Microsoft Sends Clip Art into Retirement, Wants You to Use Bing Images

[[Coi] Mr.CLuBBeR]

A casualty of the Internet

Microsoft just shut down its Clip Art library, and going forward, the company suggests using Bing's image search functionality instead. No problem, most people have already made the transition to web-based image searches when they're in need of a graphic or photographic, just not everyone has been using Bing to hunt down images. In an initial draft of the blog post announcing the change, Microsoft was blunt in saying that usage of the image library in Office has seen a steady decline as users turn towards search engines.
Prior to its closure, Microsoft's Clip Art library contained stock pictures of objects, people, animals, scenes, and more. Many were drawn in stick figure form. They were popular additions to school presentations, though as time went on, the rudimentary art became dated.
"The Office.com Clip Art and image library has closed shop. Customers can still add images to their documents, presentations, and other files that they have saved to their devices (phones, tablets, and PCs), OneDrive, and SharePoint. Customers also still have the ability to add images to their documents using Bing Image Search," Microsoft said.
Microsoft also provided a bit of guidance on how to track down images that are legal to use. The company points out that Bing Image Search uses a copyright filter based on the Creative Commons licensing system and returns links to sources of images provided.
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