Building .NET Applications Using Notepad++

Another text editor I'd like to quickly point out is the open source (and freely downloadable) Notepad++ application. This tool can be obtained from http://notepad-plus.sourceforge.net. Unlike the simple Windows Notepad application, Notepad++ allows you to author code in a variety of languages and supports various plug-in utilities. In addition, Notepad++ provides a few other niceties, including the following:

• Out-of-the-box support for C# keywords (including keyword color coding)
• Support for syntax folding, which allows you to collapse and expand groups of code statements within the editor (similar to Visual Studio 2010/C# 2010 Express)
• The ability to zoom in/zoom out text via Ctrl-mouse wheel
• Configurable autocompletion for a variety of C# keywords and .NET namespaces

Regarding this last point, the Ctrl+space keyboard combination will activate C# autocompletion support (see Figure 2-4).

Figure 2-4. Autocompletion using Notepad++

Note The options displayed by the autocomplete window can be modified and extended. Simply open up the C:\Program Files\Notepad++\plugins\APIs\cs.xml file for editing and add any additional entries.

I won't go into too many details of Notepad++ beyond what we have examined here. If you require more assistance, select the ? ? Help content menu option.