Headline Feeds
As communication becomes more Web-centric, text editors become more essential writing tools. Blocks of text get tweaked with HTML codes to provide a more graphical appearance. So good text editors are those with many of the same features found in word processors, only without the added formatting and graphic components.
One of the best text editors for anyone who handles a heavy flow of words is the Kate Text Editor. This is one my two favorite text-writing apps. (The other is Geany Text Editor.) Unless I need a final copy in a polished printout, Kate is a more convenient choice than a full-fledged word processor.
Kate is a multi-document editor that grew from a rewritten version of the KWrite editing widget of the KDE desktop. Even if you run the more standard Gnome desktop in your Linux distro, Kate runs just fine. The few required KDE libraries that Kate needs are bundled in the installation package.
Kate 101
The Kate project developed two main products. One is KatePart, which is an advanced editor component used in numerous KDE applications calling for a text editing tool. The second is Kate itself.
This native KDE application is a handy tool for viewing HTML sources, editing configuration files, writing code or any other text-based task. Kate is released under the GNU Lesser General Public License (LGPL) Version 2.
I'm partial to multi-view editors like Kate. They carry a good deal of advantages. In my case, I can view several synced instances of the same document as I work. I can also see more open documents for easy reference or simultaneous editing.
Panel Pleasure
One of the most critical features for me is Kate's ability to display an index of files as a sidebar. I often work with several note files and documents opened simultaneously. Being able to see a list of files and click on titles to switch from one to the other is very convenient.
A companion feature is the File System Browser panel. Access to both comes with clicking the vertical tab along the left edge of the screen. Of course, I can open files with the Open icon on the tool bar. Also, I can click on a file in a file manager app and open it with the Kate option. However, Kate's built-in file browser makes these other options more cumbersome.
Kate's ability to show split files in side-by-side and top-to-bottom fashion is a must-have feature for my work routine. In fact, with so much flexibility provided in screen display with Kate, the only thing I use text editors without this ability for are quick scratch-pad tasks.
Other Goodies
Having a spell checker built into a text editor is a rarity. The fact that Kate has one can be a deal-maker for anyone looking for a full-featured text editor. Unlike the spell checking feature in word processors, Kate's spelling feature does not underscore misspellings as I type, but it does give me two options. One is to spell check the entire document, offering options for corrections for each flagged word in the document. I can also select from the same drop-down tools menu spelling options for a word under the cursor.
Spend some time picking your way through the menus in Kate. Numerous features to assist code writers and programmers are packed in the choices. For example, Kate includes code and text folding plus encoding support such as utf-8, utf-16, ascii, etc. Kate can also convert encoding. There is also wide protocol support for HTTP, FTP, SSH, WebDAV, etc.
Find the options that make your particular writing tasks easier. For instance, Kate has options to set auto indentation, auto completion, block selection, syntax highlighting and bracket matching. It is a hefty list. So Ignore what you do not need.
Unique Option
Kate has a search and find feature that I have not found in other feature-packed text editors or word processors. It has made my researching much easier. I work with several open files with information gleaned from Internet research and interview notes. Kate makes finding what I need a whole lot easier.
This option lets me place a search window at the bottom of each file window. I can enter a word or phrase and whatever filtering options needed to focus the search. Kate pulls up a list of any document on the hard drive that contains that information. If the file is not already opened, I can click on the listing to open it.
How cool is that? Not having to go outside the text editor to a search app to locate information is a huge time-saver in my content research. Clicking the Find in Files tab at the bottom of the screen turns this feature on or off.
Convenience Counts
Anyone who is familiar with word processing programs and text editors can get up to speed very fast with Kate. All of the basic navigational tools and expected app options are easy to find. As your comfort level rises, it is easy to find useful tools to expand your writing environment within Kate.
The Kate Text Editor has a lot to offer. I usually send open source
communities a wish list of features I'd like added to applications
that I use. I have not been able to do that with Kate. I cannot think
of a single enhancement to make my writing life easier that is not
already a part of the Kate experience.
