source code editor

A text editor that is specialized for writing software. A source code editor may be a stand-alone program or part of an integrated development environment (IDE). They make writing and reading the source code easier by differentiating the elements and routines so programmers can more easily look at their code. Using a regular text editor, large programs would be more cumbersome to review at a later date. See IDE, hex editor and text editor.

Source Code Editors Know the Code

Source code editors identify the parts of a programming statement. In this example, the Source Insight editor from Source Dynamics (www.sourceinsight.com) displays the elements in different colors and font sizes to differentiate them.