Feature request: word wrap

[cirieno]

Another vote for wordwrap.

[kenknicker]

Sapien Staff: Any update on this?

[Alexander Riedel]

Thank you for your input Ken. Please understand that we really value everyones input and every post here is important to us.
But we usually cannot discuss the availability and schedule of any feature here, so please don't expect a post that will say "Available at such and such a date"

Thanks!

[george232]

Word wrap is very important to me, but I will default to the better judgment of the group. It wouldn't be fair to expect SAPIEN to try and implement a function he has no use for. I have tried to write a few small macro utilities to strip and wrap HTML code and it is not an easy task. Everybody always complains that it wasn't what they wanted.I use a text editor for more than just code editing. I use text editors for writing HTML documents, and stripping high-bit data out of documents. I will probably use Notepad++ anyway, despite the drawback of not having word wrap. When I have long lines in an HTML document I find it easier to just type in hard returns to see what is scrolling off the screen. It might be something important. Scrolling doesn't work - then you can't see the beginning of the line.There is a nice word wrap toggle function implemented by Ultraedit. It can also reformat a document with hard returns, or unwrap a document if 2 returns in a row is used to signal where not to join lines. I have written a few code strippers that insert hard returns in text, but they are complicated because they have to know when to break a line and when not to. HTML is forgiving, but it can still break if you put a hard return in the wrong place. To improve the appearance, soft indents or highlighted indents can be used on the wrapped lines. BTW, a workaround HTML code stripper is to cut and paste into an Open Office document and save as...Text editors can be used for other tasks besides code editing. I sometimes use a text
editor as a data input preprocessor prior to processing reports to printers. Text editors are also great for quickly recording scripts for
innumerable small office tasks, sorting data, or using search-and-replace. Sometimes these scripts have long lines in them that are easier to edit if they are wrapped, rather than scrolled off the screen.I think that the developer of this wonderful (and free) editor shouldn't have to justify their choice of priorities. There might be other even more important functions (like the excellent choice of color syntax choices that comes with Notepad++ out of the box). I wanted to recommend a better html code editor to my boss, who wants us to use Dreamweaver. Unfortunately Dreamweaver's native code editor lacks logical shortcuts, although it does have word wrap. I couldn't recommend Aptana Studio because it too, lacks word wrap. But they have promised their users to implement it in a future version. Apparently it is a limitation of the Eclipse back end. There may be some other good free editors out there, but I have only recently tried something besides Ultraedit and am not familiar with them.

[jhicks]

Your thoughtful comments are appreciated.

[mattyusa]

Another vote for word wrap.I write vbsript, php and xhtml.I've been flitting between Dreamweaver CS4, Notepad++, PrimalScript.I primarily bought PrimalScript for it's ability to push a VBS into an EXE.I still find myself defaulting to Notepad++ (free) making a slight mockery of the money I paid for PrimalScript and Dreamweaver CS4. When I discovered it wasn't present I was actually rather annoyed for a short while. I felt like I bought a brand new car and discovered a scratch before I'd got out of the lot. Car is still good and functional but it shouldn't have had the scratch. My perception was that it was a basic feature bound to be present in any decent editor. Of course I couldn't take PrimalScript back to the show room and demand it was fixed. But I can add my vote to this thread.Yes, I know I should have pushed some lengthy production scripts through the trial demo install I had. Unfortunately I didn't.I'd like to move full time to use PrimalScript but the lack of the word wrap feature makes it uncomfortable to work in long term. I often have both open. Using PrimalScript to lookup functions/references but notepad++ to write the code. Daft huh?I use the line numbers religiously in Notepad++ to determine same line code from multi-line code. As in Notepad++ I do think the feature should be optional but most certainly present.The bottom line for me whilst coding is: It is far easier to glance to the left and determine if the code is on the same line than it is to scroll to the right (or otherwise move the cursor). This is the basis of my discomfort with PrimalScript. When I starting trying to follow the code and have to go scrolling back and forth, I give up in PrimalScript.Bare in mind that many have to take apart code they inherit. Often good practices have not been followed. When trying to understand long code I haven't written, I have to drop to Notepad++.I understand your point about not wanting editors to mess with the code. I certainly don't. I'm eager for the code to remain untouched by such a feature. I'd imagine it is just the display of and editing of the code that word wrap could effect. Is that what is meant by a 'soft wrap'?Implementing word wrap/line wrap in the same way/style (or similar) as Notepad++, Notepad2, UltraEdit or even Dreamweaver CS4 handles it would push PrimalScript to the top of my preferred editors list and ensure that at least customer is willing to upgrade.I personally know of 2 others in the same boat as I but I doubt they'll post here. So let me add my voice to this choir.Please, please and pretty please..... can we have word wrap?I am not looking for or expecting a "deliverable by XYZ date" type response. But perhaps you can let slip a "OK we agree and will work on it" or even a "We are now working on it". Remembering that only a small percentage of customers are actually vocal at all, how will we know when you have enough voices for this feature to pursue it?Without some new other absolutely 'must have' functionality/features in a new version, I would think twice and perhaps be unwilling to pay to upgrade to the next latest and greatest version around the corner.PrimalScript is maturing, a wonderful product and capable far past my usage of it. I look forward to growing my skills into it, assuming I can overcome my lack of word wrap discomfort.
mattyusa2009-07-26 11:00:55

[kenknicker]

SAPIEN: People still want and need word-wrap to be added to PrimalScript 2009. Per 'mattyusa' in the previous comment: Without some new other absolutely 'must have' functionality/features in a new version, I would think twice and perhaps be unwilling to pay to upgrade to the next latest and greatest version around the corner.Honestly, I don't want to go shopping for another scripting tool

[abqbill]

I vote for this request also.Thanks,Bill

[Alexander Riedel]

Since this is always an inflammatory issue, I take the time for a longer response

Please don't just 'vote' on any feature. Explain why you need it with a real world example. Just because Notepad has it is not a reason. Word-wrapping code is an extremely atrocious thing to do and causes so much trouble that it makes all of us here cringe at the very thought. Every place I have ever worked for had coding standards in place that would strictly prohibit the use of word-wrap for code.

I also understand that some folks don't want to change what they do, but we simply cannot add features to support every bad practice out there. Not while there is so much else to do. We know that some here don't want to hear if we say 'bad practice', so take it as a challenge to show us why it can be a good thing.

We have yet to see any reasonable use of word-wrap in a code environment that produces a desirable result rather than obfuscating wrong placement.

So please, show us screenshots or code examples where word wrap allows you to do things that you can't do otherwise or where structuring your code correctly from the beginning is not the better choice.
To weigh this issue we need to understand why folks ask for it other than "because it is someplace else".

Last but not least, just to make sure, please understand I am purely talking about code here. No one disputes the need for word-wrap in a word processing or plain text editing environment.

[abqbill]

Hi Alex,I believe the idea is to provide a "virtual" line wrapping feature -- I don't think anyone's talking about PS actually inserting newlines into the code, which of course would break things. What we're talking about is displaying lines that extend past the edge of the screen on subsequent lines--but only on the screen, not by saving the file with newlines where the on-screen line breaks are.Others have already pointed out how useful this would be when editing certain kinds of files.HTH,Bill