Microsoft rolled out the latest Windows 10 build Monday to developers who participate in its Windows Insider program. In addition to the usual bug fixes, the update includes tweaks to the Cortana voice assistant and the Edge browser, advancing Microsoft's effort to have voice control and bots take over much of Windows.
With the Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 15002, Edge gets a new tab preview bar that makes it easier for people who use lots of browser tabs to remember what's in them. To activate the preview, you click the small chevron icon to the right of your tabs. The visual preview is tiny, but useful if you've got lots of tabs open from the same website.
Meanwhile, Cortana will now make it easier to find third-party app integrations. For example, if you type the name of an app like Pandora, Cortana will automatically suggest commands like finding and skipping radio stations in a little bubble inside the chat window. Microsoft says the bubble is intended to help you remember the third-party commands so you can speak them next time, instead of typing.
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There's also a tweak to Cortana's presence in narrower Edge windows. If you scale Edge so that you can fit two windows side by side, for instance, Cortana will still provide tips and suggestions based on your search and browsing history, but they will appear as unobtrusive icons to maximize screen space until you're ready to use them.
Other highlights from today's build include a night mode that reduces the blue light emitted by your device's display when you're using it before bedtime, and a new settings panel that gathers all connected peripherals into a single location.
Microsoft promised to release its Windows 10 Creators Update this spring, so it's not surprising that we're seeing lots of updates and tweaks to the beta version as the company helps its third-party developers prepare. Not all of the preview build features will make it into the Creators Update, including a "green screen of death" that will revert to blue for the final release.