Microsoft Powertoys: How to use the new free tools

There was something called Powertoys a long time ago, already in the Windows 95 era. It was a package of small useful or fun add-ons. They are, as you may know, back in a different form, but with the same name, and we have written about new Powertoys earlierstarting in 2020.

Powertoys is constantly expanding and now consists of a fairly substantial collection of useful features and programs. We take a closer look at some of them.

Powertoys can be downloaded from the Microsoft Store or can be downloaded as an installation file at Github.

Over the years, these features have been integrated into the package: Always on top, Powertoys Awake, Colorpicker, Fancyzones, File Explorer add-ons, Image Resizer, Keyboard Manager, Mouse utilities, Powerrename, Powertoys Run, Shortcut Guide and Video Conference Mute.

After installation, you will find them all in the Powertoys window, where you can click on them to make settings and get more information.

1. Always on top

When using the shortcut Windows + Ctrl + T the current window will always be above other windows. This is marked with a colored window frame. The same shortcut turns off again.

2. Awake

If you are doing a download or other important task, you probably do not want your computer to go to sleep. You can easily fix this without changing the energy settings. Open Awake in Powertoys and set the slider to position On.

3. Powerrename

Quickly and easily rename multiple files at once by selecting all the files and right-clicking. Select PowerRename. With search and replace and other options that are reminiscent of the search functions in Word, you can easily get the file names you want.

4. Mouse tools

Sometimes the mouse pointer is incomprehensibly difficult to find in the clutter on the screen, especially on multiple screens. Double-tap Ctrl to dim the entire screen except for a circle where the pointer is located. Additional features, such as a highlighter, are also available.

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