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Windows 11 now lets you write anywhere you can type

Windows 11 now lets you write anywhere you can type

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If you have a Surface or Windows tablet with a stylus then this Windows Ink update is very much for you.

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Windows 11 settings screen with a floating stylus handwriting “start menu” in the find field.
Image: Microsoft

Microsoft is starting to roll out new changes to Windows Ink that let you write anywhere you can type in Windows 11. After months of previewing the changes, the handwriting-to-text conversion now works inside search boxes and other elements of Windows 11 where you’d normally type your input.

Microsoft has started rolling out the KB5031455 non-security update as a preview to Windows 11 users yesterday. You simply have to head to Windows Update and toggle the “Get the latest updates as soon as they’re available” setting to get this update before it’s available fully in the coming weeks.

The Windows Ink update also includes gestures for edit fields

If you have a Surface device with a stylus or any other Windows tablet that supports Windows Ink then you’ll immediately see this new feature if you head into Settings and start to write into a search box, or in other text edit fields in Windows 11. Microsoft is only enabling this for US English right now, with support for additional languages coming soon.

Microsoft has also improved the handwriting recognition technology so it’s more accurate in this update, and there are gestures to delete, select, join, and split words. There’s even a gesture to split your text into a new line.

This update also includes a number of Windows 11 bug fixes, with a memory leak in ctfmon.exe fixed, improvements to the new Dynamic Lighting feature, and more.