<!-- mobian-agent-page publisher="dailydev" canonical="https://daily.dev/posts/netbsd-adds-alternative-text-editor-to-vi-xedit-for-easing-new-users-l6vnnkod0" -->

---
title: NetBSD Adds Alternative Text Editor To vi & xedit For...
description: NetBSD has added the atto text editor to its base system as an easier alternative to vi and xedit. The NetBSD Foundation announced the addition to 'ease the...
canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/netbsd-adds-alternative-text-editor-to-vi-xedit-for-easing-new-users-l6vnnkod0
twitter:card: summary_large_image
twitter:site: @dailydotdev
og:type: website
og:site_name: daily.dev
og:title: NetBSD Adds Alternative Text Editor To vi & xedit For Easing New Users | daily.dev
og:description: NetBSD has added the atto text editor to its base system as an easier alternative to vi and xedit. The NetBSD Foundation announced the addition to 'ease the...
og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/netbsd-adds-alternative-text-editor-to-vi-xedit-for-easing-new-users-l6vnnkod0
og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/l6vNnkoD0.png
og:image:alt: NetBSD Adds Alternative Text Editor To vi & xedit For Easing New Users
og:image:width: 1200
og:image:height: 630
og:locale: en
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# NetBSD Adds Alternative Text Editor To vi & xedit For Easing New Users

**[Phoronix](https://daily.dev/sources/phoronix)** · 1 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments

## Summary

NetBSD has added the atto text editor to its base system as an easier alternative to vi and xedit. The NetBSD Foundation announced the addition to 'ease the transition for new users'. Atto is a screen-based editor similar to nano and pico, and is only 48KB in size. NetBSD ships a modified version with expanded option handling, while upstream atto is available on GitHub and was inspired by MicroEmacs, Nano, Pico, and Perfect Emacs.

## Full article

daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: <https://www.phoronix.com/news/NetBSD-New-Text-Editor>

## Questions this post answers

### What new text editor did NetBSD add to its base system besides vi and xedit?

NetBSD added atto, a screen-based text editor similar to nano and pico, to its base system as an easier alternative to vi and xedit. The NetBSD Foundation says it is meant to ease the transition for new users. It is only 48KB in size, and NetBSD ships a modified version with expanded option handling compared to upstream atto.

_Following base-system changes like this helps BSD admins plan upgrades without surprises on daily.dev._

## Similar posts on daily.dev

- [Nano Feels Complicated? Try These 5 Easier Terminal Editors](https://daily.dev/posts/nano-feels-complicated-try-these-5-easier-terminal-editors-tk9meqn2i) · It's Foss · 8 upvotes · 0 comments
- [I tried NetBSD as a desktop, and it felt like stepping into the '90s in a good way](https://daily.dev/posts/i-tried-netbsd-as-a-desktop-and-it-felt-like-stepping-into-the-90s-in-a-good-way-frrnjfz3i) · Lobsters · 0 upvotes · 0 comments
- [Edlin on FreeDOS: When a simple line editor is all you need](https://daily.dev/posts/edlin-on-freedos-when-a-simple-line-editor-is-all-you-need-gmgiokavq) · All Things Open · 0 upvotes · 0 comments
- [Terminal Text Editor: Like VS Code But in Linux Terminal](https://daily.dev/posts/terminal-text-editor-like-vs-code-but-in-linux-terminal-xqigobt3u) · It's Foss · 23 upvotes · 6 comments

---

[View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/netbsd-adds-alternative-text-editor-to-vi-xedit-for-easing-new-users-l6vnnkod0)

```json
{"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]}
{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"NetBSD Adds Alternative Text Editor To vi \u0026 xedit For Easing New Users","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/netbsd-adds-alternative-text-editor-to-vi-xedit-for-easing-new-users-l6vnnkod0","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/netbsd-adds-alternative-text-editor-to-vi-xedit-for-easing-new-users-l6vnnkod0"},"datePublished":"2026-10-28T13:55:18.995Z","dateModified":"2026-10-29T16:24:37.871Z","description":"NetBSD has added the atto text editor to its base system as an easier alternative to vi and xedit. The NetBSD Foundation announced the addition to 'ease the...","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/28cf675b40f60e99c05e7041104a33bf?_a=AQAEuop","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/28cf675b40f60e99c05e7041104a33bf?_a=AQAEuop","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"Phoronix","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Phoronix","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/t_logo,f_auto/v1/logos/6a26ba379dd64932830aa0c9803dd7ee","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/phoronix"},"commentCount":0,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/netbsd-adds-alternative-text-editor-to-vi-xedit-for-easing-new-users-l6vnnkod0","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":0},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":0}],"keywords":"","timeRequired":"PT1M"}
{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Phoronix","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/phoronix"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"NetBSD Adds Alternative Text Editor To vi \u0026 xedit For Easing New Users"}]}
{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/netbsd-adds-alternative-text-editor-to-vi-xedit-for-easing-new-users-l6vnnkod0#faq","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"What new text editor did NetBSD add to its base system besides vi and xedit?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"NetBSD added atto, a screen-based text editor similar to nano and pico, to its base system as an easier alternative to vi and xedit. The NetBSD Foundation says it is meant to ease the transition for new users. It is only 48KB in size, and NetBSD ships a modified version with expanded option handling compared to upstream atto. Following base-system changes like this helps BSD admins plan upgrades without surprises on daily.dev."}}]}
```

