TEdit Text Editor for Command Prompt and Terminals

TEdit: Notepad Comfort, Terminal Ease and Power!

I built TEdit because I wanted notepad in Command Prompt (CMD), and I was tired of having to reference keyboard commands, modes, and shortcuts.

Behold! Notepad for Command Prompt! Critics say that it's not great that you can use your mouse in the terminal, but I don't listen to people. I just do what I want. But if I think about it, I DISAGREE! I Should be able to use my mouse and/or keyboard anytime that I want. Let's say you had a pure text and keyboard terminal program, like many exist. Why is it better that I can't use my mouse? I can already hear micro-arguments that the interface design would have slight differences, but forget about all that noise. The fact is that my text editor is better because it has dual controls. Beyond that, it replicates how people have been using computers in modern times. Going back in time to keyboard only is asinine. It might even be elitist! This text editor is for everyone.

Very simple. Open, type, click, save. There is very little to memorize, no vim puzzles, no hunting for how to do things. I wanted that same feeling inside a terminal, with a little extra power for code.

After two years of tinkering, TEdit is finally probably at a place where I can hand it to a Notepad person and watch them be productive in 30 seconds.

What it is

TEdit (also called "TE" on PyPI) is a Windows-optimized terminal text editor that gives you a simple, mouse-driven, intuitive editing experience without leaving the command line. It uses the Pygments library for syntax highlighting across dozens of languages, and the standard curses library for the interface.

Think of it as Notepad with superpowers, running in PowerShell, CMD, Windows Terminal, or even SSH.

Built for Notepad users

If you can use Notepad, you already know 90% of TEdit:

Top menu bar — File, Edit, View, Help. Click it, or hit F9. No hidden commands.

Right-click menu — Cut, Copy, Paste, Undo, Redo, Select All. Exactly where your muscle memory expects it.

Bottom shortcut bar — always visible. You never have to remember keys:

• F1 Open file browser
• F2 Save current file
• F3 New file
• F4 Cycle color theme
• F5 Toggle line numbers
• F9 Switch Edit / Menu mode
• Esc ×3 Exit

Mouse works everywhere: click to move the cursor, drag to select, scroll wheel to scroll, right-click for the context menu.

Code Colors + BG/FG Themes

Why you might like it more than other terminal text editors:

• Syntax highlighting - auto-detects Python, HTML, C, Markdown, and 200+ more
• Full mouse support - no keyboard-only navigation required
• File browser built in - When Opening and Saving files, browse files/directories
• Themes - Select a background and text color, in addition to code coloration
• Find - search from your cursor and find next
• Handles big files and weird encodings - graceful handling, modern app
• On-Screen Shortcuts - Easy as it gets, never forget, never reference

Simple installation! Install with one command, run with one command!

Get it in 10 seconds

From Command Prompt or on Linux:

pip install tedit

Launch with either:

TE

or

TEdit

First run opens a blank document.
Start typing. Use the menu. Done.

Updating later is an easy command:

pip install --upgrade tedit

A 60-second tour for Notepad converts

1. Open TEdit. The text cursor is in the edit area - just type.
2. Want a file? F1, click through folders, Enter or click to open.
3. Prefer line numbers for code? Press F5.
4. Made a mistake? Undo with Edit menu or Ctrl+Z works.
5. Code theme changes are with F4, background/foreground in Colors menu.
6. Done? F2 to save, 'Esc Esc Esc' to quit.

No modes, no : commands, no learning curve. The menu at the top tells you everything, the right-click gives you the basics, and the bottom bar reminds you of the keys.

What's next

There are a few things still left to do, (and a bug fix or two!), such as "Select All". Will do!

TEdit will stay free to install via PyPI. My contribution to the world and myself.

If you've lived in Notepad for years and thought terminal editors were too much trouble, give TEdit a try. It's the same comfort, faster streamlined at the command line, and hardly anything to re-learn.