If the file you open uses a markup language, and that language is supported in the editor, Geany applies syntax highlighting to it.

You create or open a text file and start typing. Using GeanyĪs you’ve probably guessed, using Geany is like using any other text editor. Once you have it installed, fire up Geany.

There’s even a version of the editor for PortableApps (a platform for running Windows applications off a USB flash drive). You can get installers for Windows or macOS. If you want to go all hardcore techie, then you can try grabbing the source code and compiling it yourself. If you’re a Linux user, try installing it using your distribution’s package manager. However simple or involved that work may be. While it’s flexible enough for a number of development tasks, Geany is also light enough for anyone, regardless of their level of technical skill, to use for with their work in plain text. In my mind, Geany occupies an interesting middle ground. When I mentioned that I was writing this post, a few people asked me why I was looking at a developer’s editor when I advocate using simple text editors. Since it’s been quite some time since I’ve used it, I recently decided to give Geany another look. Despite being aimed at developers, Geany was for years the editor I used when working with LaTeX documents.

While I haven’t written a lot about Geany, I’m not unfamiliar with it. And when the fives of people who read what I write don’t see their favourite editor in an article, they suggest I include it.īesides the usual suspects, one editor that keeps popping up is Geany. In my work in this space and elsewhere over the years, I’ve looked at … well, a lot of text editors. ( Note: This article was first published, in a different form, at Open Source Musings and appears here via a CC-BY-SA 4.0 license.) Working in Plain Text with Geany The Plain Text Project

Geany text editor for windows