An Automated NSW Smart Solutions Guide

Tips on Notepad++ and its use in programming, particularly with Siemens PPCL or Groovy

Syntax highlighters are modules that you add to a text editor that change the color of the text based on how the text would be understood by the compiler/interpreter. It is useful for helping immediately recognize a fault in the program’s composition.

Notepad++ is great for small programming tasks because its design encourages and simplifies the creation of tools. One of the most helpful tools that Notepad++ supports is custom syntax highlighters. 

Notepad++ has an extensive selection of supported programming languages, so you don’t have to write your own highlighter. You can usually find one in the Notepad++ syntax highlighter library. Just download the xml file and import it into the editor.

If you want to import a syntax highlighting file, first obtain the syntax highlighting file you want. For example, I have a Siemens PPCL syntax highlighter available here. There is also a syntax highlighter for the Groovy programming language here. 

Select the appropriate language from the “languages” menu to activate the syntax highlighter for the current file.

Once your syntax highlighter is added to Notepad++, if you want this highlighter to run whenever you open a program in that language, go to the “User Defined Language” dialog box  (below) and populate the “Ext.:” field with the file extension of the related programming language.

If you want to change the coloring, click the related “Styler” and change the “foreground” color.

A syntax highlighter in a powerful editor like Notepad++ allows you to be much more productive than you would be if you were limited to the programming environments provided with the WebCtrl Eikon scripting interface or the PPCL editor in Siemens’ Desigo CC.