How to add the current date and time to a text file

Press F5 in Jotter by Zaweba and the current time and date go in wherever the cursor is, so open the file, click where you want the stamp and press the key. The stamp is ordinary text. If you'd rather use the menu, it is Edit > Time/date. Save the file and the stamp is part of it, like anything else you typed.

Nothing more is needed: no add-ons, no macros, and no special file type. It works the same in a text file you opened from disk and in a quick unsaved note.

Getting the file open

Jotter opens plain text files of all kinds up to 64 MB. Use File > Open (you can pick several files at once), drop the file on the Jotter window, or open it with Jotter from Explorer. Each file gets its own tab. If Jotter is already running, the file goes to that window as a new tab rather than starting a second copy.

For a note that isn't a file yet, press Ctrl+N for a new tab and start typing. You can stamp it straight away and save it as a file later, or never; Jotter keeps unsaved tabs and brings them back the next time you open it.

Adding the stamp, step by step

Click at the point where the date should go. For a log or diary, that is usually a new line at the bottom. Press Enter first if you want the stamp on a line of its own.

Press F5. The time and date appear at the cursor. Type a word or two after it to say what the entry is about, then carry on writing.

Save with File > Save if the tab is a file. If it is a new note you want to keep as a file, use Save as and choose a name and folder.

Why plain text matters here

The stamp Jotter types is fixed text. It records the moment you pressed the key and never changes after that, which is what you want in a log, a diary or meeting notes. Fields that update themselves, like those in a word processor, are no use for recording when something happened.

Plain text is also readable by anything. Another program reading the file, a colleague opening it on a different computer, or you searching it years later: all see exactly the characters you typed.

Jotter also keeps the file's own encoding and line endings when it saves, so adding a date to a file made on a Unix system, or a UTF-16 file from another program, won't quietly change its format.

Making a habit of it

Logs are where F5 earns its keep. Keep a tab open through the day, and begin each entry with a stamp. You end up with a clear timeline of calls, changes or problems. Because Jotter writes changes to disk a few seconds after you make them, the log survives a closed window or a crash.

When you need to find an entry later, Ctrl+F opens the find bar. Search for part of the date or a word from the entry, then press Enter or F3 to step through the matches.

If you use another editor

Some other notepads have a similar key, and word processors usually have an insert date command in a menu. The advantage of doing it in Jotter by Zaweba is that the text stays plain, the file keeps its format, and your notes, saved or not, are still there next time you open the program.