Microsoft Paint, the famously rudimentary image-editing program bundled with Windows, is getting a major upgrade: layers and transparency, just like Photoshop and other fancy apps. Program manager Dave Grochocki announced the new features in the release notes to a beta version of the software being pushed to members of the Windows Insiders program—everyday users will have to wait a while.
You can now add, remove, and manage layers on the canvas to create richer and more complex digital art. With layers, you can stack shapes, text, and other image elements on top of each other. To get started, click on the new Layers button in the toolbar, which will open a panel on the side of the canvas. This is where you can add new layers to the canvas. Try changing the order of layers in this panel to see how the order of stacked image elements on the canvas changes. You can also show or hide and duplicate individual layers or merge layers together.
"Yes," he said, nodding into his beatific smile. Golden light shone behind him, limning his hair, softening the very air. "Yes. You can even open a transparent PNG in it."
