Set Plain Text As Default Format in TextEdit Using Terminal Command
For some silly reason, the default format for an OS X TextEdit app is formatted text. If you prefer plain text, Defaults Write indicates that you can easily set it as the default using a terminal command.
All you have to do is open Terminal and enter this command:
by default write com.apple.TextEdit RichText -int 0
Now, when you open a new document in TextEdit, it is automatically set as plain text, with no formatting options or anything else cluttering the screen. As several readers have pointed out, you can also change it in TextEdit> Preferences if you don’t want to open the command line. Once set up for plain text, you can always switch it to rich text by pressing Shift + Command + T.
Use Plain Text as Default Format in TextEdit | Default – Record