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Instantly identify "Where did it change?". Definitive edition of Text Difference (Diff) Tool [No DL Required]
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Instantly identify "Where did it change?". Definitive edition of Text Difference (Diff) Tool [No DL Required]

Confirmation of contract amendments, code debugging, manuscript refinement... We explain how to use the "Diff Tool" to instantly flush out differences between two texts from the perspectives of engineers, writers, and business people.

Are you playing "Spot the Difference" looking for changes?

"Creating a merged manuscript was sent from the client, but it doesn't say where it was corrected..." "I'm worried if the draft version and the final version of the contract are the same word for word..." "Code stopped working. What is different from the backup that was working just now?"

When working, there are many situations where you have to check "Difference (Diff) between two texts". Checking this visually side by side takes time, and above all, the risk of oversight is too high. This is because human eyes are not good at finding small differences in similar sentences.

It is the "Diff Tool" that solves such inefficient work instantly.

Tool not found: text-diff

What is Diff Tool?

Diff (Difference) tool is a program that compares two text data and identifies/displays only different parts. Originally it was used by programmers for change management of source code, but now due to its convenience, it is used in a wide range of occupations such as writers and clerical work.

Usage Scenes by Occupation

1. Engineers / Programmers

  • Debugging: When "It was working yesterday but it doesn't work today", if you compare yesterday's code and today's code, you can find the changed line that caused the bug in one shot.
  • Code Review: Check how the code written by other members changed from the original code, and check if unintended changes are included.

2. Web Writers / Editors

  • Refinement (Rewrite): After correcting your manuscript, it helps to compare and consider "Which expression is better before and after correction".
  • Submission Check: You can check if the text delivered to the client has been altered without permission when it is actually published on the Web.
  • Version Management of Contracts: You can check instantly if the contract sent back from the partner company has been corrected in places not intended by you (falsification detection).
  • Confirmation of Minutes: Confirming difference between memo writing and clean copy version etc.

Surprisingly Unknown "How to Read Differences"

When using the Diff tool, results are generally displayed in the following color coding. This is a display method close to the so-called "Unified Format".

🔴 Red (Background) = Deleted Line

Lines that existed in "Text Before Change" but do not exist in "Text After Change". In other words, it is the deleted (or original rewritten) part.

🟢 Green (Background) = Added Line

Lines that did not exist in "Text Before Change" but newly appeared in "Text After Change". In other words, it is the added (or corrected) part.

⚪️ White (Grey) = No Change

Parts common to both texts. It means that it is OK as it is here.

Basically, if you decipher "Red disappeared and became Green", you can understand how it was corrected.

Comparison with Existing Tools: Strength of Jenee

There are many Diff tools in the world, but Tool not found: text-diff is superior in the following points.

1. No Installation Required / No Login Required

High-performance desktop apps like "WinMerge" are convenient, but there are cases where you cannot install them freely on the company's PC. If it is a Web tool, you can use it right now if you have a browser.

2. Security is Safe with "Local Processing"

This is the most important point. Many free online Diff tools send text data to the server once for comparison. In other words, there is a risk that contracts and confidential codes are saved on external servers.

On the other hand, Jenee's tool performs comparison processing only in your browser using JavaScript. Input data is never sent to the outside. You can use it with confidence even for potentially confidential documents.

3. Highlight by Character and Line

It not only displays differences line by line but also highlights finely "which character changed" in the line. It does not miss minute changes that cannot be understood at a glance, such as correction of particles and difference between full-width/half-width characters.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q. Can I also compare Word and PDF files?

A. This tool specializes in comparison of "Plain Text". You cannot compare Word (.docx) or PDF (.pdf) by dragging and dropping directly. Sorry for the inconvenience, but please copy the text once and paste it into the input field to use.

Q. Does it work even with a huge file with tens of thousands of lines?

A. It depends on the specs (memory) of your PC, but it works without problems if it is about tens of thousands of lines. However, due to browser specifications, if you paste extremely large data exceeding hundreds of thousands of lines, operation may become jerky or freeze. In that case, we recommend dividing the file for comparison.

Q. Can I use it on smartphone?

A. Yes, it works on browsers of iPhone and Android. It is convenient for emergency code check on the go or comparing text of emails.

Summary: Won't you automate that visual check?

"Spot the Difference" is fun if it is a game, but it is only a source of stress in work. Leave what tools can do to tools, and let humans concentrate on judging "whether the content of change is appropriate".

If you bookmark it, it should shorten hours of work to seconds in case of emergency.

Tool not found: text-diff

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