Beloved pixel pusher Paint prepares to join Notepad for updates from Microsoft Store
- Reference: 1617891364
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2021/04/08/mspaint_store/
- Source link:
It has been a while coming, but last night's Dev Channel Insider build of Windows 10 ( [1]21354 ) has made the MSPaint app updateable via the Microsoft Store.
[2]
The change, which was accompanied by a whizzy new icon for the aged bitmap editor, will allow Microsoft to tinker with the app without requiring a full-on Windows update. The same fate has already befallen the Notepad text editor, although we fervently hope those within the walls of Redmond fight the urge to fiddle with it too much.
Paint first turned up in Windows 1.0, back in 1985. Unlike Notepad, however, today's MSPaint is a very different beast compared to what first emerged on floppy disks all those years ago.
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A succession of minor improvements over the years culminated in the ribbon toolbar treatment during the Windows 7 era before a concerted attempt was made to [4]kill it off in 2017 .
Thankfully [5]MSPaint was spared , and while Microsoft urged customers to give Paint 3D a go, the original remained in the box despite an ominous promise that it would turn up in the (then) Windows Store at some point.
Nearly four years on and the day has come. Microsoft may have celebrated the slightly naff, yet still delightfully retro, pixel joys of old with its latest [6]festive fan-wear at the end of 2020, but that did not spare it from the Fluent Design System, an elevation out of the accessories folder, and a trudge to the Microsoft Store for updating purposes.
Joining it is the company's handy Snipping Tool.
Other updates in the build, which now comes from the CO_RELEASE branch, include more personalisation tweaks for news and interests on the taskbar (assuming you're one of the lucky insiders to actually receive the feature) and improvements to display and camera settings.
It is also now possible to toggle compatibility settings for x64 application on Arm64 devices and the default path to access Linux files from Windows using the Windows Subsystem for Linux has been changed from \\wsl\\ to \\wsl.localhost\\.
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Sadly, however, "accessing the virtual GPU is broken for Windows and Linux guests." An attempt to add a vGPU to a VM will have no effect and the VM will carry on using software rendering. Other issues including lengthy pauses during the update process serve to remind users that this is, after all, preview code. ®
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[1] https://blogs.windows.com/windows-insider/2021/04/07/announcing-windows-10-insider-preview-build-21354/
[2] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2YG8opShWoyiOw3G2t8v0rwAAAAM&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33YG8opShWoyiOw3G2t8v0rwAAAAM&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[4] https://www.theregister.com/2017/07/24/windows_10_fall_creators_update_deprecates_paint_axes_outlook_express/
[5] https://www.theregister.com/2017/07/25/microsoft_paint_on_windows_store/
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2020/12/02/mspaint_sweater/
[7] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44YG8opShWoyiOw3G2t8v0rwAAAAM&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[8] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Re: I'm pissed off...
Last time I tried to watch a DVD it was the child's nativity, it wouldn't work on the PS4 DVD player so I ripped it on the mac and fired it onto my phone and VNC chromecast to the TV.
I do sometimes feel that in some ways laptops from the early 2000s had more usable functionality.
Re: I'm pissed off...
VLC Media Player is your friend:
https://www.videolan.org/vlc/
Re: I'm pissed off...
^ [1]this ^
[1] https://www.videolan.org/vlc/
Re: I'm pissed off...
Because they need to pay a fee for DVD playback licence, since nobody actually plays DVD anymore MSFT don't want to pay the fee to the Evil Giant Global Capitalists for every copy of Windows they sell
Meh
Other issues including lengthy pauses during the update process serve to remind users that this is, after all, Windows.
FTFY
Microsoft must realize that MS Paint has never been so bad. Can we just go back to the Windows XP version and they can fsck off with their updates?
What "features" have they added? Seriously.
You now need to toggle between the two colours using a clunky interface rather than right / left clicking. This is such bad usability for a tool that really would take a competent developer less than a month to write from scratch.
Jeez we need a proper desktop operating system to come out. And fast!
>What "features" have they added? Seriously.
Well all the new colours that were invented since Windows7 came out
confused?
So is it still included with win 10 by default, or is it something you now have to download separately? It is by far the easiest and quickest way to save a grabbed screenshot and give it a quick crop. I don't particularly care if it is updated - i just want something ubiquitous to be there on all systems.
Sometimes it does seem MS are determined to make Win10 less functional every day.
Paint 3D sucks balls.
(That is all.)
Paint Sudoku
I use Paint sometimes just to do Sudoku puzzles :
* Take picture of Sudoku puzzle
* Open with Paint
* Use Paint 'Text' options to put numbers where needed.
Ditto with Linux Pinta.
Re: Paint Sudoku
But with Paint3d you can solve Rubik cubes in a similar manner
Next up in the Microsoft Store ---- Edlin!
I'm pissed off...
I fancied watching a dvd on my all signing all dancing new laptop last night and ended up watching it on my 2012 win 7 job... Why? Because Windows media player is now in the app store and they want 12 quid or dollars or euros for it. Bunch of Kents.