Search highlights – or – what is that thing down there?

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Tonight, one of my machines finally got search highlights in the search box.  I’ve been wondering when the “dribbled” update would finally catch up wi
[See the full post at: Search highlights – or – what is that thing down there?]

Susan Bradley Patch Lady/Prudent patcher

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blite, abbodi86, WCHS, 280park, geekdom

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Susan Bradley wrote:

Tonight, one of my machines finally got search highlights in the search box.

Is it a Microsoft server side ? If not, is it a stealth update ?

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Search highlights gets “dribble” enabled with Windows 11 build 22572 and higher and Windows 10 build 19044.1618 (KB 5011543).  They are slowly rolling it out.  It’s not a stealth update, more like a dribbled enablement.

Downstairs laptop still doesn’t have it.

Susan Bradley Patch Lady/Prudent patcher

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Susan Bradley wrote:

Downstairs laptop still doesn’t have it.

Susan, does your downstairs laptop show a choice at right-click Taskbar | Search for ‘Show search highlights’ (and it is checked) and also ‘Open on hover’, even though you don’t see the mountain, boot, and walking stick icons on the right side of the Taskbar search box?

Or does “doesn’t have it” mean that these choices don’t show up at all at right-click Taskbar | Search?

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Both at the office and on the home laptop I do not have show search highlights.  I think I know why.  The home pc has a M365 license of Office installed which means Mothership Redmond thinks it’s a corporate machine. The computer upstairs doesn’t have that and thus Mothership Redmond thinks it’s a pure Home PC (and thusly can use me as a beta tester).

Susan Bradley Patch Lady/Prudent patcher

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Susan Bradley wrote:

…I do not have show search highlights.

Well, my case is that I show a choice at right-click Taskbar | Search for ‘Show search highlights’ (and it is checked) and also ‘Open on hover’ (it is not checked, but this doesn’t make a difference), even though I don’t see the mountain, boot, and walking stick icons on the right side of the Taskbar search box.

Doesn’t make sense. Why does right-click Taskbar | Search show the Search Highlights options and ‘Show search highlisths’ is checked, but it does not show the icons for this in the Search box on the Taskbar??? The right hand is not talking to the left hand!!

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Perhaps it hasn’t been “dribbled” your way yet (?)

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PKCano wrote:

Perhaps it hasn’t been “dribbled” your way yet (?)

So, you are speculating that if a user is “undribbled”, right-click-Taskbar | Search WILL show the options for ‘Show search highlights’ and ‘open on hover’, but these options are not active yet?

I thought “undribbled” meant that the options are not showing at all at right-click-Taskbar | Search.

Oddly enough, I WAS getting the Search Highlights icon on the right side of the Taskbar Search Box on May 24, when the build was 19044.1645-the April CU KB5012599 (see my above screen shot 1st-icon-toggle-2-Recent-everything-search-flyout.jpg in post 2448772.

Now, my build is 19044.1706 (May CU KB5013942) and I am NOT getting the Search Highlights icon on the right side of the Taskbar Search Box ANYMORE. The right-click Taskbar | Search choice settings have not changed: ‘Show search highlights’ and ‘Open on hover’ are still checked. See the attached screen shot 19044.1706 (May CU) 1st-icon-toggle-2-Recent-everything-search-flyout.jpg and compare it with the one in post #2448772

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Have you made any changes to Group Policy or Registry concerning Search highlights of Search or Websearch in general ?

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Regarding Group Policy settings for Search:
Everything at Local Computer Policy | Computer Configuration | Administrative Templates | Windows Components | Search is ‘Not configured’.

I don’t even know how to make registry changes myself and I’ve not run any of the little ‘packages’ (or whatever you call them) that Susan has posted to make registry changes.

So, the answer is “NO”.

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Susan Bradley wrote:

Windows 10 build 19044.1618 (KB 5011543)

I am on 19044.1706. No search highlights.

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As I said it’s dribbled.  Just because you are on a certain build doesn’t mean that you will immediately see it.

Susan Bradley Patch Lady/Prudent patcher

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Alex5723 wrote:

Susan Bradley wrote:

Windows 10 build 19044.1618 (KB 5011543)

I am on 19044.1706. No search highlights.

I don’t have it either and I am on the same build you are on. I have Search hidden in Windows 10…maybe that makes a difference?

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If you have closed the search box, yes you won’t see it.

