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Ask HN: Can you recommend me a fast, light text editor for Windows?

72 points by supersparrow 4y ago

What do you guys use when you want to quickly open a file? I used to use VS Code for this purpose, but it's becoming more and more like an IDE and doesn't quite have the startup time that I would want anymore. Plus, it's a bit annoying when I already have a project open as it'll open as a tab and look as if it's part of that project if that makes sense. Notepad almost fits my spec (startup time, simple, quick UI), but it doesn't have syntax highlighting or anything useful for text manipulation/navigation/etc. I could never get along with Notepad++ - it's hard to explain why, because I can see it's a fantastic editor and is very popular, but it just doesn't fit into the way I work I suppose. I think the main key points for me are startup time and syntax highlighting. Thank you!

sillysaurusx 4y ago
GVim. Pops open in half a second flat, almost without fail.
_hcuq 4y ago
Notepad2. It’s Notepad with all the missing features.
oxff 4y ago
Sublime maybe
- avel 4y ago
  Yes, or an open source alternative such as https://cudatext.github.io/ https://cudatext.github.io/
  - rob74 4y ago
    Hmmm, that one looks interesting! And written in Lazarus/Object Pascal, so cross-platform... Have to give it a try someday!
datalist 4y ago
editplus.com
- nimphoenix 4y ago
  Finally somebody else who knows editplus! I used it a lot
leokennis 4y ago
https://www.emeditor.com/ https://www.emeditor.com/ is fast and versatile but looks a tad outdated with many modal dialogs etc.
- nick_ 4y ago
  It's outrageously fast at opening multi-gigabyte-sized files.
- bordercases 4y ago
dsego 4y ago
Sublime Text still rocks.
chii 4y ago
saw https://github.com/lite-xl/lite-xl https://github.com/lite-xl/lite-xl a few days ago posted. Seems pretty fast, and has some plugins that might also add additional functionality. seems great for the occasional file edit without the vscode startup times.
pooya72 4y ago
I use neovim. The plugin system has really grown. * I use Packer for plug-in managment: https://github.com/wbthomason/packer.nvim https://github.com/wbthomason/packer.nvim * I use Mason to install LSPs, linters and formatters: https://github.com/williamboman/mason.nvim https://github.com/williamboman/mason.nvim * I use nvim-treesitter for better highlighting: https://github.com/nvim-treesitter/nvim-treesitter https://github.com/nvim-treesitter/nvim-treesitter
- datpiff 4y ago
  Windows version comes with a QT GUI build too (nvim-qt)
nicoburns 4y ago
Sublime Text (https://www.sublimetext.com/ https://www.sublimetext.com/) is fantastic. Startup time is instant. RAM usage is low. It'll do syntax highlighting out of the box. And with a few extensions (optional) it'll do almost everything that VS Code does (sublime-lsp is key for IDE-like functionality). It's also great for large files so long as they'll fit in RAM. Bonus: it works cross platform (windows/mac/linux).
- beAbU 4y ago
  +1 for Sublime. I have yet to find it's max file size limit. It can seemingly open up literally anything with no perf impact.
  - nicoburns 4y ago
    I tried to open a 90GB file once (on a system with 16GB RAM), which it didn't like very much. It didn't actually crash, I just gave up on it before it completed loading the file (I suspect it may actually have worked eventually, utilising swap - but I imagine it would have been unusably slow). I think for such large files you really need an editor that doesn't buffer the entire file into RAM and loads chunks in from disk on demand. That said, if your file is more reasonably sized (I've opened 7GB files no problem) then the performance and feature set you get is impressive. You can get instant scrolling to anywhere in the file, full syntax highlighting, find and replace, multiple cursors, etc all with reasonable performance. I find it does lag a little when making edits - especially with multiple cursors - but it's still quite usable.
    - matheusmoreira 4y ago
      > I think for such large files you really need an editor that doesn't buffer the entire file into RAM and loads chunks in from disk on demand. That's what mmap does: maps the entire file into the address space of the process while letting the kernel load the pages as they are touched. I assume that would improve performance significantly but I'm not sure if anyone's tried it.
vips7L 4y ago
I use neovim when I need to just quickly edit files and IntelliJ for my full ide on Windows.
theandrewbailey 4y ago
I use Notepad++, but looks like you've tried. For ornery files (usually 50+ MB XMLs), I've used an editor in WSL (like nano). Is WSL an option for you?
