Weekly geeking. The choice of text editor is a crucial decision for computer programmers. Fierce loyalties develop, much in the same way chefs will swear by a set of knives, or pit crew bosses a particular brand of motor oil.

Just yesterday my boss strongly suggested that I switch to Emacs, so that we could exchange tips, use particular modes, etc. I told him, flat out, "No".

This is not stubbornness, or Ludditism. I know Emacs very well, and swore by it for many years -- I used to even joke that it was my religion. But lately I've had to wander back into the Unix environment a bit, and have been messing around with Emacs sparingly, and -- the honeymoon is over. I find it awkward and stupid now. A big clumsy overachiever who doesn't play nice with the other kids.

I still use it when I'm in Unix and need some power feature, like macros. But (and I never thought I'd ever say this), I've found that I prefer vi. It's a moronic editor on many levels, but it's lightweight and reliable, and doesn't leave me frustrated nearly as often.

In Windows I'll be sticking with TextPad. This is as fine a piece of software as I've ever used, and I recommend it highly.