- 2023-09-02: SearTxT-and-Texter won't be receiving any updates for a long while.
- 2024-03-31: SearTxT-and-Texter is now officially archived as I no longer code primarily in Python.
These are the improved versions of my original Python Text Searcher, which was unnecessarily bloated, to say the least.
-
SearTxT is a simple command-line tool to search for virtually any string of text contained within
.txtfiles in a user-specified directory. -
Texter is a complementary file converter that can convert
.docx,.pdfas well as several other file formats into.txtfor use with SearTxT.
I wrote these programs mainly to learn the basics of Python (and also for fun), so don't expect the same level of polish and utility that may come with tools such as fzf or grep. With that said though, I still hope that you would find SearTxT & Texter to be useful somehow.
These wonderful people have provided invaluable help and support in the creation of SearTxT & Texter:
- Master Harry Dreamer: testing & bug reporting
- Master Eltidee: testing
- OBP Corp: listening to my perpetual ramblings about the benefits of Free and Open Source Software
- 8 times the performance improvement :0
- Support for
.docx,.pdf,.doc, and many more (See the Conversion section for more details) - Automate boring, repetitive tasks with AutoScript (Coming soon)
- Much eye candy >.<
- And many more (probably...)
Simply download the latest release, extract the contents of the .zip archive, and launch SearTxT or Texter with the appropriate executable.
Note: Some anti-virus programs may falsely flag the executable as a virus and then quarantine it. To avoid this, you can either add the SearTxT directory as an exception, or completely disable the anti-virus software (not recommended)
Texter can only convert .docx files with the pandoc runtime installed, so make sure you download it using the /pd command before starting the conversion process.
Note: Should the /pd command fails for any reason, you can download pandoc directly from the official website and install it manually.
If you want to run SearTxT or Texter directly with the Python Interpreter, make sure that your system satisfies the following requirements:
- Python >=
3.10.8 - Pip packages (Texter):
pypandoc,pdfminer.six
Simply download Python from your package manager of choice, e.g.:
APT
sudo apt install python-is-python3Pacman
sudo pacman -S pythonYou can either download Python from the official website or install it with a package manager such as scoop:
scoop install pythonOnce you have installed Python and added the installation directory to your PATH, download the required packages with:
python -m pip install pypandoc pdfminer.sixYou may also have to upgrade pip first:
python -m pip install --upgrade pipUsage : /command <required parameters> [optional parameters]
or : <any string of characters> (SearTxT only)
Ex : /ls
/ls 4 -s or /ls 4 --script
/t -h or /t --half
/cd [path]
(default: script directory)
Platform-specific path separator:
/cd /home/DBVG/Documents # UNIX absolute path
C:\Users\DBVG\Documents # Windows absolute path
/cd ../../example # UNIX relative path
..\..\example # Windows relative path
Quickly change to the script directory:
/cd ~ or just /cd # To quickly change to the script directory
/cd ~/example1/example2 # To quickly change to a folder inside the script directory
Traverse relative paths:
/cd example # Enter the specified folder in the current directory
/cd .. # To go up a directory
/cd ../../.. # To go up a number of directories
/cd ../example1/example2 # To go up a number of directories and enter the specified directory
/ls [column: num > 0] [dir: -s / --script ; -t / --target]
(default: target dir, 3 columns)
/t [threads: num ; -a / --all ; -h / --half ; -q / --quarter]
(default: all threads)
* /c : clear the display
* /h : show all available commands
* /q or <CTRL-C> : terminate the program
/mt [method: -e / --exact ; -p / --proximity]
(default: exact match)
/s [score: 0 < float < 1]
(default: 0.85)
/cv [verbosity: -v / --verbose ; -b / --brief]
(default: brief final output)
/pd
/cat
SearTxT and Texter are command-line tools, so you will need to type out the exact command of the desired operation.
First, start by configuring your target directory. This is where SearTxT and Texter will try to search and convert your files respectively.
Example (Windows file path):
*****DBVG SearTxT ver 1.0*****
Script directory: D:\Downloads\SearTxT
Search method: exact match
[SearTxT ~example]$ /cd C:\Users\DBVG\Documents\PDF Stuff
<ENTER>
.......
