Cannot edit some text files in Dropbox on iPhone?

mike160304 · ‎03-11-2018

In the Dropbox app on iPhone SE, I can open all my text files, but in some of them I do not get the Edit icon (looks like a cursor) at bottom left, so cannot edit them.

In others, I get the Edit icon at bottom left, and can edit them.

In both cases the text files are from the Notepad app on my Windows 10 PC.

When I cannot edit a text file, the settings and menus that I can call up do not seem to provide any solution.

Am I missing something?

Mike

Cardinal2B · ‎05-03-2018

K-C-L (and others following)

Thanks! You're onto the right cause, and solution ...well, workaround.

Dropbox App editor won't handle either certain characters (extended) or Windows Notepad default ANSI files. A pretty obvious shortcoming. These get rendered in a non-editable file - which looks like monospaced courier, but doesn't make a space for each <spacebar>. Go figure.

Anyway, the workarounds are:

- Convert all your Notepad ANSI files to UTF-8 (open file in Notepad, Save As..., dropdown box -> choose UTF-8 and Save. (Save all new files as UTF-8). This is what I am doing.

- Open the file in Dropbox App. Select a word, then Select All. Copy. Create new file (Text). Paste into the window, name, and Create. Kinda klugy.

Those both work - I've tested.

- There is a way to change Notepad default to UTF-8, which would prevent this from re-occurring, but you have to touch the Registry (I don't want to do that)

- Download Notepad++ which apparently can set a default without touching the Registry (cannot verify). Reportedly Notepad++ takes less resources too (don't know about that either)

OK, a PITA. But do-able. I guess.

But, the real problem is Dropbox App cannot show text files (.txt) in monospaced font (e.g. Menlo or Courier). This is basically a disqualifier for Dropbox for musicians who use text files to create Tab, or Notation files, or chord charts. That's a lot of people left out in the cold. Since they all share files, so Dropbox could / should own this market, but have shut themselves out.

View solution in original post

Minato · ‎03-15-2018

Hey @mike160304,

Dropbox doesn’t have a built in editor. What program do you use to edit the file?

If you’d like to use an editor, you’ll have to download/export the file, edit it and then upload it again.

The mobile app doesn’t download the files locally, like the desktop app does.

Let me know if this helps!

Minato
Moderator @ Dropbox
https://dropbox.com/support

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Rich · ‎03-15-2018

@Minato wrote:

Dropbox doesn’t have a built in editor.

Actually, it does. Simple text files can be edited within the Dropbox app by tapping the Edit icon in the bottom left corner when the file is open for viewing.

Tapping the edit icon opens the file within the Dropbox app. You can then edit and save the changes. No other app is required.

mike160304 · ‎03-15-2018

As I said originally, the Dropbox iPhone app does allow me to edit some Notepad .txt files, but not others. I am trying find out why.

Please see the reply from Rich - his description of what happens is exactly what I see, when it works. But sometimes the Edit icon at bottom left is missing, even though it is still a Notepad .txt file.

Mike

mike160304 · ‎03-15-2018

Rich - Yes, as I said originally, the Dropbox iPhone app does edit, and your description is exactly what happens for me with Notepad .txt files, when it works. But in some Notepad .txt files the Edit icon at bottom left is missing, and nothing that I can find on the page seems to change this.

I'll do a bit more analysis to see if I can spot a difference between a Notepad .txt file where this works and a Notepad .txt file where it does not work. Then I could put both of these on here to see anyone else can edit the one that I cannot edit.

Thanks,

Mike

mike160304 · ‎03-16-2018

I wondered whether the .txt files that I cannot edit in Dropbox app on iPhone are ones which contain live hyperlinks - web addresses, email addresses, phone numbers.

But no, there are .txt files with hyperlinks that I can edit.
Mike

mike160304 · ‎03-17-2018

Here is a link to a Notepad .txt file. This is an example of a file that, in the Dropbox app on iPhone, I can open but cannot edit. Let's call this "TxtCan'tEdit".

https://www.dropbox.com/s/b8nx5trwbpfrcsp/FZ1000%20notes.txt?dl=0

Next I'll try to send an example of a .TXT file that I can edit in same circumstances.

Mike

mike160304 · ‎03-17-2018

2nd example - here is a link to a Notepad .txt file that, in the Dropbox app on iPhone, I can open and edit. Let's call this "TxtCanEdit".

https://www.dropbox.com/s/qlcwyyan7k5hfvx/PSE15%20Notes.txt?dl=0

Mike

mike160304 · ‎03-17-2018

Whoops - duplicate of last message, but I cannot delete it.

Sanchez · ‎03-19-2018

Hey Mike (@mike160304),

Thanks for all the extra details, and for sharing those links to your test documents! I don’t know what the difference in these files is, so I’d like to put you in touch with our support team for further investigation. Go ahead and submit a support ticket here, and then let me know your ticket number so I can make sure it gets to the right desk for review

.

In the meantime, I wonder what would happen if you copy/pasted the contents of the non-editable document into a new ~~black~~ blank [edited] one. Give this a try if you’d like, and let me know.

Cheers!

Sanchez
Community Moderator @ Dropbox
dropbox.com/support

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Cannot edit some text files in Dropbox on iPhone?

Cannot edit some text files in Dropbox on iPhone?

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