I do a lot of Python programming and to date have used EditPlus at my editor, through habit rather than anything else.  I have had a quick look at the IDLE file editor in the Windows shell and I have the following comments:

 

1. Confusion between tabs and spaces

 

I feel that IDLE should work only in tabs and not try converting from tabs to spaces and back again.  If I edit a file that was edited in a different editor (e.g. EditPlus), the left and right arrows move one tab at a time.  If I press enter to insert a new line that is not after an ‘if’ statement, this behaviour continues, as it should.  However a new line after an ‘if’ statement appears to add an extra tab (- a nice feature) but as four spaces, not as a tab, even though the default tab setting is 8 spaces.  This behaviour appears to be independent of the Toggle Tabs setting.

 

This behaviour basically makes IDLE impossible to use as each line will have a different tab arrangement.  I understand that using the Tabify / Untabify options will fix this up but this is hardly satisfactory.  Please tell me if there is a way to make the file editor function in a more acceptable way.

 

2. Displaying non-printing (tabs, spaces and end-of-line) characters

           

Is there some way to do this ?  I have gone thorugh all the settings without success.

 

3. Wordwrap

 

How do I turn this on, to wrap at the window edge?

 

4. Code Context

 

A great feature, but can it be synchronised with the cursor position rather than the top of the page?  Also could the window expand or scroll to show all levels of the current loops, not limited to 3 levels?

 

5. Class Browser

 

Another great feature, but this would be more useful if it could be docked in the edit window rather than floating free.

 

 

I look forward to any comments and/or assistance that can be offered.

 

Best regards

 

Errol

 

 

 

 

 

Errol Anderson

Chief Scientist, Geothermal Resources Group

PB Power (NZ) Ltd

PO Box 3935, 60 Cook St

Auckland

NEW ZEALAND

 

Ph:       + 64 9 377 9941

Fax:      + 64 9 377 9946

Direct:   + 64 9 918 5151

Email:   [EMAIL PROTECTED]

 

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