Having to hide or mute apps or programs when on a video conferencing call or meeting for fear of embarrassing messages or pop-ups could soon be a thing of the past, if a new project from Microsoft comes to fruition.
The company is reportedly working on a new feature that will allow users to fully hide specific apps when on a Microsoft Teams call, meaning you should be safe from alerts or notifications popping up that you would much rather keep private.
The patent for the feature was spotted by WindowsReport, which noted that the feature might not be limited to the desktop, or to the Windows operating system as a whole, meaning any app or feature could be completely hidden, saving you from having to explain exactly what that WhatsApp message or Slack DM meant to your boss.
Hide it all
Windows users are currently able to minimize apps whilst on a call, but this only sends them to the taskbar, meaning they can still show notifications or pop-ups unless manually disabled.
However this new patent details a way to completely hide entire apps or even parts of the Windows user interface for a certain period of time. Once hidden, the system is able to keep them on hiatus in the background, ready to be reactivated once the time period expires, but unable to show any updates in the meantime.
This would also mean that the hidden applications will consume less computing power and resources, hopefully leading to better performance on the device.
If you have an aging laptop or work computer, you're probably well-used to shutting down apps and browser windows to ensure your video stream stays reliable on a call - this could soon be at an end.
So the feature sounds like it could be a win-win all round for users, helping not only prevent embarrassing slip-ups, but boosting device performance and reducing distractions.
We'll now need to see if the patent makes the jump from idea to reality, so will keep an eye on the official Microsoft 365 roadmap to see if there's any progress soon.
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