Restarting Explorer has not made the active program indicator any less invisible. Using a pinned folder to contain frequently-used program icons seems no different from keeping them well organised in the Start menu. It's an extra step to starting each program, whether to open a pinned folder or to open the Start menu. So I'm back to asking for a better highlighting of active program icons.
All I can get that to do is to replace the Windows 11 variable-width almost-invisible active program indicator with a Windows 10 fixed-full-width almost-invisible active program indicator. It's a very thin line, right at the bottom of the screen, and only noticeable if I look very carefully for it. Before ("Windows 11 style"): After ("Windows 10 style"):
In previous versios of Windows that I have used, I had my most-used programs pinned to the Quick Launch Area to the left, and none in the Tas Bar. Thus, the Task Bar was only ever populated by active or running programs which I had started, and converely, it was easy to see which, if any, programs were still active. Now, in Windows 11, Microsoft has, in its infinite wisdom, taken the Quick Launch Area away for good. So, I am left with pinning programs to the Taks Bar, where an active