[SearTxT C:\Users\DBVG\Documents\PDF Stuff]$ _
Example (Unix file path):
*****DBVG Texter ver 1.0*****
Script directory: /home/DBVG/SearTxT
[Texter ~example]$ /cd /home/DBVG/Documents/DOCX Stuff
<ENTER>
.......
[Texter /home/DBVG/Documents/DOCX Stuff]$ _
To check whether you have entered the correct path, use the /ls command to check the content of the target directory.
Note: The ~ symbol indicates that the current target directory is inside the script directory, hence a relative path.
Since SearTxT can only search for strings in .txt files, you will have to run Texter first to convert other file formats (e.g. .docx) into .txt.
Simply launch Texter and run the /pd command. Alternatively, you can also download and install pandoc manually, but make sure you add the installation directory to your PATH.
If you have correctly set up and moved your files inside the target directory, simply start the conversion by using the /cv command.
Note: Make sure to BACKUP your files as Texter PERMANENTLY DELETES the original file formats after the conversion.
Simply navigate to the specified target directory and check the newly-converted .txt files with your favorite text editor.
This guide assumes that you have already converted your files into .txt files.
To search for exact matches of the original query:
/mt -e
or
/mt --exact
To search for approximate matches of the original query:
/mt -p
or
/mt --proximity
Simply type in virtually any string of characters and then hit ENTER.
Note: The search query cannot start with the / character. If your search query starts with /, SearTxT will throw an error message.
If SearTxT finds any matches, it will print out the results on the screen. Simply use your mouse to scroll through the result list.
As of version 1.0. Texter officially supports .docx and .pdf files. However, conversion from .pdf to plain text, especially from files with a large number of non-Latin characters, can be rather unreliable as it can break the formatting of the original documents.
Unofficially, Texter by default can also try to convert the following file formats:
-----------------------------------------
.css .sass .html .htm .js .jsm .mjs .json
.markdown .md .mkd .org
.v .asc .log .conf
.doc
.py .py3 .pyi .pyx .py3x .wsgi
.rs .vbs .lua .p .pas .kt .java
.c .C .cs .c++ .cc .cpp .cxx
.lisp .go .hs
-----------------------------------------
It accomplishes this by reading these files in plain text mode, and then copying the contents to a separate .txt file (very ingenious, ikr). If you want additional file formats, simply add them to unsupported_types.conf
If you feel like compiling your own executables, you can theoretically do so with any compatible CPython compilers. Though the official releases were compiled with Nuitka, this section will provide instructions for Nuitka and PyInstaller.
Note: I don't recommend building SearTxT or running the SearTxT binary on a Linux system due to potential memory leaks and just being very buggy in general.
- Nuitka >=
1.3.6 - Python >=
3.10 - Pip packages (Nuitka):
ordered-set,zstandard - Pip packages (Texter):
pypandoc,pdfminer.six
Windows:
- MSVC v143 - VS2022 C++ x64/x86 build tools (Latest)
- Windows 11 SDK
Note: Python must NOT be installed from the Windows app store.
(Arch) Linux:
gccpatchelfccache
Please refer to the Nuitka User Manual for more information.
Clone the repository
Simply download the latest Source code archive and extract the contents. Alternatively, if you have git installed, use the following command:
git clone https://github.com/QingTian1927/SearTxT-and-TexterInstall Nuitka
python -m pip install nuitkaBuilding SearTxT
Open the extracted Source code directory in the command line and run:
python -m nuitka --standalone --onefile --remove-output <source_file>Example (Windows):
python -m nuitka --standalone --onefile --remove-output --windows-icon-from-ico=<icon_path> <source_file>If you have correctly configured everything, Nuitka should produce an executable within the same directory (SearTxT.exe on Windows, SearTxT.bin on Linux)
When there are several parameters for an argument, commands that accept multiple arguments (e.g. /ls) will only use the latest parameter in the series:
[SearTxT ~example]$ /ls 2 3 -s -a
file1.txt file2.txt file3.txt
file4.txt file5.txt file6.txt
file7.txt ... ...
Discovered by Master Harry Dreamer
Solution: just don't repeat the same arguments. I won't fix this issue in the foreseeable future because I simply don't think it is enough of a problem yet. I may eventually fix it though.
Some anti-virus providers may falsely flag the SearTxT & Texter executables as viruses and then quarantine them.
Solution: add an exception to the anti-virus program or disable it completely (not recommended)