Windows 11 Notepad app appears to be getting browser-style tabs

[midian182]

What just happened? The Windows Notepad app has been around for a very long time, but it saw few updates between the launch of Windows 95 and its redesign in Windows 11. According to what appears to be an accidental announcement by a Microsoft employee, the Windows 11 version is getting a new feature: browser-style tabs.

The reveal was made by a senior product manager at Microsoft who tweeted a photo of an updated Notepad with tabs, along with a message that stated, "Notepad in Windows 11 now has tabs!" There was also a loudspeaker emoji for emphasis.

It seems unusual that the employee posted the tweet when there was a big warning on the image stating its confidentiality and not to discuss features or take screenshots, which could explain why the tweet was quickly deleted.

It appears that the tabs feature for Notepad is still in the early testing phase and will arrive for Windows Insiders first following a future official announcement.

As with other programs that use them, the feature will allow users to have multiple files open in the same window, and they can jump between each one by clicking on the tab at the top of the screen.

This won't be the first long-running Windows tool that Microsoft has enhanced with tabs. After years of being requested by users, they were introduced to Windows File Explorer as a part of the Windows 11 version 22H2 update.

Microsoft has experimented with adding tabs to multiple Windows apps before. Back at its Build conference in 2018, the company announced a feature called Sets that was essentially tabs for every app in Windows 10. Windows Insiders got to test Sets, but the feedback led to the feature being canceled and never arriving in the full version of the operating system.

With tabs now available in File Explorer and Notepad apparently set to receive them, it looks as if Microsoft is slowly adding the feature to multiple Windows apps à la Sets. Don't be surprised to see more tabs in Windows 11 programs over the coming months.

Permalink to story.

https://www.techspot.com/news/97076-windows-11-notepad-app-appears-getting-browser-style.html

 

[psycros]

Anyone who actually relies on a notepad program just downloads Notepad++ or another one that blows Microsoft completely out of the water. If they weren't spending all their time on making Office more terrible and spying on their users maybe Team Windows could actually catch up wit the freeware world.

 

[RaXelliX]

Anyone who actually relies on a notepad program just downloads Notepad++ or another one that blows Microsoft completely out of the water. If they weren't spending all their time on making Office more terrible and spying on their users maybe Team Windows could actually catch up wit the freeware world.

Yep too little, too late.
I switched to N++ years ago and now only use built in Notepad if I have no other choice.

 

[poshflamingos]

Anyone who actually relies on a notepad program just downloads Notepad++ or another one that blows Microsoft completely out of the water. If they weren't spending all their time on making Office more terrible and spying on their users maybe Team Windows could actually catch up wit the freeware world.

You're being way too dramatic. Microsoft made VS Code, they are perfectly capable of making good text editors. The reason Notepad is barebones is because the vast majority of users don't really need any of the features on Notepad++, they just need a quick and easy way to type some stuff in a basic, unformatted text editor. It's Notepad, not Codingpad.

 

[pmshah]

Why even bother with it when Notepad++ already supports it with spell check and what not.

Just wish someone comes up with a better explorer.exe to literally replace the MS furnished one.

 

[trieste1s]

I use this as a remarkably functional Notepad replacement. Notepad2 is still alive, albeit forked and modernised.

https://github.com/zufuliu/notepad2/releases

 

[pmshah]

You're being way too dramatic. Microsoft made VS Code, they are perfectly capable of making good text editors. The reason Notepad is barebones is because the vast majority of users don't really need any of the features on Notepad++, they just need a quick and easy way to type some stuff in a basic, unformatted text editor. It's Notepad, not Codingpad.

You are sadly mistaken. I use "Take Command" CLI. I have startup batch file that takes many environmental aspects into consideration and executes commands in the file as required. There are all kinds of network options that get selected / changed depending on the time of the day. Try creating and testing these complex files in notepad.

 

[poshflamingos]

You are sadly mistaken. I use "Take Command" CLI. I have startup batch file that takes many environmental aspects into consideration and executes commands in the file as required. There are all kinds of network options that get selected / changed depending on the time of the day. Try creating and testing these complex files in notepad.

You completely missed my point.

What percentage of Windows users do you think use CLI, batch files, and automations depending on the time of day? The fact that you do those things puts you in a minuscule niche of users. The vast, overwhelming majority of users have no interest in those features.

If you're part of this tiny niche, you can go on your own and find Notepad++ or another more complex program that suits you. For the 99.9% of users that aren't part of this niche and just want to take notes and make simple text files, Notepad is more than enough.

 

[Mr Majestyk]

Notepad s utter trash, not fit for purpose and should have been killed off with XP. What a waste of effort trying to dress up a turkey with tabs. Notepad has never been more than enough. By that logic DOS is more than enough.

notepad++ is but one a many freeware excellent editors.