Is emacs right for me?

I do all my note-taking, instructions, and dev setup in lots of notepad .txt files, and I end up scattering one in basically every project folder I have. I'm looking for a text editor that might let me easily access those files, along with some shortcuts for things I do often (markdown-type stuff, like section breaks ---, • bullets, etc). I've taken a look at vim and emacs, but I'm not sure if it's quite worth the swap.

Yes.

Emacs is as much a platform as it is a text editor. Provided you have the interest in doing so, you can code most any behaviors you care to have that don't already exist. That said, it sounds like orgmode may be a good fit here without any additional coding.

If you're okay with spending a bit of time learning and configuring it, then yes Emacs is definitely able to fulfill your needs and beyond. It's incredibly capable but not the easiest to get into. Is it worth it? It depends on your threshold of effort vs reward. Only you can answer that.

Emacs and gradually switching to Org syntax is the way to go. You get `+strikethrough+`, `_underline_`, `/italics/` for free, plus * section headers ** and sub-headers - and bullet points . Of different types . That can be nested 1. Or numbered 2. Etc. Not to mention `[[example.com][links]]`. There's a whole set of customizable keyboard shortcuts for inserting headings and elements, but it's still all just text.

If you like tinkering, it might work for you. Check out Orgmode and Org-Roam.

it will take a lot of learning, but it will be worth it

Emacs is very powerful. I do all of my note taking, programming, documentation writing and studying in Emacs. That said it takes time to learn it properly. Emacs is more than just an editor, it can be just an editor but it is more of an environment for building your own user experience. If that sounds interesting to you then Emacs might be right for you. If it does not then maybe you are better of with some other editor. I any case, Notepad is just terrible.

Well, sounds like you need *something*. It sounds like you are on windows, so VIM probably isn't what you want. It’s great, don’t get me wrong, but it’s very terminal oriented, and unless you do stuff in the WSL or equivalent it just wouldn’t be very great. gVim tries to mix the paradigms and just comes off clunky. eMacs is fully fledged GUI, so it might be a better choice. It really depends on if you like the control scheme and/or are willing to learn enough Lisp to change it. You might try Notepad++ or Sublime.

eMacs (Apple Macintoshes aimed at the education market) have not been available for over 20 years. The editor is Emacs.

It was auto-correct. Dick Stallman would be proud of you.

Yes (Org-mode is going to be your best friend)

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLVtKhBrRV_ZkPnBtt_TD1Cs9PJlU0IIdE have a look at this video series and you can get a good idea, whether you are interested in getting into Emacs. I've only seen the paid version of this series, but to get an idea of the capabilities, this version should be good enough. I think the biggest issue will be copy-pasting. While you can easily make Emacs understand Ctrl/Cmd-x/c/v as cut/copy/paste, it shadows other very common shortcuts. So you have to get over this fundamental dilemma right at the start. I think it worth the hassle, even if it takes a year to get used to it, because it opens you up to all sorts of ways to "amplify your intellect", as Alan Kay would say.

that being said, just opening all your text files at once in sublime text might already be a huge workflow improvement. I think there is a command to search thru all opened files specifically and it can also auto-complete, just based on the opened files. then there is also https://logseq.com/ which might make sense for capturing information at least, before you distill it. since it can work with both org and markdown files, it can cooperate well with Emacs too.

You can give a try with Doom Emacs starter package, to avoid all the hassle to configuring by yourself.

If you're not sure, dont swap. You'd likely have spent longer writing this post than it would have to learn the basics of emacs and org-mode. You mention vim is working for you now, stay with it.

haha I spent a few hours in an emacs tutorial but it wasn't very good, i got pretty lost. I'm not using vim right now. if you have a preferred org-mode intro (other than the ones in the docs) I'd love a recommendation! i actually found a slightly better emacs intro last night so I'm trying that now. thanks!

Good luck, use the tool that suits you.

Don't forget about checkboxes! `[ ]` `[X]` `[-]`.

Did you try the tutorial that’s embedded in eMacs ? (https://www.gnu.org/s/emacs/tour/) Same for vim. (Vimtutor) For both editors. Just do the tutorial once a day for something like two weeks. Then you’ll be able to decide if you like it or not.

i did! for emacs. got pretty hung up because of the focus on using ae/fb to navigate instead of arrows, and gave up after a few hours. i did look up another few tutorials from what people have recommended here and in the sidebar, especially org, and they've helped me to get up and running!

> i did! for emacs. got pretty hung up because of the focus on using ae/fb to navigate instead of arrows, and gave up after a few hours. Yes I see your suffering I tried it a couple of times until it sticked. Concerning aefb, you see the power of it when you go from C-a to M-a to C-M-a etc. Good luck!

Four observations: * numerous programs (e.g. Chrome) use Emacs' keys for editing so they are worth learning. * when I first started working, a colleague saw me using arrow keys in vi and told me, "stop using them as you'll eventually be in a data center where the console doesn't have them." First trip onsite and he was right. More importantly, they cause you to take your hand off the home row and aren't amenable to touch typing (*NOTE:* heavy emacs users commonly remap the control and caps lock key for comfort). * "shortcuts for other stuff" can be solved so many ways in emacs. In the past, I've used the built-in abbrev mode for this sort of thing but currently use yasnippet instead. * proficiency with emacs is a marathon not a sprint. I've been using it on and off (mostly on) for decades and I still occasionally run into something fundamental that I should've known (e.g. indirect buffers or narrowing).

Absolutely. Emacs will revolutionize your life if you're a text guy. This is not an overstatement. Emacs will not only become your new operating system but an important aspect and part of your life