Product Updates
We are happy to announce that iOS now has a text editor! You can access this feature on any text file from the toolbar in the lower left corner.
@Ed wrote:We are happy to announce that iOS now has a text editor! You can access this feature on any text file from the toolbar in the lower left corner.
It seems it's impossible to simply place the cursor within a text file after opening up the file for editing. A tap anywhere in the text file should place the cursor at the tapped location, but instead does nothing.
This makes it impossible to insert text anywhere in the file other than at the end.
This editing of .txt files already existing and stored in Dropbox is a great feature! Thank you.
However, I need to be able to see (and edit) my .txt files contents in a fixed width font. In the editor I am using right here to write this request, there is a drop down Font selection feature - and one of the fonts is Courier. That's precisely what I need (could be Menlo or some other fixed width font).
Is there any way to do this?
What I get now looks like
123456789012345678901234567890123456789012345.
The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dogs.
What I need would look like:
123456789012345678901234567890123456789012345.
The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dogs.
I am on an iPad 2, iOS 11, current Dropbox App (or can run browser, too)
Help!
@Cardinal2B wrote:
However, I need to be able to see (and edit) my .txt files contents in a fixed width font.
Curious... While ".txt" files are displayed/edited using a proportional font, ".md" (MarkDown / Plain text) files are "displayed" in a fixed width font! However, ".md" files still don't appear to be editable in the Dropbox iOS app (as requested by earlier posters)? Although ".md" files do show the same text-file-like icon as ".txt" files.
(The Dropbox app on Android allows ".md" files to be edited.)
It would be useful to have a customizable list of file extensions (within "Settings") that can be associated with the text editor. Also, an option to toggle a fixed-width font in the editor would be very useful (a "font selection" is probably overkill IMO). When reading/editing "text files", a fixed-width font is generally preferred. You can do everything with a fixed-width font (indentation, aligning, tabular data) - which you simply cannot do with a proportional font.
Dropbox iOS App Version 74.2.2
Guest_47,
You can CREATE a new text file (and some other types too).
From the home screen, on the bottom see icons with:
Home Files Create Photos Account
Tap Create (plus sign icon)
Then select Create or Upload File
Then select file type you want (Text File)
Now you get a New Text File window
type some stuff in there (or you can paste from the clipboard too)
Tap on Next at the upper right
Tap on File Name and enter a name (whatever.txt),
Tap on Done at upper right
Choose a Save Location,
Tap Create at the upper right
Congratulations you just created a file!
This works on both iPhone and iPad in my experience.
However, the Dropbox App can not display text files in a fixed-width format which is a major shortcoming for my use.
Biggles,
I cannot tell you exactly what encoding the Dropbox App uses when it creates a text file.
However, I have some related information which maybe will help...
I use Notedpad on a Windows PC to make text files, and store them in Dropbox.
Notepad defaults to ANSI encoding.
Sometimes files I make are not editable in Dropbox App. They display in a different, psuedo fixed-width courier font (it is NOT truly fixed width), and there is no edit icon to invoke the Dropbox App editor. I think this has to do with specific characters I use in my files, but I am no ASCII maven.
The workarounds:
1. When saving the file on Notepad, select UTF-8 encoding. The file will be editable. You can also open a previously uneditable file in Notepad, save it with UTF-8 encoding, and it will be editable.
2. Using only the Dropbox App:
open the file. tap and hold a word to select it.
Select All.
Copy.
Create a new file (plus sign icon bottom of screen)
choose Create or Upload File, choose Text File
window opens, tap in it, then Paste (contents of your uneditable file)
tap Next (upper right)
tap and enter a File Name that is not your original one (whatever new.txt)
tap Create to actually make the file - it will be editable
optionally Delete the original file / Rename the new file
Hope that helps somehow.
Hi there!
If you need more help you can view your support options (expected response time for a ticket is 24 hours), or contact us on X or Facebook.
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