Windows 11 User Tunes Out Microsoft's Bloat for Faster Performance

A seasoned IT specialist shared their experience of customizing Windows 11's taskbar to improve its performance and appearance. Gregory Gibson, who has over 15 years of experience in enterprise IT, noted that while the basic taskbar is fine, Microsoft's additions can make it cluttered and slow.

Gibson removed various features from the taskbar, including Search, Task View, Widgets, and Resume, which he found were taking up valuable screen real estate. He discovered that turning these features off did not compromise their functionality but rather allowed him to access them through alternative means.

The IT specialist also tweaked his Start menu settings by disabling Microsoft's recommendations, tips, and suggested apps. This resulted in a more predictable behavior of the Start menu, especially when connected to poor internet speeds.

Gibson found that Search was where the cleanup made the biggest difference, particularly after turning off Search highlights and Bing suggestions. He noted that these changes allowed Windows Search to feel like a PC feature again.