Released in 2015, it became clear that Microsoft was keen to abandon any association with Internet Explorer.
Microsoft has made the browser as lightweight as possible, which has led to increased battery life and improved performance, as well as a positive impact on security due to the absence of potentially unsafe components such as ActiveX.
Edge comes with several features that are not available in other browsers. Microsoft Edge is the only browser on Windows that supports Full HD video playback on Netflix and uses Fast TCP technology.
While the browser has proven to be very successful in certain areas, it falls short in other areas. Support for extensions will appear with the Anniversary Update for Windows 10 in August 2016. The browser works perfectly with various types of devices, in particular with touch screens and has no problems adapting to screens with high resolution screen.
However, there are still fundamental problems or annoying bugs in the browser that have not been fixed after a year. Let's list the main browser problems.
1. Stuttering and delays
Although Edge performs well in benchmark tests, users may experience stuttering from time to time.
You may experience slight delays when typing in address bar either in the search bar or when you highlight text and select the “Search with Bing” option. There are also slowdowns when opening Edge tabs from third-party applications.
2. Personalization
Edge, as well as Google Chrome has a small number of customization settings. The browser comes with no options to customize the interface in any significant way.
Want to display your favorites, history, and downloads in a tab or window instead of a sidebar? This option is not provided.
In addition, the address bar periodically disappears on new tabs, which also causes inconvenience.
3. Copy and paste
Sometimes copy and paste operations work correctly, but sometimes Microsoft Edge seems to completely ignore these commands.
It doesn't matter whether you use hotkeys (Ctrl-C) or context menu items - both operations are sometimes ignored by the browser.
This issue is seriously annoying, especially if your workflow is fast paced.
4. Context menu
Microsoft Edge context menu that appears when you click right click mouse, skips useful options that the browser offers.
In particular, the options to bookmark or save the page are not displayed. Also not presented in the menu is the option to open a link in a private window and the function to search for text in search engine default.
5. Loss of last session data
Microsoft Edge is standard application to view PDF files on Windows. When you open a link to a PDF document in other apps, it opens in Edge. If Edge is not open all the time, session information will be lost and the only page open will be the PDF document.
To solve this problem, you need to assign another application as standard means PDF viewing.
By default in all editions of Windows 10 there is an Edge browser. It can be used, customized, or removed from your computer.
What's New in Microsoft Edge
In all previous Windows versions present by default Internet browser Explorer different versions. But in Windows 10 it was replaced by the more advanced Microsoft Edge. It has the following advantages, unlike its predecessors:
- new EdgeHTML engine and JS interpreter - Chakra;
- stylus support, allowing you to draw on the screen and quickly share the resulting image;
- support voice assistant(only in countries where the voice assistant itself is supported);
- the ability to install extensions that increase the number of browser functions;
- support for authorization using biometric authentication;
- the ability to launch PDF files directly in the browser;
- reading mode, removing everything unnecessary from the page.
The Edge has been radically redesigned. It has been simplified and designed according to modern standards. Edge has retained and added features that can be found in all popular browsers: saving bookmarks, customizing the interface, saving passwords, scaling, etc.
Microsoft Edge looks different from its predecessors
Launching the browser
If the browser has not been deleted or damaged, you can launch it from the quick access panel by clicking on the E icon in the lower left corner.
Open Microsoft Edge by clicking the E icon in the Quick Access Toolbar
The browser can also be found through the system search bar if you type the word Egde.
You can also launch Microsoft Edge through the system search bar
The browser has stopped launching or is slow
Edge may stop starting in the following cases:
- There is not enough RAM to run it;
- program files are damaged;
- Browser cache is full.
First, close all applications, or better yet, restart your device immediately to RAM freed. Secondly, to eliminate the second and third reasons, use the instructions below.
Reboot your computer to free up RAM
The browser may freeze for the same reasons that prevent it from starting. If you encounter such a problem, then also restart your computer, and then use the instructions below. But first make sure that the lag is not due to an unstable Internet connection.
Clearing cache
This method is suitable if you can launch a browser. Otherwise, first reset your browser files using the following instructions.
- Open Edge, expand the menu and go to browser options.
Open your browser and go to its settings
- Find the “Clear browsing data” block and go to the file selection.
Click on the button "Choose what you want to clean"
- Check all sections except for the “Passwords” and “Form Data” items if you do not want to enter all personal data for authorizations on sites again. But if you want, you can clear everything. After the process is completed, restart your browser and check if the problem goes away.
Specify which files need to be deleted
- If cleaning using standard methods does not help, download free program CCleaner, launch it and go to the “Cleaning” block. Find Edge in the list of applications to be cleaned and check all the boxes, then begin the uninstallation procedure.