Susan Bradley Patch Lady/Prudent patcher

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FYI. I am also on 19044.1706 and received the ‘dribble’ a few days after installing the May update. Let’s remember that the original Win 10 Taskbar Search settings choices were: Hidden, Show search icon, and Show search box.

For those using Show search box, the first sign of the enabling of highlights is the new appearance of the box.

My choice was the icon, so my first visible sign of the highlights activation came on the first click of the Search icon that showed a Search panel with a number of new images on its right half.

With a choice of Hidden, I presume your sole means of detecting Search highlights would be right-clicking the Taskbar and hovering on Search to see the options available. Once present, a combination of Hidden and Show search highlights can be checked, but the implicit search panel opened by clicking Start is unaffected by Show search highlights.

HTH (please forgive me if the detail seems excessive).

Regards, Phil

 

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Phil F wrote:

…but the implicit search panel opened by clicking Start is unaffected by Show search highlights.

I have to right-click Start (on the Taskbar) and then select ‘Search’ from the dropdown menu to get the implicit Search panel (i.e., the Search flyout). The Search flyout has ‘Quick Searches’ for ‘Weather’, ‘Top news’, ‘Today in history’ and ‘Coronavirus trends.’ But, yes, no Search Highlights.

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For those of you who don’t want to mess with the registry or group policy (home users). I’ve added it to my CMsStdSettingsForm.ps1 program on the Misc. tab.

All my programs are available from my OneDrive page.

Enjoy!

May the Forces of good computing be with you!

RG

PowerShell & VBA Rule!
Computer Specs

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While Microsoft may be peddling their add-on payware, the attack surface reduction rules can be enabled with simple group policy, or not quite as simple PowerShell.

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/security/defender-endpoint/enable-attack-surface-reduction?view=o365-worldwide

 

All business users should consider spplying the Microsoft Security Baselines.

https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/t5/microsoft-security-baselines/bg-p/Microsoft-Security-Baselines

In fact, those with the baselines installed wouldn’t have been vulnerable to the latest 0-day in Office.

 

Microsoft doesn’t like to make it easy, so here are the GUIDs applicable to the ASR.

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/security/defender-endpoint/attack-surface-reduction-rules-reference?view=o365-worldwide#asr-rules-and-guids-matrix

 

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windbg

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I never bother with Windows’ Search any more.

For local search in my computer, I don’t need/want it to go online.
And when looking for something on the internet from a local account (my Microsoft Account is not enabled), why should Windows know about it?

Ever since installing SwiftSearch (portable), I use that instead for searching locally.
When I want something from the internet, I’ll ask DuckDuckGo.
I think I have all bases covered.

1 Desktop Win 11
1 Laptop Win 10
Both tweaked to look, behave and feel like Windows 95
(except for the marine blue desktop, rgb(0, 3, 98)

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I definitely agree with separating local search from Internet searching.  For stuff that’s explicitly related to Windows (especially configuration settings), I’ve found that I do like Microsoft search, as long as it’s searching only locally.  I don’t want results from Bing or any other search engine.  For Windows configs, I found that even as far back as Windows 7, it’s often easier to use the Microsoft search, rather than trying to remember which Control Panel or Setup applet contains what I want, and often, it’s possible to search for a specific setting (and occasionally, even a setting value).

With other local searching (including my LAN) I generally prefer third-party tools, where I have a lot more control over the search params, both what I’m looking for, where to look, and both formatting and ordering of results.  Personally, I like AgentRansack/File Locator, but there are some number of others out there, including Everything (which also has a portable version).  To me, one the problems with integrated search is that as with web searching directly, you’re generally reliant on the engine’s AI and crowd-sourced guesses at what they think you want (or what they want you to see) in your results stream.

Yes, it’s possible to specify more detailed search parameters for Microsoft’s search tool, but the syntax is exceptionally cryptic, and it’s clear that they don’t expect end users to interact that way.  About the only way that’s valuable is if you’re embedding search params into a script.

Actually, one place where I do find the Microsoft search tool to be useful for local searching is within the Windows Explorer.  If I’m viewing a folder, and I know that a file is buried *somewhere* in a sub-folder, then the search window next to the address bar is good for finding files.  However, the default display with icons and grouping is pretty annoying, and it’s worth applying a registry tweak to force output to a detailed list.

