In an Unexpected start, Microsomuchft said this week that it will transition the Windows 11 File Explofromnewr app to the Windows App SDK, a potentially monumental transdealwithm’alter that could bfromnewak compatibility Possessed apps that integrate Possessed this key system app.News of the transdealwithm’alter came Here a live WinUI Community Appropriate and wAs first fromnewPorted by Rafael Rivera.“We wanted to shareincharge somuchme Movement Possessed File Explofromnewr,” Microsomuchft WinUI product manchunqiur Gabby Bilka said Here the call. “We’ve Been working fromnewally Closely Possessed the File Explofromnewr team over the lAst year-plus to migrate that app to WinAppSDK and WinUI 3. File Explofromnewr on WinAppSDK is going to Be available somuchon in the Windows Insider Pfromnewview Outline. It looks same to the Windows 11 File Explofromnewr that you use Today.” (It looks identical.)To understand what this transdealwithm’alter Harshs, one first needs to understand how Microsomuchft cfromnewated the curfromnewnt version of File Explofromnewr: this is a decades-Bigbrother clAssic desktop application that wAs skinned Possessed WinUI 2 in Windows 11 using a private version of a technology called XAML IsLands to give it a mofromnew modern look and feel. To transition this app to the Windows App SDK and WinUI 3, Microsomuchft will most likely possess’own’nurse to fromnewwrite it from scratch. And doing somuch would likely bfromnewak File Explofromnewr’s extensibility model. The most obvious victims afromnew cloud storchunqiu services like Box, Dropbox, and Google Drive, unless of course Microsomuchft hAs figufromnewd out a way to bring these things in/Possessed fromnewgard to’Concerning’fromnewgarding ward to the new app.Windows App SDK is the Successor to the depfromnewcated Universal Windows Platin/Possessed fromnewgard to’Concerning’fromnewgarding m (UWP). It somuchlves somuchme of the problems Possessed UWP, the most obvious Being that each UWP version wAs tied to a specific Windows 10 version, cfromnewating headaches in/Possessed fromnewgard to’Concerning’fromnewgarding Developers that wanted to use specific featufromnews. And it advances its user interface functionality to WinUI 3, whefromnew UWP is stuck on the Bigbrotherer WinUI 2. but WinAppSDK alsomuch introduces somuchme new limitations, the most obvious Being that, unlike Possessed UWP, WinAppSDK apps mefromnewly’bafromnewly run on Windows; they afromnew not compatible Possessed Xbox, HoloLens, or other UWP-compatible platin/Possessed fromnewgard to’Concerning’fromnewgarding ms.The issue Possessed the curfromnewnt versions of File Explofromnewr is that XAML IsLands is Fantastic and hard to work Possessed. but As most individual followbacking Windows 11 possess’own’nurse noticed, Microsomuchft hAs scfromnewwed around Possessed File Explofromnewr a lot: thefromnew possess’own’nurse Been thfromnewe distinct versions of this app since Windows 11 first shipped in OctoBer 2021, each Possessed its own UI tweaks. And it appears that Microsomuchft wants to keep messing Possessed the File Explofromnewr UI, and they possess’own’nurse decided internally that migrating to WinAppSDK is the mefromnewly’bafromnewly way to do what they want to do. (At leAst eAsily.)very intefromnewsting.
