macOS Quick Tip: Copy and Paste Text Without Formatting

[benwiggy]

And that is why I still pay for the standalone app called clean text. I can’t do any word processing without it. It would be nice if Apple just bought the company and integrated it into the software.

You pay for an app to remove formatting?

One line of shell script will do this.

pbpaste | pbcopy

You can easily wrap this into an Automator or Shortcuts workflow, or trigger a shell script any number of other ways. Apple doesn't need to buy a company to remove formatting from text. 🤣

This article is incorrect. It doesn't paste 'plain text'. It pastes with 'Match Styles', which means it applies the styles that have been assigned to the area of the document it's being pasted into.

If you paste plain text into a Rich Text document, then ..... yeah, it's going to have the same style as everything else in the document. It's impossible to do otherwise.

 

[MacBH928]

You pay for an app to remove formatting?

One line of shell script will do this.

pbpaste | pbcopy

You can easily wrap this into an Automator or Shortcuts workflow, or trigger a shell script any number of other ways. Apple doesn't need to buy a company to remove formatting from text. 🤣

this is just going to be similar to cmd+alt+shift+V

the shortcut is easier instead of having to open the terminal

 

[benwiggy]

the shortcut is easier instead of having to open the terminal

Agreed. Though some apps don't have the Match Style function. But I'm showing that it can also be achieve in software in the OS; and therefore the idea of paying for an app (or of Apple needing to buy a company for their revolutionary technology) is needless.

 

[GFS]

But I'm showing that it can also be achieve in software in the OS; and therefore the idea of paying for an app (or of Apple needing to buy a company for their revolutionary technology) is needless.

Shortcuts is a macOS installed app. It's not 3rd party.

(... and the good news, is that it's apparently being improved for Tahoe. Much needed. Yipeee!)

 

[benwiggy]

Shortcuts is a macOS installed app. It's not 3rd party.

Agreed. I'm not suggesting otherwise. MacBH928 was talking about the Paste matching key shortcut, not the app.