Proposal: GNOME Text Editor as default text editor

Desktop
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GNOME switched its recommended text editor to gnome-text-editor for the 42 release.

I propose that we switch our default text editor from gedit to gnome-text-editor for Ubuntu 22.10.

Selected Features

  • Uses GTK4 and libadwaita
  • Fully supports the GNOME 42 dark theme preference (gedit does not yet)
  • Has improved autosave (including autosaving “unsaved” “draft” files)
  • Does not support plugins like gedit
  • Includes many (but not all) popular features and options without plugins
  • Follows GNOME Design more closely than gedit

Try It Out

gnome-text-editor 42 is available in Ubuntu 22.04 LTS if you want to try it now.

It’s a little confusing that both gedit and gnome-text-editor have their app name set to Text Editor for 22.04 LTS. In Ubuntu 22.10, gedit is using the app name gedit instead.

Technical details

If this proposal happens, gedit will still be available for install but will be demoted to the universe section. (Many of Ubuntu’s most popular apps are in universe). It will still be possible to remove gnome-text-editor if you prefer to use gedit or something else and don’t want it installed at all.

15 Likes
2

We have switched the default text editor to gnome-text-editor for Ubuntu 22.10.

5 Likes
3

Since gnome-text-editor is a bit clunky to type in the terminal, I would like to propose a bash alias to a shorter name like “gted”.
I proposed that as a binary name upstream but they were not willing to discuss binary names.

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I would like to propose a bash alias to a shorter name like “gted”

You can add your own bash aliases. But could you go ahead and file an Ubuntu or Debian bug for that request?

2 Likes
5

Sure. I will file a bug then. Those overly long binary names do not really feel unix (but of course, gted is not made for the command-line, I guess).

6

There is a report upstream on https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/gnome-text-editor/-/issues/319 but they don’t seem interested by adding a simpler to type alias

1 Like
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I know. It was my bug report back then…