A powerful, feature-rich command-line text processing tool built with Python. TextTool provides an intuitive interface for performing complex text operations including regex replacements, filtering, data extraction, and batch processing.

• Load & Save: Load from files or clipboard, save to new files or overwrite originals
• Filtering: Select, show, and delete lines based on patterns or regex
• Text Replacement: Simple text replacement, regex patterns, and capture groups
• Organization: Sort lines, remove duplicates, and reorganize content
• Undo/Revert: Full undo support for all operations

• Bulk Replacement: Replace multiple strings using mapping files or clipboard
• Conditional Replacement: Replace text only in lines matching specific criteria
• Extraction: Extract URLs, emails, text between delimiters, or specific columns
• Data Processing: Filter by length, detect mismatches, convert CSV to tables
• Batch Processing: Use placeholder templates for mail-merge style operations
• Code Blocks: Extract and process indented content hierarchically

• Live View: Real-time visual editor with syntax highlighting
• Search & Navigation: Find text with regex support, whole-word matching
• Command Palette: Access all commands with fuzzy search
• Context Menu: Right-click operations for quick actions
• History: Persistent command history across sessions

• Python 3.7+
• Windows, macOS, or Linux

# Clone or download the repository
git clone https://github.com/yourusername/TextTool.git
cd TextTool

# Install required dependencies
pip install cmd2 regex pandas openpyxl win32clipboard

# Run the tool
python TextTool.py

# Start TextTool
python TextTool.py

# Load a file
load "path/to/file.txt"

# Load from clipboard
load

# Show all lines
show

# Show lines containing "error"
show "error"

# Replace text
replace "old" "new"

# Save changes
save

Filter and extract specific lines:

select "error"
show

Replace with regex patterns:

replace "(\d{2})-(\d{2})-(\d{4})" "\3/\2/\1"

Remove duplicates and sort:

sort
unique
remove_empty_lines

Extract specific columns from CSV:

extract_column "1,3,5" ","

Interactive replacement with confirmation:

replace_confirm "old_text" "new_text"

TextTool supports full regex functionality:

# Show lines starting with capital letter
show "^[A-Z]"

# Show lines with digits
show "\d+"

# Replace date format
replace "(\d{2})-(\d{2})-(\d{4})" "\3/\2/\1"

# Extract content in brackets
show "\[.*?\]"

Create a mapping file for batch replacements:

map.txt (tab-separated):

old_value    new_value
error        ERROR
warning      WARNING
info         INFO

bulk_replace map.txt tab

Generate multiple versions from a template:

data.txt:

name   age   city
john   25    london
jane   30    paris

Template in TextTool:

placeholder_replace "{{name}}" "{{age}}" data.txt

Replace text only in matching lines:

# Replace "error" with "ERROR" only in lines containing "critical"
conditional_replace "error" "ERROR" "critical"

# Open visual editor with real-time preview
liveview

# Search with Ctrl+F
# Replace with Ctrl+R
# Save with Ctrl+S

• Real-time text display and editing
• Search with regex support
• Whole-word and case-sensitive matching
• Find/Next navigation with F3 shortcuts
• Direct save functionality
• Load files via dialog
• Paste from clipboard

Press keyboard shortcut or use menu to access all commands with:

• Fuzzy search across all functions
• Inline parameter entry
• Immediate execution

• Load text from clipboard with load
• Use clipboard as source for mapping files in bulk_replace
• Direct copy/paste in Live View
• Seamless workflow integration

Standard mode provides essential text processing:

advanced    # Enable advanced functions
standard    # Return to basic mode

Advanced Mode adds:

• extract_between - Extract sections
• extract_column - Column extraction
• bulk_replace - Mapping-based replacement
• placeholder_replace - Template expansion
• find_duplicates - Duplicate detection
• filter_length - Length-based filtering
• csv_to_table - Table formatting
• And more...

Use these in patterns when special characters cause issues:

Example:

replace "[pipe]" "PIPE"    # Replace all pipes with "PIPE"
select "[spaces]+"         # Select lines with multiple spaces

load "app.log"
show "error"                    # View all errors
count "error"                   # Count errors
select "2024-01"                # Filter by date
statistics                      # Get summary stats
save "errors_2024-01.log"

load "data.csv"
remove_empty_lines              # Remove blank lines
trim_whitespace                 # Clean spacing
convert_case lower              # Normalize case
unique                          # Remove duplicates
sort                            # Organize
csv_to_table ","                # Verify format
save "cleaned_data.csv"

load "config.yaml"
select_indented "database:"     # Extract database section
show                            # Review
replace "localhost" "prod.server"  # Update
save "config_prod.yaml"

load "template.txt"
placeholder_replace "{{EMAIL}}" "{{NAME}}" "emails.txt"
# Generates personalized version for each row
save "personalized_emails.txt"

Every command includes built-in help:

command ?                   # Show detailed help for command
help command                # Alternative help syntax
cheat_sheet_regex           # Display regex reference
tutorial                    # Interactive tutorial

• cmd2: CLI framework
• regex: Advanced regular expressions
• pandas: Excel file handling
• openpyxl: Excel support
• win32clipboard: Clipboard access (Windows)

Auto-installed on first run.

• Large files: Disable highlighting with the Highlight toggle in Live View
• Complex regex: Test patterns with show before replace
• Bulk operations: Use select first to reduce processing scope
• Memory: Process files in sections rather than all at once

Issue: Clipboard not working

• Ensure clipboard content is plain text
• Use load "file.txt" as alternative

Issue: Regex not matching

• Use cheat_sheet_regex for pattern help
• Test simple patterns first
• Remember to escape special characters

Issue: Large file is slow

• Disable highlighting in Live View
• Use select to work with smaller subsets
• Consider processing in multiple passes

Issue: Special characters causing issues

• Use special placeholders: [pipe], [tab], [spaces]
• Or escape with backslash: \\|, \\t

1. Always preview before save: Use show to verify changes
2. Use revert frequently: Test operations knowing you can undo
3. Save intermediate results: Keep backups of important stages
4. Test regex patterns: Start simple, build complexity gradually
5. Document your workflow: Save command history for reference
6. Use comments: Add notes between operations for clarity

Contributions welcome! Please:

• Test thoroughly before submitting
• Document new features clearly
• Follow existing code style
• Update README with new commands

This project is licensed under the MIT License. See the LICENSE file for details.

For issues, questions, or suggestions:

• Open an issue on GitHub
• Check existing documentation
• Review the interactive tutorial: tutorial

Latest Version: 1.0.0

• Full feature set for text processing
• Real-time Live View editor
• Advanced regex support
• Batch processing capabilities
• Comprehensive command library

Happy text processing! 🚀