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I have recently purchased a new HP w2007 flat panel monitor and the new display is much brighter than the older CRT monitor. I have tried every method I can think of to change the edit window background color to a darker tint to ease the reading of code I am entering into the edit window, but have failed to change the background color from white.

I have gone to Windows XP Pro Settings/Advanced to change the operating system background displays, no luck. I have opened TextPad Configure/Preferences/Document Classes/Default/Colors/Window Background and changed the background colors only to have the background behind the characters change, the open edit window background color will not change for the edit window.

How can I change the background color of the Edit Window?

Thanks for all your support,

Michael Gordon

I'm afraid I don't fully understand what you're saying.

Are you saying that you changed the background colour for the default document class, and that the background colour in your current document didn't change? If so, then perhaps your current document isn't in the default document class.

To better clarify the problem, when I open a new blank document and enter some code, or text and save it as .html the background color of the edit window remains white, not the darker shade I set in the default document classes.

To restate the question, is there a way to force TextPad to open a new blank edit window in a default background color?

Thanks for your quick reply,

Michael

What is the background colour of a new blank document?
That colour is determined by the setting in
Configure | Preferences | Document Classes | Default | Colors | Item: Window Background | Background

Do you have a document class called HTML? Does it include *.HTML?
If so, when you save a file with an extension of .html, its background colour will be determined by the setting in
Configure | Preferences | Document Classes | HTML | Colors | Item: Window Background | Background

When I save an open document in .html and then reopen that document the edit window is the background color I set in Preferences/Document Classes/HTML.

The problem is in the New Document. Since we cannot attach screen shots here I will explain the procedure.

1. Open TextPad and the default window is light gray.
2. Click on the New Document icon and a new blank edit window is opened, but is bright white.

How do I change that new document background color to my default color when it is first opened?

Michael

By default window do you mean new blank document?

Are you saying that the colour specified in
Configure | Preferences | Document Classes | Default | Colors | Item: Window Background | Background
is one thing, but the background colour of a new blank document is another?

I can't reproduce that.

Yes to both questions.

The "New Blank Document" opened from the tool bar icon "New Document" opens with a bright white background.

Michael

Sounds like a bug I haven't come across and can't reproduce. I'm afraid I have no idea how to avoid it. Sorry.

Ben,

Thank you for trying. Maybe someone else will come across this thread and have an answer.

Thanks again,

Michael

Just an observation - when I set a colour the "Text" colour seems to set my background to text.

I am a "Green screen" person in that I with my text in yellow/amber on a black background - I much prefer this to black on white.

Try changing the "Text" colours for the default and the ".htlm" classes.

Hello Robin,

Thank you for the tip, I used part of your suggestion and applied a shot-in-the-dark approach to resolve my problem.

When I opened a new blank document from the menu I had a background color I did not like, using the preferences for default documents did not resolve the problem, but opening a new blank document and then right clicking the mouse and selecting properties has allowed me to change the window background color.

It's a workaround and it works.

Michael

This response is based on my use of 4.7.3:

Note that this may change some of your current color settings in other document classes, but this really is the proper way to approach this business of arranging all of the colors for all of the document classes that you use. Just make sure to do this when you have a little extra time on your hands, just in case you need to make more changes. . . .

Configure -> Preferences... -> [Click the plus sign next to "Document Classes"] -> Default -> [Check "Apply these settings to all document classes"] -> [Click the plus sign next to "Default"] -> Colors -> [Select "Window background" in the "Item:" box] -> [Modify the color for "Background" by clicking on the down arrow and, if necessary, "Custom"]

If that doesn't give ya what ya want, then take a deep breath and try this:

Configure -> Preferences... -> [Click the plus sign next to "Document Classes"] -> Default -> [Check "Apply these settings to all document classes"] -> [Click the plus sign next to "Default"] -> Colors -> [Select "Text" in the "Item:" box (scroll if necessary)] -> [Modify the color for "Background" by clicking on the down arrow and, if necessary, "Custom"]

If that doesn't give ya what ya want, then take a deep breath and let me know so that I can scratch my head and wonder.

Like you, I prefer a dark background with lighter colors for text, visible spaces, line numbers, bookmarks, etc., so that staring at the screen all day is easy on the eyes, and have achieved exactly that.

Depending upon how sophisticated you want to get, you may need to actually set individual backgrounds for each and every item in the "Item:" box, possibly even for more than just one document class . . . but you might not need to go that far.

The tremendous flexibility that TextPad offers with respect to colors and syntax highlighting can be overwhelming. Eventually, though, you'll likely grow to love it.

Just a reminder when making configuration changes, especially to Classes:

1. Close all other copies of TextPad.
2. Close all documents, including the opening blank one.
3. Make your changes, Apply and OK out, close TextPad and restart it again.

Excellent reminder . . . so as to save all changes immediately to the registry BEFORE an electrical failure. . . .