11-09-2013, 02:31 PM | #1 |
Member Retired
Posts: 3,183
Karma: 11721895
Join Date: Nov 2010
Device: Nook STR (rooted) & Sony T2
|
What's a good ipad text editor?
I need a decent ipad text editor and don't know where to begin looking (I'm a total ipad noob). It need only be a basic editor for rough work. I neaten things up on a non-mobile platform afterwards.
Requirements (descending order): 1) Extremely good text manipulation ability. I need to be able to select, cut, copy and paste text with ease. I've found manipulating text to be the biggest problem on Android-based apps. 2) Multiple (tabbed) documents open at the same time. I need to copy and paste text between multiple files at the same time. 3) Change font and background color. I like to make the background black so I don't get blinded / tanned. 4) Free would be nice, but I'll pay if it's worth it. 5) The ability to use Bold / Italics etc is nice but definitely not essential. Simplicity is more important. I need to transfer files from / to the ipad, but I'm happy to use another app like dropbox for that. Again, simplicity is the priority. I want to write and edit pure text in multiple files at the same time. I don't need to share documents with other people or any of that stuff. |
11-09-2013, 02:38 PM | #2 |
Grand Sorcerer
Posts: 11,470
Karma: 13095790
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Grass Valley, CA
Device: EB 1150, EZ Reader, Literati, iPad 2 & Air 2, iPhone 7
|
I use Textilus. It is a native RTF format word processor. I particularly like the extensions to the onscreen keyboard that make editing text much easier. It is a lot more than a text editor.
Dale |
Advert | |
|
11-09-2013, 09:56 PM | #3 |
Geek in the Forest
Posts: 399
Karma: 1077186
Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: FL
Device: iPad Air, iPhone 4s, Nexus 7
|
I like Nebulous Notes.
|
11-09-2013, 10:09 PM | #4 |
Wizard
Posts: 2,251
Karma: 3720310
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: USA
Device: Kindle, iPad (not used much for reading)
|
I like Documents To Go. It creates Word documents. The copy/paste/select stuff is standard to iOS, as far as I know. It's the same as it is in every iOS app I've seen.
|
11-10-2013, 03:06 AM | #5 |
pokrývač kridiel
Posts: 1,525
Karma: 3300000
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Bratislava, Slovakia
Device: 3*iPad, SamsungNote & Tabs, 2*OnyxBoox, Huawei 8″, PocketBook
|
Nebulous Notes all the way, but that's a plain-text editor.
DocsToGo for office files here. Generally, I'd say you expect too much. You are basically expecting a full-blown rich-text editor on a tablet, on a par with MS Word on a traditional computer. I for one don't have those demands or expectations. For heavy-duty text editing, I just don't use tablets, because I don't think tablets are meant for heavy-duty text editing. |
Advert | |
|
11-10-2013, 05:27 AM | #6 |
Comparer of the Ephemeris
Posts: 1,496
Karma: 424697
Join Date: Mar 2009
Device: iPad
|
|
11-10-2013, 05:36 AM | #7 |
pokrývač kridiel
Posts: 1,525
Karma: 3300000
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Bratislava, Slovakia
Device: 3*iPad, SamsungNote & Tabs, 2*OnyxBoox, Huawei 8″, PocketBook
|
What I'd be missing in Editorial, is Dropbox-wide syncing. (Not just 1 Dropbox folder.) That's an essential feature for me. Nebulous Notes does it, but I can't find a single plain-text editor on Android that accomplishes this.
|
11-10-2013, 07:24 AM | #8 |
Member Retired
Posts: 3,183
Karma: 11721895
Join Date: Nov 2010
Device: Nook STR (rooted) & Sony T2
|
From what I can see, none of the above support multiple files (i.e. tabbed files). Also, they all cost money. Can you even try them before paying?
I'll revise my requirements: What I want: 1) free, 2) multi-file support (i.e. tabbed), 3) good text manipulation. I don't need markdown, bold / italic, picture-insertion, or dropbox syncing, etc. I just want a simple, good, free, multi-tab editor like Jota for Android. Does such a thing exist for the ipad? |
11-10-2013, 07:40 AM | #9 |
pokrývač kridiel
Posts: 1,525
Karma: 3300000
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Bratislava, Slovakia
Device: 3*iPad, SamsungNote & Tabs, 2*OnyxBoox, Huawei 8″, PocketBook
|
Nebulous Notes exists in a free version, too. That said, its full price is symbolically low. (To me, that's equal to free.)
