{"id":10607,"date":"2022-03-16T22:40:40","date_gmt":"2022-03-16T22:40:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/TheNextWeb=1382675"},"modified":"2022-03-16T22:40:40","modified_gmt":"2022-03-16T22:40:40","slug":"dear-microsoft-putting-ads-in-the-windows-11-file-explorer-is-a-very-dumb-idea","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/?p=10607","title":{"rendered":"Dear Microsoft, putting ads in the Windows 11 File Explorer is a very dumb idea"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Microsoft<\/a> often tests new features with its Windows<\/a> Insider builds. While these are often a sign of good things to come, other times, they need to be nipped right in the bud. Case in point: this week, Microsoft pushed a test to Windows 11<\/a> Insiders that placed ads for other Microsoft products directly in the File Explorer, as spotted by<\/span> Florian Beaubois<\/span><\/a> on Twitter.
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Some people will go mad if Microsoft starts adding ads in explorer. pic.twitter.com\/rusnyrYyX2<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Florian (@flobo09) March 12, 2022<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Microsoft later told<\/span> The Verge<\/span><\/a> that this \u2018feature\u2019 was \u201cnot intended to be published externally and was turned off.\u201d Thank goodness, although the company didn\u2019t guarantee that the feature won\u2019t show up in the future.<\/span><\/p>\n

So let\u2019s get this out the way before someone at Microsoft gets any more funny ideas: puttings ads in File Explorer \u2014 or most everyday Windows apps \u2014 is a very dumb idea. There are better ways for Microsoft to keep its users updated.<\/span><\/p>\n

I get that Microsoft probably tests a whole bunch of features that never see the light of day, even for Windows Insiders. The company even recently announced that it would begin<\/span> testing more experimental features<\/span><\/a> in Insiders builds without announcing them \u2014 which is how I initially assumed this ads feature came to fruition.<\/span><\/p>\n

But the fact that this somehow made it out to the wild means that Microsoft is at least considering throwing more ads into Windows. And absolutely nobody wants that.<\/span><\/p>\n

It shouldn\u2019t be surprising though. When Microsoft introduced Windows 10 as \u201cas a service\u201d, making it essentially free for most users, it was only natural to assume that the company would increasingly try to find more ways to monetize the platform.<\/span><\/p>\n

Before the current hullabaloo over ads in File Explorer, Microsoft<\/span> placed ads in Windows 8 apps<\/span><\/a>. Then it placed<\/span> ads in the Windows 10 Start Menu<\/span><\/a>. And Microsoft has actually<\/span> placed ads in the File Explorer<\/span><\/a> before, so even this isn\u2019t totally new. My colleague Abhimanyu summed it up concisely at the time:<\/span><\/p>\n

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They might just be small pop-ups, but that\u2019s how it starts, folks. Microsoft has many other products it might want to start slinging, including Office 365 subscriptions and Skype credits \u2013 and who knows whether the company will eventually want to expand to serving up ads from other businesses?<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The fact is that companies will tend to gradually sneak in ads into their \u2018free\u2019 products to see how much their users are willing to put up with. In their minds, it\u2019s better to ask forgiveness than permission, and if people are conditioned to accept ads for first-party apps, it\u2019s only a matter of time until the company widens its scope.<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s an unfortunate reflection of most of the software we use in 2022 \u2014 you rarely have true ownership of software when everything is a service. Google and<\/span> Apple<\/span><\/a> aren\u2019t innocent in this regard either; if companies can find a way to make more money off of you, chances are they will.<\/span><\/p>\n

Mind you, I don\u2019t really have a problem with companies trying to inform users about their new products and features. Microsoft Editor <\/span>is quite good<\/span><\/a>, and people should know about it!<\/span><\/p>\n

But there are better ways of keeping users informed. For example, the company already has a tips Widget loaded into your Widgets pane by default. It\u2019s nice! It has some useful tips for everyday users, and the company could promote more of its stuff there.<\/span><\/p>\n

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<\/i><\/a>That\u2019s a useful tip, and it\u2019s placed somewhere where it won\u2019t bother anyone. It\u2019s also easy to disable permanently.<\/figcaption>