Windows XP also had its own version of PowerToys, with the tools available as separate downloads. Most of the tools worked correctly on later versions of Windows up to Windows XP, but the changes introduced in Windows Vista and newer versions made the OS not compatible with PowerToys, which vanished from computers, only kept as a memory by those who used intensively Windows 95. Besides being “error proof”, it was faster to use and the user did not need to have knowledge of the registry structure.

One of the most popular tools in the original PowerToys was TweakUI, a tool allowing users to modify the Windows Registry, but using a graphical user interface instead of the regular RegEdit option. It’s like having the option to look under the hood of your OS, and change things that make it run faster or better.

The original PowerToys, developed for Windows 95, is a set of freeware system utilities designed with power users in mind, developed by Microsoft engineers – from the Microsoft’s Shell Development Team – in their spare time, and offered as a way to add or change features to maximize productivity or add more customization. It’s a start, though, and we may well see more tools added to the renewed PowerToys. In fact, the version everyone can download now, after being made available, earlier, for Windows Insiders, with the Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 19013, only offers two tools against the 15 tools that made it to the original Windows 95 version. If you’re old enough to have used Windows 95 and the first version of PowerToys, then this new version for Windows 10 feels less than impressive. The original Microsoft PowerToys appeared for Windows 95. PowerToys are a set of utilities for power users to tune and streamline their Windows experience for greater productivity.

Power tools windows 10