for example i have about 500 lines. in the beginning of each line i want to add a number. so in line 1 i would want "1)" and then line 2 i would want "2)"
i know i can do a macro in n++, but it wouldn't be incremental. is there any possible way to do this?
Edit -> Column Editor and use the bottom option on that dialogue (Number to Insert). This way you can also start from whatever number you like and not have to have the leading zeros.
Notepad++ Macros only playback keyboard actions. They can't do anything dynamic.
However there is a built-in(?) plugin that can do this for you.
Highlight all the code, then choose "TextFX / TextFX Tools / Insert Line Numbers"
One thing to be aware of is that it is the absolute line number within the file. You can't start numbering on line 10 and make it say line 03 or something like that.
In the more general cases where you want to add a sequence number more selectively (e.g. in the middle of a line, or only for some lines), there are two methods:
Hold down alt and use your mouse to drag a rectangular region, as described in http://sourceforge.net/apps/mediawiki/notepad-plus/index.php?title=Column_Editing Then use Edit -> Column Editor -> Number to Insert as per Tom's answer.
Select a rectangular region again as above, copy the single character # to your clipboard, then use TextFX -> TextFX Edit -> Insert (Clipboard) through lines, as described here: http://sourceforge.net/apps/mediawiki/notepad-plus/index.php?title=Clipboard_Uses#Insert_through_lines_variable_text
