Microsoft has announced the end of WordPad, its lightweight word processing application. This decision, initially revealed last September, has been recently confirmed with the release of Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26020 on the Canary Channel.
WordPad is a basic word processing software provided by Microsoft with its Windows operating systems. First introduced with Windows 95, WordPad was designed as an intermediate solution between the very simple Notepad and the more complete and complex Microsoft Word.
WordPad allows users to create and edit text documents with some basic formatting capabilities, like font adjustment, text alignment, and the insertion of images. Although it doesn't offer the advanced features of Microsoft Word, such as track changes, complex tables, or spelling and grammar revisions, WordPad has been appreciated for its simplicity and lightweight nature, making it ideal for quick editing tasks with a streamlined user interface and ease of use.
The tool will be phased out gradually. Microsoft indicates that beginning with the next edition of Windows, WordPad will no longer be pre-installed. In a subsequent phase, WordPad will even be removed during system upgrades. This decision is being made despite protests from a portion of users loyal to this simple and uncluttered application.
This change marks the end of an era for WordPad, now considered an obsolete feature by Microsoft. The company is now directing its resources toward more modern and advanced tools.