Thursday, April 22, 2010

iPhone text editors

It is apparent that serious software developers do not consider worth their effort to create full-featured applications for iPhone or iPod Touch. Otherwise it is impossible to explain the absence of some very basic programs such as a well designed word processor for iPhone. Everything that I was able to find is very rudimentary. After some searching I zeroed in on three apps that I like. One became my text editor of choice.

1. Documents (free). This app allows syncying with Google Docs, which is very convenient. Unfortunately, it is impossible to change font size and the text ends up being rather tiny.

2. WritePad (free). A decent program. I think it is not very well described in the snippet on AppStore. Here is why. This app supports handwriting recognition. Somehow, the impression that one receives is that it does just that. However, you can use normal iPhone on-screen keyboard. Font size is changeable. I really like this program, but in its present version it does not allow to change the color of the background. This happens to be a crucial feature for me.

3. WriteRoom ($4.95). This program has its roots in a word processor for Mac OS, so the author probably knows what he's doing. You can change the color of the background and the font size. You can easily go from document to document using arrows at the bottom of the screen. Also, this app is the best in terms of saving work as you type. You will not loose work after accidentally hitting the home button on your iPhone. There is also a full-screen mode.

So my suggestion is that you try WritePad first. If you are not satisfied consider purchasing WriteRoom.