Summary
- Notepad is absorbing WordPad features, turning a simple app into a more capable editor.
- Microsoft teased image insertion, hinting that Notepad may get picture support in Insider builds.
- To catch up to what WordPad had, Notepad is getting tables, strikethrough formatting, and nested lists.
Windows’ built-in word processors are having a strange moment right now. First, we had Notepad and WordPad. Notepad focused on keeping things very simple, while WordPad was a little more advanced. Then, Microsoft erased WordPad from Windows 11, only to begin moving the features that were in WordPad over to Notepad. So, we’ve gone from a simple and an advanced word processor to a single simple word processor that’s slowly becoming more advanced. Yeah, I’m not sure what’s going on either.
If you want more proof that Microsoft is basically turning Notepad into WordPad at this point, the company has recently teased a new image tool within Notepad. It seems that Insiders will get the feature first, and if Microsoft finds no issues with the tool, it should eventually arrive on Windows 11’s release branch.
Windows Notepad’s text formatting is now rolling out, whether you asked for it or not
It was a long, long time coming.
Microsoft is releasing an image feature to Notepad
I thought Notepad was meant to be simple
As spotted by Windows Latest, Microsoft has begun sending out an email to Windows Insiders. The email notifies people on the testing branches that strikethrough formatting and nested lists have arrived in Notepad, but there’s something else the company seems to gloss over.
Microsoft showed a screenshot of the Notepad window open with both strikethrough formatting and a nested list to demonstrate the new features. However, if you take a look at the formatting toolbar, there’s a button with an icon that looks remarkably like an ‘insert image’ feature. Microsoft doesn’t show what happens when you click this button in the screenshots, but it’s there.
Windows Latest claims that ‘Microsoft sources’ told it about the company’s desire to add images to Wordpad, to help the app bridge the gap that Notepad left behind. Given how we’ve already seen tables added to Notepad, I don’t think the addition of images is too far-fetched. As such, keep your eyes peeled on future Windows Insider builds for an official announcement of this new feature.
