Users who have paid a little attention to Microsoft’s recent update to Windows 11 may feel that Microsoft has suddenly picked up a little painter that it has not paid attention to for a long time and installed some common functions for him that are found in mainstream drawing software. Let the little painter no longer just change the interface, but also have the same weak functions as a small toy. I just heard not long ago that Microsoft will add the de-memorization function to the beta version of Windows 11, but I didn’t expect there would be a second one.
There are many image editing software that can be downloaded for free on the market. Compared with the weak little painter, there are many reliable third-party software options out there, and some are even comparable to commercial software suites. For example, GIMP is an example. This software is rich in functions and can be called the Photoshop of the open source software industry. Therefore, Little Painter, which is built into Widows and has basically only been updated with a new interface following system revisions over the years without adding any new functions, has been regarded by many users as a appendage in the built-in software of Windows.
In the evolution of young painters, they are no longer dispensable
To put it bluntly, some people may say that there are many little painters and geniuses on the Internet who can use this small software to create wonderful masterpieces. However, the average user’s impression of this software is that its functions are outdated and it seems that it can only draw pictures. Microsoft even once thought of completely replacing this appendix-like software with Little Painter 3D. But now it seems that the young painter is coming back to life again.
According to recentMicrosoft Blog As for the update project mentioned in , the added functions of Little Painter mainly come from two aspects. The first is the layer function that is seen in current mainstream image editing software. With the layer function, you can edit more complex image elements or text through the little painter. However, the traditional archive format .bmp is obviously not suitable for this function. Therefore, it can be expected that Little Painter will launch a unique file format similar to Photoshop’s .psd that supports layer information in response to the new features.
This feature obviously allows MS Paint to have similar functions to the Paint.NET software with a similar name. However, Little Painter still needs to maintain its original intention of being lightweight, so the layer function cannot be increased without limit. Judging from the official screenshots, Little Painter can create at least 5 layers, and maybe more. , but it may not be able to add layers as you like with software such as Photoshop and GIMP. But for lightweight painters, I believe it is enough for users to play various ways.
The advent of the layer function has greatly increased the practicality of little painters. If the next function is added, it will give little painters the style of an image editing software. This feature is a transparency feature added to the .png format. In fact, when Little Painter was launched in the Windows 95 era, it did not support .png files. When Windows XP was launched, Little Painter only supported .png due to an update, but since then it has been updated and still does not support .png transparency information.
If you open a .png image file with a transparent background using Little Paint, and then save the file via Save As, you will get an image file with a white background. Even if it is updated later, .png containing transparent information can be opened. But as soon as you save it, everything will be destroyed. This feature was a fixed feature of the young painter before.
▲The little painter emerged in Windows 95, and it was very popular back then (Image Source）
Now, as Microsoft launches the Windows 11 beta version 11.2308.18.0, the little painter has caught up a little bit with the mainstream image editing software. With layers and weapons that support transparent .png, as well as the recently added back-removal function, the little painter is obviously no longer Wu Xia Amon. He has triple-jumped from the past cecum software to a new image with great practicality. Editing software.
At present, these functions are still in the Canary and Dev channels, and the time when they will appear in the major version is still unknown. At present, it seems that there is no chance to use the new little painter in 23H2. It is already in the final stage. If there is 24H1, it may be possible to see it. New features are used in this version. For some users who only need simple picture editing functions, the evolved little painter may be very satisfying.
Source:
Windows Insider Blog
