Kate (text editor)

{{Infobox software

| title = Kate

| name = KDE Applications

| logo = Sc-apps-kate-editor.svg

| logo_size = 64x64px

| screenshot = Kate 24.12.0 screenshot.webp

| caption = Kate 24.12.0 in KDE Plasma 6

| developer = KDE

| released = {{Start date and age|2001}}

| latest release version = {{wikidata|property|preferred|references|edit|Q261933|P348|P548=Q2804309}}

| latest release date = {{wikidata|qualifier|preferred|single|Q261933|P348|P548=Q2804309|P577}}

| latest preview version = {{wikidata|property|preferred|references|edit|Q261933|P348|P548=Q51930650}}

| latest preview date = {{wikidata|qualifier|preferred|single|Q261933|P348|P548=Q51930650|P577}}

| repo = {{URL|https://invent.kde.org/utilities/kate}}

| programming language = C++, Qt

| operating system = {{Plainlist|

25 Linux distributions{{cite news |title=Distribution Packages |url=http://kate-editor.org/get-it/ |newspaper=Kate |date=9 July 2010 |publisher=KDE |access-date=23 March 2014}}{{cite web |title=Distributions Shipping KDE |url=http://www.kde.org/download/distributions.php |website=Kde.org |publisher=KDE |access-date=23 March 2014}}
Microsoft Windows{{cite web |title=Kate on Windows|url=http://kate-editor.org/2016/01/28/kate-on-windows/ |website=kate-editor.org |date=28 January 2016 |publisher=KDE |access-date=10 February 2016}}
macOS{{cite web |title=Kate on Mac OS|url=https://kate-editor.org/get-it/ |website=kate-editor.org |date=9 July 2010 |publisher=KDE |access-date=10 September 2016}}

}}

| genre = Source code editor

| license = LGPL-2.0-or-later, MIT {{ cite web |title=Kate |url=https://invent.kde.org/utilities/kate |access-date=2025-04-05}}

| website = {{Official URL}}

}}

The KDE Advanced Text Editor, or Kate, is a source code editor developed by the KDE free software community. It has been a part of KDE Software Compilation since version 2.2, which was first released in 2001. Intended for software developers, it features syntax highlighting, code folding, customizable layouts, multiple cursors and selections, regular expression support, and extensibility via plugins. The text editor's mascot is Kate the Cyber Woodpecker.

History

File:Kate the Cyber Woodpecker mascot 2021.png in 2021{{Cite web|url=https://kate-editor.org/post/2021/2021-04-28-lets-welcome-kate-the-cyber-woodpecker/|title=Let's welcome Kate the Cyber Woodpecker|date=2021-04-28|website=Kate|access-date=2021-04-29}} and replacing the earlier version designed in 2014.{{Cite web|url=https://kate-editor.org/2014/10/12/kates-mascot-kate-the-woodpecker/|title=Kate's Mascotthe Woodpecker|date=2014-10-12|website=Kate {{!}} Get an Edge in Editing|access-date=2017-07-20}}]]

Kate has been part of the KDE Software Compilation since release 2.2 in 2001.{{cite web|url=http://www.kde.org/announcements/changelogs/changelog2_1to2_2.php |title=2.1 to 2.2 Changelog |website=KDE.org |access-date=2015-07-02}} Because of KParts technology, it is possible to embed Kate as an editing component in other KDE applications. Major KDE applications which use Kate as an editing component include the integrated development environment KDevelop, the web development environment Quanta Plus, and the LaTeX front-end Kile.{{Citation needed|date=January 2020}}

Kate has won the advanced text editor comparison in Linux Voice magazine.{{cite web |url=http://www.linuxvoice.com/issue-2-is-out/ |title=Issue 2 is Out! |website=LinuxVoice.com |access-date=2015-07-02 |archive-date=2015-07-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150703184555/http://www.linuxvoice.com/issue-2-is-out/ |url-status=dead }}

{{As of|2014|07}}, development had started to port Kate, along with Dolphin, Konsole, KDE Telepathy, and Yakuake, to KDE Frameworks 5.

{{cite web |url= http://www.golem.de/news/unix-desktop-kde-sc-4-14-wird-4er-reihe-abschliessen-1407-107792.html |title= KDE SC 4.14 wird 4er-Reihe abschließen|website= Golem.de |language= de |date= 2014-07-10}}

In 2022, the KDE text-editor KWrite was modified to use the same code base as Kate with deactivated features.{{cite web |last1=Larabel |first1=Michael |title=KDE Starts April With Many Fixes, KWrite Internally Using The Same Code As Kate |url=https://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=KDE-Starts-April-2022 |website=www.phoronix.com |publisher=Phoronix Media |access-date=15 June 2022 |language=en}}

