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Cannot edit some text files in Dropbox on iPhone?

In the Dropbox app on iPhone SE, I can open all my text files, but in some of them I do not get the Edit icon (looks like a cursor) at bottom left, so cannot edit them.

In others, I get the Edit icon at bottom left, and can edit them.

In both cases the text files are from the Notepad app on my Windows 10 PC.

When I cannot edit a text file, the settings and menus that I can call up do not seem to provide any solution.

Am I missing something?

Mike

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Cardinal2B

K-C-L (and others following)

Thanks! You're onto the right cause, and solution ...well, workaround.

Dropbox App editor won't handle either certain characters (extended) or Windows Notepad default ANSI files. A pretty obvious shortcoming. These get rendered in a non-editable file - which looks like monospaced courier, but doesn't make a space for each <spacebar>. Go figure.

Anyway, the workarounds are:

- Convert all your Notepad ANSI files to UTF-8 (open file in Notepad, Save As..., dropdown box -> choose UTF-8 and Save. (Save all new files as UTF-8). This is what I am doing.

- Open the file in Dropbox App. Select a word, then Select All. Copy. Create new file (Text). Paste into the window, name, and Create. Kinda klugy.

Those both work - I've tested.

- There is a way to change Notepad default to UTF-8, which would prevent this from re-occurring, but you have to touch the Registry (I don't want to do that)

- Download Notepad++ which apparently can set a default without touching the Registry (cannot verify). Reportedly Notepad++ takes less resources too (don't know about that either)

OK, a PITA. But do-able. I guess.

But, the real problem is Dropbox App cannot show text files (.txt) in monospaced font (e.g. Menlo or Courier). This is basically a disqualifier for Dropbox for musicians who use text files to create Tab, or Notation files, or chord charts. That's a lot of people left out in the cold. Since they all share files, so Dropbox could / should own this market, but have shut themselves out.

All comments

Minato

Hey @mike160304,

Dropbox doesn’t have a built in editor. What program do you use to edit the file?

If you’d like to use an editor, you’ll have to download/export the file, edit it and then upload it again.

The mobile app doesn’t download the files locally, like the desktop app does.

Let me know if this helps!

Rich

@Minato wrote:

Dropbox doesn’t have a built in editor.

Actually, it does. Simple text files can be edited within the Dropbox app by tapping the Edit icon in the bottom left corner when the file is open for viewing.

Tapping the edit icon opens the file within the Dropbox app. You can then edit and save the changes. No other app is required.

mike160304

As I said originally, the Dropbox iPhone app does allow me to edit some Notepad .txt files, but not others. I am trying find out why.

Please see the reply from Rich - his description of what happens is exactly what I see, when it works. But sometimes the Edit icon at bottom left is missing, even though it is still a Notepad .txt file.

Mike

mike160304

Rich - Yes, as I said originally, the Dropbox iPhone app does edit, and your description is exactly what happens for me with Notepad .txt files, when it works. But in some Notepad .txt files the Edit icon at bottom left is missing, and nothing that I can find on the page seems to change this.

I'll do a bit more analysis to see if I can spot a difference between a Notepad .txt file where this works and a Notepad .txt file where it does not work. Then I could put both of these on here to see anyone else can edit the one that I cannot edit.

Thanks,

Mike

mike160304

I wondered whether the .txt files that I cannot edit in Dropbox app on iPhone are ones which contain live hyperlinks - web addresses, email addresses, phone numbers.

But no, there are .txt files with hyperlinks that I can edit.
Mike

mike160304

Here is a link to a Notepad .txt file. This is an example of a file that, in the Dropbox app on iPhone, I can open but cannot edit. Let's call this "TxtCan'tEdit".

https://www.dropbox.com/s/b8nx5trwbpfrcsp/FZ1000%20notes.txt?dl=0

Next I'll try to send an example of a .TXT file that I can edit in same circumstances.

Mike

mike160304

2nd example - here is a link to a Notepad .txt file that, in the Dropbox app on iPhone, I can open and edit. Let's call this "TxtCanEdit".

https://www.dropbox.com/s/qlcwyyan7k5hfvx/PSE15%20Notes.txt?dl=0

Mike

mike160304

Whoops - duplicate of last message, but I cannot delete it.

Sanchez

Hey Mike (@mike160304),

Thanks for all the extra details, and for sharing those links to your test documents! I don’t know what the difference in these files is, so I’d like to put you in touch with our support team for further investigation. Go ahead and submit a support ticket here, and then let me know your ticket number so I can make sure it gets to the right desk for review

In the meantime, I wonder what would happen if you copy/pasted the contents of the non-editable document into a new black blank [edited] one. Give this a try if you’d like, and let me know.

Cheers!

Cardinal2B

I am having exactly the same problem as Mike, but on my iPad. Same as Mike mine were created / edited using Notepad on Windows 10 (Surface).

