(Credit:
CNET)
Every computer user needs a basic text editor for Readme files and simple note taking capabilities--that's why Windows comes with Notepad. But if you want added features like a tabbed interface, search and replace functionality, or extras that help you with coding projects, you need to look for the more full-featured alternatives. The best editors come with numerous features and work great for editing code for Web sites, but also for simply writing quick notes, and pasting excerpts from the Web when aggregating research for a project.
Fortunately, some of the best software in this category is free, but you can also use "Light" versions of paid software and still get most of the useful features.
(Credit:
CNET)
NoteTab Light offers a tabbed interface and adds several libraries of premade code bits called "clips" you can access through a pull-down menu on the left side of the interface. These clips can be anything from commonly used code to quick formatting tools available at a click of your mouse. You can also quickly preview your work in your default Web browser from within the interface. NoteTab Light offers a lightweight footprint and is a huge upgrade from the Notepad included with Windows.
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CNET)
TextPad is another excellent text editor with a "light" version that most users will find offers plenty of features. Like NoteTab, TextPad offers a host of features like a tabbed-interface, and helpful formatting tools for indenting, line numbering, character transposing, and condition-based word wrapping. TextPad will bug you with a nag screen periodically, but most features are available even in this time-unlimited "light" version.
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CNET)
EditPlus is a text editing tool that's popular with a lot of people because of its ability to use simple FTP commands to get your files online from within the program. Powerful features for Web authors like a built-in Web browser for previews and syntax highlighting for HTML, CSS, PHP, ASP, Perl, C/C++, and many more make this program an excellent alternative. Added handy features like a Windows Explorer-like file directory built-in to the interface and a wealth of commonly used code clips (like NoteTab Light) make this software particularly appealing. EditPlus is a 30-day trial, but with all of its useful features, the $35 price tag is more than worth it.
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CNET)
Notepad++ is a popular choice among serious code crunchers because it's loaded with useful features and it's completely free. It supports several programming languages, offers syntax highlighting, drag-and-drop functionality, and you can easily launch a preview in IE or Firefox from within the software. As a free option, anybody wanting to see what it's like using a text editor even if it is for making lists or doing Web research has nothing to lose with this excellent text editor. But the popularity of this software among serious coders is definitely warranted, with more than enough features for most projects.
This free, open-source word-processor strikes us as a worthy alternative to pricey, big-name products. AbiWord has a quick learning curve, since the interface is very similar to other word processors. You'll find just about all the features you need, including the ability to cut and paste, to highlight, as well a bevy of common formatting tools.
Although we did miss a grammar-checking utility, AbiWord can check your spelling in many languages--you'll need to choose the appropriate foreign language dictionaries during installation. A huge plus is the ability to open and save Microsoft Word documents, though the program also has its own proprietary file format. You can download plug-ins at the publisher's site to import and export a wide variety of other formats, including OpenDocument. AbiWord should appeal to a wide range of users who seek a functional word-processing app but lack a large bank account.
(Credit:
CNET Networks)
Every computer user needs a basic text editor for Readme files and simple note-taking capabilities. That's why Windows comes with Notepad and Mac OS X comes with TextEdit. However, if you want a program that is useful for more than just looking at Readme files, you need to look elsewhere. The best type of text editors come with numerous features and work great for writing quick notes, keeping a journal, coding Web sites, and pasting excerpts from the Web when aggregating research for a project.
While Notepad and TextEdit are useful in their own right, if I want added features like a tabbed interface, search and replace functionality, or extras that help me with coding HTML, I look for the more full-featured alternatives. Some of the best I've found are free "light" versions of professional-level text editors, which give you more features than the basic apps preloaded on your computer. Think of these downloads as free upgrades to what you already have. Though the full versions of these programs are excellent apps, most of the time you can easily get by using the free version.
Several 'clips' and utilities are available in NoteTab Light, including built-in FTP capabilities.
(Credit: CNET Networks)My current favorites for editing text, taking notes, and a million other uses give you a lot more than what comes loaded on your system, without the need to pay through the nose. NoteTab Light for Windows offers a tabbed interface and adds several libraries of premade code bits called "clips" that you can access through a pull-down menu on the left side of the interface. These clips can be anything from commonly used code to quick-formatting tools available at a click of your mouse. The included FTP utilities let you upload and download files (if you're updating your blog or Web site, for example) directly from within the program. NoteTab Light has always been one of my favorite text editors for Windows because of its long list of useful features.
Text Wrangler is incredibly flexible, with most of its tools available at the top of the interface.
(Credit: CNET Networks)TextWrangler for Mac OS X is the little brother of BBEdit, the venerable text editor from Bare Bones Software. TextWrangler offers all the text-processing power of its big brother, but is geared more toward the average user. Like NoteTab, TextWrangler offers a host of features including built-in FTP controls and it supports several helpful plug-ins made for BBEdit. When you use TextWrangler, you can quickly tell that the Bare Bones Software folks have been in the Mac software biz for a long time; it works flawlessly with Mac OS X, including its use of the Mac OS X spell-checker.
If you're in the market for a professional text editor, each of these apps has a feature-packed big brother (full version) available at the developer's Web site. But if you're like me, you may find that a few more features than your preloaded text software is all you need and these light versions do the job quite nicely.
(Credit:
Dark Room Team)
You are standing in an open field west of a white house, with a boarded front door.
There is a small mailbox here.
OK, not really, but the freeware Windows app Dark Room (based off the Mac OS X 10.4 software WriteRoom) looks a heck of a lot like the classic text-adventure game Zork.
The idea behind Dark Room and WriteRoom is simple: offer a distraction-free application for writing text. Both apps throw out the bells and whistles and provide a lightweight text editor without buttons, menus, or anything else that might disturb your concentration. ... Read more
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