- tpoacher 4y ago
  no need for WSL. you can use nano directly, or through stuff like gitbash.
JohnBerea 4y ago
Notepad3. Looks and behaves like Windows notepad but with syntax highlighting, regex search, optional dark theme, lightweight native-built code that launches instantly, and all the other modern features you expect. https://www.rizonesoft.com/downloads/notepad3/ https://www.rizonesoft.com/downloads/notepad3/
- tupolef 4y ago
  I now run entirely on Linux. But before that I used Notepad++ for 12 years and finally switched to "Notepad3" 2-3 years ago. If you use an IDE for heavier tasks, "Notepad3" is excellent, much faster and cleaner than Notepad++ and other Windows editors.
  - tpoacher 4y ago
    Presumably it's called Notepad3 because Notepad2 was taken? I haven't tried Notepad3, but I've used Notepad2 for years and preferred it to Notepad++. Great little editor. Bonus: no installation needed (useful if you don't have admin privileges on the machine). https://www.flos-freeware.ch/notepad2.html https://www.flos-freeware.ch/notepad2.html (Last updated 2012, but don't let that put you off. Solid little editor.)
    - yuhc 4y ago
      Maybe I'm too old school but notepad2 gives me better experience than notepad3.
MatmaRex 4y ago
I use Notepad2. It’s a reasonably powerful editor like Notepad++ (in fact it uses the same text editing library), but all the extra features can be hidden or disabled until it looks just like stock Notepad.
nurettin 4y ago
This has been my go-to editor on Windows for the past 20+ years. https://www.contexteditor.org/ https://www.contexteditor.org/ You can also make your own pretty easily using lazarus/fpc and the free synedit component.
philipov 4y ago
sublimetext3 is what I use
nspattak 4y ago
gvim is plenty fast but i guess for the majority of people notepad++ is the recommendation to make
forgotpwd16 4y ago
TED Notepad and Notepad2 (which has a number of more featureful forks) are two other Notepad-like options that aren't Notepad++.
captainmuon 4y ago
I used to use Notepad2, which is a bit like Notepad++ but I liked the interface better. It is no longer developed but there seem to be a couple of forks. https://www.flos-freeware.ch/notepad2.html https://www.flos-freeware.ch/notepad2.html https://www.reddit.com/r/software/comments/nxpmis/notepad3_vs_notepad2e_vs_the_notepad2_fork_by/ https://www.reddit.com/r/software/comments/nxpmis/notepad3_v...
atebyagrue 4y ago
I've used SciTE for years. I originally came across it looking for a lightweight, cross-platform editor that had a small footprint, regex replace, and find in files capabilities. * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SciTE https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SciTE EDIT: just noticed you mention syntax highlight. No love there, sorry.
- genezeta 4y ago
  SciTE [0] does have good syntax highlighting for many languages. It does struggle with very large files, though. [0] (better link) https://www.scintilla.org/SciTEDownload.html https://www.scintilla.org/SciTEDownload.html
  - atebyagrue 4y ago
    You are 100% correct. My mistake. I was thinking of something else for some reason. That's what I get for trying to socialize before I've finished my morning coffee.
ajoseps 4y ago
Sublime Text is still my goto for large files and as a scratch-pad type text editor
- rob74 4y ago
  Yeah, one "killer" feature of Sublime Text is that you don't have to save files - it will restore even unsaved buffers when you restart it. Not sure if other editors have copied this feature like they did with others (goto anything, command palette, minimap, ...)
mythz 4y ago
Big fan of https://github.com/lite-xl/lite-xl https://github.com/lite-xl/lite-xl Ticks all boxes: Small, Fast & Light.
