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The Windows 11 Paint app gets dark mode and more in a new Dev and Canary Insider update by John Callaham Many Windows 11 users have been waiting patiently for the company's Paint app to add a dark mode. Some people were not so patient. Mod developers have been putting in a dark mode feature in Paint via third-party apps for a while now. Today, the long wait is over, at least if you are a member of the Windows Insider program. Microsoft revealed today that Insiders in the Dev and Canary channels can download the new version (11.2304.17.0) of the Paint app. Yes, it does finally include a dark mode. Microsoft stated: With this update, we are introducing support for dark mode in Paint. By default, Paint will adapt to your system theme preferences, but you can change this option yourself on the brand-new settings page. In addition to the new dark mode, the new Paint app for Dev and Canary Insiders includes some new features and improvements for its zoom mode: The classic presets are still available, but you can now also zoom in and out with finer granularity increments on the zoom slider or set a custom zoom value for even greater precision. We are also introducing a new fit to screen option to quickly optimize zoom to match your window size. Microsoft has also made changes to the Paint App's Image Properties dialogs: They now match the style of the new Windows 11 design and fit in with the new Paint app backdrop as well as many accessibility and usability improvements to dialogs throughout the app. We have also improved access key and keyboard shortcut support throughout the app for improved accessibility and productivity with keyboard. There's no word yet on when these features will be available for all Windows 11 users. Hopefully the rest of us won't have to wait too much longer to get the dark mode in the Paint app.

A third-party developer brings Dark Mode to Microsoft Paint on Windows 11 by Sayan Sen Back in August, long before Windows 11 was out publicly, Microsoft had teased the Paint app for Windows 11 and showed off the dark theme for Paint. However, it's been four months since then and Insiders are yet to receive the dark theme on Paint, even though it was reiterated again in September that the feature would be arriving in future updates. However, if you can't wait any longer, you can try this method of installing the Dark themed Paint on Windows 11 created by the developer Ahmed Walid on Twitter. The image above is a simple demonstration of the app which shows that the Dark-themed Paint has been named "Dark Paint" with a version number following it. This is on top of a piece of canvas with Ahmed Walid written with a pencil. The next image (below) shows the redesigned Edit Colors window open inside this Dark Paint. While Walid has shared the XBF files for this Dark Paint project, Twitter user FireCube has packaged and bundled it alongside other necessary files to make the installation process easier for those who want to try it out. The necessary files are present at the source links below. The steps have been provided below: Extract zip + enable dev mode + uninstall paint Add-AppxPackage -Register .\AppxManifest.xml However, bear in mind that it will only work for Windows 11 Insiders on the Dev channel. Also, this is a third-party hack and thus those interested should proceed with caution. Source and images: @AhmedWalid605 (Twitter) via FireCube (Twitter)

Microsoft teases an updated Paint app for Windows 11 by Abhay Venkatesh Microsoft has slowly begun rolling out a bunch of app updates to in-box apps such as Snipping Tool, Calculator, and more, as part of a refresh of these apps. These don’t represent just visual updates, as the firm is adding new functionality. In the case of Snipping Tool, the company is unifying the app into a single offering. Another app that the company’s Chief Product Officer, Panos Panay, teased earlier this month includes the new Alarms and Clock app that sports ‘Focus Sessions’ and Spotify integration. Today, Panay has posted another teaser video on Twitter, showing off a refresh heading to Paint, a much-loved offering that has had its place in Windows for years. The teaser shows off an updated UI with modern icons, rounded corners, and support for light and dark themes. Theming options, especially, seem to be a focus across in-box apps, with even the Calculator now sporting that feature. There also seem to be easier ways to choose the font style and brush types, especially suited for users with a stylus. Here’s another @Windows 11 first look. This is the beautifully redesigned Paint app, coming soon to Windows Insiders. Can’t wait to see your creations! #Windows11 #WindowsInsiders pic.twitter.com/jiKyfqQFUV — Panos Panay (@panos_panay) August 18, 2021 The classic Paint app has seen a few rocky days, with the company formerly planning to replace the offering in favor of Paint 3D. However, earlier this year, Paint 3D was stopped being bundled with new installs of Insider builds, signaling the end of the firm’s focus on the app, and the 3D paradigm in Windows itself. Now, the revival of the popular classic offering might come as a welcome move by those who still rely on the simple yet functional tool. Just like the other Windows 11 in-box apps, the updated Paint app might also be served via the Microsoft Store. In addition to Paint, the Redmond giant is also expected to revamp the Photos app with improvements, which it teased during its Windows 11 announcement. Since these app updates are being rolled out via the Store, they need not be tied to Windows 11 builds.

