Difference Between RTF and TXT

RTF vs TXT

RTF and TXT are two file formats used to store simple documents which have fallen to the wayside in favor of other popular formats like DOC. The main difference between RTF and TXT is their feature list. RTF is a lot more powerful than the very simplistic TXT format. The feature list of RTF is very desirable due to its presentational value.

The first in the list of RTF features is the ability to format the fonts in its content just like you would with DOCs. TXT files cannot retain any sort of formatting. Although some text editors may be able to change the font type, size, and other aspects, all the changes will be lost once you save it into a text file.

The same is true when it comes to paragraph formatting. The only thing you can do with text files is to indent the text. With RTF, you can individualize paragraphs left, center, right, and even justify it. Alignment is very important in documents as it creates a nicer and more organized looking document.

Another feature lacking in TXT is the ability to create lists whether numbered or bulleted. RTF can easily create and format these lists into the file. Although TXT files cannot create lists, you can still manually do it by indenting the entries and manually putting numbers or bullet characters on it.

Lastly, RTF files are capable of embedding images. This feature is relatively limited in terms of the types of images that can be embedded. There is also some issue with some RTF readers being unable to read the embedded image. But if the reader can’t display the image, it doesn’t break the RTF file; the text would still be displayed sans the image.

RTF is a proprietary format that was developed by Microsoft. The lack of openness from Microsoft has made it difficult for other developers to incorporate the format into their own word processors. TXT is very simple and straightforward. Literally, all word processors are capable of reading any text file.

Summary:

1.RTF has many more features than TXT.
2.RTF is capable of basic font formatting while TXT isn’t.
3.RTF is capable of paragraph formatting while TXT isn’t.
4.RTF is capable of creating lists while TXT isn’t.
5.RTF files can include images while TXT cannot.
6.RTF is proprietary while TXT is not.

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