sandreas 4y ago
If you are familiar with vim[1] and like the command line, you could try either vim for windows or eventually helix[2]. There also is emacs[3] If you prefer GUI, I think Notepad++[4] is the best editor you can get, but there is also Sublime[5] (like already mentioned), Visual Studio Code[6]. Some people like jEdit[7], but that's not my personal favourite. [1]: https://www.vim.org/download.php https://www.vim.org/download.php [2]: https://github.com/helix-editor/helix/releases https://github.com/helix-editor/helix/releases [3]: https://www.gnu.org/software/emacs/ https://www.gnu.org/software/emacs/ [4]: https://notepad-plus-plus.org/downloads/ https://notepad-plus-plus.org/downloads/ [5]: https://www.sublimetext.com/ https://www.sublimetext.com/ [6]: https://code.visualstudio.com/ https://code.visualstudio.com/ [7]: http://www.jedit.org/ http://www.jedit.org/
Nicksil 4y ago
Sublime Text. Hands down. https://www.sublimetext.com https://www.sublimetext.com - Instant startup. - Very fast. - Well-built software. - Handles everything I throw at it; a lot of which would render other editors unresponsive. - Great plug-ins. I've used Sublime Text and have been recommending it to others since the first version. I still recommend it above all other text editors; especially for folks working on a Windows machine.
sandos 4y ago
I actually VS Code as my "general text editor", but not IDE which is relegated to VS still. Notepad++ is what I use for anything big enough for Code to croak on, which is not very big, tens of MB or so and more.
acdha 4y ago
Have you tried disabling extensions in VSC? It normally starts quickly so if you’re otherwise happy with it I would try that first.
- jve 4y ago
  Can you configure VSCode so that when opening folder/workspace, you have pre-configured extensions to enable? And default window could have none, yeah. It bugs me that every extension I install is by default enabled and I have to disable them per project explicitly. And I have same pity as op : vscode open is not instant AND it opens the file not in new vscode window, but some unrelated window which I used to open specific folder. Otherwise VSCode is great. Edit: Looks like ongoing effort is in progress to tackle extension problem: https://github.com/microsoft/vscode/issues/40239 https://github.com/microsoft/vscode/issues/40239
nimish2592 4y ago
I have a bookmark done with below text. I use it more like whiteboard in Zoom calls than a note-taker. But it's fast and clean. data:text/html, <html contenteditable>
ZoomZoomZoom 4y ago
If you want GUI and a working and extensive syntax highlighting, your options boil down to Scintilla-based editors, which means Notepad++, Geany[0], TextAdept[1] or Notepad3[2]. There's also lite-xl[3] and CudaText[4], which are not based on Scintilla. Lapce[5] also looks promising, although it's slightly stretching the "light" condition. For years, AkelPad[6] was considered to be the best substitute for the bundled Notepad, but it hasn't been updated in a while, although it still works absolutely fine in that role. For the console, Helix[7], Micro[8], Moe[9] are all possible options which will work in cmd.exe out-of-the box. Regarding vim/nvim - I had some issues with plugin-heavy configs running on top of Cygwin, but YMMV. 0. https://www.geany.org/download/releases https://www.geany.org/download/releases 1. https://github.com/orbitalquark/textadept/releases https://github.com/orbitalquark/textadept/releases 2. https://github.com/rizonesoft/Notepad3 https://github.com/rizonesoft/Notepad3 3. https://github.com/lite-xl/lite-xl/releases https://github.com/lite-xl/lite-xl/releases 4. https://cudatext.github.io/download.html https://cudatext.github.io/download.html 5. https://github.com/lapce/lapce/releases https://github.com/lapce/lapce/releases 6. https://akelpad.sourceforge.net/en/download.php https://akelpad.sourceforge.net/en/download.php 7. https://github.com/helix-editor/helix/releases https://github.com/helix-editor/helix/releases 8. https://github.com/zyedidia/micro https://github.com/zyedidia/micro 9. https://github.com/fox0430/moe/releases https://github.com/fox0430/moe/releases
- thomastjeffery 4y ago
  You don't need cygwin or msys to use [neo]vim. Vim is actually quite pleasant to use standalone until you reach for a shell and find cmd instead of bash - at which point cygwin/msys/etc. find their usefulness.
