Hexcellent

A hex editor. Includes these features:

• Does not require an existing file to edit
• Unlimited undo and redo
• Full copy and paste functionality of both hex and text
• Find and replace
• Customizable font and color scheme
• User-settable text encoding
• Data inspector supporting both big-endian and little-endian values

Power Keys

When Power Keys are enabled and the focus is on the hex side of the editor, the following keys will have the following effects:

• Z - Replace selection with all zeros (00 00)
• Y - Replace selection with all ASCII spaces (20 20)
• X - Replace selection with all ones (FF FF)
• I - Invert selected bits (00 00 → FF FF and vice versa)
• V - Replace selection with random data
• S - Swap selected bytes / reverse endianness (01 02 → 02 01 and vice versa)
• N - Swap selected nybbles (12 34 → 43 21 and vice versa)
• R - Swap selected bits (80 00 → 00 01 and vice versa)
• [ - Rotate selected bits to the left (ROL)
• ] - Rotate selected bits to the right (ROR)
• < - Shift selected bits to the left (ASL)
• > - Shift selected bits to the right with sign extension (ASR)
• ? - Shift selected bits to the right with zero extension (LSR)
• + - Increment selected value
• - - Decrement selected value
• H - Switch between hex and decimal addresses
• L - Switch between big and little endian

The Backstory

I went looking for a (graphical) hex editor on Linux. After trying several (GHex, Bless, Okteta, wxHexEditor), I was disappointed to find not a single one that didn't have at least one of the following issues:

• Requires an existing file to edit
• Copy and paste limited to the text side
• Copy and paste limited to the hex side
• Copy and paste on the hex side picky about whitespace
• Copy and paste completely broken
• Saving completely broken

I had had enough of everything I tried not getting the basics right and decided to do what I always do in these situations: write my own. I had in fact already written one years ago, inspired by an old Macintosh program called HexEdit, as part of a project called Resplendence. So I took a look at my decade-old code, said "what a mess," started over, and rewrote it as a standalone application.

Be hexcellent to each other.