Mark which files need to be deleted and run the procedure
Video: How to clear and disable cache in Microsoft Edge
Reset Browser
The steps below will help you reset your browser files to default and this will most likely solve the problem:
- Expand File Explorer, navigate to C:\Users\AccountName\AppData\Local\Packages and delete the Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_8wekyb3d8bbwe folder. It is recommended that before deleting it, copy it somewhere else so that you can restore it later.
Copy the folder before deleting it so that it can be restored
- Close Explorer and use the system search bar to open PowerShell as an administrator.
Search in the Start menu Windows PowerShell and run it as administrator
- Execute two commands in sequence in the window that opens:
The above steps will reset Egde to its default settings, so there should be no problems with its operation.
Create a new account
Another way to restore access to the standard browser without reinstalling the system is to create a new account.
- Expand system settings.
Open System Settings
- Select the "Accounts" section.
Open the "Accounts" section
- Go through the process of registering a new account. All necessary data can be transferred from the existing account to the new one.
Go through the new account registration process
Video: how to create a new account in Windows 10
What to do if nothing helps
If none of the above methods helped solve the problem with the browser, there are two options left: reinstall the system or find an alternative. The second option is much better since there are many free browsers, which are superior to Edge in many ways. For example, start using Google Chrome or a browser from Yandex.
Basic settings and features
If you decide to start working with Microsoft Edge, then first of all you need to learn about its basic settings and functions that allow you to personalize and change the browser for each user individually.
Changing the scale
There is a line with percentages in the browser menu. It shows at what scale it is displayed open page. The scale is set separately for each tab. If you need to see some small object on the page, zoom in; if the monitor is too small to fit everything, reduce the page size.
Change the page scale in Microsoft Edge to your liking
Installing add-ons
Edge now has the ability to install add-ons that will add new features to the browser.
Video: How to add an extension to Microsoft Edge
Working with bookmarks and history
To bookmark in Microsoft Edge:
Video: How to Add a Site to Favorites and Display the Favorites Bar in Microsoft Edge
Reading mode
Switching to and from reading mode is carried out using a button in the form of an open book. If you enter reading mode, all blocks that do not contain text will disappear from the page.
Reading mode in Microsoft Edge removes everything unnecessary from the page, leaving only the text
Quickly send a link
Provide the application general access to be able to send a link to a specific site
Create a note
Video: How to create a web note in Microsoft Edge
inPrivate function
In the browser menu you can find the “New inPrivate Window” function.
Using the inPrivate function opens new inset, the actions in which will not be saved. That is, there will be no mention in the browser’s memory that the user visited a site opened in this mode. Cache, history and cookies will not be saved.
Open the page in inPrivate mode if you do not want any mention of the fact that you visited the site to remain in your browser’s memory
Hotkeys in Microsoft Edge
Hotkeys will allow you to browse pages more efficiently in the Microsoft Edge browser.
Table: Hotkeys for Microsoft Edge
| Keys | Action |
|---|---|
| Alt+F4 | Close the currently active window |
| Alt+D | Go to address bar |
| Alt+J |
Included new browser Microsoft Edge, which replaces Internet Explorer as the default browser. Edge's interface was written entirely from scratch, so it doesn't have the old clutter of buttons from Internet Explorer.
Edge will only get better in the future as Microsoft continues to add new features to the browser. In particular, support for extensions is expected, which will give Edge the opportunity to compete with Chrome and Firefox.
Cortana integration
- true, only if it is turned on. So first you need to click on the search bar in the taskbar and enter your name for initial setup Cortana. You can check if the integration is enabled in Edge settings. To do this, click the menu button, select “Settings”, then click the “View” button Extra options» (View advanced settings) and make sure that the option “Have Cortana assist me in Microsoft Edge” is enabled. Keep in mind that to use Cortana, you must set your system region to the United States—this functionality is not yet available in Russia.
To take advantage of the Cortana integration in Edge, you can type a question directly into the address bar or into the search field in a new tab. You could, for example, write “the weather in [city name],” “how old is [celebrity name],” or “when is [name of holiday] [year].” Cortana will quickly answer these questions.
For example, if you want to post a link on Facebook or Twitter, you need to install the Facebook or Twitter application. This makes it easy to share web pages without using browser extensions, just like Android or Apple iOS.
Reading mode
Like other modern browsers like Apple Safari, the Edge browser supports a reading mode, which removes all unnecessary information from the page and leaves only easy-to-read text. To activate this mode, just find a suitable article and click the “Reading view” button in the form of a book in the address bar.
