Kate (text editor) facts for kids
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Kate 24.12.0 in KDE Plasma 6
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| Developer(s) | KDE |
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| Initial release | 2001 |
| Stable release |
25.04.1
 / 8 May 2025 |
| Preview release |
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| Written in | C++, Qt |
| Operating system | |
| Type | Source code editor |
| License | LGPL-2.0-or-later, MIT |
The KDE Advanced Text Editor, also known as Kate, is a special program for writing and editing text. It's like a super-powered notepad for people who write computer code. This software was created by the KDE community, which makes free computer programs.
Kate has been a part of the KDE Software since 2001. It is designed for software developers. Kate helps them by highlighting code, folding sections, and allowing custom layouts. It also supports multiple cursors and special search patterns. You can add extra features using plugins. Kate's fun mascot is Kate the Cyber Woodpecker.
How Kate Started
Kate became part of the KDE Software Compilation in 2001. This was with the release of version 2.2 of the KDE Desktop Environment.
Because of a special technology called KParts, Kate can be used inside other KDE programs. This means other apps can use Kate's editing tools. For example, the IDE KDevelop uses Kate. Other programs like Quanta Plus and Kile also use it.
Kate has even won an award. It was named the best advanced text editor by Linux Voice magazine.
Around 2014, work began to update Kate for a newer system called KDE Frameworks 5. Other KDE programs like Dolphin and Konsole were also updated.
In 2022, another KDE text editor called KWrite was changed. It now uses the same basic code as Kate. However, some of Kate's advanced features are turned off in KWrite.
What Kate Can Do
Kate is a powerful source code editor. It can highlight code for over 300 different file types. This helps programmers easily see different parts of their code. It can also fold sections of code to make it easier to read.
Text Encoding and Languages
Kate understands many different ways to store text, like UTF-8 and ASCII. It can even figure out the file's text type automatically. Kate also helps with writing code by suggesting completions and finding references. This works for many programming languages. These include C, C++, Python, and Rust.
KatePart: The Core Editor
The main part of Kate that handles text editing is called KatePart. This part can be used by other programs too. It's like a reusable building block for text editing. It's important not to confuse KatePart with KParts. KParts is a general system that lets different parts of programs work together.
Special Modes and Views
Kate can be used in a special vi input mode. This mode is popular with some experienced programmers.
Kate lets you work on many documents at once. You can split the window to see different files side-by-side. It also has "sessions" which are like saved workspaces. You can set up Kate for different projects. For example, you can save a list of open files and plugins for each project.
Kate also includes a terminal emulator called Konsole. This is a tool that lets you type commands directly to the computer. Since 2023, this terminal is available on Windows too.
Helpful Features
The "quick open" feature helps you find files you have open very fast. It lets you search for files by their name. Kate also shows you which lines of code have unsaved changes. It highlights new lines added in your current work session.
Because Kate is a KDE application, it can open and save files from many places. This includes files from the internet using HTTP or FTP. It can also access files on other computers using SSH or SMB.
Kate has a "session manager." This lets you name, save, and reopen groups of open files. This means you can easily switch between different projects. Saved sessions are stored as small files on your computer.
Other useful features include a clipboard history. This remembers up to ten things you've copied. You can also quickly jump to a specific line number in your code. Kate also works with Git, which is a system for tracking changes in code.
See also
In Spanish: Kate para niños
- List of KDE applications
- List of text editors
- Comparison of text editors
- List of computing mascots
- Computing mascots
