Windows Journal was a discontinued notetaking application, created by Microsoft and included in Windows XP Tablet PC Edition as well as selected editions of Windows Vista and later. It was renewed in 2021 in Windows 11.[1][2]
 | |
 Windows Journal running on Windows 11 | |
| Developer(s) | Microsoft |
|---|---|
| Included with |
|
| Successor | OneNote |
Previous discontinued version from Windows 10
Previous version allowed the user to create and organize handwritten notes and drawings, and to save them in a .JNT file, or export them in TIFF format. It can use an ordinary computer mouse to compose a handwritten note, as well as a graphics tablet or a Tablet PC.
JNT format
Microsoft has provided no documentation for its proprietary .JNT file format, which makes it difficult or impossible for other developers or software publishers to read or write .JNT files. Therefore, other programs cannot import Windows Journal files. There can be no third-party applications that make direct use of files created with Windows Journal. .JNT files should be converted to other formats such as XML with the Journal Reader Supplemental Component,[3] for external applications to use.
Windows Journal Viewer
Windows Journal Viewer, also created by Microsoft, allows viewing the Windows Journal notes (.JNT files) on other systems without the Tablet PC software. The most recently released version 1.5.2316.0[4] for Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 was removed as of March 2016.
Discontinuation
Windows Journal was not visibly updated after its introduction and eventually became obsolete, although it was tested for compatibility throughout the development of new versions of Windows and patched for security vulnerabilities as recently as May 2016.[5] Windows Journal was available in the original July 2015 release of Windows 10 and the November Update, but it was removed in the summer 2016 "Anniversary Update."[6] All of its features are available in OneNote, which is integrated into Windows 10. OneNote does not support .JNT files, but Microsoft offers the ability to reinstall Journal[7] and a tool for converting Journal files to OneNote files.[8] On July 12, 2016, Microsoft released a patch (KB3170735) for Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 to notify users about future Windows Journal developments.[9] On August 9, 2016, Microsoft released another patch (KB3161102) to remove Windows Journal from Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 due to the Windows Journal file format (Journal Note File, or JNT) being susceptible to security exploits.[10][11]
See also
References
Further reading
- "Create and personalize handwritten notes using Windows Journal". Windows 7 Help home. Microsoft Corporation. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
- "Customize the appearance of a Journal note". Windows Vista Help home. Microsoft Corporation. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
- "Tablet PC improvements". Windows 7 home. Microsoft Corporation. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
- "New Tools to Use with Your PC". Windows XP Tablet PC Edition home. Microsoft Corporation. 7 November 2002. Archived from the original on 4 February 2004. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
- Russel, Charlie (20 January 2003). "Getting to Know Windows Journal for Tablet PC". Windows XP home. Microsoft Corporation. Archived from the original on 1 June 2010. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
- "Converting Journal Notes to XML, SVG, and OneNote". Microsoft Developer Network. Microsoft Corporation. Retrieved 29 July 2014.