cross-posted from: https://programming.dev/post/37661765
Notepad now supports AI features like Summarize, Write, and Rewrite on Copilot+ PCs, with no subscription required. If you have a subscription, you can seamlessly switch between local and cloud models based on your needs. If you’re not signed in or don’t have a subscription, you can use the local model to accomplish your tasks. For now, these features support English only, making premium AI more accessible and flexible for everyone.
Source: Windows Insiders blog.
no. just no. Notepad exists to edit .txt files, not to fucking give me AI shit.
Oh cool!
Said no one
This means it’s also sending your text across the Internet and feeding the stupid fucking models with it.
You know, just what you want from a fucking notepad app.
Is Microsoft not aware what Notepad is actually used for?
Not writing or coding. No one uses it for anything except when Microsoft forces someone to use it as a default text editor.
Hard disagree, it’s fantastic for dumping log info/code snippets into and stripping formatting off strings.
Wouldn’t any text editor with a delinter be superior
No one even needs or wants these features. No one uses notepad for anything other than writing down quick notes while on the phone. Why would I need an AI to rewrite that. Actually if I did need an AI to rewrite that, I just copy it out of notepad and into one of the 100 bazillion AI apps that now are.
Microsoft are wasting developer time adding features that not only does no one currently want, but no one could possibly ever need.
meanwhile the text editor on linux mint is just a text editor, opens in seconds, and lets you edit text.
Happy that I switched to Linux
Ah yes because who would want useful free features? Not you!
“Useful free features” like the entire OS and all the tools associated with it?
Like AI built directly into a text editor.
I’m beginning to doubt the accuracy of your username.
If I wanted AI I could go to some shit website and use it. Just like I don’t want a “useful free” toilet in my car, I don’t want brain-damaging spyware in my notepad.
- But now you don’t have to go to some shit website, you can use it directly where you want it.
- It’s not spyware.
That’s what wordpad was for. Many just want a simple text editor without any cloud features. You might be using a a temp scratch pad and when the cloud keeps storing your temp passwords and keys it isn’t very secure.
Windows should have wordpad readded with the AI features as well.Where does this say that it is temp storing you passwords and keys in the cloud?
People love free and useful features. Cramming AI into notepad is not useful in the slightest. This is just one more unnecessary AI interaction platform in an os already chock full of them.
So AI isn’t useful in the slightest? ChatGPT? Claude?
You know you don’t have to use AI in it, right?
So AI isn’t useful in the slightest?
How is putting AI in a basic text editor useful? Or is this a situation where you are just defending the concept of the usefulness of shoving bots in every single piece of software possible?
AI has some useful things it can do, but many more useless things, like just being shoved into something to try to mine even more of your data under the guide of ‘usefulness’.
You know you don’t have to use AI in it, right?
No, I just have to see the prompt every time I use the software just so lazy mouth breathers don’t have to expend the mental energy to go to another app to ask their mental pacifier to do all the hard work for them.
What’s funny is that this likely irritated one of Microsofts own devs enough that they said ‘fuck all of this’ and invented the new cli app called Edit.
It’s under 200kb and runs as a standalone binary if you want. Also supports mouse input.
Did I mention it’s cross platform?
This is cool, but it’s not a replacement for notepad.
I mean it has all the features notepad had.
- You can type into it
It’s a terminal style editor.
Who cares? It does the same thing, maybe except not having different font support and printing.
The people that would use it.
With the tagline:
A simple editor for simple needs.
Just like original Notepad lol
Well, yes, but actually no. It’s more like MS-DOS’s
EDIT.COMsince it runs in a command line / “DOS” window.In fact, since
EDIT.COMwent through a couple of distinct variants back in the day, you could say that this is the third variant of it.The other two being 1) the BASIC-deactivated side of
QBASIC.EXEwhich was an editor and programming language in one, and then 2) a stand-alone, from the ground up, version (with no BASIC to disable) which came along with Win9x / MS-DOS 7.I keep a copy of the latter in my DOSBox config. It’s only 70kB.
WordPad died for this.
use notepad++ as drop-in replacement.
+1 NPP is the goat
It always struck me as a code editor lite rather than a text editor. If I just want to jot something down, metapad is Notepad without all the Windows bullshit they keep trying to shoehorn.
See, having used IDEs to write software and scripts for the past 20 years, I just can’t see N++ as anything more than a syntax aware notepad.
I use both notepad and ++. I think it fits both worlds of code and text editor. When I am using it I am usually needing to to replace words and other tweaks that are really easy and flexible with ++.
This is also a good choice
It’s hard to imagine that Notepad of all things has now been enshittified. On Windows, I only ever use Notepad++, but regular ol’ Notepad has been a staple of Windows almost since the beginning. It truly feels like they’ve finished peeling away what little good remained of what Windows used to be.
I’ve been asking for stuff like this. I’m a long time notepad++ user, but I’d much rather not have to install a third party app and just use notepad. Since notepad added tabs I’ve been using it more and more and notepad++ less and less. Having AI editing built in to notepad is awesome.
