Buzz
Notepad may have more limitations compared to Microsoft Word, but it's still a popular text editor nowadays. When using Notepad to edit and save files, you're restricted to saving them with the .txt extension only. Despite its limitations, it's great for jotting down temporary notes or editing files in a DOS environment.
Notepad++ supports various programming languages like ASP, PHP, JSP, C#, Python, Java, and more.
Can you compare two text files using Notepad?
Because Notepad is a simple text editor with limited features, you can't use Notepad to compare two text files. Instead, you can use Notepad++. It's a free programming language editor that can support various programming languages such as ASP, PHP, JSP, C#, Python, Java, and can also be used to compare two text files or snippets of source code opened in different tabs of Notepad++.
How to Compare Text Files using Notepad++
To compare, you can use a plugin called Compare for Notepad++. Using this plugin allows users to easily compare two text files or a snippet of source code on different tabs of the software.
Step 1: If you haven't installed Notepad++ yet, download it: Download Notepad++.
Step 2: After installation, open Notepad++ -> click on Plugin -> select Plugin Admin.
The Plugin Admin interface appears -> check the box next to Compare -> then click the Install button to download and install this Plugin.
You'll receive a notification Notepad++ is about to exit as shown below -> click Yes to proceed with installing the additional Plugin, and the software will automatically exit and restart for your usage.
Step 3: After installing the Compare Plugin, open the 2 text files you want to compare.
Then, go to the Plugins menu -> select Compare or press the shortcut Ctrl + Alt + C.
The 2 files will be opened side by side, and the scroll bars will be synchronized.
You'll notice a Compare navigation bar on the right side of the screen. This bar helps you navigate between the text files and displays segments of the text files in different colors to help you distinguish the differences between the 2 files.
Step 4: You can use the green arrows on the toolbar to navigate between each alert if needed.
If you want to customize the color for compared areas of the two files, go to Settings as shown below to make your selection.
In the image below, we've changed the compared differences to red.
So now you know how to compare two txt files using Notepad++. The process of comparing the contents of two text files is quite straightforward, isn't it? Basically, all you need to do is install the Compare Plugin, open the text files you want to compare, and then compare them as instructed above.
For those who regularly use Notepad++, compiling useful shortcut keys for this application will undoubtedly help you swiftly navigate through text editing and programming tasks. To discover what these shortcut keys are, let's explore a compilation of handy Notepad++ shortcut keys that Mytour has shared!