I can offer one observation in addition:

The text files I CAN’T edit display in beautiful, gorgeous, fixed width Courier font, but...no edit icon in lower right

The txt files I CAN edit display in nearly useless sans serifed proportional font. Edit icon in lower right, and it works, but editing without fixed width is not useful

Let me know if there is more I can do to help solve this!

Cardinal2B

More information

I looked at Mike’s files, and they appear the same as what I see on my iPad. His file that CANNOT be edited appears in luscious fixed width font, but no editing icon. His file that CAN be edited is in thoroughly unapppealing and non functional sans serifed proportional font, but the icon is there and I can edit it.

You asked to do an experiment on a CAN’T edit file - copy the whole file and open a blank one, paste the contents in, save it, then see if it can be edited. The answer is YES I can copy the contents to a new file, and edit the new file, however, it is presented in proportional font. Sigh.

That’s not a solution IMO, just a workaround, and it doesn’t address the fixed width issue. But there you go.

Cardinal2B

OK Sanchez, one more item of note.

In the file that I CAN’T edit, what I see is in monspaced, fixed width serifed font. And, where there is type, each typed character is the same width. However, where more than one space bar created space exists, only one space actuallly shows.

123456789012345678901234567890123456789012345

1 space between C’’’’’ F’’’’’ and G’’

this line has more C’’’’’ F’’’’’ and G’’

In the file that I CAN’T edit, the phrase

C’’’’’ F’’’’’ and G’’

Looks like this:

C’’’’’ F’’’’’ and G’’

The “missing spaces” are not expected of course, but may offer further clues...

Mike if you are following along, does all this comport with what you see?

mike160304

Cardinal 2B - thanks for the replies. I have not had time to do more on this yet, and am still busy with some other stuff re an imminent trip.

Re suggestion from Sanchez (above), would YOU like to raise a ticket about this? You seem to know a bit more than I do anyway?

When I copied/pasted into a new Notepad file, I still could not edit it, but I would need to run some more tests and can't do it just now.

Life was simpler before technology made everything easier.

Also, we don't seem to be able to attach files to our messages here?

Mike

Cardinal2B

Mike / Sanchez

I started by filing a support request email. Then was hunting around and found your thread with the same problem. It takes 72hrs for a response. When I get one I will advise.

Mike I would not let that stop you from starting your own.

Sanchez

Hi guys,

@Cardinal2B, thanks for posting the results of your research here! This is very interesting indeed. Can you tell me your ticket number so I can check up on it?

@mike160304, I’ll send this over to our team internally, to make them aware of it. In the meantime, @Cardinal2B's workaround will have to do.

Cheers!

mike160304

Cardinal2B / Sanchez:

In Notepad in Windows, I have again just opened a .txt file (that I cannot edit in Dropbox on iPhone), copied all its contents into a new Notepad .txt file and saved it to my Dropbox folder.

But I cannot edit this resulting file in Dropbox on iPhone either, as I found before. Contrary to Cardinal2B's findings, it seems, so I don't have this workaround.

Mike

Cardinal2B

Mike,
I did it a little differently.

Open the CANNOT.txt file in Dropbox App
Highlight a word, Select All, and Copy.
In upper left on Dropbox App screen tap “go back” < arrow
Now you are on the files screen, and at the bottom use the Create (+) button, choose Create or Upload a file, then Text File.
Tap in the screen, and Paste (you should see the contents of your CANNOT.txt file, but now in proportional font).
Hit “Next” at upper right.
Tap filename to change it from Untitiled to YESICAN.txt, and tap Done
Now either accept the location, or change it (under the Save Location heading), and click on Create in the upper right, which actually saves the file you made called YESICAN.txt

A PITA I know. But now you should have a copy of the file saved, and you should be able to edit it.

mike160304

Cardinal2B - thank you for the details of your workaround, but obviously, I doubt that I would do all that, though the number of .txt files that I use is very limited.

So yes, I'll try it, and this does prove that you know more about this kind of thing than I do, so I am very happy that you have sailed into this discussion.

Mike

mike160304

Sanchez and Cardinal2B - Another detail that may be relevant - for ALL my .txt files, I don't use any of the formal fonts, I write them all in Comic Sans MS.

I am wondering whether it would make any difference if I found out which is the most common font in the world (Arial, Courier . . .?) and used that.

Mike

mike160304

Cardinal2B and Sanchez -

I just googled and found the following. I don't agree with him/her, the only font that annoys me is Times New Roman, but so what?

The 10 fonts below are overused and patently annoying, and we give 10 good reasons to stop using all of them.

Trajan. ...
Arial. ...
Comic Sans. ...
Franklin Gothic. ...
Helvetica. ...
Bradley Hand (and Other “Handwritten” Fonts) ...
Courier and Courier New. ...
Papyrus. Papyrus is the king of bad fonts.

Cardinal2B

I never got a response from Dropbox.

annoying.

sent another request today.

IF I ever hear back / get a ticket number I will advise.