Microsoft Paint finally shows up in the Microsoft Store by Rich Woods Back in spring 2017 when Microsoft released the Windows 10 Creators Update, it came with an app called Paint 3D. This was back when the firm thought we were going to have 3D everything. The average user was going to be making 3D art in Paint 3D, they'd be viewing it on Windows Mixed Reality, adults would be putting this stuff in PowerPoint presentations, and more. Because of that, Microsoft announced that Paint, which has been part of Windows for decades, was being deprecated that fall. Amid user backlash, it took two days for the company to come out and say that while Paint was going to be removed from the OS, it would live on through what was called the Windows Store at the time. That never happened. Here we are over three years later, and Paint is finally showing up in the Microsoft Store, as spotted by Aggiornamenti Lumia. It's not because Microsoft is abandoning it this time. It's just part of the firm's greater push to get more apps updated through the Store, as we're seeing the same thing with Notepad. Now, the plans are quite the opposite, as Paint 3D is being removed from the OS. Indeed, it would seem that Microsoft was misguided in what it thought that creators would actually want to do, creating a 3D art program instead of a simple video editor. Nevertheless, the Paint listing is in the Store, but you can't download it just yet. Not that you'd want to, of course, since Paint is still on everyone's PC. It will likely be detached from the OS in an Insider Preview build, and while it will still ship with Windows 10, it will be updated through the Store.

This year's Windows Ugly Sweater features an MS Paint theme, and you can purchase it by Abhay Venkatesh Microsoft started the “Ugly” sweater trend back in 2018 by giving away a Windows 95-themed Ugly sweater. The theme of the “softwear” for 2019 was Windows XP, which was also part of a limited giveaway. This year, the theme for the sweater is Microsoft Paint and can actually be purchased from the Xbox Gear Shop. That is not all, though, as the company is also selling the Windows 95 and XP Ugly sweaters in the “Holiday Soft-wear shop” here. This year, the company is also supporting Girls Who Code – a non-profit that supports women in tech with coding courses and more – through the form of donations from the sales of the sweater. The Redmond firm will donate $20 for every unit sold, while also contributing a minimum amount of $50,000. These donations will be made on the purchase of any of the Windows Holiday Sweater options from December 1 through December 23. The new #WindowsUglySweater has arrived — and this year it’s supporting a fantastic cause! ​ Get yours today (they disappear fast!) and you’ll be supporting @GirlsWhoCode when you do. Good deal, isn’t knit? 🧶 — Windows (@Windows) December 1, 2020 You can head to the Xbox Gear Shop for the MS Paint Ugly Sweater here, Windows 95 Ugly Sweater here, or the Windows XP Ugly Sweater here, which are currently being sold for $69.99. Those interested might want to act fast since the Windows 95 version is already out of stock at the time of writing. Additionally, Microsoft is also adding MS Paint backgrounds for Skype and Teams calls to “accessorize” your Ugly sweaters.

