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Windows Insiders can test out some powerful new features for Snipping Tool and Notepad.
Updates to both apps are rolling out to the Canary and Dev Channels on Windows 11.
Microsoft continues to test new ways to improve Snipping Tool on Windows 11.
Holding your cursor or pen for a moment after drawing a line or shape will activate the feature.
Draw & Hold will then convert your stroke into a well-formed line or shape.
I love the Snipping Tool and use it frequently.
Windows 11’s Notepad will gain an AI-powered Summarize feature.
Microsoft is also testing an improved protocol launch experience for Snipping Tool that gives greater control to developers.
Notepad’s update adds AI-powered summaries to the app.
After selecting text and right-clicking, you’ll see a “Summarize” option in the Copilot menu.
The feature uses Copilot to create a condensed version of your text.
Summarize requires a Microsoft 365 account.
You will also need AI credits to use Summarize in Notepad.
you’ve got the option to disable AI features in Notepad, including the Summarize tool.
Below is the full change log from Microsoft for the updates to Snipping Tool and Notepad.
To get started, open Snipping Tool and capture a screenshot of any content on your screen.
Resize, move, or adjust your shape as needed before clicking away to let the ink dry.
Protocol Launch
For developers, Snipping Tool now supports a new and improved protocol launch experience!
App callers can now customize which Snipping Tool capture features are shown when invoked from their experience.
To learn more and get started, check out theLaunch Snipping Tooldeveloper documentation page.
Notepad will generate a summary of the selected text, providing a quick way to condense content.
you’ve got the option to experiment with different summary lengths to refine the output.
If you prefer, you might disable AI features in app parameters.
To use Summarize, you better sign in with your Microsoft personal account.
Recent Files
With recent files, you could now reopen your recently closed files directly within Notepad.
press any file to instantly reopen and continue editing.
