Microsoft fully resuscitated Paint in Windows 7 with a major facelift, adding the dreadful-to-some ribbon interface as the top menu bar and incorporating the ability to draw in different mediums, such as a crayon or a watercolor brush. There are also more shape selections available and a rulers and gridline overlay to allow you to draw precise whatever-it-is that you draw in Paint.  However, with all this newfound sense of worth, Microsoft’s Paint is still not a program we want to use for cropping and adjusting our digital photos. Thankfully, Paint.NET has been released to help quell the Windows handicap of not having a decent image editing application.

The simple interface of Paint.NET makes it easier to use than GIMP, its direct competitor, and it takes up much less hard disk space (though the “temporary” files left behind by the Undo should be cleared out once in awhile to avoid overflow). This free download comes equipped with a tabbed document interface that displays a live thumbnail of the image and uses layers for more efficient image composition. It also features unlimited undos, “special effects,” and a variety of other photo adjustment tools that only seem to come equipped with costly image editing software. Though it’s not as well-equipped as its predecessors, Paint.NET is a crucial addition to your new Windows 7 machine, and an even better starting point for novice photo editors who need a simple palette to play with.

Download Paint.NET here.

Every Wednesday, we pick a new downloadable application as our favorite of the week. Have an app that you can't live without? Send suggestions to florence [AT] maximumpc.com with "Downloadble App" as the subject line.