When there are dozens or even hundreds of TXT files in a folder that need to uniformly modify a certain word, manually searching and replacing each one is very inefficient. This article focuses on the need to uniformly change words in multiple text file contents, demonstrating how to select text tools, import txt files, set precise search, enter keywords before and after replacement in HeSoft Doc Batch Tool , and complete batch processing. The example replaces black with red in batch, helping users quickly master a reusable batch processing workflow for text content.
In many office scenarios, the same word is scattered across multiple text files. For example, professional terminology in a database needs to be unified, old names in project documents need to be updated, identifiers in log texts need to be adjusted, or batch-downloaded text materials require basic cleaning. If there are only one or two files, manually opening and replacing them might be acceptable; but when the number of files increases, or the occurrences within each file are numerous, manual operation becomes repetitive, inefficient, and prone to omissions.
This article introduces a more suitable approach for office batch processing: using HeSoft Doc Batch Tool to perform batch find and replace on multiple TXT text files. In the example, the folder contains multiple text files like big_bang.txt, black_holes.txt, dark_energy.txt, dark_matter.txt, galaxies.txt, and we want to uniformly replace the occurrences of "black" with "red". After reading this article, you can apply the same method to your own txt documents, plain text materials, explanatory texts, and other text file organization tasks.
Applicable Scenarios: Why Use a Batch Method to Uniformly Modify Text Content
The core value of batch replacement of text keywords lies in transforming repetitive manual operations into a one-time configuration and unified execution. It is particularly suitable for the following types of situations.
Unification of Terminology or Names
When a project, product, brand, or terminology undergoes adjustments, previously saved text files might still use the old terms. Modifying files one by one is not only slow but may also lead to inconsistencies due to omissions. Through batch find and replace, multiple files can simultaneously apply the same set of rules.
Mixed Case Replacement in English Text
In English materials, the same word might appear at the beginning of a sentence or in the middle. For example, the sample files contain both "Black" and "black". If these forms need to be uniformly replaced, the case-related options in the tool become very practical.
Batch Cleaning of Exported Plain Text Materials
Exported txt files, log files, and source text materials from systems often require the replacement of fixed fields or markers. Using office software for batch processing can reduce repetitive actions like opening, finding, replacing, and saving.
Multi-file Proofreading and Content Maintenance
Content editors, teachers, researchers, and operations personnel may maintain a large volume of text materials. Batch replacement of keywords can be used for rapid revision and unified expression, making the material maintenance process more efficient.
Effect Preview: Batch Replacement Results from "black" to "red"
Before processing, multiple TXT files have been prepared in the folder. As seen in the screenshot, the extensions of these files are all txt, indicating that the processing objects are plain text files, not Word, Excel, or PDF documents.
After opening one of them, black_holes.txt, "black" appears multiple times in the body text. The green highlight represents found keywords, and the red arrows point out some of the locations. Note that the first line starts with "Black", which is the title case form; other occurrences in the text are mostly lowercase "black". Manual processing would require continuous searching and replacing, which is cumbersome.
After processing, "black" in the same file has been replaced with "red", including the original title case "Black" which has also been replaced with "red". This indicates that after enabling the ignore case option in the settings, the software can uniformly identify keywords with different cases but the same content.
Operation Steps: Batch Find and Replace Keywords in Multiple TXT Files
The following explains the actual process based on the software screenshots. The example uses HeSoft Doc Batch Tool , a product positioned as a batch file processing software for office scenarios, suitable for centralizing repetitive file operations.
Step 1: Find the Batch Replacement Function in Text Tools
After opening the software, the left side is the tool category navigation, including Home, Task Flow, All Tools, File Name, Folder Name, File Organization, Word Tools, Excel Tools, PowerPoint Tools, PDF Tools, Text Tools, etc. Since we are processing txt text content, select "Text Tools" on the left.
On the Text Tools page, find "Find and Replace Keywords in Text". From the card description, this function is used to batch find and replace keywords in text file content. Click the card to enter the specific task page.
The purpose of this step is to determine the processing type. Many users easily confuse "file name replacement" with "file content replacement". This article aims to modify the internal body content of files, so the text content keyword replacement function should be chosen, not file name-related tools.
