Undo, undo, undo!
Microsoft is seeking to calm fears that it will eliminate the decades-old paint program in the next Windows update, after including the tool on a list of programs it will no longer update.
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The software giant tweeted assurances that Paint is “here to stay” early Tuesday, following widespread outcry over reports of its demise. The program had been included in a list of features Microsoft plans to abandon in the upcoming Fall Creators Update to Windows 10, due out in September of this year. Microsoft had said Paint will be considered a “deprecated” feature with the next update, meaning it is “not in active development and might be removed in future releases.”
Microsoft walked that back in a later statement, saying that Paint will no longer be installed by default on Windows, but that it will be available as a free app on the Windows Store.
“If there’s anything we learned, it’s that after 32 years, MS Paint has a lot of fans,” Microsoft wrote in a blog post. “Amidst today’s commentary around MS Paint we wanted to take this opportunity to set the record straight, clear up some confusion and share some good news: MS Paint is here to stay.”
The program was first launched as Paintbrush in 1985, and has been pre-installed on every Windows operating system since then. It’s not exactly the most robust image editor, but it’s remained popular as a tool for children and internet users to create quick memes and doodles.
Anger over Paint’s alleged demise turned to elation on social media early Tuesday.
Microsoft Paint: Here to stayhttps://t.co/yiJvvYh7GT pic.twitter.com/EXRqIyVLGm
— Microsoft (@Microsoft) July 25, 2017
— Percival S. August (@pollshub) July 25, 2017
— omar jaber (@hackerdude1010) July 25, 2017
MS Paint 4 Life, I made this in Paint btw pic.twitter.com/ErvUTN1YBm
— Shubh Sharma (@Ishubh13) July 25, 2017
Wow I'm so relieved to hear this & didn't realize how upsetting losing #MSPaint would be 😢like R U 4 real and you're not taking it away? ❤️ pic.twitter.com/6MsoNPNXya
— LastBossMonster (@lastbossmonster) July 25, 2017
I used MS Paint everyday. I even made my Twitter icon from MS Paint. Thank you for keeping MS Paint
— Nigel Webster (@2012OrioleFan92) July 25, 2017
I use MS paint daily. Please never get rid of it 😩
— kittyhouseknife (@kittyhouseknife) July 25, 2017
