Microsoft Experimenting With Search Widgets

Microsoft has been running an experiment that places a search field on the leftmost position of the Windows 11 taskbar. In the latest redesign, the company positioned the taskbar in the center of the page. 

The search widget test puts it on the taskbar of the operating system. Windows 11 displays a search icon by default next to the start menu, but the new test removes the icon from its default location and places it, as a search field, on the leftmost position on the taskbar.

The weather widget icon is placed to its right side in the build, according to ghacks.net.

The new search field is not yet fully implemented. A click opens the centered search interface on the system, but users cannot use it yet to type text, Martin Brinkmann, founder of ghacks.net, says. "It is possible that this is the desired workflow when the search widget is used, but it seems unlikely," he wrote. "A more likely implementation allows direct user input in the search field and will open the search interface on the left side of the screen."

The available taskbar options work with the new search field as well. Users can disable Search under Taskbar Items to hide the element on the taskbar, and may still run searches when they open the Start interface on the taskbar.

Search marketers expect Microsoft to experiment with search functions and search locations, as integrated web search functions generate advertising revenue for the company.

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