Legacy Notepad

A lightweight, 25x fast, Windows notepad alternative built with C++17 and Win32 API which I made because microsoft wont stop adding AI bloatware to notepad.exe.

Screenshot:

Features

• Multi-language support: English and Japanese translations with runtime switching.
• Multi-encoding text: UTF-8, UTF-8 BOM, UTF-16 LE/BE, ANSI with line-ending selection.
• Rich editing: word wrap toggle, font selection, zoom, time/date stamp, find/replace/goto.
• Backgrounds: optional image with tile/stretch/fit/fill/anchor modes and opacity control. (known issues)
• Always on top: window pinning support.
• Printing: print and page setup dialogs.
• Customizable icon: change the application icon to any .ico file, including classic Notepad icons.

Requisites

Building Legacy Notepad requires:

• Operating System: Windows 7 SP1 or newer (Windows 10/11 recommended for full UI feature support).
• Build System: CMake 3.16 or higher.
• Compiler: A C++17 compatible toolchain:
  • MinGW-w64: Tested with GCC 13.2.0 (standard for lightweight builds).
  • MSVC: Visual Studio 2022 or higher.
• SDKs: Windows SDK (included with Visual Studio or available via MSYS2 for MinGW).
• Dependencies: The app uses standard Windows components: GDI+, RichEdit 4.1 (Msftedit.dll), Common Controls, and DWM.

Build & Installation

Using MinGW (Recommended for GCC)

Ensure your MinGW bin folder is in your system PATH.

# 1. Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/ForLoopCodes/legacy-notepad.git
cd legacy-notepad

# 2. Create and enter build directory
mkdir build
cd build

# 3. Configure and build
cmake -G "MinGW Makefiles" ..
mingw32-make -j$(nproc)

# 4. Run the application
.\legacy-notepad.exe

Using Visual Studio (MSVC)

1. Open the folder in Visual Studio 2022.
2. Visual Studio will automatically detect CMakeLists.txt and configure the project.
3. Select legacy-notepad.exe in the startup item dropdown.
4. Press F5 to build and run.

Alternatively, via command line:

cmake -B build -S .
cmake --build build --config Release

Architecture

• Entry: src/main.cpp - window class, message loop, wiring modules.
• Core: src/core - shared types and globals.
• Modules (src/modules): theme (dark mode), editor (RichEdit handling), file (I/O & encodings), ui (title/status/layout), background (GDI+), dialog (find/replace/font/transparency), commands (menu actions).
• Resources: src/notepad.rc, src/resource.h, icons/menus/accelerators.

Repository tree

src/
  core/           # types, globals
  modules/        # theme, editor, file, ui, background, dialog, commands
  main.cpp
  notepad.rc
CMakeLists.txt

File quicklook

File/Folder	Purpose
src/main.cpp	Win32 entry point, WndProc, module wiring
src/core/types.h	Enums, structs, app constants
src/core/globals.*	Shared handles/state definitions
src/modules/editor.*	RichEdit setup, word wrap, zoom
src/modules/file.*	Load/save, encoding + line endings, recent list
src/modules/ui.*	Title/status updates, layout sizing
src/modules/theme.*	Dark mode title/menu/status, theming
src/modules/background.*	GDI+ background image/opacity/position
src/modules/dialog.*	Find/replace/goto, font, transparency dialogs
src/modules/commands.*	Menu command handlers
src/notepad.rc, src/resource.h	Menus, accelerators, icons

License

MIT License - see LICENSE.

Notes

• Windows-only (Win32 API + GDI+). Use Wine/Proton at your own risk.
• Background image modes may vary slightly across DPI/scaling settings.

Queries

x.com/forloopcodes