As for searching the Internet, I’m quite happy to initiate from my browser, using a search engine that *I* specify.  Most of the time, I prefer StartPage, but with with a folder of links in Firefox’s Bookmarks Bar, I have links to a bunch of search engines that I can choose, when need and whim dictate.

Beyond that, I normally configure my machine to not display the search box in the Task Bar, and I often don’t display the magnifying glass, either.  For me,  I’m in the habit of simply tapping the Windows Logo key, and then entering what I’m searching for.  I prefer to reserve the space in the Task Bar for other stuff.

 

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WCHS wrote:

I thought “undribbled” meant that the options are not showing at all at right-click-Taskbar | Search.

Search on my 21H2 May updates

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Alex5723 wrote:

“undribbled” meant that

Isn’t it the new american way to lead the French or German speaking people off track?

Not to find in some dictionary, so it is just slang language to me. I prefer Cockney

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Fred wrote:

…Not to find in some dictionary,

See Susan’s post at what does “dribble” mean?. And a further clarification at #2450989.

She says that Search Highlights is slowly being ‘dribbled’ — slowing being rolled out, i.e., some users with Windows 10 build 19044.1618 (KB 5011543) or later are getting Search Highlights and some users with a build past 1618 are NOT getting it yet.

So, does ‘undribbled’ mean
a) You don’t get two new choices (‘Show search highlights’ and ‘Open on hover’) at Taskbar | Search?
b) You DO get these two new choices at Taskbar | Search but checking ‘Show search highlights’ doesn’t work, i.e., you DON’T get the daily-changing icon in the right half of the Taskbar Search box, even though you have checked ‘Show search highlights’?

I have been thinking all along that ‘undribbled’ meant a)-the two choices are not showing up yet. But, for me, b) obtains: the two choices are showing up, but they are not working. I have the ‘Show search highlights’ checked, but I don’t see the daily-changing icon in the right half of the Taskbar Search Box.

So,
is there a problem with Search Highlights on my device because although I am dribbled, the two choices don’t work?
OR
is there NO problem with Search Highlights on my device because I haven’t been dribbled yet (I am ‘undribbled’), i.e., I have to wait until I AM dribbled and then then the two choices will work)?

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WCHS wrote:

Fred wrote:

…Not to find in some dictionary,

See Susan’s post at what does “dribble” mean?. And a further clarification at #2450989.

She says that Search Highlights is slowly being ‘dribbled’ — slowing being rolled out, i.e., some users with Windows 10 build 19044.1618 (KB 5011543) or later are getting Search Highlights and some users with a build past 1618 are NOT getting it yet.

So, does ‘undribbled’ mean
a) You don’t get two new choices (‘Show search highlights’ and ‘Open on hover’) at Taskbar | Search?
b) You DO get these two new choices at Taskbar | Search but checking ‘Show search highlights’ doesn’t work, i.e., you DON’T get the daily-changing icon in the right half of the Taskbar Search box, even though you have checked ‘Show search highlights’?

I have been thinking all along that ‘undribbled’ meant a)-the two choices are not showing up yet. But, for me, b) obtains: the two choices are showing up, but they are not working. I have the ‘Show search highlights’ checked, but I don’t see the daily-changing icon in the right half of the Taskbar Search Box.

So,
is there a problem with Search Highlights on my device because although I am dribbled, the two choices don’t work?
OR
is there NO problem with Search Highlights on my device because I haven’t been dribbled yet (I am ‘undribbled’), i.e., I have to wait until I AM dribbled and then then the two choices will work)?

sorry, this is bogus, and some kind of double Dutch

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PKCano

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Fred wrote:

sorry, this is bogus, and some kind of double Dutch

Let me start over.

I have the two choices (‘Show search highlights’ and ‘Open on hover’) and they are checked.

When I was on Build 19044.1645 (April CU–KB5012599), I DID get the Search Highlight icon (changes daily) in the right half of the Taskbar Search box. So, it was rolled out to me then.

Now, I am on Build 19044.1706 (May CU- KB5013942).
But, I am not getting the Search Highlight icon anymore.

Will Search Highlights be rolled out to me again so that it starts working again? Or is there a bug in it, i.e., it can’t work right because something is wrong with the code for it (for my machine, maybe)?

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It’s computer bling. If it shows again, disable it.

On permanent hiatus {with backup and coffee}
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I don’t have access to the search product team to definitively answer you.  I’ll see if I can ask around.

Susan Bradley Patch Lady/Prudent patcher

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