...don’t think that article Mike got on Google about 10 worst fonts is of any import, so ignoring that.

mike160304

@Cardinal2B wrote:
I never got a response from Dropbox.

annoying.

sent another request today.

IF I ever hear back / get a ticket number I will advise.

...don’t think that article Mike got on Google about 10 worst fonts is of any import, so ignoring that.

Hi there,

Many thanks. I doubted that the fonts made any difference.

It's an annoying problem.

Hopefully Dropbox will reply soon.

Regards,

Mike

Minato

Hello to all,

Apologies for the miscommunication on my previous post, we're looking into this behavior.

Please raise a ticket with our support team (at

https://www.dropbox.com/support),

providing specific file names and screenshots this behavior is occurring so we can investigate more.

Thank you!

Cardinal2B

Once again...
I have tried to get a response from Dropbox Support. TWICE. I have not received a reply, except a survey asking how support was (probably you can imagine the grades were pretty low).
Yours is the other response, telling me to ask for support again (that would be a third time).
I think between us all in this thread we’ve supplied files and locations that can and cannot be edited, plus I am still waiting for response with a ticket number, so to ask me to do all this is simply stalling tactics on your part, and busy work on mine.
Tell you what, why don’t you enter / Create a ticket for me? Send it to me in an email, then I will be a bit more cooperative.
You’re the guy, after all, who said you can’t edit in the app to begin with, so...

mike160304

Cardinal2B -

Re "Yours is the other response, telling me to ask for support again (that would be a third time).", I thought I said "Hopefully Dropbox will reply soon", I was not telling you to do further "busy work". As for "stalling tactics", I wish I was sufficiently competent in IT to have "tactics", all I have is a stack of problems, most of which have nothing to do with Dropbox or indeed computers.

Minato has made a helpful suggestion, I'll try to reply and to open a ticket as soon as I can find a little spare time, though I already supplied examples of files with and without this problem.

Best regards,

Mike

mike160304

Minato,

Thank you for your reply to all of us - I already supplied, in this thread, examples of files with and without this problem. I had only just started to upload a few text files onto Dropbox, so I doubt that I have much else that I can send.

Also, Cardinal2B has already opened a ticket on the same subject, but has at time of writing had no reply.

But if you think that it would help if I opened a ticket as well, I can try to do this, but it would not be this week, I am away on a trip.

Cardinal2B

Mike,
Sorry, none of that was directed at you, but rather at Dropbox support who have yet to reply to my repeated requests and Minato saying make a request (when I have already as Minato should know), and some survey I got about the support I never received.
Not trolling here, but I am very frustrated.
Cardinal2B

mike160304

Cardinal2B - Very sorry that I mis-read you, we are in the same boat here. Like you I did spend quite a bit of time trying to work out why I could edit some .txt files but not others, even before I opened this thread.

What I did then change, feeling not in control of my own data, was:

- I uninstalled the Dropbox Folder from my PC, because I could never sign out of Dropbox with the Dropbox Folder installed.

- I deleted the Dropbox app from my iPhone, for the same reason.

My basis for both actions is my desire to have a 2nd password step between my PC/iPhone passwords (I use an alphanumeric iPhone password too, not a 6-digit passcode) and my more important files.

To anyone but me, it is probably self-evident that I cannot password and sync files across devices at the same time?????????

Back in 1943, we did not have PCs or smartphones at my primary school, so I had a disadvantaged childhood.

:slight_frown::slight_frown::slight_frown:

Best regards,

Mike

Sanchez

Hey again, @Cardinal2B,

I’ve looked into your submitted tickets, and found that on your first two submissions, our agents did indeed reply to you. If you didn’t receive either of them, can you please check your Spam/Junk folder, and let me know? Also, please ensure that "no-reply@dropbox.com" is not blocked, and that it’s added to your address book. This will help with future communications coming from our team.

Thanks!

Cardinal2B

Sanchez,

Thanks for looking into this.

I would not have complained if I had received any response to my requests for support.

I get email from Dropbox all the time. Weekly in fact, though looking now I can see it is from a different email address (no-reply@dropboxmail.com), which is where the Dropbox Support survey also came from. I'm not sure that users should or would know that, especially a priori.

But, I doubt this explains anything, especially as I received an email from "no-reply@dropbox.com" on Tue, Mar 20, at 8:01PM (I'm on the East Coast) about a new device signing into my account. And a similar one on Feb 19.

"no-reply@dropbox.com" was not, and is not blocked in my email system. I have added "no-reply@dropbox.com" to my contacts / address book as you requested. It's possible this is the problem, but probably no more likely than Support mis-typing my email address with a letter O instead of a zero before the @.

Perhaps you could test by sending 2 emails. One from "no-reply@dropbox.com" - and then a second one (confirming it) from <anyname>@dropboxmail.com or <anyname>@dropboxforum.com. Maybe you could include one of my ticket numbers in the emails?

Thank you!