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Text editors. The best text editors for coding under Mac OS Macbook text editor basic

Anyone whose work is in one way or another connected with writing texts knows very well the following unspoken rule: the simpler text editor the more convenient it is to work with. You can talk about the convenience of Pages for a long time, but ... It's far from ideal, let's say so. And it's too inconvenient in Pages to manage various things for text decoration. Too many body movements need to be done to make the text perfect. Not only in terms of semantic load and readability, but also externally. Surprisingly on Mac App Store managed to find quite a worthy editor, made in a real minimalistic style. And, you have to admit, he's good. Very good.

When you first launch the application for the first time, you will most likely be surprised. Everything you see in front of you is perfect empty window without any buttons, except for the standard ones in OS X (for example, "Close" and "Minimize"). In fact, an empty window consists of two columns. The left one is the active field in which you are invited to type your text. As such, there are no menus for editing text, such as changing the size or font, in the application. And they were not forgotten, they were deliberately decided to be avoided by making the editor as simple as possible. It seems that the developers coped with this task perfectly well, it's hard to argue.

As for the settings of the application itself, there are also few of them. If you go to the appropriate section, then all you can see there is the ability to enable iCloud sync, which will come in handy for those who have installed the application on several of their Macs. For example, work and home. But nothing special is required. By the way, in the top menu there are corresponding tabs with which you can play a little with the text, for example, change the font. But the main thing in any text is, of course, the content.

The painfully simple editor is ideal for simple tasks, such as creating a shopping list that you can then easily send to your iOS device, as well as for more complex ones. An example of the latter can serve as just voluminous notes, as well as full-fledged stories with many different images. There is no limit to the amount of text and the number of images that can be used in it. Yes, and working with images here is somehow more convenient than in many much more famous editors, which is also nice.

By the way, you can control your text using special characters. For example, putting a hashtag in front of a word will turn it into a title highlighted in bold. And the size, respectively, will be larger. Images, for example, can also be inserted by specifying the path to them. Everything is quite simple, you just need to figure it out a little. When you understand all the nuances, most likely, you will write most of the texts in this editor. If you do not need a lot of settings related, for example, with indents, gaps and other nonsense.

As mentioned at the very beginning, the window consists of two columns. Or panels, whichever you prefer. On the left, you need to type text, add images, and so on. In general, the left one is for entering and editing text. The right column is responsible for the result. There you will see what the final version of your text looks like, taking into account all its edits and applied special characters. Very convenient: you immediately see your result, which is easy to change.

All in all, The Journalist is a simple but very decent text editor for those who appreciate minimalism. Typing texts in it is a pleasure, especially since the application supports Markdown syntax for formatting. Thus, you can edit your text without looking up from the keyboard - very convenient.

This list will not Microsoft Word. While Office 2016 looks and performs well, it's still better suited for large documents. Due to the fact that it has a lot of functions, they can be distracting from work.

I also decided to exclude Pages. There are no complaints about the version for macOS, but editing text on iOS is as inconvenient as possible, because the pages are not optimized for the phone screen in any way.

Each editor on this list has apps for iOS, macOS, or a web version, Markdown support, and a character counter.

iA Writer

My personal favorite, and opposite Microsoft office. A minimum of settings and a huge working window - this is how briefly iA Writer can be described.

The advantages of this editor include its simplicity, synchronization via iCloud or Dropbox, a beautiful and convenient standard font, as well as the presence dark theme. If you need an editor that shouldn't distract from anything, then iA Writer is the perfect choice.

It may seem to some that it has too few settings. For example, it cannot change the font and other familiar text settings. But this is its main feature. The developers decided that the fewer settings, the more concentrated the work is.

Disclaimer

I am young enough and inexperienced in the field of IT to give some super-arguments, so everything listed below will be my personal subjective thoughts and reasoning. If someone does not agree with me - I will only be happy to support the discussion and discuss all this in the comments.

Now I work under Windows, in the future I may switch to Mac OS, so when choosing a text editor / IDE, I immediately highlighted cross-platform. I considered a little more options than I will list here, because I decided to highlight only the most accustomed ones. I will try to briefly describe the view on different aspects of the listed software products.

Standard Tasks

By standard tasks, I mean banal layout tasks, i.e. HTML, CSS, maybe JavaScript. I won't emphasize things that are everywhere, like changing color themes, a project folder control system, etc.

Great editor for ASP.NET and node.js applications. The famous IntelliSense, the ability to work with classes and objects by reference. All in Microsoft style. There is a built-in debugger. I also want emphasize, which in my opinion is a great replacement for MonoDevelop for .NET developers outside of Windows (here that is visual studio).