- japhyr 4y ago
  +1 for Geany; I don't think it gets as much attention as it deserves.
dmitrygr 4y ago
Ultraedit32 Fast. Simple. Can also be a hex editor. Can open multi-GB files with no issues.
kofejnik 4y ago
Sublime text ofc
osigurdson 4y ago
Download git for windows (https://gitforwindows.org https://gitforwindows.org) since you are probably using git anyway. Then create a profile in Windows Terminal for the included bash.This includes vim which works beautifully out of the box with Windows Terminal (syntax highlighting, etc).
Group_B 4y ago
Vim and Sublime Text Vim because it’s already on almost every Linux ditro, and if it’s not, it’s extremely easy to install. And Sublime if I have a GUI and really need to write out a long script that’ll take me longer than a week.
ninjapenguin54 4y ago
Neovim
xrayarx 4y ago
I use Notepad++. It is pre installed on all systems at the workplace. If you do not like it, there is http://www.pspad.com/en/ http://www.pspad.com/en/ Unfortunately I am not sure if it is still in development. Any discussion about editors on windows is incomplete without https://www.ultraedit.com/ https://www.ultraedit.com/ No affiliation with the mentioned products.
ponow 4y ago
emacs ftw
francisofascii 4y ago
Notepad2.exe. Easy installation. Download the .zip file which contains the .exe and .ini file. You might have to spend a little bit of time telling Windows to open .txt, .html, etc. files with Notepad2 rather than Notepad, but other than that, it just works. https://www.flos-freeware.ch/notepad2.html https://www.flos-freeware.ch/notepad2.html
ponow 4y ago
emacs FTW.
- NoGravitas 4y ago
  I love Emacs, and I use it for everything, but it doesn't fit OP's use-case. Emacs startup on Linux is pretty fast these days, but it's painfully slow on Windows. Real Emacs users just never close it, but that's not how this guy wants to work.
  - stragies 4y ago
    Can you not run emacs as a user-level session service on windows like on standard linux, where the startup time cost only occurs once at session logon, and then all future emacs windows are just "clients", and start up near instantly?
    - NoGravitas 4y ago
      Yes, but I inferred from the question that this is not the kind of thing OP wanted to do. That may be a mistaken assumption on my part. It's also not the clearly best path on Windows that it is on Linux. On Windows, for example, 'emacs --daemon' leaves a command window running rather than forking into the background, and a variety of other issues.
  - blisterpeanuts 4y ago
    runemacs.exe starts up almost instantaneously for me on a 5-year-old Dell laptop and Win10. Maybe two seconds from typing em.bat myfile.java to seeing my file presented and ready to edit. I usually install Emacs on whatever platform I'm given: Windows, Linux, Mac. It's the only editor that I can use consistently across systems. Usually I copy my .emacs file as well, to get all my preferred mappings etc.
    - NoGravitas 4y ago
      Do you use many Emacs packages? My Emacs dashboard on Windows says "120 packages loaded in 22.7 seconds". On a ThinkPad X230 running Linux, the same config starts in around 2 seconds. I will say that 'runemacs -Q' on a few-years-old Dell desktop does start in about 2 seconds.
thunderbong 4y ago
Notepad2-mod [0]: Features: - Code folding - Support for bookmarks - Option to mark all occurrences of a word - Word auto-completion - Syntax highlighting support for AutoHotkey, AutoIt3, AviSynth, Bash, CMake, Inno Setup, LaTeX, Lua, Markdown, NSIS, Ruby, Tcl and YAML scripts - Improved support for NFO ANSI art - Support for replacing Windows Notepad using a clean, unintrusive registry-based method - Other various minor changes and tweaks Bonus feature for myself: I can install it on any Windows computer and most non-tech users will not know the difference, but when I have to help them solve system problems, I get all those features!! [0]: https://xhmikosr.github.io/notepad2-mod/ https://xhmikosr.github.io/notepad2-mod/
mochja 4y ago
Before Sublime Text I did use - PSPad http://www.pspad.com/en/ http://www.pspad.com/en/
hestefisk 4y ago
Notepad.exe ;)
nikanj 4y ago
Notepad++ would fit the bill, if it didn't pester me with an update every time I start it.
richardjdare 4y ago
I use Emacs now but I used Textpad (https://www.textpad.com/home https://www.textpad.com/home) for a long time. It's a very light editor with syntax highlighting and large file handling.
