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Getting Started with jEdit: A Powerful Open Source Text Editor for Programmers
If you’re looking for a free, versatile, and highly customizable text editor, jEdit is an excellent choice. It is especially useful for programmers who need a lightweight tool with advanced features. This post provides a beginner-friendly introduction to jEdit, including installation instructions—with a focus on Fedora Linux—and details on how you can get further help and tutorials.
🔓 What is jEdit?
jEdit is an open source programmer’s text editor written in Java. It is designed to be powerful and extensible, with support for hundreds of programming languages through syntax highlighting, macros, and plug-ins.
- License: GNU General Public License (GPL) – Read more
- Official Website: https://jedit.org
Whether you’re editing simple scripts or developing large-scale applications, jEdit can be customized to suit your workflow.
💻 Installing jEdit
Because jEdit is written in Java, it runs on many platforms, including Linux, Windows, and macOS. Below are installation instructions for the most common operating systems.
🐸 Fedora Linux
- Install Java (if not already installed):
sudo dnf install java-17-openjdk - Download jEdit: Visit the jEdit download page and choose the Java-based installer.
- Run the installer:
java -jar jedit5.6.0install.jar - Optional – Create a Desktop Shortcut: You can create a
.desktopfile in~/.local/share/applications/for easy launching.
🚪 Windows
- Download the Windows installer from jEdit Downloads.
- Double-click the
.exeinstaller and follow the setup wizard.
🍎 macOS
- Download the macOS package.
- Drag the jEdit app into the Applications folder.
🧩 Features and Plug-ins
jEdit’s real strength lies in its plug-in system. You can add support for:
- Version control systems like Git
- Code folding and syntax checking
- Language-specific tools (Python, PHP, JavaScript, etc.)
- Integrated terminal, macros, and more
🎥 Screenshots & Live Demo
👉 Screencast showing a beginner session in JEdit—editing, saving files, and navigating buffers.
Requirements For Programming Text Editor
Glossary:
Code Editor
Designed for writing and editing source code.
IDE
Integrated Development Environment combines various tools need for software development.
Plugin
Software component that adds specific functionality.
Theme
Preset package containing graphical appearance to customize look and feel.
Open source
Freely available for possible modification and redistribution.
SCM
Source code management use to manage and track modifications to a source code repository.
LMB
Left Mouse Button (LMB) or left click
Test Tools
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| CPU | Intel(R) i7 2600 @ 3.40GHz. |
| Memory | 16GB DDR3. |
| Operating System | Fedora Linux Workstation 42. |
| Desktop Environment | Gnome 48. |
| Name | Description |
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Large File | 1GB human-readable text. |
| Regex File | Text with word “JEdit” repeated. |
| Syntax File | PHP file containing HTML, CSS & JavaScript. |
| Media File | Smiley face or Tux Linux JPEG file. |
| Java Version | OpenJDK 21.0.8. |
| PHP Version | PHP 8.4.10. |
| Python Version | Python 3.13.5. |
| JEdit Version | 5.7.0. |
| Name | Description |
Test Scoring
- Each feature has two parts.
- Score of zero indicates a missing feature.
- A part of a feature is work a score of 0.5.
Three bias elimination steps were utilized. The editor was used for at least three years on different platforms. Attempts were made to get stable plug-ins for missing features. The same editor was compared between the one in the repository, the developers website, and the compiled version if applicable.
Selecting Editor Version
For this review, JEdit was downloaded from the developers website and it did not require additional plugins.
Features
- The theme cannot be native for the editor in terms of the background. JEdit dark and light themes can be created or downloaded using the Look And Feel plugin. The score for the theme was 0.5.
- Dragging and dropping a text file into the editor opens a new tab which requires the Buffer Tabs plugin. It is not possible to specify the tab location during the drag and drop operation. The score for drag and drop into editor was 0.5.
- Opening a very large text file did not crash JEdit. It was possible to edit the large file. The score for opening a large file was 1.0.
- Multiple documents can opened in multiple tabs or buffers. Tear-off tabs can be mimicked by having JEdit open the current buffer in a new window as a new instance which is handy for multiple monitors. The score for multiple documents was a perfect 1.0.
- Multiple editors can be opened as new tabs with drag options. Each tab window view can be split either vertically or horizontally as a multiple editor view. The score for multiple editor view was a perfect 1.0.
- Creating non-project files is possible. Non-project files can be opened by the drag and drop operation. The score for creating non-project files was a perfect 1.0.
- Soft word wrap can be enabled on all documents as line wrapping. Automatic soft wrap for documents is available from the JEdit settings. The score for word wrap was a perfect 1.0.
- Spell check works as words are typed using the Spell Check plugin. Spelling errors are shown in opened documents. The score for spell check was a perfect 1.0.
- Word count is available for JEdit using the Real Time Word Counter plugin. Selection word count is available as part of word count. The score for word count was a perfect 1.0.
- Go to line
CTRL/CMD-Gcan jump to a specified line. It is possible to jump to either the first or last line. The score for go to line was a perfect 1.0. - Indentation can default to user-defined tab stops. Children are automatically indented. The score for indentation was a perfect 1.0
- Fonts can be dynamically scaled by macros. The system font can be bypassed and a new editor font and size can be set. The score for fonts was a perfect 1.0..
- Find and replace
CTRL-Fusing regular expressions can be utilized for all open documents in the current session. Find and replace will work for the current document or a selection in the current document. The score for find and replacing using regular expressions was a perfect 1.0. - Multiple language syntax highlighting in one file is enabled if the language plug-ins are installed. Each language has code-sensitive syntax colors which can be modified. The score for multiple language syntax highlighting was a perfect 1.0.
- Code folding does not work for markup languages such as HTML. Code folding also does not work for programming languages such as PHP and Java. It can be mimicked using
CTRL-eThe score for code folding was 0.5 - Selecting rectangular block per column works using
ALT-\. Rectangular block selection works with word wrap enabled. The score for selecting rectangular block was a perfect 1.0. - Multiple selection works using macros. Search multiple selection is available. The score for multiple selection was 1.0.
- Distraction-free mode to hide panes works. Line numbers can be toggled to improve distraction-free mode. The score for distraction-free was a perfect 1.0.
- The file manager can be used to create and delete folders. Media files cannot be dragged and dropped into the file manager pane. The score for file manager was 0.5
- Terminal requires the Console plugin. The terminal does follow folder of the file browser. Terminal can execute system commands. The score for terminal was a perfect 1.0.
Results
JEdit is a very powerful IDE. By default, the JEdit editor worked without tweaks, and any missing required features can not be installed by using plugins. For my required features, the JEdit editor scored 87.5% or 8.75 out of 10.
📚 More Learning Resources
If you’re interested in improving your programming skills, check out these resources:
- Programming Books by Edward Ojambo:
https://www.amazon.com/stores/Edward-Ojambo/author/B0D94QM76N - Programming Courses:
https://ojamboshop.com/product-category/course - One-on-One Programming Tutorials:
I offer personalized online sessions.
→ Book a session here
🔧 Need Help Installing or Migrating jEdit?
I can help install or migrate jEdit for you across Linux, macOS, or Windows platforms.
📩 Contact me for professional installation services:
https://ojamboservices.com/contact
Feel free to comment below if you’ve used jEdit or want to know more about customizing it for your development environment.
Edward is a software engineer, web developer, and author dedicated to helping people achieve their personal and professional goals through actionable advice and real-world tools.