Features

Kate is a source code editor that features syntax highlighting for over 300 file formats with code folding rules.{{cite web|title=kate.git|url=https://projects.kde.org/projects/kde/applications/kate/repository/revisions/master/show/part/syntax/data|website=Projects.KDE.org|access-date=2020-01-29|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130909103201/https://projects.kde.org/projects/kde/applications/kate/repository/revisions/master/show/part/syntax/data|archive-date=2013-09-09|url-status=dead}}{{cite web |title=data/syntax · master · Frameworks / Syntax Highlighting Engine · GitLab |url=https://invent.kde.org/frameworks/syntax-highlighting/-/tree/master/data/syntax |website=GitLab |access-date=11 September 2023 |language=en}} The syntax highlighting is extensible via XML files.{{cite web|first=Christoph |last=Cullmann |url=http://kate-editor.org/2005/03/24/writing-a-syntax-highlighting-file/ |title=Writing a Syntax Highlighting File | Kate | Get an Edge in Editing |website=Kate-Editor.org |date=2005-03-24 |access-date=2015-07-02}} It supports UTF-8, UTF-16, ISO-8859-1 and ASCII encoding schemes and can detect a file's character encoding automatically.{{Citation needed|date=January 2020}} Kate offers code completion and reference finding for various programming languages through its Language Server Protocol Client plugin. The default configuration supports C, C++, D, Fortran, Go, Latex, Python, Rust, and OCaml.{{cite web |last1=Cullmann |first1=Christoph |title=Kate -LSP Client Status |url=https://kate-editor.org/post/2020/2020-01-01-kate-lsp-client-status/ |website=kate-editor.org |date=January 2020 |access-date=15 June 2022}}

Kate's main text editor widget is called KatePart, which is reusable under the terms of the LGPL version 2 license.{{cite web |url=http://kate-editor.org/about-katepart/ |title=KatePart | Kate | Get an Edge in Editing |website=Kate-Editor.org |access-date=2015-07-02 |archive-date=2014-10-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141018084936/http://kate-editor.org/about-katepart/ |url-status=dead }} It must not be confused with the KParts, a KDE plugin framework for user interface components that Kate also uses.{{Cite web|title=KParts - KParts|url=https://api.kde.org/frameworks/kparts/html/index.html|access-date=2020-10-30|website=api.kde.org}}

Kate can be used as a modal text editor through its vi input mode.{{cite web |date=2008-10-27 |url=https://arstechnica.com/open-source/news/2008/11/kdes-kate-text-editor-gets-vi-input-mode.ars |title=KDE's Kate Text Editor Gets Vi Input Mode|website=ArsTechnica.com |access-date=2009-05-04}}

Kate features multiple document interface, window splitting, project editing{{cite web |date=2012-11-02|url=http://kate-editor.org/2012/11/02/using-the-projects-plugin-in-kate/ |title=Using the Project Plugin in Kate |access-date=2014-09-24}} and sessions to facilitate editing multiple documents. Using sessions, one can customize Kate for different projects by saving the list of open files, the list of enabled plug-ins and the window configuration.{{cite web|url=http://docs.kde.org/stable/en/applications/kate/fundamentals-using-sessions.html |title=Using Sessions |website=Docs.KDE.org |access-date=2015-07-02}}

Kate includes the KDE terminal emulator Konsole through its Terminal Tool View plugin.{{cite web |title=Terminal Tool View Plugin |url=https://docs.kde.org/stable5/en/kate/kate/kate-application-plugin-konsole.html |website=docs.kde.org |access-date=15 June 2022}} Since version 23.04, the terminal is also available on windows.{{Cite web |date=2023-02-20 |title=Make Konsole work on Windows (!814) · Merge requests · Utilities / Konsole · GitLab |url=https://invent.kde.org/utilities/konsole/-/merge_requests/814 |access-date=2024-01-03 |website=GitLab |language=en}}

The "quick open" feature allows searching opened files by name for quick recalling.{{cite web |last1=Cullmann |first1=Christoph |title=Kate Text Editor - Quick Open |url=https://kate-editor.org/post/2021/2021-01-10-kate-quick-open/ |website=Kate |access-date=15 September 2021 |language=en |date=10 January 2021}} Line modification indicators highlight lines with unsaved changes and lines added in the current session.{{cite web |title=Chapter 7. Configure KatePart |url=https://docs.kde.org/stable5/en/kate/katepart/config-dialog.html |website=docs.kde.org |quote=Show line modification markers}}{{cite web |title=Line Modification Indicators |url=https://docs.kde.org/stable5/en/kate/katepart/kate-part-line-modification.html |website=docs.kde.org}}

Being a KDE application, Kate transparently opens and saves files over all protocols supported by KIO libraries. This includes HTTP, FTP, SSH, SMB and WebDAV, among others.{{Citation needed|date=January 2020}}

{{As of|2021|09}}, unlike Xed, Kate is equipped with a session manager which allows naming, saving, and restoring sessions, meaning a list of momentarily open file tabs. Saved sessions are stored as key-value-formatted *.katesession files into ~/.local/share/kate/sessions/.

Other features are a clipboard history with up to ten items, the ability to jump to a line number,[https://docs.kde.org/stable5/en/kate/katepart/dev-scripting.html "The editor holds a clipboard history that contains up to 10 clipboard entries."] and source control integration using Git{{cite web |last1=Crume |first1=Jacob |date=16 April 2021 |title=Kate Editor Set to Become KDE's Answer to Microsoft's Visual Studio Code |url=https://news.itsfoss.com/kate/ |access-date=15 June 2022 |website=It's FOSS News}}{{cite web | url=https://kate-editor.org/post/2023/2023-02-01-using-kate-git-support/ | title=Using Kate's Git Features | date=February 2023 }}