- osigurdson 4y ago
  Textpad is good for large files but that is the only thing I use it for (F5 to search - are you kidding me). Also, I don't think it is free.
osigurdson 4y ago
vim / Windows Terminal is what you want.
dver 4y ago
I've used EditPdPro forever, there is a free light version. https://www.editpadpro.com https://www.editpadpro.com
D13Fd 4y ago
I’m surprised no one has mentioned EditPad Pro: https://www.editpadpro.com/ https://www.editpadpro.com/ It’s old (and old fashioned) but still updated, very fast, and designed for convenience. It has syntax highlighting. VS Code has long since replaced it for me, but if I were looking for something faster to go with VS Code in Windows, I’d put it on the list.
- dmux 4y ago
  I've never used the Pro version, but I have used Edit Pad Lite. It ended up being one of the only editors that didn't crash when attempting to open a 500MB file.
- unwind 4y ago
  Agreed, thanks for posting so I didn't have to. Feels like a one-man show/passion project, which I enjoy.
- housecarpenter 4y ago
  I'm a long time user of EditPad Pro. I use Sublime Text and VS Code as well, but one thing I find EditPad Pro particularly good for is modifying the syntax highlighting schemes, or writing my own, which seems to be a more involved process in other editors.
- LkpPo 4y ago
  Search/Replace feature is really dockable, fast, powerful and well done in this editor. Creating/modifying syntax highlighting is easy and you can share them. Encoding detection and support is very good. Adding tools you call from it or where you pipe content is a brease. Definitely my favorite editor.
supersparrow 4y ago
Wow, lots of responses, thank you everyone! I will have a look through this rather extensive list of options :D
rasikjain 4y ago
Notepad++ Very fast, lightweight. Been using for 15+ years
asicsp 4y ago
Vim has been already mentioned several times (in terminal context), but if you want you can use GVim (https://www.vim.org/download.php#pc https://www.vim.org/download.php#pc). IIRC, by default, you'll get behavior similar to Notepad (so, things like ctrl+c/v will work, you don't need to learn Vim stuff). At least that was the case when I tried a few years back. If not, you can explicitly use easy mode to get this behavior. But of course, I'd suggest to learn Vim to get the best out of this editor :)
- jesse__ 4y ago
  +1 for gVim on Windows. I'm a long time terminal vim user on Linux but I've found gVim to be a good fit for developing on Windows. I would recommend hooking your compiler output up to the quickfix window so you can hop around to error messages. Other than that the stock setup will probably be a good base to go from.
- gw99 4y ago
  I've used a tiny subset of vim for about 20 years that sits just above plain vi. It has been a very comfortable place to be. And it works well on Windows with gVim as mentioned.
  - osigurdson 4y ago
    Suggest installing git for windows (since you are probably already using git anyway), and then create a bash profile in Windows Terminal. Then you can just use vim in the terminal like Linux/macOS. I personally dislike opening a UI when I am doing stuff in the terminal. As a plus, it looks great.
- gilcot 4y ago
  +1 for GVim. Every time I'm forced to work on Windows OS, I first install GVim.
- CoolCold 4y ago
  My google-fu can be quite bad, but so far I don't know way to search in Vim with fixed strings, not with regex - quite often I do want just to copypaste some string and not to bother on escaping dots or any other chars. Dumb simple search like Notepad do. Do you know the trick?
mandeepj 4y ago
You are looking for a code editor and not text editor!
rubyist5eva 4y ago
Sublime Text
onion2k 4y ago
I used to use VS Code for this purpose, but it's becoming more and more like an IDE and doesn't quite have the startup time that I would want anymore. VS Code on my Mac starts in about 2s, and that's with half a dozen plugins and a couple of language servers. That could be quicker but finding a new editor seems like overkill if it's similar for you. I suspect the startup time could be optimized if you really wanted Moar Speeds. Plus, it's a bit annoying when I already have a project open as it'll open as a tab and look as if it's part of that project if that makes sense. There's a setting called "Open Files In New Window" that's defaulted to Off that might solve this.
