Configure digital pen shortcuts on Windows 10
The following guide explains to you how to change digital pen shortcuts on devices running Windows 10.
Windows 10's Anniversary Update brought along with it a new home for digital pens called Windows Ink. It is the new Hub for digital pens, and if you have ever connected a pen to your device, you will notice the Windows Ink icon in the system tray which opens it right away on selection.
Some digital pens come with a button that you may press to activate features on the operating system. This is for instance the case for many Surface devices, like my Surface Pro 4.
Configure digital pen shortcuts on Windows 10
The button is mapped to the following functionality by default:
- Single-click to opening OneNote Universal.
- Double-click to taking a screenshot, and sending it to OneNote Universal.
- Press and hold to interacting with Cortana.
While those shortcuts are useful to Windows users who make use of OneNote or Cortana, they are useless for users who don't. Maybe you are using a different note taking app, or want to open your favorite image editor instead, or any other program.
You may change those shortcuts in the Settings application of Windows 10. Please note that you only see the Pen & Windows Ink settings section if you have connected a pen to the system in the past (by pairing it usually).
Do the following to open the Pen & Windows Ink settings section:
- Use the keyboard shortcut Windows-I to open the Settings application.
- Navigate to Devices > Pen & Windows Ink.
The page lists several options to control digital pen behavior on Windows. You may switch from right hand to left hand writing there for instance, disable the cursor visual effects.
Tip: You may disable recommended app suggestions if you use Windows Ink but don't like the app suggestions that Microsoft displays in the Windows Ink Workspace.
The pen shortcuts section enables you to map new functions to single-click, double-click and press and hold. The latter may only be supported by some pens but not by all.
The options for a single-click are the following ones:
- Do Nothing.
- Launch Windows Ink Workspace.
- Launch OneNote Universal.
- Launch a classic app.
- Launch a universal app.
- Launch OneNote 2016.
Double-click and "press and hold" share most of the options. Double-click however offers actions to send screenshots to OneNote Universal or OneNote 2016, and "press and hold" an action to activate Cortana.
Classic apps are desktop programs that you may launch when you use the pen's button. You may use it to open a program that you use regularly when using the pen, or a program that you want to open quickly with the help of the pen.
You may select .exe or .lnk files for the operation. This means that you may create special shortcuts with parameters, for instance to replace the screenshot taking functionality by mapping the action to the screenshot tool you are using.
What mental age of reader are you targeting with the first sentence? 10?
Why not write an article on how to *avoid* upgrading from W10 to W11. Analogous to those like me who avoided upgrading from 7 to 10 for as long as possible.
If your paymaster Microsoft permits it, of course.
5. Rufus
6. Ventoy
PS. I hate reading these “SEO optimized” articles.
I used Rufus to create an installer for a 6th gen intel i5 that had MBR. It upgraded using Setup. No issues except for Win 11 always prompting me to replace my local account. Still using Win 10 Pro on all my other PCs to avoid the bullying.
bit pointless to upgrade for the sake of upgrading as you never know when you’ll get locked out because ms might suddenly not provide updates to unsupported systems.
ps…. time travelling?
written. Jan 15, 2023
Updated • Jan 13, 2023
This happens when you schedule a post in WordPress and update it before setting the publication date.
Anyone willing to downgrade to this awful OS must like inflicting themselves with harm.
I have become convinced now that anybody who has no qualms with using Windows 11/10 must fit into one of the following brackets:
1) Too young to remember a time before W10 and W11 (doesn’t know better)
2) Wants to play the latest games on their PC above anything else (or deeply needs some software which already dropped W7 support)
3) Doesn’t know too much about how computers work, worried that they’d be absolutely lost and in trouble without the “”latest security””
4) Microsoft apologist that tries to justify that the latest “features” and “changes” are actually a good thing, that improve Windows
5) Uses their computer to do a bare minimum of like 3 different things, browse web, check emails, etc, so really doesn’t fuss
Obviously that doesn’t cover everyone, there’s also the category that:
6) Actually liked W7 more than 10, and held out as long as possible before switching, begrudgingly uses 10 now
Have I missed any group off this list?
You have missed in this group just about any professional user that uses business software like CAD programs or ERP Programs which are 99% of all professional users from this list.
Linux doesn’t help anyone who is not a linux kid and apple is just a fancy facebook machine.
Microsoft has removed KB5029351 update
only from windows update though
KB5029351 is still available from the ms update catalog site
1. This update is labaled as PREVIEW if it causes issues to unintelligent people, then they shouldn’t have allowed Preview updates ot install.
2. I have installed it in a 11 years old computer, and no problems at all.
3. Making a big drama over a bluescreen for an updated labeled as preview is ridiculous.
This is probably another BS internet drama where people ran programs and scripts that modified the registry until they broke Windows, just for removing stuff that they weren’t even using just for the sake of it.
Maybe people should stop playing geeks and actually either use Windows 10 or Windows 11, but don’t try to modify things just for the sake of it.
Sometimes removing or stopping things (like defender is a perfect example) only need intelligence, not scripts or 3rd party programs that might mess with windows.
Windows 11 was a pointless release, it was just created because some of the Windows team wanted to boost sales with some sort of new and improved Windows 10. Instead, Microsoft cannot support one version well let alone two.
Windows 11 is the worst ugly shame by Microsoft ever. They should release with every new W11 version a complete free version of Starallback inside just to make this sh** OS functionally again.
motherboard maker MSI has recently released a statement regarding the “unsupported processor” blue screen error for their boards using Intel 600/700 series chipsets & to avoid the KB5029351 Win11 update:
https://www.msi.com/news/detail/MSI-On–UNSUPPORTED-PROCESSOR–Error-Message-of-Windows-11-Update-KB5029351-Preview-142215
check out the following recent articles:
Neowin – Microsoft puts little blame on its Windows update after UNSUPPORTED PROCESSOR BSOD bug:
https://www.neowin.net/news/microsoft-puts-little-blame-on-its-windows-update-after-unsupported-processor-bsod-bug/
BleepingComputer – Microsoft blames ‘unsupported processor’ blue screens on OEM vendors:
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/microsoft/microsoft-blames-unsupported-processor-blue-screens-on-oem-vendors/
While there may be changes or updates to the Windows 10 Store for Business and Education in the future, it is premature to conclude that it will be discontinued based solely on rumors.
My advice, I left win 15 years ago. Now I’m a happy linux user (linuxmint) but there is Centos, Fedora, Ubuntu depending on your needs.
motherboard maker MSI has recently released new BIOS/firmware updates for their Intel 600 & 700 series motherboards to fix the “UNSUPPORTED_PROCESSOR” problem (Sept. 6):
https://www.msi.com/news/detail/Updated-BIOS-fixes-Error-Message–UNSUPPORTED-PROCESSOR–caused-BSOD-on-MSI-s-Intel-700-and-600-Series-Motherboards-142277
I try to disable the Diagnostics Tracking Service (Connected Devices Platform User Services) but it wont let me disable it, any help will be greatly appreciated.
Tank you for your help