Er, Notepad? Apple Newbie Help

[Brigandier]

I just started using Apple products and how do I get to Notepad? Or some simple txt editor?

Help, I'm lost!

 

[TheStu]

Do you know how to find the applications folder? Did you see the one marked textedit? Did you google at all?

 

[Brigandier]

Do you know how to find the applications folder? Did you see the one marked textedit? Did you google at all?

Okay, Go!

Thanks for the out of the way help.


Edit: Butthead, you could have just been nice

 

[TheStu]

Okay, Go!

Thanks for the out of the way help.


Edit: Butthead, you could have just been nice

Do you have any other questions?

1: Was totally earnest, the layout between OS X and Windows is rather different, it wouldn't surprise me if your answer was 'No, what is the application folder'?

2: Since I asked the first question, that told you that there was such a thing as the application folder, and that you should look there. Then I asked if you had seen the thing that you were looking for. Maybe you hadn't realized that Text Edit was, in fact, a text editor. I mean, with a name like that...

3: Did you?

All that said, you have 3300 posts and have been here for 4 years, and at no point did you realize that if you asked a stupid question you would get a stupid answer?

 

[midwestfisherman]

FWIW I'd put your answer into the smart ass category too. Just sayin'

 

[TheStu]

FWIW I'd put your answer into the smart ass category too. Just sayin'

It was a smart ass answer.

He asked if there was a simple text editor for the Mac. It is literally called Text Edit.

 

[rivan]

For one with a little more oomph, but still free, try TextWrangler.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

-Shift-'T' to switch from Rich Text to Plain Text mode. (It's in the format menu too.)

I get at least one person a week at work with a Mac, who's astonished that their Dock contains only a fraction of the applications actually installed.

 

[TheStu]

-Shift-'T' to switch from Rich Text to Plain Text mode. (It's in the format menu too.)

I get at least one person a week at work with a Mac, who's astonished that their Dock contains only a fraction of the applications actually installed.

I think that was part of why they added in Launchpad with Lion. A quick and easy way (either invoke it from the dock, or with a gesture) to get at your applications, particularly useful for new users.

 

[cheez]

Do you know how to find the applications folder? Did you see the one marked textedit? Did you google at all?

I agree, your comment was uncalled for...

Pretty shocking coming from a moderator.

 

[TheStu]

I agree, your comment was uncalled for...

Pretty shocking coming from a moderator.

A: I asked smartass questions, I didn't make comments.

B: There is a Report Post button in the bottom left corner of each post. If you think that I unfairly attacked the OP, or insulted him, then by all means, use that tool. That is what it is there for, and no one is above reproach, especially in the technical forums.

 

[slugg]

I just started using Apple products and how do I get to Notepad? Or some simple txt editor?

Help, I'm lost!

The biggest tip I can give you is Command + Spacebar. Command is the button with the weird symbol on it where you're used to seeing "alt" on a normal keyboard. This brings up the Spotlight search. I use this for almost everything; it's way faster than using your mouse and navigating to the program, file, or pr0n you wish to access.

 

[Kadarin]

Another free text editor included in OSX is vi. While not "simple", it is extremely powerful.

 

[TheStu]

Another free text editor included in OSX is vi. While not "simple", it is extremely powerful.

You can also get to emacs via Terminal

 

[Spineshank]

The biggest tip I can give you is Command + Spacebar. Command is the button with the weird symbol on it where you're used to seeing "alt" on a normal keyboard. This brings up the Spotlight search. I use this for almost everything; it's way faster than using your mouse and navigating to the program, file, or pr0n you wish to access.

Seriously love this shortcut. I installed Launchy on my work Windows machine just so I would stop doing it without having anything happen.

 

[rivan]

I, for one, abhor spotlight.

I really, really, really want the old pre-spotlight search (F) back.

Edit: If nothing else, changing the shortcut is the first thing I do. It conflicts with the magnifier in Adobe apps. Makes me weep when I use someone else's machine and that brings up spotlight

 

[TheStu]

I, for one, abhor spotlight.

I really, really, really want the old pre-spotlight search (F) back.

Edit: If nothing else, changing the shortcut is the first thing I do. It conflicts with the magnifier in Adobe apps. Makes me weep when I use someone else's machine and that brings up spotlight

What's your beef with Spotlight? I started on Macs with Tiger, so I have always had it.

 

[alkemyst]

-Shift-'T' to switch from Rich Text to Plain Text mode. (It's in the format menu too.)

I get at least one person a week at work with a Mac, who's astonished that their Dock contains only a fraction of the applications actually installed.

Many don't know about the cd eject button either which is helpful when they can't figure out how to shut down the app locking the disc from ejecting.

reboot, hold down the eject key and viola CD ejected.

 

[alkemyst]

Another free text editor included in OSX is vi. While not "simple", it is extremely powerful.

nano too is included.

 

[alkemyst]

A: I asked smartass questions, I didn't make comments.

B: There is a Report Post button in the bottom left corner of each post. If you think that I unfairly attacked the OP, or insulted him, then by all means, use that tool. That is what it is there for, and no one is above reproach, especially in the technical forums.

I didn't take this as smart ass. At the same time being the OP didn't know about text edit, I'd have assumed he didn't know how google is the answer to just about every question known to man

I was actually thinking of posting:

"You have many text editing applications on your Mac, the easiest one to get to is Text Edit under your Applications icon in the dock or finder. If you like the terminal, there are several available. Google "text editor osx" and review the many available".

Of course that may have also been considered a 'not nice' response depending on the tone one read it in.

 

[rivan]

What's your beef with Spotlight? I started on Macs with Tiger, so I have always had it.

At a minimum I'd like it configurable to NOT search the contents of files. Say I want a list of all the PDFs in a given directory. Most of the time, I don't want to know every mention of PDFs in all the documents in that directory. I don't want to know anytime PDF is mentioned in the metadata of a word document because we have a PDF plugin. Secondly I want to be able to sort them by path or location like I used to be able to.

I've been using Macs since System 6. Tons of improvements since those days, but some annoyances. Changes like including fonts that conflict with Adobe fonts I'd been using for years (and making them essentially non-removable!), then doing it again, new and improved! backwards scrolling, and the change from Find to Spotlight have all put my teeth on edge.