REDMOND, Wash. – Nov. 10, 2011 – Microsoft unfurled an infinite canvas across the Internet today, inviting artists of all ages to become digital da Vincis.

The company’s new “The Art of Touch” project offers anyone using a modern HTML5-capable browser a digital palette and canvas to create, save and share digital art. The Art of Touch site, ArtOfTouch.com, transforms a visitor’s mouse into a paintbrush; with a click, flick or swipe, visitors can paint their masterpiece, then show it off to friends.

The Art of Touch on Display

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The Project Begins

November 10, 2011

Microsoft is inspiring artistic creativity through the launch of an international campaign called “The Art of Touch,” which provides a free digital toolset and canvas to easily create, save and share digital art.

Image: Web

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How It Works

November 10, 2011

At the site, digital brushes will produce a ribbon, smoke, or streak across the canvas. Optional effects include starbursts, trees, and splats. Both brushes and effects were inspired in part by what’s possible in professional drawing tools.

Image: Web

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Exploring The Art of Touch

November 10, 2011

Over the next few months users can keep adding to the “living creature,” or simply explore what others have created. All artwork will be added to the “Sea of Art” canvas that users can fly through horizontally, vertically, or in-depth.

Image: Web

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Mouse Art by Marius Watz

November 10, 2011

Digital artist Marius Watz collaborated with Microsoft on the Art of Touch palette, which he used to create this image. “You'd have to be in a pretty bad mood in order to not enjoy it,” Watz said of the site.

Image: Web

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Behind the Technology

November 10, 2011

The Art of Touch app, which was inspired by the natural movements of the Microsoft Touch Mouse family of products, pushes modern browsers to their limit. The canvas feature of HTML5 is combined with JavaScript libraries to draw the strokes and computer-generated animations in real-time to the Web browser.

Image: Web

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Arc Touch Mouse

September 01, 2010

The Arc Touch Mouse is the first mouse designed to flatten for portability and pop up for comfort, featuring a touch scroll strip to swiftly navigate your PC.  You can use it on almost any surface, even your jeans. Price: $59.95

Image: Web | Print

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Explorer Touch Mouse

July 19, 2011

Microsoft took Touch technology to the next level with the sleek Explorer Touch Mouse. The latest edition to the Touch family, it speeds up everyday tasks with an advanced Touch strip for quick side-to-side scrolling so you can flick, click and navigate in any direction. Price: $49.95

Image: Web | Print

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Touch Mouse

January 05, 2011

Sleek and bold, Touch Mouse features a large touch-sensitive surface that responds to one-, two- and three-fingered movements that are optimized for window management: docking, moving, minimizing and maximizing, going backwards and forwards on your webpage, swinging between tasks, and so on. Price: US$79.95.

Image: Web | Print

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