Text Edit App - can I get an older version than TextEdit Version 1.18??

You can only get one background color in a TextEdit document without using a table where you can set the cell colors differently, and then by removing the cell border, give the illusion of multiple background color support. I don't count a text highlight color as a "background" color.

Both Pages and Bean will open the RTF document showing the tricolor table — Pages with table grid lines, and Bean without gridlines.

I've just bought a new M1 Air with Ventura 13.5. Like j.7 a big part of my work relies on TextEdit files. I have 100s and 100s of essential work files that are all colour-coded in sections (three background colours on the same page.)

The TextEdit version 1.18 is rubbish and cannot preserve years of work and 1000s of files as they were written.

Please offer TextEdit version 1.17 for current OS. It works perfectly on my other M1 running Monterey.

I would not have just bought this second M1 if I had known it would ruin years of work.

It seems a shame that the coders who "upgraded" TextEdit from 1.17 to the poorer 1.18 wouldn't just go into the code and fix the problem they created for no good reason. Apple would have much happier customers.

I think I've solved the TextEdit 1.18 background colors problem in a way that perhaps the original poster j.7 can use too. Version 1.17 kept the background color flowing though when you returned the cursor for a new line or new paragraph. But 1.18 reverts to a white background in the line space when you return the cursor. Yet, as I experiment, it is possible to have the same or a different background color in the next paragraph's block of text with version 1.18.

So if the appearance of a white line between blocks of color-background text is the only problem with 1.18, I can probably live with that. I can highlight each block and give it a different background color. I can highlight a few opening worlds in a yellow-background block of text and give the opening words a new red-background color.

I think this will work for me.

I've also tested copying an old file (with three color background sections) into this new M1 and opened it. Yes, it does now put a white line between each block/paragraph of colored text, but at least it keeps the three colors in the blocks on the one page. It does not force only one color for the whole page, as long as you don't try to put a color in 1.18's new white lines.

So, although the 1.18 appearance of white lines between blocks is not as good as the previous 1.17 continuous color across selected paragraphs, it is still workable for my purposes. I can't speak for original poster j.7, though.

It's working for me with Ventura:

If you're not getting this then give this a try: boot into Safe Mode according to How to use safe mode on your Mac and test to see if the problem persists. Reboot normally and test again.

NOTE 1: Safe Mode boot can take up to 3 - 5 minutes as it's doing the following; 

• Verifies your startup disk and attempts to repair directory issues, if needed

• Loads only required kernel extensions (prevents 3rd party kernel/extensions from loading)

• Prevents Startup Items and Login Items from opening automatically

• Disables user-installed fonts 

• Deletes font caches, kernel cache, and other system cache files

NOTE 2: if you have a wireless keyboard with rechargeable batteries connect it with its charging cable before booting into Safe Mode. This makes it act as a wired keyboard as will insure a successful boot into Safe Mode.

FWIW, assuming you have an Intel Mac, you could download Mojave and run as a VM in Parallels Desktop, VMWare Fusion, etc.

You can download Mojave from here: How to download and install macOS - Apple Support

Thanks VikingOSX, I tried your suggestion by downloading bean just now. Without spending more time with Bean, on quick use it appears to not offer "three background color sections on one page" as TextEdit 1.17 did. I may be wrong, I've only just started exploring it.

Reminding me of Pages is another good suggestion. I will spend a bit of time with pages and see if it can mimic the functions of TextEdit 1.17

Stay tuned, and thank you.

Feel free to share your thought with Apple.

Feedback - macOS - Apple

The only way to get an earlier version of Text Edit is to downgrade the system to the version where Text Edit did what you want.

FxcLogic wrote:

I would not have just bought this second M1 if I had known it would ruin years of work.

FWIW, you have 14 days to return it.

Thank you dialabrain