- meltyness 4y ago
  Additionally, length of buffer scrollbacks, maximum file size, especially update check sequencing can, eyeballing it -- quadruple startup time.
- unsafecast 4y ago
  There's a huge difference between 2 seconds (even 1 second) and practically instantaneous. It changes everything. Also worth mentioning: I for one am using a pretty slow computer, and VS Code is unusable. Like most editors and IDEs. But stuff like sublime, vim, NP++, etc. are a pleasure to use.
onemoresoop 4y ago
I've been using Notepad++ for text editing for the past 10 years. It is simple, lightfast and simple. I recommend you give it a try and see if it works out for you.
- geocrasher 4y ago
  Came here to say this. NP++ is fast, simple, and works.
  - Maxburn 4y ago
    OP says they can’t deal with it but I don’t understand the reasoning. Possibly startup time but you only do that once per boot up? I don’t get it really.
    - kramerger 4y ago
      N++ is not super fast to start, but I generally open it once and leave it on. And I guess you can reduce start time by disabling some stuff, just like any other editors. If startup time is his main concern, then a copy of the ancient TextPad might better suit his needs.
- throw1234651234 4y ago
  I like it better than Sublime - it's much lighter. I write scripts in .Notepad++, as well as use it just like Notepad, which I don't like. Notepad++ is extremely light, but has some basic code highlighting, refactor shortcuts, etc.
- kramerger 4y ago
  It really works well with Windows. For example, if windows update decides to reboot your machine your unsaved files will NOT be lost.
  - dizhn 4y ago
    On Linux there are a few notepad++ workalikes. However for that particular feature I found the mousepad text editor to be the best.
wink 4y ago
I mostly use Notepad++ on Windows but on Linux I really like TextAdept - https://orbitalquark.github.io/textadept/ https://orbitalquark.github.io/textadept/ (it has a windows version but I never tried it)
som33 4y ago
billfruit 4y ago
Some weeks ago, there was a post here about CUDAText. It is a fairly light weight editor.
zoomablemind 4y ago
> ...Notepad almost fits my spec (startup time, simple, quick UI), but it doesn't have syntax highlighting or anything useful for text manipulation/navigation/etc. There is Notepad2 (or rather Notepad2-mod). It supports syntax highlighting, it's based on Scintilla. Has most of the basic features needed for code editing, except perhaps for rectangular select, which is not often needed in routine code editing. It's very much a standalone exe with a config file, no plugins.
neweroldguy 4y ago
Keep using VS Code, make files open in their own window via setting. Why would you not have VS Code open at all times anyway? (As you might with an emacs server).
insane_dreamer 4y ago
Sublime Text Atom if you need something free. Brackets for HTML/CSS (also free).
Night_Thastus 4y ago
Notepad++ for anything quick and relatively simple (though plugins extend it a lot). VSCode for any real code editing work.
1970-01-01 4y ago
>I could never get along with Notepad++ - it's hard to explain why, because I can see it's a fantastic editor and is very popular, but it just doesn't fit into the way I work I suppose. NPP is a very solid program once you get over a small learning curve. Try following along with a few YouTube videos on NPP before you dismiss it entirely.
- supersparrow 4y ago
  Oh don't get me wrong, I definitely haven't dismissed it and it's had years of use of my 20+ year coding career, but it has never felt quite right for the way I work.
- Maxburn 4y ago
  I really like it too and I found the auto detection and highlight choices mostly great, and I’m a novice. Not exactly sure what they don’t like about it.
