non-functional 'App Search' box

[stuck]

I'm not alone, I've found several long threads on MS Answers about this latest 'improvement' to Outlook. It is affecting Outlook 2016 and 2019.

This morning my Outlook 2016 (click-to-run) client has a large 'App Search' box to the right of the actual search box. It wasn't there last night. While the size of it is really annoying, the massive annoyance is that this box is completely non-functional and way beyond annoying and well into anger thing about it is that there is no way to get rid of it. At least not one that my searching has found.



Ken

[HansV]

Can you post a screenshot?

[stuck]

Sure:

Clipboard01.jpg

I asked my eldest son if this search has appeared in his Outlook. It hasn't but he's using MS 365 on a corporate network presumably the IT guys carefully monitor updates and don't just let them land on devices they control.

I suppose if the box actually did something I could learn to live with it but it doesn't. It just hogs screen space.

Ken

[HansV]

Apparently this is a new "feature" in Outlook 2016. Weird - that version shouldn't receive any feature updates anymore.
The App Search box is not present in my fully updated Outlook in Microsoft 365.
I hope that Microsoft will release a fix soon.

[stuck]

It's not just Outlook 2016 that's impacted, people with Office 2019 are griping about it as well.

I suppose there's a chance MS will fix it but, as usual, I'm not holding my breath.

Ken

[stuck]

An acknowledgement of the problem from MS, together with the promise of a fix due out 13 Feb 2024:
    https://support.microsoft.com/en-gb/off ... 7cccb74b47

Meanwhile I can report that 'Workaround 2', to revert to the previous version of Office, has removed the non-functioning App Search box. Consequently I've disabled Office updates and set an appointment for Feb 13 to go back to the above webpage and to check if it's safe to re-enable Office updates .

Sanity is restored

Ken

[HansV]

Thanks for the update. That's a quick reaction from Microsoft.

[stuck]

Yes, there must have been a deluge of complaints.

NB, see the extra bit I added to my post, reverting to the previous version works.

Ken

[stuck]

The MS page about this problem, linked above, now says the problem has been fixed.

Consequently, I re-enabled updates, checked for updates and now the update has completed I can confirm that my Outlook, in Office 2016 version 2401 (build 17231.20230 click to run), is OK, no pointless 'App search' box.

Hurrah!

Ken

[HansV]