Step 2: Import the Text Files to be Uniformly Modified
After entering the function, the task name "Find and Replace Keywords in Text" is displayed at the top of the page, and the process is organized into four stages: Select records to process, Set processing options, Set save location, Start processing. Currently at the first step, we need to add the files to be processed to the list.
The upper right provides two common entries: "Add Files" and "Import Files from Folder". If you already know which specific files to process, you can click "Add Files"; if all txt files in a directory need processing, using "Import Files from Folder" is more convenient.
In the example, 5 records have been imported, and the table lists the sequence number, name, path, extension, creation time, modification time, and operation. The file paths are shown as multiple txt files under D:\test\, indicating these files have been successfully added to the batch task.
After importing, it is recommended to check two points: first, whether the number of files meets expectations; second, whether the file paths are correct. If unnecessary files have been added by mistake, they can be deleted via the operation column. After confirming the list is correct, click "Next Step" at the bottom.
Step 3: Enter the Find and Replace Terms
After entering the second step "Set processing options", replacement rules need to be configured. The interface has a "Set Keyword Options" area, including lookup method, additional options, list of keywords to find, list of replacement keywords, etc.
This example selects "Exact Text Find". This is suitable for situations where you know exactly which word to replace, such as replacing "black" with "red". The parallel option "Use formula for fuzzy text find" appears in the interface, but this example does not require complex rules, so keeping the exact find is fine.
In the additional options, "Ignore letter case" is checked. Since the pre-processing text contains both "Black" and "black", checking this avoids replacing only one form. Another option, "Match whole word only, not part of a word", depends on actual needs; it is not checked in this example's screenshot.
Enter "black" in the left "List of keywords to find" and enter "red" in the right "List of replacement keywords". This establishes the replacement relationship: whenever "black" is found in the imported text files, it is replaced with "red".
If your task involves replacing Chinese names, numbers, symbols, or phrases instead of English words, you can enter the corresponding content in the same positions. The key is to ensure the correspondence between the find list and the replacement list is clear.
Step 4: Set the Save Location and Execute Batch Processing
After completing the keyword settings, click "Next Step". According to the process bar, you will subsequently proceed to "Set save location" and "Start processing". The save location determines where the processed text files are output, and starting processing executes the actual batch replacement.
In practical office work, it is recommended to save the processed files to a separate location for easy comparison with the original files. If you are sure the rules are correct, you can also follow the software interface prompts to complete the processing. After the task execution is complete, open any processed file to check and confirm that the keywords have been replaced as expected.
Common Questions and Precautions
1. Will batch replacement miss uppercase words?
If text contains different case forms, whether they are missed depends on the option settings. In the example, "Ignore letter case" was checked, so both "Black" and "black" were replaced with "red". If not checked, the tool typically matches based on the entered text's case and might only process completely identical content.
2. Why be cautious when replacing short words?
If the search term is very short, it might appear inside other words or strings. The interface provides the "Match whole word only, not part of a word" option, which is suitable for avoiding erroneous replacement of partial characters. For example, when wanting to replace only standalone words, attention should be paid to this option.
3. Do I need to open and check files one by one before processing?
It is not always necessary to open every single one, but it is recommended to at least spot-check one or two typical files to confirm the keywords indeed exist, understand the case situation, and assess the possibility of incorrect replacements. Spot-checking before batch processing can reduce rework.
4. Is the processing method the same for TXT, docx, and doc?
Not exactly the same. TXT is a plain text file and is suitable for processing in text tools; Word documents like docx and doc are document formats with different internal structures and should use corresponding Word tools or document processing functions. The process in this article is mainly aimed at txt text files.
Summary: Turning Multi-file Word Changes into a One-time Configuration
The biggest fear when uniformly changing words across multiple text file contents is repetition and omission. Using HeSoft Doc Batch Tool , the actions of importing files, setting keywords, and executing replacement can be strung into a clear process. In the example, batch replacing "black" with "red" only requires setting the rule once to allow multiple TXT files to be modified simultaneously.
If your folder also contains a large number of txt documents that need unified keyword modification, it is recommended to first organize the files to be processed, then follow the steps in this article to enter the text tool, select "Find and Replace Keywords in Text", import files, set the find and replace terms, and finally execute the processing. This saves time and makes batch text maintenance more standardized and controllable.