  - throwaheyy 4y ago
    For me it is the tabbed interface. I want each file in its own window. Notepad2 feels more like original Notepad beefed up, rather than a completely different application like Notepad++.
dcuthbertson 4y ago
I haven't used it, but I've heard 4coder [0] is very good. Edit: That points to the handmade network, where I first heard of 4Coder. The actual site is [1]. [0]: https://4coder.handmade.network/ https://4coder.handmade.network/ [1]: https://4coder.itch.io/4coder https://4coder.itch.io/4coder
ivthreadp110 4y ago
I like SciTE (it's not as popular as Notepad++)-- https://www.scintilla.org/SciTE.html https://www.scintilla.org/SciTE.html
sys_64738 4y ago
I edit code in Microsoft Word myself.
stillsut 4y ago
I'm wondering if you could launch VSCode with flags like: $ code --no-extensions --no-lang-server And then alias that command to `litecode` or something
meowcat 4y ago
EditPad Pro. I also never got along with everyone's standard choice Notepad++
squarefoot 4y ago
Here are a few lesser known editors/IDEs. SciTE: https://www.scintilla.org/SciTE.html https://www.scintilla.org/SciTE.html Kate: https://kate-editor.org/ https://kate-editor.org/ Geany: https://www.geany.org/ https://www.geany.org/ Last one comes from my OS/2 memories, it has been ported to Windows and runs fine also on WINE. MED: http://www.utopia-planitia.de/indexus.html http://www.utopia-planitia.de/indexus.html
- jenkstom 4y ago
  If we're looking at obscure, then I think cudatext https://cudatext.github.io/ https://cudatext.github.io/ deserves a mention.
- auxym 4y ago
  Agreed, Kate and Geany are the ones that came to my mind. They are fast and full featured.
binnyva 4y ago
Back in my windows days, I used Metapad for this(https://liquidninja.com/metapad/ https://liquidninja.com/metapad/). I even changed the notepad.exe file to metapad.
rejectfinite 4y ago
Notepads for a UWP/"modern" look - https://www.notepadsapp.com/ https://www.notepadsapp.com/ Notepad2 - Old, not developed anymore. But is a standalone exe and super fast. - https://www.flos-freeware.ch/notepad2.html https://www.flos-freeware.ch/notepad2.html
- kichik 4y ago
  +1 for Notepad2. Super fast. Has MVP set of features. Can hook Notepad so it replaces it completely.
solidgol 4y ago
I would recommend looking at the Fast Colored Text Box ( https://www.codeproject.com/Articles/161871/Fast-Colored-TextBox-for-syntax-highlighting-2 https://www.codeproject.com/Articles/161871/Fast-Colored-Tex... ) It is a .net control that has built in syntax coloring. Some of the sample code are full fledged editors. If you are doing html and occasionally for other purposes foxe html editor is highly underrated. http://www.firstobject.com/dn_editor.htm http://www.firstobject.com/dn_editor.htm
ppjim 4y ago
Helix editor: A post-modern text editor. https://helix-editor.com/ https://helix-editor.com/ It looks great with an interesting UI and a powerful use of terminal.
marcthe12 4y ago
I usually use vim on windows but if that is a hassle, there is KDE Kate. That is a very good editor. Definitely one of the best editors if you do not care about plugins that much.
IshKebab 4y ago
Lapce. It's still early days but if you're looking for basic editing with syntax highlighting it's already there and is very fast.
kramerger 4y ago
Notepad++ is too heavy for you? Try textpad :) https://www.textpad.com/home https://www.textpad.com/home Used it alot at uni, it's notepad with tabs and syntax highlighting.
hulitu 4y ago
Notepad ( from win 7).
GoToRO 4y ago
Try UltraEdit.
yashg 4y ago
EditPlus. Been using it for almost 20 years now. Hands down the best software for text editing I have ever used. It's lighter than Notepad++. Editplus along with Faststine viewer is the reason I am not moving to Mac as my primary OS.
- mek6800d2 4y ago
  I'm guessing you mean the FastStone image viewer - I love it too. I hadn't heard of EditPlus before, but I should look into it. (I've been using the free EditPad Lite for the past 15-20 years for quick editing and, for more lengthy work, MicroEMACS under Cygwin or less frequently JASSPA MicroEMACS in Windows proper.)
warrenm 4y ago
Atom - https://atom.io https://atom.io TextPad - https://textpad.com https://textpad.com
osigurdson 4y ago
>> I could never get along with Notepad++ - it's hard to explain why Many commenters: "use Notepad++" :)
- erremerre 4y ago
  Because it is awesome to be honest. It is not an IDE. I would not write anything on it for coding purposes. But config files, any reasonable sized text file. Notepad++ has you covered. Don't try to create your own colour scheme or language tho. It is kind of a nightmare.
