Google officially dropped the ChromeOS 123 update this week, and it's a good one. If you own a Chromebook, you can now customize your experience in four different ways. Additionally, the update adds two other key features worth checking out.
ChromeOS 123 gives you more control
ChromeOS 123 is all about customization, and that's a good thing. The best part of the personal computing experience is customizing the operating system to fit your workflow, so the more ChromeOS can behave like Windows or macOS in this way, the better.
Create custom keyboard shortcuts
First, you can now create custom keyboard shortcuts . This is a great addition because you no longer have to rely solely on the shortcuts that Google thinks are best for everyone. If you have a specific shortcut that you want to use on a traditional Mac or PC setup, you should be able to port it to a Chromebook to accomplish similar functionality.
Custom keyboard shortcuts are not enabled by default in ChromeOS 123, but you can activate them via a feature flag. Go to chrome://flags , then search for and enable #enable-shortcut-customization and #enable-shortcut-customization-app (provided by Chrome Unboxed). From here, restart Chrome and head to Settings > Devices > Keyboard > View keyboard shortcuts . Here you can click on the pencil icon to make adjustments. Google says this option will become the default once ChromeOS 124 rolls out.
Customize mouse operations
You can also customize mouse button actions if your mouse supports it. This feature is enabled by default: If you go to Settings > Devices > Mouse > Customize Mouse Buttons , you can assign one of eleven actions to an additional button on your mouse, excluding the left mouse button key or right click. If you want a button to play or pause media, a button to pull up the emoji picker, a button to take a screenshot, you can.
Set language preferences for specific applications
Finally, Google has added the option to adjust language settings on a per-app basis. This is a great feature for people who speak multiple languages, and is common in other operating systems as well. You can set the language you prefer for any given application without having to constantly change your entire computer's language.
Other features in ChromeOS 123
The latest ChromeOS update is more than just customization. Additionally, you can now use your Chromebook as a hotspot for other devices - provided you have T-Mobile. If you do this, go to Network Settings and enable Hotspot .
You'll also find that ChromeOS 123 features more natural-sounding text-to-speech voices, all of which work offline. You can choose sounds from 31 different languages.
