Looking for a decent text editor

ghostyjack · 01-04-2011, 09:33 AM

I'm looking for a new text editor and am struggling to find one that has all my needs.

What I need it:

Syntax highlighting (html/xhtml).
The ability to S&R more than one line at a time (I'm refering to entering 2 or more lines of text into the search field and being able to replace all instances of those multible lines).
Macro recording.
Macro editing.
An option to view the html/xhtml file either within the editor or to automatically load a browser to display it.
Unicode support.
Preferably for Windows but can also do Linux.
Preferably free but will buy one if the program has all the functionality I need.
Reg-ex capability (I don't know how to use reg-ex yet but am going to learn how).
Tabbed editor.

This isn't a big list but I can't seem to find a single editor that supports all of these.

I currently use Editplus as it's the only editor that I seem to be able to get multiple-line S&R to work in, unfortunatly the macro recording is not that straight-forward (called Keystroke Recorder) as it only appears to record some keystrokes and I can't seem to edit the recorded keystrokes. If I could write the macro to be able to be able to call up a function and then perform a task and then be able to repeat this multiple times, I wouldn't need to copy-and-paste repeatedly from a text file.

Editplus deals with all of the above but I just can't get the macros sorted. So if someone could advised on a replacement that does all of the above, or if they know how get macro functions working on it (or using some kind of user-file or plug-in for this) I would be most greatful.

bhartman36 · 01-04-2011, 10:13 AM

For Windows, I would recommend Notepad++, although I'm not sure about the macro recording capability.

For text editing in Linux, you can't go wrong with Gedit (although you need a plugin for the macro recording).

ghostyjack · 01-04-2011, 10:35 AM

I've tried Notepad++ and you can record a macro, you just can't edit it. So if I make a mistake I'll have to re-record the whole macro, also I might not notice that I've made a mistake.

Also I don't seem to be able to S&R multiple lines in it either (unless I just have been stupid and missed it). I do like the fact I can get a count if I do a find operation, that's very useful to me too. I could use Editplus for some of my editing and then load it into Notepad++ for my macro's. This does seem a bit cumbersome to me though, but it is an idea.

osnova · 01-04-2011, 11:10 AM

I recommend emeditor. Not free but worth it.

Jellby · 01-04-2011, 11:11 AM

In my old times using Windows, I liked UltraEdit.

If you have some free time and are willing to learn something different, try vim

frabjous · 01-04-2011, 11:24 AM

+1 for Vim

You'll need a graphical version of vim, like gvim, for tabs, but it certainly can handle the rest, and a whole lot more. (It's actually hard to get vim without gvim these days, so this is no issue.)

It's weird and has a definite learning curve at first, but well worth it.

And it's available for just about any platform, from Amiga to Windows to Linux to you-name-it.

It definitely has macros, and yes, you can edit them if you make a mistake, though it also has a completely separate scripting language, which I tend to use more often. You can also map any key to any key combination, either recursively or non-recursively.

Another cool thing is that you can open .ePubs with it and edit the files inside and save without having to recreate the ePub, remaining valid. Kovid gives the details here.

Freeshadow · 01-04-2011, 12:16 PM

http://tea-editor.sourceforge.net/ maybe that one?

Format C: · 01-05-2011, 05:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ghostyjack

I'm looking for a new text editor and am struggling to find one that has all my needs.

What I need it:

Syntax highlighting (html/xhtml).
The ability to S&R more than one line at a time (I'm refering to entering 2 or more lines of text into the search field and being able to replace all instances of those multible lines).
Macro recording.
Macro editing.
An option to view the html/xhtml file either within the editor or to automatically load a browser to display it.
Unicode support.
Preferably for Windows but can also do Linux.
Preferably free but will buy one if the program has all the functionality I need.
Reg-ex capability (I don't know how to use reg-ex yet but am going to learn how).
Tabbed editor.

...

UltraEdit for Windows fits every requirement (and much more), including HTML/CSS preview, reg-ex (Unix, Perl and UE style), scripting (uses its own language, though), macro recording / editing, autocompleting, HTML validator, CSS Style editor, unlimited file size, FTP/sFTP editing, etc...

It's not free (around 50$), but you can try it full functional for 30 days.

In text editing is what Photoshop is for image processing....

frabjous · 01-05-2011, 12:29 PM

Quote:

It's not free (around 50$), but you can try it full functional for 30 days.

That's got to be the most ridiculous price for a text editor I've ever seen.

Remember, vim and emacs are free, people, in both senses of the word.

