Files with the .TEXTCLIPPING extension contain formatted text created using the “drag and drop” method in Mac OS X.

The files can be created by dragging and dropping a selected piece of text onto the desktop; the text retains the formatting, font styles, tables, numeration, and punctuation. The file name is created using the first couple of characters of the text. The text can be viewed by double-clicking its icon. The action can also be somewhat reversed by dragging the text into a text file – this way, the contents of a TEXTCLIPPING file can be easily inserted into a full document. This method is used as an alternative to the “copy-paste” method, usually when searching for information online or in other files.