Home windows 11 killed WordPad, however Notepad is absorbing its formatting abilities

For years, Notepad has existed as a bare-bones textual content editor. Now not. Microsoft retains including to it, together with a brand new replace that features capabilities that you simply might need anticipated in one other Home windows software, WordPad.

In Might, Microsoft mentioned on this weblog put up that it was including “light-weight formatting” in Notepad, together with Markdown enter and file assist, but additionally daring and italic fonts, bullet and numbered lists, and even hyperlinks, which might all be accessible through a brand new toolbar. Based on Home windows Newest, these options are actually rolling out to all customers outdoors the Home windows Insider Program. Microsoft says the brand new options gained’t gobble up assets or impression Notepad’s efficiency.

Two issues appear to be occurring right here. In late 2023, Microsoft killed off WordPad, the wealthy textual content editor that served as a poor man’s various to Microsoft Phrase. (There’s a solution to carry WordPad again, however you’d want entry to an older model of Home windows the place WordPad nonetheless exists.) Historically, Notepad has been the Home windows reply to a light-weight textual content editor that coders can use or write in, though extra refined options like vim exist. It appears Microsoft is including extra options to attempt to assist these customers, whereas transferring in direction of a WordPad alternative.

Microsoft, in the meantime, is bringing the Edit app to Home windows as nicely. Edit is an open-source app that was principally designed as a command-line interface (or CLI) and Microsoft particularly referenced how obtuse vim was to make use of when saying it. Both manner, by beefing up Notepad—heck, even with Copilot!—and including the Edit possibility as nicely, Home windows is providing plenty of light-weight CLI and text-editing interfaces with out bloating the working system even additional.

Editor’s word: This text was initially printed on Might 30 when the characteristic was introduced, and up to date when the brand new Notepad capabilities went dwell.