Reading list
Microsoft Edge also has a reading list. You can add articles to it that you want to read without cluttering your favorites list with them. To add an article, click the star button in the address bar, select the Reading list option and click Add.
To view your reading list later, click the Hub button and select Reading List there. All pages set aside for reading are collected in a list separate from favorites.
Web Notes
Some more tips
Edge has many other features befitting modern browser. Finding them is quite easy, since the interface has become much more concise compared to Internet Explorer.
Private mode. Click the menu button in the toolbar and select the “New InPrivate window” option to open a new window in private mode, which does not save your browsing history.
Pin to the Start menu. By opening the Edge menu and selecting the "Pin to" option home screen» (Pin to Start) allows you to add the current web page to the Start menu or Start screen as a tile for quick access. When you click on a tile, the web page will open in the current Edge window rather than a separate one.
View in Internet Explorer. If you need to view a web page in Internet Explorer, just click the Edge menu button and select the “Open with Internet Explorer” option. Internet Explorer itself can be launched through the Start menu, the All Apps list, and the Windows Accessories section. Old browser may be needed, for example, to use legacy web applications that require plugins such as Java or Silverlight.
Dark design. Like many other universal Windows applications 10, the Edge browser supports dark colors along with the standard light theme. You can enable it in the menu, “Settings”, section “Choose a theme”, option “Dark”.
Disable Flash. Microsoft Edge has built-in Flash Player, just like in Google Chrome. This is the only plugin that works in Microsoft Edge. If you want to disable it for security reasons, open Settings, click the View advanced options button, and turn off the Use media player option. Adobe Flash Player" (Use Adobe Flash Player).
Changing the default search engine. Microsoft Edge uses Bing by default, but you can choose any other search engine that has the OpenSearch plugin. You can select a search engine in the settings by clicking the “View additional options” button.
| Materials |
With the release of the new OS, the world also saw a new Internet browser called Edge. Alas, a significant part of the program code, except for its most outdated parts, was taken from the Internet Explorer source code. Most users, even after switching to Windows 10, do not want to use the Microsoft imposed software and are looking for methods to change the default browser, which is what we will do today. We will also look at how it is configured.
Changing your default browser
Previously, changing the browser could be done by going to the program settings and clicking the corresponding button or checking a box, but in Windows 10 this method does not work.
Now you can change the system’s Internet browser through the new menu for Windows – “Options”.
- Call up the window using the keyboard shortcut “Win + I”.
- We go to the first section “System”.
- Go to the “Default Applications” subsection.
- Scroll to the bottom of the list, find the web browser and click on the program icon.
- Select the required application from the list and close the window.
Setting the default browser using the second method
As was the case in the “seven”, in Windows 10 you can set the applications used in the system by default through the “Control Panel”.
- We call the “Control Panel”, for example, through the search.
- Go to the “Programs” section.
- Click on the “Set default applications” link.
- Select the required application and click on the inscription shown in the screenshot.
- Click "OK".
Making the Edge configuration
Let's look at the basic settings of the new browser, thanks to which there is no sluggish Internet Explorer in Windows 10.
Changing your home page
Setting up a home page begins with changing the parameters of the button responsible for going to it.
In Edge, the go to button home page is present, but is not active (hidden) by default, so first you need to activate it.
- Open an Internet browser window in Windows 10.
- In the additional actions menu, call up one of the last items in the list, “Options”.
- Click on the “View additional” button. Settings" to open a window where advanced browser settings are performed.
- Move the first switch “Display button...” to the “On” position.
Now the start page is configured.
- We return to the “Options” menu.
- Move the checkbox to the “Specific page...” position.
- In the “Enter web address” form, insert a link to the site that will be the home page, and click on the floppy disk icon.
Interesting: the new browser's capabilities include the ability to set multiple home pages. To do this, after adding and saving the first address, enter the 2nd and all subsequent ones using the same method. Their number is limited only by the amount of RAM installed on the PC.
Changing the Edge theme
Just like you can change the window theme in Windows 10, you can change the color theme in Edge. This is all done in the same “Settings” section where the browser is configured.
- Click on the button with three dots.
- Click “Options”.
- In the first drop-down list “Select a theme”, select one of the two available themes: “Light” or “Dark”.
Changes take effect immediately.
We pin the program icon in Start and on the home screen
In Windows 10, it became possible to quickly launch applications not only through shortcuts on the desktop, Start or taskbar, but also through new element Start screen, called the Start screen.
To pin the browser icon to Start or the Start screen, you need to call context menu program icon and select the appropriate item from the drop-down list.
