I daily use Kate to edit big and small files, so as result I found that it's lacking many basic functions for text editing and have big issues with its user interface. Some of the basic functions that are must and used by everyone are : reverse sort lines, delete duplicated lines, delete empty lines, shuffle lines, remove leading/trailing white spaces, rectangular (multiple lines) inserting and deleting, indent (shift right/left) lines, format selected lines or whole text, word count,... These functions are important because they are the most used by users and sometimes I'm forced to open the same file with another editor to complete a simple task then return to Kate. The second issue is that some important functions like "Tools>Script>Editing>Sort..." are buried deep in many enclosed sub menus, while they represent important functions used by users, some of the them should be moved to Edit menu to make easy to find and also to provide permanent support for them like a part of the editor and not as random extra scripts.
> reverse sort lines, delete duplicated lines, delete empty lines, shuffle lines, remove leading/trailing white spaces, rectangular (multiple lines) inserting and deleting, indent (shift right/left) lines, format selected lines or whole text, word count Hi, almost all of these functions are present in Kate. I know they are not super discoverable, but most of these are documented in our Help. They can also be accessed rather easily using the Kate CommandLine which can be invoked by pressing F7. For example press F7 and then type sort. It will run that command for you. Read the command line documentation for more info. Also, you can write your own scripts and execute them. Some of the functions are there but better invoked using shortcuts. For example, indenting can be done by selecting + Ctrl + I. Look through the shortcut configuration to find out more. Some of the above actions are available via KCommandBar which can be opened by pressing Alt + Ctrl + I. Let me know if you need more help.
(In reply to Waqar Ahmed from comment #1) > I know they are not super discoverable This is the core problem that need to be fixed. > They can also be accessed rather easily using the Kate CommandLine which can be > invoked by pressing F7. Plus the shortcuts, the user is forced to remember some random extra commands, seems to be disappointing. > you can write your own scripts and execute them. Not everyone can code :( and even if the user can it's time consuming. > Some of the above actions are available via KCommandBar which can be opened > by pressing Alt + Ctrl + I. This indication seems to be the only light for now. > Let me know if you need more help. Why can't Kate have lines and text operations grouped in submenu ?
> This is the core problem that need to be fixed. Sure. > Plus the shortcuts, the user is forced to remember some random extra commands, seems to be disappointing. Note that kate is an advanced text editor that comes attached with a learning curve. The user is expected to learn things, explore the docs and UI because there is no way in the world we can make all actions super obvious and easy and demolish the learning curve. > Not everyone can code :( and even if the user can it's time consuming. Scripting was just an example, doesn't mean you need to do it. We introduced the command bar because it is hard to put everything in menus or immediately accessible buttons. There is only so much space and we have users for whom the menus are already overflowing. Explore Kate bugs and you will see bugs about menu too large. > Why can't Kate have lines and text operations grouped in submenu ? It can, sure, but a) we need to know what those operations are b) whether such grouping would make sense for average user --- The reason I closed this bug is because it is not a bug. It seems more like a support issue. Yes, we need to improve but generic high level reports like "menus are bad" or "things are not discoverable" are not very useful. As developers, we look for clear actionable items and usually limit one bug to one request / problem to help us manage things and maintain a record of what happened and why. Hence, I am closing it again. If you have some concrete ideas about improvement that is super welcome. Feel free to open a bug or feature request for every improvement you have in mind. We are already tracking a lot of things in https://invent.kde.org/utilities/kate/-/issues/20. You can also bring your ideas there.