Using Microsoft's New CLI Text Editor on Ubuntu

Summary

If you spend a lot time in a terminal on Linux you’ll have preferred command-line text editor, but Microsoft’s recently announced open-source offering, simply called Edit, might be worth checking out — if only so you know you’re not missing out. Edit is a remake/reboot of the old MS-DOS Editor, updated to suit current sensibilities. Built using Rust, it aims to deliver a user experience that, per its GitHub page, provides “modern interface and input controls similar to VS Code.” Microsoft says it made Edit “to provide an accessible editor that even users largely unfamiliar with terminals can easily use” on Windows if/when needed, out-of-the-box (as recent versions of Windows do not include a CLI text editor in recent versions). The arrival of Edit will mean Windows devs aren’t forced to fire up notepad.exe to make a simple shell script edit, but is there any benefit to running the app on Linux? Note: When I spotlight apps, tools and utilities on this blog, it’s not because I think you (or anyone) “MUST” use them. I simply showcase choices. Whether you choose to use them is up to you. Why would Linux users use Edit? As straightforward to use as it seems Windows is the primary target for Edit since it lacks a built-in CLI text editor natively so the fact you can use Edit on Linux (and macOS) is more of bonus than purpose. But if you use Linux and VSCode your muscle memory might like the fact Edit shares many of the latter’s keybindings. This could make it easier to slot in to your workflow compared to vim or nano (though I stress it’s not a replacement for either of those). Not that only avowed VSCode fans will see the appeal. The simplicity of the text-driven UI (TUI) makes it less complex to learn, while the speed of Edit, even when seeking across lines in giant 1GB+ files, is impressive — both USPs are by design. Working with multiple files is easy enough too Eager to avoid “how to exit vim” memes, Microsoft designed Edit as a modeless text editor (as opposed to a ...