Your username doesn’t check out… Everything you type in notepad goes to Microsoft now… I can’t understand what is awesome about having an ai try and figure out my text in notes pad.
Would you be better served switching from notepad++ to vs code?
Where does it say everything you type in notepad goes to Microsoft now? It doesn’t lol. The screenshot even shows that the AI can be done completely on device.
You don’t understand how using AI to help with writing is awesome?
Why would I use vs code just for taking notes? I use VS code for programming.
Because everything Microsoft has said, even when using Copilot + AI local still sends data to microsoft. Sound like privacy, is more like pushing the actual resource compute local while still sending data home.
You don’t understand how using AI to help with writing is awesome?
No, I don’t. It is lazy and not awesome at all. Every single research paper that has come out says it does one of two things (often both): wastes your time making you think you are being more efficient when you are not, AND makes you stupid. Your crutch disengages your brain, and makes it harder and harder for you to do it your self.
And if you are taking notes, what the hell is AI doing?
You said notepad++ which has a lot of features via plug ins. So I would assume you would want more functionality than simply a text editor, hence why I said it. If I am stuck on a windows computer, I use it for code AND notes. It works well for either case. There is even an extension for that.
No, using on device AI doesn’t send data to Microsoft - that’s the entire point of it being on-device……
No, I don’t
Ok well at least you acknowledge that you aren’t very forward thinking and don’t have a very good imagination. AI is a tool to be used. It doesn’t make you dumber or lazier unless you are already dumb and lazy to begin with, in which case it just lets you get better results while being dumb and lazy.
I have never heard of anyone using an IDE to take notes before, so that’s a first.
OK, so you haven’t actually looked into any of the studies (there are plenty). It absolutely makes you dumber and lazy while wasting your time.
The amount of garbage that AI puts out is astounding. I am very familiar with it, my department is in charge of facilitating users to use it. I run local LLM’s so I fully understand how offline works.
In the case of copilot+ pc’s "an internet connection is required every so many days. They are explicit that the local processing will be combined with internet processing, and although you can turn it off for periods of time, the model will not be as robust or useful. In addition of course they are still sending all that data back with refresh by simply using windows so there is that too.
Calling VS Code an IDE is a stretch. Are you sure you are not confusing it with Visual Studio?
The funniest part about all of this is that VS Code has AI all through it.
It certainly removed my ability to say “Companies are shoehorning AI into everything! I wouldn’t be surprised if they do it with Notepad…” as a form of mockery. It was one of the first damned victims.
Edit: I’m genuinely surprised technical people (with appropriate rights on their PCs) still use it, though. I switched to Notepad++ nearly 20 years ago.
One of the best features of notepad was that it starts quickly. That feature is now gone. :(
Tbf, some larger file sizes fucked notepad in the ass HARD. Notepad++ does everything right by me.
Yeah why is that? Decade after decade this never really improved. Trying to open a big file in notepad just always brought it to its knees. Why doesn’t this shit bother anyone at Microsoft enough to write three lines of code to fix that?
Why does everyone assume that programmers can just go and fix stuff they don’t like without getting shot down in performance reviews for lack of focus or for overstepping their authority.
We have a prioritized list of work items coming in from the PO and that’s what we work on. There’s generally no room for creativity. Supporting larger files in Notepad in particular would increase maintenance costs due to requiring much more complex memory management, and it would label you as not being a team player for increasing complexity for everyone. It wouldn’t pass code review.
Sounds awful
Nobody asked for this! FFS, can megacorps stop shoving AI into everything. Lucky Charms and scissors will have AI soon enough.
For now, these features support English only, making premium AI more accessible and flexible for everyone.
They can’t be serious, right?
It is possible to restore the old notepad.
I didn’t include a link because I could not find a non-spammy one, but a search finds a few. I did it on my work PC.
And switching to a FOSS OS is probably preferable, but that’s not always possible.
I am pretty sure you can just remove the Notepad app on Windows 11 (not sure about Windows 10 though), or at least that’s what I did on VM. It removes the context menu option for creating a new text file (using new Notepad), but it restores old notepad that you can run by just runnning
notepadin Run prompt (Win+R), or by making simple shortcut.I didn’t try, but a lot of those simple old apps were able to just run without any dependencies, and you may be lucky to just be able to copy the .exe from an older system to the new one.
I actually have been enjoying the changes they did to it with new tabs and auto saving so you can reopen without losing anything. But wow, I never saw AI coming to this… I will need to find a way to prevent it from updating. Otherwise, I will also be going back.
Microsoft copied the features you like from notepad++.
The AI slop however, that is all Microsoft.Yeah, I know. All those ideas weren’t new, but I was happy to see them. I use ++ all the time, but i also like notepad just for quick notes. It’s fast and lightweight. Today, I was using ++ a lot actually to edit firewall configs and scripts. They both have their place for me, but I will definitely be forced to give it up the day I am greeted with a check out our AI when opening notepad.
