Cannot duplicate textedit file and save as UTF 8

TextEdit does not seem to allow you to select the encoding.

You could try another software. I use TextWrangler from the App Store and it allows you to choose your encoding.

You could also try simply copying the file using Terminal. Open Terminal, go to your directory, then type:

cp myfile.txt myfile2.txt

lanab23 wrote:

when I save the file in UTF 8 format, and send it to my colleauge, she opesn the file and it is in western format.

Is your colleague just double clicking on the file? If so, tell them to use File > Open instead and set the encoding to UTF-8. Or your colleague could go to TextEdit preferences and set the default encoding for Open to UTF-8 before double-clicking.

°Bernz° wrote:

TextEdit does not seem to allow you to select the encoding.

Yes, it does, but of course you have to be in Plain Text mode and not Rich Text mode. So if you do Fomat > Make Plain Text and then Save you will have a menu to select encoding.

Tom,

You're absolutely right...! 😊

I'm used to seeing it in menus on my other apps that I forgot that it was available in the Save As window... That window is just confusing to get to with 10.8... You have to select Duplicate, and then Close, and THEN the window will appear.

No points for me this time! 🙂

This is a massive FAIL on Apple's part. They are becoming the new MS... trying to "enhance" usability by adding awful features and making everything a spaghetti bowl of instructions to accomplish something simple. They can definitely use the term "If it ain't broken, don't fix it."

I HATE the new textedit. Is there any way to downgrade to the old version? I too have been unable to save in UTF-8. Even though I went into the application preferences and selected the default for Save to be UTF-8. It seems if the files is already in UTF-16 it says 'FckU, I'm just going to save it in the format it's already in." Terrible, terrible, terrible.

I guess I'll try Bernz trick over duplicate, close, etc. This app is pathetic :`(

wampa007 wrote:

It seems if the files is already in UTF-16 it says 'FckU, I'm just going to save it in the format it's already in."

I can't duplicate this problem on my 10.7.4. -- I can open a TextEdit utf-16 file and duplicate/save as utf-8. Could you provide more details of what is happening for you?

Tom,

I was able to duplicate/save then choose the UTF-8 encoding. It very frustrating to have to do this when a simple Save As... is a single step to doing what is now a two step process.

But to answer your question: In the menu bar goto TextEdit->Preferences->Open and Save Tab. Under "Plain Text File Encoding"->Saving Files, chose "Unicode (UTF-8)" instead of the default setting of automatic.

One would expect that any time you save a Plain Text File it will save it as UTF-8. If you open a UTF-16 file, then save it, it does not save it as UTF-8, it keeps it as UTF-16, which is not what I set in the preferences.

I am using 10.8.1. But not that it matters any more because I believe I have found instructions for 'downgrading' to the old Textedit from snowleapoard by copying files over.

I am curious if you are able to reproduce this though. Perhaps the 'preference' only applies to new plain text files, but that is not indicated anywhere in the box. Also cannot find the files encoding anywhere else. I would think it should be under File->Show Properties.

wampa007 wrote:

I am using 10.8.1.

It would have been better to ask in that forum instead of the one for 10.7, because things have changed. In 10.8, Save As has returned, you just hold the option/alt key when you go to File.

I will try your example...

Ok, thanks for the info. I didn't realize it was the 10.7 forum. I did a google search on something like textedit utf-8 and this was one of the first few hits that turned up. alt+File menu does bring up Save As... Now if only there is a way to make it stick to that menu permanently, let me know if you do know of a way. I hate secret menus.

wampa007 wrote:

Now if only there is a way to make it stick to that menu permanently, let me know if you do know of a way. I hate secret menus.

http://www.tuaw.com/2012/07/29/get-save-as-back-on-mountain-lions-file-menu-easi ly-and-without/

wampa007 wrote:

One would expect that any time you save a Plain Text File it will save it as UTF-8. ... Perhaps the 'preference' only applies to new plain text files, but that is not indicated anywhere in the box.

Yes, I think you are correct. TextEdit keeps the text encoding of existing documents unless you specifically change it via the encoding menu in a Save or Save As dialogue (not Save a Version). The Preferences only affect new docs.

Many people who have to work with encodings prefer TextWrangler.

Thanks Tom,

I think I'll look into textwrangler. It appears the Save As... menu option is also broken

http://www.tuaw.com/2012/08/05/mountain-lion-bugs-chopped-battery-life-and-nonse nsical-save-a/

Apple can claim it's not a bug, but rather a design. But clobbering a document I did not ask to be modified is sickening. I will probably ask Tim Cook to issue a public apology for this like he just did for the maps.

This is the reason I hadn't upgraded since Snow Leapoard. Apple is becoming like Cube, the movie 😟