Given the clear limitations of Windows’ default text editor (Notepad), many users working with text files (both ANSI and OEM) such as programmers, may find TextPad to be the simple yet comprehensive utility they need. This TXT editor comes with all the features present in Notepad and then more – file comparison, keystroke macros, a tabbed interface for simultaneous files, and configurable syntax highlighting, among others.
Designed following the Windows user interface guidelines, Windows users will find its overall design suspiciously familiar. Its tabbed interface will let you open and work simultaneously with as many text files as you need and even open each file twice if required, a feature that also comes very handy when comparing files. In terms of editing, it comes with all the usual suspects – search, replace, cut, paste, do, redo, etc. – and with features that Notepad can only dream of.
Together with the file comparison feature, its spelling checker (with support for 10 languages) and the option to create and execute macros are probably the program’s main assets. Macros are a really useful tool to perform bulk corrections or modifications in long and complex files, such as code files. They are very easy to create and you can save up to 16 of them easily for future use.
Not so impressive and yet quite useful features that you can also find in TextPad are, for instance, its unlimited undo/redo capability, the possibility to sort lines, to start off exactly where you left it, add bookmarks to specific lines, or a built-in file manager for quick copying, deleting, and renaming of files, among other interesting functions.
TextPad is probably one of the most comprehensive text-only editors. It is not free, and its price tag is not precisely low, but its many features (with useful hints to programmers) may well be worth the cost for some companies, offering licenses for up to 500 users.
v8.9 [Oct 14, 2021]
Enhancements:
- Optimized memory reuse when editing existing files.
- Macro commands to open, save and insert files can now accept codepage numbers.
- Enhanced syntax coloring of JSON files. Keys are now displayed in the color set for Keywords 2, and ',' and ':' in the color set for operators. true, false and null are recognized as values, and comments are highlighted.
- Implemented touchscreen zooming.
Issues resolved:
- Line numbers in the file comparison window were truncated when displayed in certain fonts.
- TextPad prevented Windows from restarting without manual intervention.
- Fixed a crash when turning on word wrap after zooming in or out.
