development. In fact, it doesn’t appear to have a catchy name like many of the tools within PowerToys. The GitHub page for the launcher is titled “Quickaccess systemtray launcher,” which is unlikely to be the finalized name of the tool.
The GitHub page for PowerToys lists the features of the quick launcher:
- Layout showing activated modules that can be launched using the launcher.
- The tooltip of each module shows the activation shortcut.
- Settings and docs can be opened.
- Modules that are disabled will not be shown.
- If there’s an update available, this will be shown for awareness.
The PowerToys team still needs to refine the tool, localize it for different regions, and get telemetry data. Niels Laute, who wrote the summary of the pull request, added that there is “probably more” to work on as well.
The quick launcher will likely make its way to PowerToys in the future, making it much easier to control which tools are enabled within the app.
