A text editor reminiscent of 80s computing!

JDarkroom is a basic text editor for people who find more complex word processors distracting. It has very few features but runs in full screen mode, so nothing else can disturb you.

Of all the minimalist text editors you can find, which are great for writers who struggle with concentration, JDarkRoom is one of the most basic. While other programs of this ilk aim for a peaceful, relaxing experience, JDarkRoom seems to aim for total retro typing.

It is almost entirely keyboard controlled, which isn’t too difficult but does require learning the commands. The configuration options, where you can alter the color of the text, background and other things, is particularly cumbersome. There is no preview or apply changes button, and the design is pretty confusing.

Once you have sorted out the configuration settings, JDarkRoom does give you a distraction free writing environment. Saving is done in .TXT format alone, which is fairly standard for an app like this. If you haven’t used a minimal writer before, it’s worth pointing out that you won’t find any format options, support for images or anything like that. This is purely for writing basic text, and nothing else

While it does the job of a supplying a minimal, distraction free interface, JDarkRoom is just too retro, and is held back by its old fashioned interface and lack of keyboard commands

Goal feature – displays number of words required to reach a specific goalInherit indentationConvert tabs to spacesInsert timestamp feature – with configurable timestamp format’No Delete’ mode’Typewriter scrolling’ mode (experimental)A choice of file encodings (default: UTF-8)Many bug fixes and small tweaks

Changes

• Goal feature – displays number of words required to reach a specific goalInherit indentationConvert tabs to spacesInsert timestamp feature – with configurable timestamp format’No Delete’ mode’Typewriter scrolling’ mode (experimental)A choice of file encodings (default: UTF-8)Many bug fixes and small tweaks