Why are the tabs so important? I also need to switch between files quickly, and Nebulous makes that possible through the "recently opened" files list (30 items, I think.) |
11-11-2013, 08:11 PM | #10 | |
Member Retired
Posts: 3,183
Karma: 11721895
Join Date: Nov 2010
Device: Nook STR (rooted) & Sony T2
|
Quote:
On another note, Arrow Notes is free and doesn't look bad. It has an absurdly over-sized keyboard full of characters most people will never use and not want using up their screen space, but it does seem to keep multiple docs open at the same time and you can work on them simultaneously. |
|
11-12-2013, 01:06 AM | #11 | |
pokrývač kridiel
Posts: 1,525
Karma: 3300000
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Bratislava, Slovakia
Device: 3*iPad, SamsungNote & Tabs, 2*OnyxBoox, Huawei 8″, PocketBook
|
Quote:
Not really. But, you know, due to the small screen real estate on handheld devices, there is not much difference (to me) between "having tabs" and "not having tabs". In Nebulous Notes, switching between any 2 files takes 2 taps. I agree that a single tap would be more convenient (for example, GoodReader employs a tabbed interface for reading/annotating multiple PDF files), but in practice, I don't find that the difference between 2 taps and a single tap matters. That's because I generally find handheld devices unsuitable for any heavy-duty editing or multi-tasking work. For such work, I fire up my laptop or desktop machine. For lighter editing or multi-tasking, I find that the file switcher (2 taps) in Nebulous Notes suits my purposes just fine; I don't perceive it as slowing me down or decreasing my efficiency. What I do deplore about iOS is the inability to split screen between 2 (or more) apps, or perhaps between two files in the same app (including e-readers: display 2 books simultaneously!), or two different sections of the same file simultaneously. Such functionality is pretty difficult to come by on iOS devices, but I'd find it very useful. |
|
11-12-2013, 02:04 PM | #12 |
Geek in the Forest
Posts: 399
Karma: 1077186
Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: FL
Device: iPad Air, iPhone 4s, Nexus 7
|
Outline might be worth checking out. It is an iPad app to work with Microsoft OneNote files, though you can use it without OneNote, I suppose. Reason I mention it is that it does have tabs. It's not free, but there is a limited free version and they have it on sale from time to time. http://outline.ws/
|
11-12-2013, 02:43 PM | #13 | ||
Member Retired
Posts: 3,183
Karma: 11721895
Join Date: Nov 2010
Device: Nook STR (rooted) & Sony T2
|
Quote:
Quote:
As for an editing app that allows split panels for multiple files, I don't know if it exists in Apple or Android. This would be a shame not to have on larger devices as their ample screen space to make it useful. Quick tabbing between open files means it's less important, at least for my needs. |
||
11-12-2013, 02:45 PM | #14 | |
Member Retired
Posts: 3,183
Karma: 11721895
Join Date: Nov 2010
Device: Nook STR (rooted) & Sony T2
|
Quote:
|
|
11-12-2013, 03:40 PM | #15 | |
pokrývač kridiel
Posts: 1,525
Karma: 3300000
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Bratislava, Slovakia
Device: 3*iPad, SamsungNote & Tabs, 2*OnyxBoox, Huawei 8″, PocketBook
|
Quote:
What I often do, if I find out I need to edit a text file more extensively, is that I just tap out of Nebulous Notes, open my MacBook (the file is instantly there, thanks to Dropbox), and continue editing the file there. Another option is to push a button on the Logitech bluetooth keyboard and continue editing the file on the iPad in Nebulous Notes using touch-typing, which increases efficiency dramatically. In any case, as mentioned, I prefer not to engage in anything but light text editing on a handheld device, iOS or Android, so the flexibility offered by Nebulous Notes suits me perfectly. (I wish I could find a smilar "Dropbox text editor" on Android! The closest I have seen so far, seems to be Minutes, but it's not Dropbox-wide, and so is incompatible with my workflow.) What's important for me is that Nebulous Notes works with 100% standard plain-text files, so that I can pick them up on Mac OS or especially Windows (EditPlus is my favourite editor there) at any time and resume editing the file there wherever I left off on the handheld device. (Or vice versa.) I avoided getting into Evernote because it doesn't use standard TXT files. Last edited by Faterson; 11-12-2013 at 03:42 PM. |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
Why do you still use a text editor? | neufsix | Workshop | 10 | 04-21-2013 08:14 PM |
Looking for a decent text editor | ghostyjack | Workshop | 22 | 01-27-2011 11:07 AM |
Onyx Text Editor? | Risto | Andere Lesegeräte | 1 | 05-25-2010 05:34 AM |
Good text to java midlet, to read text in phones | sucahyo | Workshop | 1 | 02-18-2005 12:56 PM |
looking for good freeware programmer text editor | ignatz | Lounge | 4 | 04-08-2004 03:55 PM |