eWEEK content and product recommendations are editorially independent. We may make money when you click on links to our partners. Learn More.
Microsoft followed up the return of the My People contact feature with new ways of working with PDF (Portable Document Format) files in the Edge browser and a security feature that blocks zero-day threats.
The software giant this week released build 16188 of Windows 10 for the PC to participants of the Windows Insider early-access and feedback program. This time around, not everyone who is enrolled will have access to the latest preview build, alerted Dona Sarkar, head of the Windows Insider program. A handful of languages in the Windows 10 Enterprise Insider edition are not available. A list of affected languages are available in her blog post.
New to build 16188 is a feature that enables users to fill out fields in PDF forms viewed in Edge, along with the ability to save and print them. The browser also now includes an annotation feature that allows users to scribble their own notes on PDF files. Again, users can save PDFs with the annotations intact.
Edge also gains table of contents support, aiding navigation on longer PDF documents, provided that document authorhave included a table of contents. In circumstances where PDFs look a little off-kilter—often a result of scanning a hard copy—users can now rotate PDFs for optimal viewing.
Build 16188 also includes a security-enhancing feature in Windows 10 Enterprise called Windows Defender Application Guard. First announced last fall, Application Guard uses Microsoft’s Hyper-V virtualization technology to isolate threats when users venture into untrusted sites using the Edge browser, essentially cutting off malicious content from the rest of the operating system.
“Microsoft Edge running in Application Guard provides enterprises the maximum level of protection from malware and zero day attacks against Windows,” Sarkar wrote. “We’ve made it easy to test drive Microsoft Edge with Application Guard,” she wrote. First, turn on Windows Defender Application Guard from “Turn Windows features on or off” dialog. The click on the checkbox for “Windows Defender Application Guard,” Sarkar instructed.
After a required restart, users can test Application Guard by selecting the “New Application Guard window” option in the browser’s “ellipsis” menu. Any website viewed in this mode will be denied access to all but the bare minimum of resources provided by the isolated Windows instance spun up by the feature.
The operating system’s screen magnifier settings page has been revamped, improving accessibility for visually impaired users. The page now includes an embedded list of shortcuts and the ability to zoom into on-screen content using the mouse wheel and holding down the Windows and Control keys. Users can also now quickly call up the magnifier settings anywhere within the operating system by pressing a key combo (Ctrl, Windows key and M).
Finally, Microsoft’s virtual assistant, Cortana, has made a home for herself in the main Windows settings page. Presently, the settings are nestled within the Cortana search bar that appears alongside the Start Menu icon. “We’ve heard your feedback about discoverability, and with this build, we’ve made the change to migrate all of Cortana’s settings into Settings,” said Sarkar.
