MarkDown (MD), looking for a good editor - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: DiTBho
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 19, 2025, 08:22:07 am
content: Hi,I need something that:fully understands the MD format (headings, tables, lists, bold, italics, ..., links)understands Headings in a way you can quickly scroll them and jump to the first linecan be used in "source mode" and "view mode"in "source mode", you have to see nothing but the code, not what the code does on rendering engineincluded images must be stored in a local sub foldercan work locally, without internetcan include "C code", to be showed without any "code highlight", but displayed in a fixed-width font, preserving both spaces and line breakscan export the entire document to PDFpreferably not written in Java or strange languages ​​like { Golang, Rust... }I would like to compile the sources and run it on my HPPA workstation, but it's not a must....I have no problem with EXE executables for Windows10 on my Lenovo laptop...not the best in life, but really it's not a problem.Let me know

author: DiTBho
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 19, 2025, 08:32:08 am
content: Already triedGeany: it only works in "source-mode", it understands Headings, but doesn't have any "view mode".Obsidian: it doesn't allow you to navigate between multiple paragraphs and I find it "ok" for small documents, but really annoying to use with larger ones.

author: DiTBho
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 19, 2025, 08:37:00 am
content: WhyMarkdown?That's it

author: thephil
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: May 19, 2025, 08:55:28 am
content: I typically don't use real markdown editor but use my favorite text editor for working on the document and (sometimes) a separate viewer (e.g. okular) for preview, sometimes with an additional pdf conversion step. I keep both windows open and switch between windows as needed. I like that workflow bit, of course, not everybody likes it.Other than that, maybe you can find a few hints here (not sure if you are windows only, your post sounded like you may be using different systems):https://softwarerecs.stackexchange.com/questions/17714/simple-markdown-viewer-for-ubuntu-standalone-program-not-something-that-requir

author: DiTBho
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 19, 2025, 10:01:21 am
content: Quote from: thephil on May 19, 2025, 08:55:28 amAt the moment I am using nedit and myED(1).The big problem is how to quickly scroll Headings and jump to the first line of each of theme.g.Code:# cat test.md# Cap1blablablablablablablablablablablabla## P1.1blablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablabla## P1.2blablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablabla## P1.3blablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablabla### P1.3.1blablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablablabla### P1.3.2blablablablablablablablablablablabla....# ConclusionblablablablablablablablablablablablaI wrote a tool that extracts the headings (even with a level-filter).It's very useful for making an outline, and for getting a quick idea of ​​the content.Code:# md_utils -headings=all test.md+ Cap1+ P1.1+ P1.2+ P1.3+ P1.3.1+ P1.3.2+ ConclusionThis tool can also report the line number of where the heading begins,and I can use this information in myED for the "jump to line x" function, exactly as I can do the same thing with nedit.But I would also like there to be a menu on the left that lists the headers, like Geany does with C prototypes.You click on it, and it takes you to the definition.I mean, I wouldn't want to write the software myself,because I have a lot of other things to finish.Isn't there anything like that?(1) I wrote myown text editor, but it's for { C, myC } code.MD is not yet supported

author: brucehoult
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 19, 2025, 10:13:38 am
content: https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/languages/markdown

author: RAPo
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 19, 2025, 12:28:39 pm
content: Indeed!Quote from: brucehoult on May 19, 2025, 10:13:38 am

author: DiTBho
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 19, 2025, 01:06:04 pm
content: Quote from: RAPo on May 19, 2025, 12:28:39 pmyes, well, VS is written in the link that I posted myself.Isn't really there anything less invasive than VisualStudio?I would avoid, if possible ...... I would be happier if it was something I could compile and run on the HPPA GNU/Linux (PA-RISC) workstation ...if there is nothing, then never mind, but Windows is the last resort, and I would only use VS if there really is nothing else decent.

author: tggzzz
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 19, 2025, 02:17:22 pm
content: Quote from: DiTBho on May 19, 2025, 01:06:04 pmEmacs with markdown mode.Emacs is definitely available in HPUX systems; I used it for decades

author: HwAoRrDk
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 19, 2025, 02:54:07 pm
content: I useMarkText.It seems to tick all the boxes for your requirements.Quote from: DiTBho on May 19, 2025, 08:22:07 amCode blocks are part of the standard, so any editor that doesn't support them would be deficient. "Classic" (as denoted by white-space indentation), or "Fenced" (denoted by triple-backticks) code blocks are specifically intended for representation of fixed-format code, to be rendered with a fixed-width font. So again, if any editordidn'tdo that by default, I'd be very surprised. Also syntax highlighting is optional and entirely at the author's discretion - i.e. if you don't want it, then don't mark the block with a language code (e.g.```vs```c).

