The Windows 10 operating system is just overflowing with various services and additional components that do not always have a real use. In this regard, a logical question arises: "Why do I need them, if I do not intend to use them?" Such questions are asked by the majority of users, since the desire to optimize and speed up the operation of the operating system is as logical as the above question. This article is only one of many, which is precisely aimed at explaining which components can be disabled and why they will not affect the performance of the operating system.

Customize Windows timeline.

Purpose and functionality

So, the function "Timeline", the capabilities of which are to be considered, was introduced into the operating system with the update "1803" and received the name "Timeline". But if you conduct a small survey and ask which users really actively use this innovation, only a few will respond positively. This is due to the fact that the “timeline” does not bring any practical benefits, since it only offers a list of web resources, files and folders opened for a certain period of time. But is everything really as bad as it may seem?

In fact, the “timeline” is a rather ambitious function, the benefit of which is directed to certain categories of users, mainly to those who use many devices running Windows OS and / or actively use the capabilities of their account. For example, it is easy enough to agree that it is very convenient to start working with any file on one computer or smartphone / tablet, and complete it on another device, without worrying about saving and transferring files to another medium. Accordingly, the only thing that is required for full-fledged work with the considered functionality is an active Microsoft account.

Enable and disable

As mentioned above, the “timeline” became available to users with the April update “1803”. The button for switching to the activity view pane is located on the taskbar, next to the “Search” button and is called “Task Presentation”. Therefore, if for some reason you do not have a named button, it is possible that the operating system update was not installed on your computer, which means that you will not be able to use the activity history until these gaps have been fixed in the current configuration of the assembly. The second reason for the lack of a badge is even more banal, it was just hidden on purpose or not. To test this theory, right-click on the “Taskbar” and make sure that the “Show task button” line is checked. In addition, to get quick access to the scale, just press the key combination «WIN + TAB».

When you activate the "Timeline" before you open all the currently active tabs in the standard design in the form of "Quick Access Toolbar", that is, the more windows, the smaller their size, and they are sorted according to the same principle - "by the time of the last activity" . In the right part of the panel there is a timeline and a button for quick search in the activity history, and to view the previous days, just scroll down. Separately, it is worth noting that Timeline will show not only files and folders, but also viewed web pages in the Microsoft Edge browser. In some ways, this is a blatant advertisement for your own product, but how can you blame for it.

In order to continue working with the file or continue to browse any video file, it is enough to simply click on the corresponding icon as standard, and the system will automatically switch to the latest edition. All content, as well as the usual activity history in the browser, can be cleared, for this you need to click on the icon with the right mouse button and select "Delete". As you can see, everything is as simple and accessible as possible.

Deletion

But despite everything to say above, not everyone knows about the “Timeline”, and if they do, they do not plan to use it. Therefore, they don’t need this service / function in principle, and in order not to litter the system, it can be removed / disconnected, which is also easy to do. This will require:

• Press the key combination "WIN + I" or open "Start" - "Settings";
• Go to the “Privacy” section - “Action Log”;
• Uncheck the boxes “Allow Windows to collect my actions from this computer” and “Allow Windows to synchronize my actions from this computer to the cloud”;
  

• At this stage, the operating system will stop and stop collecting information, but the history already collected is still displayed;
• To remove it with the mouse wheel, scroll down the page and in the block “Journal of cleaning operations” click “Clear”;
• Go back to the main section of the parameters and open "System" - "Multitasking";
• Similar to the above, scroll through the page and turn off “Periodically show recommendations on the timeline”;
  

• These steps will not only turn off the collection of information about the user's activity, but also turn off annoying ads.

Conclusion

So, as can be seen from all of the above “Timeline”, despite all the criticism from Microsoft, it is implemented at a high enough level, it is convenient and diverse in functional terms, but it is easily turned off, without any tambourine dances and it works stably. The verdict definitely deserves attention and recognition of users.