Microsoft has announced that it will phase out WordPad, the native word processing tool that has been a part of the Windows operating system for nearly three decades. While Microsoft has not provided a specific date for this change, they have already made WordPad an optional application in the Windows 10 Insider Build 19551 update. Users looking for alternatives can choose from numerous open-source word processors or use Microsoft s Notepad or Word software, as well as online tools like Google Docs.