Format C: · 01-05-2011, 12:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by frabjous

That's got to be the most ridiculous price for a text editor I've ever seen.

Remember, vim and emacs are free, people, in both senses of the word.

yes, they are.
Still, in the comparision, UltraEdit wins.

My experience:

UE: 15 minutes to learn everything in OP's list.
VI(M): no less than one year of continous use, just to remember the difference between ":x!" and ":wq" ...

frabjous · 01-05-2011, 04:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Format C:

[qoute]VI(M): no less than one year of continous use, just to remember the difference between ":x!" and ":wq" ...

Ya'll just jealous of the sheer awesomeness of :wq.

But seriously, it's not so bad. I've been vimming for less than a year, and even after a couple months, everything else annoys me in its non-vimmish-ness. I've had to install pentadactyl in Firefox so I can stand browsing now.

For $50, UltraEdit better do my work for me. (Yeah, I'm cheap.)

ghostyjack · 01-10-2011, 04:19 AM

Thanks guys for all your suggestions, I'll have a look at them all and see if any of them meets my needs.

VIM, now that's an interesting editor. I need to use it occasionally in work as it's the only editor on all our back-end systems due to them being UNIX. It's not something that I've relished using, mainly due to not having enough time to practice with it (it is a bit weird, with a bit of a learning curve). I'll need to create a cheat-sheet before trying to use it in earnest, but it is free.

Never used emacs, so might try that one too. Notepad++ is ok, but for some reason I'm not a big fan of it, don't know why.

Never heard of emeditor or tea-editor, so might check them out.

Ultraedit, looks good but will need to have a good play with the trial version to see if I can justify the asking price of it.

grumbles · 01-13-2011, 01:48 PM

Notepad++ will do multi-line search and replace. Make sure that you check "Extended" in the search mode box. What it will not do is multi-line regex search and replace. I really really really wish there was a Linux version. Yes it does sort of work under Wine but not that well.
It is the only editor that lets me open as many files as I want and does S&R on all open files.
The SciTech editor which uses the same editor "engine" only lets me open ten files at once and doesn't do operations on multiple file. But is available for Linux.

frabjous · 01-13-2011, 02:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by grumbles

It is the only editor that lets me open as many files as I want and does S&R on all open files.

To the best of my knowledge, on Linux, almost all the common editors have that functionality: Vim, Emacs, Geany, Kate, etc. Gedit too with the right plugins. I think, except perhaps gedit, all will allow regex's there too. Of course, on linux, doing multi-file regex substitutions from the commandline is pretty easy too, so maybe that's not so important.

Freeshadow · 01-14-2011, 01:02 PM

yeah, but sed and awk are a science fore itself, ain't they?

01-04-2011, 09:33 AM	#1
ghostyjack Guru Posts: 718 Karma: 1085610 Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Bristol, England Device: PRS-T1, 1825PT, Galaxy Tab, One X, TF700T, Aura HD, Nexus 7	Looking for a decent text editor I'm looking for a new text editor and am struggling to find one that has all my needs. What I need it: Syntax highlighting (html/xhtml). The ability to S&R more than one line at a time (I'm refering to entering 2 or more lines of text into the search field and being able to replace all instances of those multible lines). Macro recording. Macro editing. An option to view the html/xhtml file either within the editor or to automatically load a browser to display it. Unicode support. Preferably for Windows but can also do Linux. Preferably free but will buy one if the program has all the functionality I need. Reg-ex capability (I don't know how to use reg-ex yet but am going to learn how). Tabbed editor. This isn't a big list but I can't seem to find a single editor that supports all of these. I currently use Editplus as it's the only editor that I seem to be able to get multiple-line S&R to work in, unfortunatly the macro recording is not that straight-forward (called Keystroke Recorder) as it only appears to record some keystrokes and I can't seem to edit the recorded keystrokes. If I could write the macro to be able to be able to call up a function and then perform a task and then be able to repeat this multiple times, I wouldn't need to copy-and-paste repeatedly from a text file. Editplus deals with all of the above but I just can't get the macros sorted. So if someone could advised on a replacement that does all of the above, or if they know how get macro functions working on it (or using some kind of user-file or plug-in for this) I would be most greatful. Last edited by ghostyjack; 01-04-2011 at 10:35 AM. Reason: Spelling mistake