  - osigurdson 4y ago
    If someone has used something for a long time and still do not like it, it's unlikely that they will change their mind.
- GoblinSlayer 4y ago
  OP clearly doesn't know what he wants.
  - osigurdson 4y ago
    Agree, this is ASK HN after all. They do know what they don't want, however (Notepad++ or VS Code). So, we should stop telling them to use Notepad++ and/or VS Code.
netsharc 4y ago
I've been migrating my jEdit install for more than a decade now.. it's Java but the load time isn't terrible, I have a habit of leaving a window open anyway. It's rectangular editing mode is very useful, it has plugins, e.g. to diff 2 files, HyperSearch is like grep, you can even copy the list of search hits into the clipboard. Maybe N++ has all these features, I use it too but haven't learned how to diff or do rectangular selection/editing.
deleted 4y ago
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Koshkin 4y ago
I have the same feeling about Notepad++ (in part because it is Windows-only), and for years I have been using SciTE which I found to be no-nonsense editor that does everything I need an editor to do (and just a bit more).
chrismcb 4y ago
If notepad++ doesn't work for you then you probably aren't really looking for a fast, light, text editor. But you really need to explain how it didn't work. It has syntax highlighting, it is easy to use. I can't imagine how you don't get along with it.
gloosx 4y ago
I'm just using vim any time, works on any kind of machine, all configuration is just single copy-pasted file and everything works the same. Startup time is better than instant, also it is only around 20MB. Syntax highlighting and all cool features out of the box. Intellisense, LSP easy installable and work much faster than VSCode. Yeah the controls are a bit confusing at start, but interactive tutorial is perfect and you learn all basic features in 20 minutes Bonus: opens 16.84 GiB files and processes billiards of lines in a matter of seconds
GoblinSlayer 4y ago
SciTE, Textadept, Programmer's Notepad. I keep text editor always open (for note taking), so maybe that's why it opens files faster than with a cold start.
- taffit 4y ago
  Url for Textadept: https://orbitalquark.github.io/textadept/ https://orbitalquark.github.io/textadept/ It's a cross-platform, open source editor written and configurable in Lua.
1nf_ 4y ago
https://neovide.dev https://neovide.dev is great and super fast. It's a wrapper for neovim.
bmacho 4y ago
I use geany on windows too. It has tabs, syntax highlight, can be configured to run/build/etc on keystrokes, (open new terminal or use the output window), handles projects, can search in multiple files, etc. Although its text manipulation could be better, it doesn't have multiple cursors for example.
tpoacher 4y ago
Use the venerable GNU Nano editor on the terminal. You can get it easily via gitbash (https://gitforwindows.org https://gitforwindows.org), or WSL, or cygwin or ... dunno. You can also try compiling it for windows directly. Nano provides some Win32-specific stuff on its website (https://www.nano-editor.org/dist/win32-support/ https://www.nano-editor.org/dist/win32-support/), but I haven't tried them, since nano through gitbash worked fine whenever I've needed it.
chunk_waffle 4y ago
Back when I was stuck with Windows (and also not the biggest fan of Notepad++) I used Gedit2 which I carried over when I started using Linux. It had syntax highlighting, plugins, a file browser. It was great! There was some version where they absolutely neutered it (I think it was Gedit3) and I haven't looked at it since but maybe they've re-added the lost functionality (though I doubt it.)
aurora72 4y ago
No one mentioned Light Table?
JoeMayoBot 4y ago
Multiple editors, depending on what I want to do: - VSCode: JavaScript/Python dev - Notepad++: Fast copy/paste, JSON formatting, document viewing, or converting from a rich-text format to plain text for pasting in a web comment. Because it also saves tabs, it's helpful for temporary sticky note type text. I rarely ever code here. - textEdit: On Mac because it's easier to type here and then paste into HN comment. - Visual Studio: C# development