Note that in this case, optional means opt-in by default. NotePad, Paint, and WordPad are all still installed by default.

Notepad was released in 1983, a full 12 years before WordPad. The initial version of the tool launched not for Windows but rather MS-DOS, Microsoft’s first operating system.

Analysis: WordPad down, Notepad on the up In the past, Microsoft has made it clear that you won’t be able to somehow reinstall WordPad (and that the app won’t be present in new installations ...

However, Microsoft has been steadily updating the Notepad app in recent years, with features including the aforementioned dark mode. An upcoming Notepad update will add autosave functionality.

Meanwhile, WordPad, a free word processor that lives between Notepad and Word, is not long for this world. In a future update for Windows 11, Microsoft has confirmed its plans to remove WordPad ...

WordPad was introduced with Windows 95 in 1995 as a more capable alternative to the barebones Notepad app. Included in every version of Windows since then, the program has gained certain ...

The recent Canary build of Windows 11 does not include WordPad. It appears the app that was introduced in Windows 95 is now being retired. Microsoft is expected to also remove a few other aging apps.

They are Notepad, Microsoft Paint, and and WordPad. None of the apps are set to disappear from Windows 10, but users will have the choice to not install them assuming they remain optional features ...

2. WordPad WordPad is unheard of, mostly. People would’ve noticed Notepad and Word, whereas WordPad is sort of halfway between the two. Firstly, it’s a word processor, not merely a text editor.

Analyst calls this IT pilot fish with a service request: He needs some "programming" and an explanation of "how an email is made" -- and, though he doesn't know it, some help following directions.