The TXT file format, also called the Plain Text File format, was developed by Tim Berners-Lee - the inventor of the World Wide Web. Unlike other document file types, such as .DOC, the TXT file format just stores plain text, so it can't contain complex formatting, images or other multimedia. TXT files are used to write memos, letters, manuscripts and other text-based content, as well as for encoding and storing data. Because of their simplicity, they don’t support formatting features such as font changes or colour edits, so if you want to make your file look a little more attractive you’ll need to use a different word processing application.

Part of the appeal of the TXT format is that the files are extremely small in size, easy to create, edit and share, and are compatible with almost any device and operating system. Apple’s Notepad and Microsoft’s TextEdit can both be used to create TXT files, and you can open TXT files with any text-editing application and most internet browsers.