Paint and WordPad are being relegated to optional feature status in Windows 10 by Muhammad Jarir Kanji Following a raging bout of nostalgia by the Paint faithful, Microsoft scrapped its plans to remove the classic app from its operating system. While the company did stick to its promise of including the app in the Windows 10 May 2019 update, it hasn't entirely given up on the idea of ensuring that users migrate to its newfangled Paint 3D app for their image editing needs. Indeed, the latest preview for the 20H1 update for Windows 10, build 18963, that was flighted to the Fast ring earlier this week shows the company has added another legacy app to its 'hit list': WordPad. Both WordPad and the classic Paint app can now be found in the list of optional features for Windows 10, joining the ranks of other hallmarks of the Windows of yore, such as Windows Media Player and Internet Explorer. This means that both these apps will be uninstallable in a future release of Windows, likely 20H1, as build 18963 is a preview of that branch of Windows 10's development. A previous build had already included a placeholder for Microsoft Paint in the optional features' list but it was not functional at the time; this time around though, you can uninstall both apps immediately, if you so desire. Of course, optional features can always be reinstalled so Paint won't really be disappearing anytime soon. The company was planning to keep the app alive through the Microsoft Store anyway. Just don't hold out any hope for the app receiving new features anytime soon, what with Microsoft putting its weight behind the newer, sexier, and higher dimensional Paint 3D. Via: Windows Latest

Microsoft won't be removing Paint from Windows 10 for now by Jay Bonggolto Microsoft Paint was one of the apps marked for deprecation in the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update. Although Paint had since remained available to users, it never received any new feature as it faced the possibility of getting axed from Windows 10 at some point in the future. In late 2017, Microsoft began displaying a product alert within Paint that warned users of its imminent departure as it was slated to be replaced by Paint 3D. That didn't mean, though, that the app was going away entirely: it would still be available via the Microsoft Store. Thankfully for Paint fans, Brandon LeBlanc, Microsoft's Senior Program Manager for Windows, has confirmed in a tweet today that the software giant won't be removing the app, at least in the foreseeable future. LeBlanc made the revelation in response to Italian tech news site HTNovo, which called his attention to the absence of Paint's warning message on devices running Windows 10 19H1 Build 18362.xx. The "Product alert" button used to appear in the top-right corner of Paint since the deprecation. LeBlanc said Paint will remain in Windows 10 for the time being and will be included in 1903, or the Windows 10 May 2019 Update which went live on the Microsoft Developer Network last week. It's not clear why Microsoft suddenly held back its plan to shutter Paint, but it's a welcome development nevertheless. Source: Brandon LeBlanc (Twitter)

You can now try the revamped Paint Preview app for yourself by Muhammad Jarir Kanji Earlier this week, news broke of Microsoft working on an overhaul of its legacy Paint application with a move towards the Universal Windows Platform, an updated modern UI and support for 3D objects. Those impressed by what they saw can now have an early go at the revamped application courtesy of Gustave M, who has posted the .appx files to the preview app on Twitter. Users can easily download the app and sideload it via App Deployer to try it for themselves. The file, which is dated to May, is already signed for the Windows Store, so users need not bother with enabling developer options to sideload apps but those who are facing problems can simply do so by going to the 'For Developers' section in 'Updates and Security' in the Settings app. However, the application is currently only compatible with x64 devices, and there's still no news on whether the company is working on bringing the app to Windows 10 Mobile seeing as how the new 3D options may require considerable computing power. Source: GustaveM (Twitter)

A 97-year-old WWII veteran from Ohio uses a different kind of medium to create his artwork. Hal Lasko, also known as 'Grandpa,' makes his masterpieces exclusively using Microsoft Paint on Windows '95. Lasko, who is legally blind, served drafting directional and weather maps for bombing raids in WWII and later began his civilian career as a typographer. Decades after retiring in the 1970s, Lasko's family introduced him to Microsoft Paint and the artist quickly took to the digital medium. Now the almost century-year-old grandfather has his artwork on display at a local art exhibition and he is also selling his prints online. The 'pixel painter' quickly caught the attention of director Josh Bogdon who documented Lasko's story of discovering a new career well into his 80s. source & more pics