Good morning! A former Microsoft engineer has called out the poor performance of the Windows 11 Start menu, calling it "comically bad" even on high-end hardware. An open source game called "Oh My Git!" has been created to teach Git through visuals and interactivity, allowing users to learn the version control system in a unique way. GitLab has released a new AI assistant called Duo Chat as part of its 16.11 update, which can explain code snippets, improve existing code, and generate tests, all while ensuring user privacy.

— Forrest Knight & Meghanadh Vasireddy

Ex-Microsoft Engineer Calls Out Windows 11 Start Menu Slowness

A former Microsoft engineer who worked on Windows has openly criticized the poor performance of the Start menu in Windows 11. Andy Young, a senior software engineer at the company, said the Start menu's sluggishness was "comically bad" even on his high-end PC with a $1,600 Intel Core i9 CPU and 128GB of RAM.

Young shared a video demonstrating the laggy behavior:

• The search function initially failed to work, forcing him to reopen the Start menu

• After typing, the results were very slow to appear

He was frustrated that Windows 11 still feels unfinished, and wants Windows "to be as good as it once was."

The Start menu issues appear to stem from performance problems rather than hardware limitations. A couple of potential fixes:

• Disabling online search results integration

• Tweaking some registry settings to improve responsiveness

However, Young's video does show the ongoing complaints about Windows 11's bugginess and slower performance compared to its predecessor, Windows 10. Microsoft has faced hurdles with the newer OS's adoption, partly due to stricter hardware requirements that have led many users to stick with Windows 10.

Read More Here

Learn Git Through Visuals in New Open Source Game

A open source game called "Oh My Git!" has been created to teach the version control system Git through visuals and interactivity.

It shows the inner workings of Git repositories in realtime as you make changes. For beginners, it uses a custom playing card system with icons and descriptions representing different Git commands - helping you learn what each one does. More experienced users can just type Git commands directly into a built-in terminal that controls an actual Git repository.

The main focus is on collaboration workflows. The game walks you through sharing your work, merging contributions from others, and resolving conflicts when the same files get edited by multiple people.

Availability & Support:

• You can download "Oh My Git!" for Linux, Mac, and Windows from itch.io

• It's an open source project hosted on GitHub, where you can get help, report bugs, and suggest new features

• However, the developers need funding support on Patreon to continue development past February

So if you're looking for a unique way to learn Git through an interactive, visual approach, definitely check out "Oh My Git!" You can contribute to the open source project as well.

GitLab Releases AI Assistant Duo Chat

GitLab has just released its new AI assistant called Duo Chat as part of the GitLab 16.11 update.

What is Duo Chat?: Duo Chat is a conversational AI that understands regular language about code, issues, CI/CD setup, and more. It can do some pretty handy things:

• Explain confusing code snippets

• Automatically improve existing code

• Generate tests

Duo Chat is built right into the GitLab web interface and popular IDEs like VS Code and JetBrains IDEs. No need to switch between tools - the AI assistance is always there when you need it. If you're new to a project, just ask Duo Chat about general concepts to get up to speed quickly.

Privacy Safeguards: Privacy is top of mind for GitLab. Companies can control exactly what data the AI can access at the project, sub-group, and group levels. GitLab also says it doesn't train Duo Chat's models using any customer data.

Read More Here

🔥 More Notes

• A Story of Another Critical bug discovered by Luck

• 4.5 million times faster internet? Aston University makes it possible

•  Red Hat Upgrades Its Pipeline-Securing (and Verification-Automating) Tools

Youtube Spotlight

The Homeless Hacker

Was this forwarded to you? Sign Up Here