Basic Mac Notepad like text editor

[aMUSEd]

Textedit that comes with the Mac just keeps messing up syntax when I save stuff so it's useless. On the other hand trying Atom and BBedit but they are just overkill - way over complex and both keep annoying me with popups asking me if I want to install XCode (and no way to turn it off that I can find). I just want a basic but competent Mac text editor.

[Michael L]

I use TextMate
https://macromates.com/
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/TextMate

[khanyz]

It’s a shame TextWrangler was retired. I’ve switched to Textastic after using the iOS version. I use Ulysses for creative stuff, but am switching as it’s gone subscription.

For free, there’s ports of the Unix/Linux standards, or Brackets.

[lnikj]

I use TextMate
https://macromates.com/
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/TextMate

+1 for Textmate

This is a good new and free one though: http://brackets.io

I generally try to keep everything in one place these days though, so I mostly use this: http://happenapps.com

[aMUSEd]

Thanks - I just want one that isn't over complicated and doesn't keep nagging me to install XCode - not interested in major programing stuff - just the ability to tweak the odd xml or script file when needed

[Michael L]

doesn't keep nagging me to install XCode

You should be able to turn off nagging in System Preferences> Personal> Notifications, and then unclick.

[lobanov]

Now I use CudaText
http://uvviewsoft.com/cudatext/
Cool look-and-feel (screenshots aren't eloquent), very configurable, lightweight, stable. I was very surprised, it opens images too. Windows, Mac, Linux. Free.

[aMUSEd]

doesn't keep nagging me to install XCode

You should be able to turn off nagging in System Preferences> Personal> Notifications, and then unclick.

For BBEdit? That's the one that does it the most - says it's needed for some 'CTabs' command but I'm just typing stuff - I don't think it's using notifications for that

[shadowsun]

Prepare to spend a bit of time getting used to Atom and understanding how to set it up so that it works for you. But once you’ve done that, you can expect to find that Atom is your indispensable text editor for writing code.
For me the use of projects is critical when working in Sublime - it helps me stay focussed on the relevant files for what I need. https://www.cleverfiles.com/howto/top-5 ... s-mac.html Being able to search for a file and across files is fast and easy. I've often had to perform searches across hundreds of files to find a snippet of code and Sublime's speed has never let me down. As with Atom—the real power comes once you have some key plugins installed. Getting the right syntax highlighting, JSON formatters, linters, etc takes some time, but once they're installed and set up, they don't need to be touched again.

[BertKoor]

Or Visual Studio Code
https://code.visualstudio.com