Forum Discussion
Windows 11 taskbar labels
I was eager to install the official Windows 11 release today, however upon reading first I noticed that ungrouping taskbar icons / showing labels is not available anymore in Windows 11.
Why the heck would you remove such a useful feature? This is the only thing preventing me from installing Windows 11. Will this feature come back?
Might as well stick with Windows 10 until it sees its return (if ever). Solving this with third party tools is a no go.
It looks like the perfect way - but it doesn't work here. I set the value to 2 and after restart and then checking it was set to 2 - but still no labels. Do you have any ideas? aBuntobox
131 Replies
- I logged a ticket with Microsoft about this problem and being on the spectrum and working with separated taskbar windows now having to change to combined locked in like Apple jail experience is a huighe disorienting experience for me.
I guess Microsoft doesn't care about people with disability because I was listened to for 30 minutes and they said to go back to Win 10 - they cant change or add options in Win 11. I guess Windows just copies MacOS taskbar these days. Total joke
Then if I have to deal with the combined mishmash then at the very least give me a setting in taskbar settings to adjust the font size of the name tags inside the combined group of windows as the text is tiny. And no - I cant increase font for the whole OS because I need it full res for everything else.
Wasted pointless time being pretended to by support team that they care about people with disability and then being told by win 11 development team that its not gonna happen. Apple has gotten into the minds of Windows developers. Windows used to be good now its just copying MacOS.
MacOS is great if you like that style and I support that for those that want it. I personally prefer the Windows productivity experience.
I have also lost the ability to create mini icon group in taskbar from a custom folder. Have to pin everything in start with 4 pages worth of pinned icons. Its nuts and slows me down and hard to adjust. Other aspies out there - are you experiencing similar problems with this changes in Win 11?CyberkiteI've said this several times before so forgive the repeat. In short, **bleep** Microsoft and load Explorer Patcher. Life is good without having to **bleep** to morons like short-sighted Microsoft_shitheads who refuse to even explain their reasoning. Assholes.
One more time: Many of us work in places where any user who attempts to add software (not provided by our employer) will get us 🔥'd.
- Just installed ExplorerPatcher (from GitHub)....absolutely wonderful. Now I can use Windows 11. Why can others do things Microdick cannot on their own system.
- Why are they taking away our choice? We paid for this license! I request normal labels with the program name on Taskbar!
- I had Windows 11 for a full fifteen minutes before uninstalling it. If they are this dumb in their feature decisions, I want nothing to do with Windows 11.
Agreed! I can't begin to explain to Microsoft how much of a mistake doing this is. Not everyone has the mental state to be able to cherry pick the right icon on the task bar when there are a million of them and they are not big. I have schizophrenia with Adhd Combined type and Im disabled due to it. I need to see the names of the programs at the bottom or I get stuck and forget what i'm doing alltogether causing me to become very upset. This needs to get resolved and added back to windows. Please use your brains next time this kind of feature is taken away. Not everyone knows what a icon is either some need WORDS. I will be hacking the registry here in a moment to get it to make the taskbar show the names. I don't know how but I know you can do anything as long as you do it exactly right. Otherwise your system will become unstable. If I find a workaround in the registry doing some reading I will let you all know if successful! If Microsoft reads this please give us the registry edit work around to enable this again. Thank you
Scott** Edit: I'm glad to see some of you already on the hunt for a solution! I didn't see that part! 🙂
- Agreed. I really wish they would restore this functionality.
The Registry edit suggested by Buntobox didn't work for me, but installing ExplorerPatcher on GitHub restored the Win10 taskbar immediately. Taskbar items are ungrouped and include labels, and you can adjust many settings via right-click -> Properties.
(Note: since Win10 release, I have used OpenShell (formerly ClassicShell), also found on Github, to restore earlier Start Button/Menu functionality.)
https://github.com/valinet/ExplorerPatcher- Just DLed it and it's such a relief that I could cry. Thank you!
Win11 got foisted upon my organization this week. The UI changes weren't mere annoyances; they were a major disruption to my workflow. Immediately went looking for solutions. Found ExplorerPatcher (https://github.com/valinet/ExplorerPatcher) and am happy once again.
- This feature is not coming soon because too many people are moving to win11. Everyone should continue upvoting the main feedback items from as many devices as you have access to. Open up "Feedback Hub" and search for "taskbar combine". Upvote everything that is returned.
In the meantime rollback to Win10 if you can and prevent as many people as possible from moving to win11. Really, disuade everyone. Friends, family, everyone on social media. A low number of upgraders will get their attention if the 10's of thousands of feedback hub votes do not.
Once you are on win11, and have exceeded the 10 day rollback period, microsoft has no reason to address this problem, you are stuck. You have become a meaningless statistic in their MAU number.
rboxman wrote:
... Everyone should continue upvoting the main feedback items from as many devices as you have access to. Open up "Feedback Hub" and search for "taskbar combine". Upvote everything that is returned.
...13902 upvotes so far +1 "Update the Windows 11 taskbar to support never combining app icons and showing labels" https://aka.ms/AAd2l82
Registry edit did nothing on my Insider Build but thanks for the try @Buntobox
I agree, I will go back to windows 10 if this feature is not coming soon.
- Windows 11 is like a Jail. You are not allowed to do anything.
That's not my experience. I have it behaving the way I want it to and looking like Windows 2000 which I regard as the best Windows from an aesthetic point of view; also because it's the OS I got my MCSE in about twenty years ago so I'm nostalgic about it. I have the original start menu, a quick launch menu, a normal height taskbar with button labels, folder thumbnails and the start button on the left, where it should be. I also have none of those God awful touchscreen tiles anywhere on my system. I then imaged my customised and completed system so I had to do all the configuration work just once. It took a fair bit of research to find the various tweaks and hacks necessary to accomplish what I couldn't do myself but I can assure you, they're out there. You just have to look.
If you think Windows 11 is a jail then it's only because you haven't found the cell door key yet.
- Cool story. Quite useless bragging to any reader coming here for the info, though 😞
- They wanted it like iOS. And they nailed it!
try https://www.startallback.com/. Just installed and seems to be working well.
Can't believe they took it away.
brollin thank you very much, you're a life saver
- Has anybody tried Windhawk [1] + Taskbar Labels for Windows 11 [2]?
[1] https://windhawk.net
[2] https://windhawk.net/mods/taskbar-labels
BRILLIANT! I don't even mind the small fee (cheaper than Starbucks). Thanks to whomever plugged this product - it gave me back my taskbar:
https://www.startallback.com/- A brilliant suggestion as well. This works GREAT.