The editor is still under development, but work is progressing quite quickly, given that this is Microsoft.

Outcome

Summarizing the above, I have made my choice. You don't have to settle for the same criteria as me. I will be glad to discuss everything in the comments to the article.

Thank you for your attention!

Not everyone needs powerful text editors with support for complex formatting, tables, graphs and the like. But you need to have a convenient and lightweight editor at hand. Here's how to choose the best one for you.

atom

This editor has a little bit of everything, and something is done better, and something is worse. The same people who stand (stood) behind GitHub are engaged in development. Therefore, the program code is open, and the editor itself is completely free.

For beginners, this is the most suitable tool. Immediately after installation, you will receive the necessary minimum for working with texts. And for additional features extensions can be installed.

Developers position Atom as one of the most customizable editors in the world. You can easily customize the interface to suit your needs. And the Teletype extension will add the function of collaborating on text.

Atom is also cross-platform.

Text Wrangler

TextWrangler has a user-friendly interface that is easy for everyone to understand. If you are used to old editors without any "wrappers", then you have found it.

In addition to working with text, here you can work with code. For example, AppleScript, CSS and HTML.

For more convenient operation above the text are provided here powerful tools autocorrect when searching for files, different themes and syntax highlighting. Supports connection via FTP and SFTP.

Basic features are expanded with paid features. For example, a preview of code changes in real time.

vim

This editor is not for everyone. Working with Vim is done from command line, and the editor itself is already built into MacOs. So you can get started with it right now.

If you are still with me, then we will continue. The editor comes with a large stack of documentation that tells you how and what to do. Plus a 30 minute tutorial. But to get to the documentation, you have to learn how to work with the command line.

Have you completed the task? Then Vim will offer you a rich set of services for working on text. Maybe even more than a normal editor. But you have to sweat and learn how to make it work.

Does not work? Then you can try MacVim. This is the same Vim, only with an interface and buttons.

GNU Emacs

Another text editor for those who are not looking for easy ways. The first version of the program appeared in 1976.

Working with Emacs is based on the Emacs-Lisp programming language, which appeared even earlier (in 1958). Even for the most simple actions in the program you have to write code. But it is precisely because of this that the editor can perform the most incredible tasks.

Also here is: mail client, newsreader, file manager and games like tetris and snake. In general, everything you need to work on the text.

Visual Studio Code

Relatively new editor, which has nothing to do with Microsoft's Visual Studio. This light program with support for scripts and plugins.

You can find plugins for both text and code. There are so many plugins that a whole store has been created for them, such as the App Store or Google Play. Visual Studio Code "out of the box" has only basic set functions and weighs almost nothing.

What text editor do you use?

Still looking for the perfect text editor for your Mac? Then read our review of the best known text editors with text markup support.

If you are asked: “Why do you love the Mac?”, You are likely to be taken aback and never give an exhaustive answer. Apart from general characteristics, seducing potential Mac owners, there are certain programs and applications, in the absence of which any computer, laptop or tablet turns into a banal means of accessing the network.

One of these "vital" programs for most users, regardless of age and field of activity, is a text editor. We will talk about them today.

Let's start with this, perhaps, the most famous text editor. The team of creators promises users advanced publishing capabilities, namely: managing layers of text, images, SmartArt objects and charts; the ability to quickly format, match styles and document content. In addition, you can work with the document by turning on the focus mode, which blocks all other windows, menus, etc.

WordOnline makes it possible to access documents anywhere and from any computer. You will be able to process files together with colleagues, relatives and friends. At first glance, everything looks pretty good, and this could be limited. However, more and more users are complaining about Microsoft Word for Mac due to the fact that the latter turned out to be rather slow and “hanging”. Therefore, if you need a powerful editor for regular use, it is better not to opt for Microsoft Word. Price $139 - Home&Student, $219 - Home&Business.

We know that Apple has a love for practical minimalism. Under their credo “simpler and better”, the text editor iA Writer, the brainchild of Information Architects, can also fall. So, if you decide to choose iA Writer Pro (improved and latest version) you can:

enjoy focus mode in its entirety - just you and the text. The last sentence you are working on will remain in contrast;
take full advantage of the simplest and the clearest interface, easy navigation and nice cursor;
gradually divide your work on the text (Note, Write, Edit and Read). Such professional thoroughness is provided by Workflows, while also highlighting each of the modes with a different color;
in the Structure block, you can select the heading level and one of two list types;
in the Statistics block, you can see the predicted reading time of your text, the number of characters, words and sentences.

