Articles

Windows

Notes from the desktop nobody blogs about - the settings, services and stuck processes behind faults that look unfixable and are not.

Everything in Windows

10/11/2026
cd Not Changing Drives in cmd? Use cd /d
In cmd, cd D:\folder does not switch to drive D. Add /d, or type the drive letter on its own. Why it happens, and what to use in batch files.
10/11/2026
Windows Dictation Stuck on Initializing: The Slides
Seven slides for a voice typing panel that never starts: the ten-second fix, how to tell if it worked, what to check when it did not, and a table to find your cause.
09/27/2026
Dev Drive on Windows 11: set it up, move npm and pip caches
Dev Drive is Windows 11's ReFS volume where Defender scans in performance mode. What it needs, how to create one, how to move package caches, and the traps.
04/03/2024
Windows Dictation stuck on Initializing: the fix
Windows dictation hangs on "Initializing..." and stays there. A reboot clears it, and so does ending one background process. But there is a second cause with the same symptom, and ending the task does nothing for it.