The choice of browser is extremely important, because the experience of using the Internet largely depends on it. And, in addition to many solutions on the market that come separately, there is also the Microsoft Edge browser that comes with Windows 10. Below we will look at the features of setting up the application, how to install it correctly and how to uninstall it.
What is Microsoft Age
Microsoft Edge is the new browser Microsoft, created to replace the outdated Internet Explorer. The name change also has advertising value - many users ignored the release of new versions of Internet Explorer, having had bad experiences with this browser in the past. Thus, Microsoft Edge is presented as a completely new solution for working on the network.
Application Features
Although this browser is a successor to Internet Explorer, it still has a number of significant differences from it. For example:
- Own, more flexible engine.
- Extension support.
- More convenient use on mobile devices, use of a stylus and voice assistant.
- Quite fast search in real time.
Convenience and flexibility with overall stability make Microsoft Edge much more profitable than its predecessor.
How to install
On Windows 10, the Microsoft Edge browser is installed by default. So when using this operating system no separate installation is required.
Although Microsoft Edge is installed by default in Windows 10, the OS also comes with Internet Explorer installed. Made this for existence backward compatibility with existing systems.
However, if Microsoft Edge won't launch on your Windows 10, you can fix it by resetting the settings to default. To do this we do the following:
- Enter the inetcpl.cpl command into the Run window (opened by pressing Win+R). Then confirm the command.
- A window will appear in which you will need to go to the “Advanced” section.
- There you need to select reset Internet settings Explorer. Don’t be surprised that this particular browser name appears in this window; the same option resets the settings for Microsoft Edge.
- Confirm the reset, accepting the options offered.
- Try launching your browser again, it should now launch without problems.
And it’s also worth considering that Microsoft Edge does not work when the Windows Firewall is disabled.
If you have a different operating system, for example, Windows 7 or Windows 8, then you will not be able to install and fully use the Microsoft Edge browser. The only option for using this browser in this case is to create virtual machine. This option is most likely not rational, but if so, you can easily find all the necessary instructions on the official Microsoft website: https://developer.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-edge/tools/vms/.
If you fundamentally do not want to use another browser, then you can always upgrade your operating system to Windows 10.
How to setup
Microsoft Edge is a fairly user-friendly browser. But you just started using it, you may have some questions. Let's answer the most common ones.
Set the initial (start) page
As the page that will greet you when you open the browser, you can set both recently visited pages and one of the default ones. To do this, follow these steps:
How can I get my home page button back?
Even though you won't find a button to go to home page in a familiar place, you can easily enable its display in the options. This is done like this:
How to reset settings in Microsoft Edge and clear data?
In some cases, you may need to reset your browser without reinstalling it. This can fix minor problems with its operation or help you hide data about visited sites. To reset Microsoft settings Edge, do the following:
How to update
Browser updates, as expected, fix bugs and introduce new features. But what if your Microsoft Edge browser suddenly stops updating automatically? It is worth understanding that this in itself is a malfunction of either your browser or operating system. The only guaranteed solution here would be complete reinstallation browser. For this there is special script, which must be activated in PowerShell. However, it is worth considering what you are doing You do these actions at your own peril and risk.
We do the following:
How to disable or completely remove Microsoft Edge on Windows 10
Although Microsoft Edge performs much better than its predecessor, it is still not the preferred option for many. If you've become accustomed to your browser and want to get rid of the intrusive default program, you may need to disable or even uninstall Microsoft Edge.
There are several ways to temporarily or permanently get rid of the Microsoft Edge browser. You cannot remove it like a regular program, because it comes as part of the operating system. The simplest removal method requires the following:
Another removal method is intended only for advanced users and uses the PowerShell system. To launch it, just find it in the Start menu and open executable file with administrator rights.
Now that you have found the desired entry, all that remains is to perform a series of manipulations.
- Copy the value of the found entry into the Package FullName field. The entry might look like this: Get-AppxPackage Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_20.10532.0.0_neutral__8wekyb3d8bbwe
After that, run the command in PowerShell:
Get-AppxPackage Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_20.10532.0.0_neutral__8wekyb3d8bbwe | Remove-AppxPackage
After completing all commands, Microsoft Edge will be completely disabled.
Disabling the browser using a third-party program
For users who want to solve their problem literally “in one click” there is a use case special programs, designed specifically to disable Microsoft Edge. For example, the Edge Blocker program, developed by a group of enthusiasts, can help you. Do the following:
If you still have questions about disabling the Microsoft Edge browser, you can watch this video.
Video: how to disable Microsoft Age
We looked at the advantages of the Microsoft Edge browser, how to install it and remove it if necessary. Now you can consciously decide how to use the browser.