Long-Live Plain Text!

txt files work with Microsoft Word, Apple Pages, Google Docs, and LibreOffice. They work with Microsoft Excel. They work with NotePad, NotePad++, and TextEdit. They work with Bash, ZSH, and Fish. They work vim, emacs, and nano. You can pipe them around and append to them. You can print them, fax them, and email them. They just work. And they’ll always work.

Microsoft, Apple, and Linux might not exist in 50 years. Every computer you’ve ever touched will be in a landfill in 20 years. PDFs might not exist. But txt will survive.

Text files will survive.

MacOS

1. Open TextEdit in Applications.
2. Press ⇧⌘T or go to Format > Make Plain Text.

Windows

1. Open Notepad.