There are only two real disadvantages: the cost of iA Writer Pro ($19.99 for Mac) and the lack of Cyrillic support in the Syntax block. But these shortcomings will in no way affect users of the regular iA Writer. Yes, you won't have Workflows. Sentences will not be highlighted with an incomprehensible light (this is exactly what happens with the Cyrillic alphabet). But focus mode, statistics and a nice minimalistic interface will be available.

The developers have tried to create a beautiful, efficient and enjoyable editor. And it must be admitted that they succeeded. The most convenient and easy interface contributes to productive, fast and fruitful work. Of course, in many ways (application design, font, etc.) MacDown is similar to iA Writer. But this can be justified by the fact that all the creators of text editors strive for a certain "golden mean". The obvious pluses include the presence of synchronization and its excellent work. MacDown has a focus mode, a preview mode, and hotkeys. Weaknesses include the scarcity of settings and the paid version for iOS ($4.99). In general, a pretty decent text editor that is in no way inferior to its counterparts.

Another text editor that can compete with MacDown and iA Writer. Its creators tried to make the product in their own way appearance, nor by functionality did not yield to his brothers. Byword settings have a minimal set of options most often used in text editors: day or night theme, 3 side margin options, 5 font presets, full visual formatting (centering, bold / italics, lists). In addition to the much-loved focus mode, Byword has a “typewriter” mode, in which the input line is in the center of the screen. You can buy Byword for $11.99.

Here is another tool for writing. This application will appeal to lovers of lightness and minimalism. The presence of basic functions, the ability to change the theme, sounds and font display - this editor has all the prerequisites to become your favorite. Equal to iA Writer, WriteRoom diligently counts words and displays the time it takes to read your literary work. But beyond that, WriteRoom keeps track of the time spent writing a document. This feature can be extremely useful for authors who need to produce multiple stories per day. WriteRoom costs $9.99 (iPhone and iPad versions are free).

The developers of UlyssesIII were pleasantly surprised by the fact that they worked hard on new version, which compares favorably with the previous ones. If you are working with a multi-page document (article or book) - UlyssesIII is your salvation. You can create projects, save drafts to the Inbox folder, use full screen mode. All work takes place on three panels: on the left - projects and filters, in the central - a list of documents, on the right - text. The main difference from Byword and iA Writer is the ability to work with different texts from a single window. By activating synchronization via iCloud at the first start, you will be able to "collect" documents in your own database (the principle of iTunes). The only thing you have to “sweat” over is familiarity with all the settings and further fine-tuning “for yourself”. Oh, and one more thing - the price of $44.99 is a bit disappointing.

Another text editor that was supposed to be an "all-in-one editor". Whether its creators managed to achieve this goal is up to you to judge, since all editors, in general, are similar to each other. The difference is clearly visible only in the little things, thanks to which we pass a verdict to the program.

The main MarkDrop window is divided into 2 blocks: the text area and the preview area. If any of the blocks is not needed in this moment, you can hide it. A standard set of functions, the ability to create files with markdown and then view them and export them to HTML and PDF. MarkDrop is exactly the editor that has every reason to get a solid "four", but it lacks some kind of zest, something that contrasts favorably with the capabilities of other text editors. The price is $7.99.

The very name of this application speaks for itself. Clean Writer Pro has all the features the average user needs: focus on the current paragraph (not the sentence), multiple theme options, font customization, Markdown support. Clean Writer Pro has some configuration issues and cannot replace iAWriter or Byword. But this application is the best fit for those who are looking for a regular text editor that is not equipped with unnecessary “chips”. The price pleases and surprises ($5.99, on sale - $0.99).

A program designed specifically for authors. Therefore, there is no point in downloading it if you only need basic functions text editor. But if you are thinking of writing a script or scientific work- Scrivener will be to your liking. Standard interface options allow you to choose a theme, color options, etc. Features include a "cork board" for notes where you can drag and drop cards, full-screen mode, a scheduler, a split window mode that allows you to edit multiple documents at the same time, tracking words and characters until you reach a certain goal (important when writing a novel or dissertation, for example) , support for Markdown, MLA, APA, etc. The price of this indispensable tool for a writer varies from $40 to $45 (depending on the version).

And finally, a review of the most elementary text editor - Simple Writer. The minimum set of tools and features of this editor gives you the ability to quickly and easily create small and simple documents, reports and notes. Also, you can add images to the text, print in PDF format, format the text and not worry about the safety of your work thanks to the function automatic update and iCloud support. Free.