# Text Editor Recommendations



## LarryMcJ (Jan 18, 2007)

I'm trying to find a "simple" Mac Text/HTML Editor that will open/save text files in ISO-8859-1 (Windows) format. The only one I've found so far is TextMate, but it's just way more than I want or need, although if I used it for programming and not just web work, it would be great. Something simple like Taco HTML would be fine, but it still munges the line breaks of text files viewed under Windows. 

It doesn't have to be free...just do this one thing. I've looked at the top 20 editors listed here in VT but the only ones that accomplish this are the hugely complex ones. Thanks in advance for any recommendations.

LarryMcJ


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## ArturoYee (Nov 10, 2006)

*I use NeoOffice*

Not sure if it is ISO-8859-1 compliant, but I use NeoOffice and it is pretty much Windows/MS compatible. Only problems I found going from Mac to PC is Mac seems to support more of the fonts I use, and MS Office Suites seem to be a bit limited (on Macs and WinTel).


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## LarryMcJ (Jan 18, 2007)

Many thanks, but I really need just a Text Editor standalone app here.

Larry


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## sinclair_tm (Mar 11, 2005)

text wrangler

not sure what you mean by iso-8859-1, but this little app is the little son of the best mac text editor there is. and its free. but if it can't do what you need, and don't mind paying, then go for the big daddy mac text app, bbedit (wich can be found on the same site).


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## LarryMcJ (Jan 18, 2007)

Thanks...looked at it, also. Nice, but whenever you can't choose to save a simple .txt file in Windows format (ISO-8859-1). When a Windows user opens it up...all the line breaks are messed up.

TextMate works fine for this, but it's just too much of an editor for this particular job. For coding, I use UltraEdit under Windows but personally would rather do everything else on my Mac  I'm BBEdit will also convert it...but that's even more $ than TextMate.

LarryMcJ


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## ArturoYee (Nov 10, 2006)

I think you can still download BBedit lite - I use it for when I need to modify my programs.
TextWrangler 2.0 is free -

Check the Bare Bones web site.


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## sinclair_tm (Mar 11, 2005)

text wrangler replaces bbedit lite. and as far as i know bbedit is basically a mac version of ultraedit. but i still don't know what this iso 8859-1 is that you have to have the files saved in.


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## LarryMcJ (Jan 18, 2007)

Actually, TextWrangler does not do what I need...so far TextMate is the only Mac text editor that will work. I need to create ASCII text files on a Mac and then share them on a network with Windows users...all simple documents, but what happens if the creating text editor can't be configured to create documents in ISO-8859-1 (Windows) format, it will not properly do several things regarding the document formatting.

For example, if I type something a few things and want them to be on three separate lines, like this:

Line One
Line Two
Line Three

...that's the way it looks on the Mac. But what a Windows user sees opening up that document is:

Line One Line Two Line Three

...because in Mac and UNIX the ENTER key gives you a LF, but Windows needs a CRLF.

LarryMcJ


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## sinclair_tm (Mar 11, 2005)

have you looked at apple's textedit yet? in the preferences you can set what encoding it uses, which is the problem you are running into.


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## LarryMcJ (Jan 18, 2007)

Yes...and like 99% of the others, it also will not save the Windows settings properly so they're able to be read in Windows. 

Thanks.

LarryMcJ


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## ArturoYee (Nov 10, 2006)

*Tough Problem - But got it to work - BBEdit Lite*

This was a tough problem - attached is a text doc created on:

MAC OS X, 10.3.8
BBEdit Lite 6.1.2 (freeware)
Preferences:Text Saving: Force New Line at End checked, Macintosh button

Attached is a shot of the settings, and a test document (tested on XP via NotePad)


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## ArturoYee (Nov 10, 2006)

Links:
ftp://ftp.barebones.com/pub/freeware/BBEdit_Lite_612.smi.hqx

or

http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/3693

_(you may want to play with the settings on TextWrangler - I'm happy with BBEdit Lite - so I have not upgraded)_


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## LarryMcJ (Jan 18, 2007)

I sincerely appreciate your efforts here, but unfortunately, BBEdit Lite doesn't work either. I tried the configuration in your screen capture and also tried it by checking DOS/Windows instead of MacIntosh...but either way, when the file is opened on a Windows machine, the CRLF are just not there. The little square boxes (ASCII symbols) always appear between what should be the lines, but everything is still on one line.

The only text editor I've found so far that does this properly is TextMate, which I guess I'll have to purchase if I don't find something inexpensive, or free, before the trial period is up. It's a great program and I could also use it for HTML work, so it's not a big deal.

Larry


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## ArturoYee (Nov 10, 2006)

*Very Interesting*

Yes - it did not work in the other two configurations - only in the the one configuration - I would save the configuration, quit, and then restart BBEdit.

Did you get to try out the attached text file?

Best of luck!


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## LarryMcJ (Jan 18, 2007)

I'll go try it again, but I had the box checked for CRLF and then saved the file three times, with each of the three radio buttons checked. None of mine would display correctly after sending to a Windows machine.

Larry


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## LarryMcJ (Jan 18, 2007)

That worked. I don't know what I did differently the other times, but it worked that time. Thanks for sticking this one out 

LarryMcJ


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