01-04-2011, 11:24 AM	#6
frabjous Wizard Posts: 1,213 Karma: 12890 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Amherst, Massachusetts, USA Device: Sony PRS-505	+1 for Vim You'll need a graphical version of vim, like gvim, for tabs, but it certainly can handle the rest, and a whole lot more. (It's actually hard to get vim without gvim these days, so this is no issue.) It's weird and has a definite learning curve at first, but well worth it. And it's available for just about any platform, from Amiga to Windows to Linux to you-name-it. It definitely has macros, and yes, you can edit them if you make a mistake, though it also has a completely separate scripting language, which I tend to use more often. You can also map any key to any key combination, either recursively or non-recursively. Another cool thing is that you can open .ePubs with it and edit the files inside and save without having to recreate the ePub, remaining valid. Kovid gives the details here. Last edited by frabjous; 01-04-2011 at 11:31 AM.

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01-04-2011, 10:13 AM	#2
bhartman36 Wizard Posts: 1,316 Karma: 1515835 Join Date: Mar 2009 Device: Kindle 3 Wi-Fi, Craig CMP738a Android Tablet	For Windows, I would recommend Notepad++, although I'm not sure about the macro recording capability. For text editing in Linux, you can't go wrong with Gedit (although you need a plugin for the macro recording).

01-04-2011, 10:35 AM	#3
ghostyjack Guru Posts: 718 Karma: 1085610 Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Bristol, England Device: PRS-T1, 1825PT, Galaxy Tab, One X, TF700T, Aura HD, Nexus 7	I've tried Notepad++ and you can record a macro, you just can't edit it. So if I make a mistake I'll have to re-record the whole macro, also I might not notice that I've made a mistake. Also I don't seem to be able to S&R multiple lines in it either (unless I just have been stupid and missed it). I do like the fact I can get a count if I do a find operation, that's very useful to me too. I could use Editplus for some of my editing and then load it into Notepad++ for my macro's. This does seem a bit cumbersome to me though, but it is an idea.

01-04-2011, 11:10 AM	#4
osnova Kindler of the Flame Posts: 582 Karma: 646016 Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: US of A Device: K DX,3,KT,KP,KF, KFHD; Nook C, PRS600, iPad, Xoom, N900, N810, Zaurus	I recommend emeditor. Not free but worth it.

01-04-2011, 11:11 AM	#5
Jellby frumious Bandersnatch Posts: 7,516 Karma: 18512745 Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Spaniard in Sweden Device: Cybook Orizon, Kobo Aura	In my old times using Windows, I liked UltraEdit. If you have some free time and are willing to learn something different, try vim

01-04-2011, 12:16 PM	#7
Freeshadow temp. out of service Posts: 2,792 Karma: 24285242 Join Date: May 2010 Location: Duisburg (DE) Device: PB 623	http://tea-editor.sourceforge.net/ maybe that one?

01-10-2011, 04:19 AM	#12
ghostyjack Guru Posts: 718 Karma: 1085610 Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Bristol, England Device: PRS-T1, 1825PT, Galaxy Tab, One X, TF700T, Aura HD, Nexus 7	Thanks guys for all your suggestions, I'll have a look at them all and see if any of them meets my needs. VIM, now that's an interesting editor. I need to use it occasionally in work as it's the only editor on all our back-end systems due to them being UNIX. It's not something that I've relished using, mainly due to not having enough time to practice with it (it is a bit weird, with a bit of a learning curve). I'll need to create a cheat-sheet before trying to use it in earnest, but it is free. Never used emacs, so might try that one too. Notepad++ is ok, but for some reason I'm not a big fan of it, don't know why. Never heard of emeditor or tea-editor, so might check them out. Ultraedit, looks good but will need to have a good play with the trial version to see if I can justify the asking price of it.

01-13-2011, 01:48 PM	#13
grumbles Addict Posts: 238 Karma: 1500000 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Toronto Device: Pandigital Novel (Black), T-2 and 3, Nexus 7	Notepad++ will do multi-line search and replace. Make sure that you check "Extended" in the search mode box. What it will not do is multi-line regex search and replace. I really really really wish there was a Linux version. Yes it does sort of work under Wine but not that well. It is the only editor that lets me open as many files as I want and does S&R on all open files. The SciTech editor which uses the same editor "engine" only lets me open ten files at once and doesn't do operations on multiple file. But is available for Linux.

01-14-2011, 01:02 PM	#15
Freeshadow temp. out of service Posts: 2,792 Karma: 24285242 Join Date: May 2010 Location: Duisburg (DE) Device: PB 623	yeah, but sed and awk are a science fore itself, ain't they?

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