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 19, 2025, 03:01:44 pm
content: Not sure if you're dead set against WYSIWYG editing, but you might like to check out Typora:https://typora.io/

author: HwAoRrDk
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 19, 2025, 03:58:43 pm
content: Typora is decent, but it's not open source.I used to use Typora while it was in free beta, but there was one bug with it that really started annoying me - it would keep forgetting I had a British English spell-check dictionary installed, and I would have to keep re-installing it. But I didn't feel like taking a gamble on paying for the then newly-commercial release to see if the bug was fixed.

author: dave j
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: May 19, 2025, 04:28:21 pm
content: Quote from: thephil on May 19, 2025, 08:55:28 amI do this too. An editor that can do Markdown syntax highlighting. Okular for 'view mode' (it will automatically reload the file if it changes on disk so you just need to save your document in your editor to get the view to refresh). If you want a PDF version, just print to a file from Okular.

author: eutectique
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 19, 2025, 05:02:33 pm
content: CLion has MD plugin:https://www.jetbrains.com/help/clion/markdown.html

author: Tation
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: May 19, 2025, 05:12:33 pm
content: I use Typora in both Win11 and Linux. It does all items in the list, but, well, it is propietary software…

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 19, 2025, 05:21:08 pm
content: I am missing something: where is open source specified as a necessity?And... yes, it's great to have something for free, but I personally don't mind paying for something that is good and does what I need. Sometimes the paid option is better than the free one tooand, after all, someone has spent a goodly amount of work making it.

author: HwAoRrDk
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 19, 2025, 06:00:52 pm
content: Quote from: PlainName on May 19, 2025, 05:21:08 pmQuote from: DiTBho on May 19, 2025, 08:22:07 am

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 19, 2025, 06:12:56 pm
content: Yes, indeed, "but it's not a must" and having to put up with W11 on a laptop suggests it's not too critical

author: kripton2035
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 19, 2025, 07:31:00 pm
content: https://www.marktext.cc/

author: radiolistener
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 19, 2025, 09:15:46 pm
content: Quote from: DiTBho on May 19, 2025, 08:32:08 amas I know there is markdown plugin for geany which allows to view result page view. But I didn't tried it.https://plugins.geany.org/markdown.htmlQuote from: brucehoult on May 19, 2025, 10:13:38 amthe problem with vscode is that it's very slow and full of bloatware and telemetryI used codium (telemetry disabled version of vscode) some time ago, but then decided to remove it, since I don't started it for a long time due to it's high lags and memory usage.

author: brucehoult
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 19, 2025, 10:00:28 pm
content: Quote from: radiolistener on May 19, 2025, 09:15:46 pmOh, interesting. I've never tried it myself -- I'm a happy emacs user since 1997 (and edit my markdown there, like everything else) -- but people seem to rave about VSCode and I assume no one needs to be told that emacs exists.It's got to be better than Eclipse, right?

author: radiolistener
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 19, 2025, 10:08:43 pm
content: Quote from: brucehoult on May 19, 2025, 10:00:28 pmyes, its more fast than Eclipse, and looks better, has good syntax/highlighting/autocomplete/debugger support, but still laggy in comparison with Geany.

author: SiliconWizard
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 21, 2025, 01:24:13 pm
content: Use asciidoc.

author: DiTBho
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 21, 2025, 01:45:48 pm
content: Quote from: tggzzz on May 19, 2025, 02:17:22 pmI used HPUX-v10.20 on (PA-v1.0) 712/60 Gecko.Sold on eBay, and I bought a round trip plane ticket to pick up in Sweden.Now I am with GNU/Linux on a brand new PA-v2.0 workstation

author: DiTBho
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 21, 2025, 01:46:29 pm
content: Quote from: kripton2035 on May 19, 2025, 07:31:00 pmThis is very nice

author: shapirus
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 21, 2025, 02:45:50 pm
content: Not exactly about editors, but it may be useful all the same:$ apt show gripPackage: gripVersion: 4.6.1-2Priority: optionalSection: utilsMaintainer: Debian Python Team <team+python@tracker.debian.org>Installed-Size: 123 kBDepends: python3-docopt, python3-flask (>= 0.10.1), python3-markdown, python3-path-and-address, python3-pygments, python3-requests, python3-werkzeug, python3:anyHomepage:https://github.com/joeyespo/gripDownload-Size: 31.8 kBAPT-Sources:http://cdn.debian.net/debiantrixie/main amd64 PackagesDescription: Preview GitHub Markdown files like Readme locallyGrip is a command-line server application written in Python that uses theGitHub markdown API to render a local readme file. The styles come directlyfrom GitHub, so you'll know exactly how it will appear. Changes you make tothe Readme will be instantly reflected in the browser without requiring a pagerefresh..Privacy notice: by default all documents will be sent to GitHub (Microsoft).p.s. I've never noticed that privacy notice until now. Not sure what it actually means though. Apparently it uses github api for rendering. But I've just tried to run it understraceand didn't notice any outgoing network requests whatsoever.

author: radiolistener
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 21, 2025, 02:55:32 pm
content: Quote from: shapirus on May 21, 2025, 02:45:50 pmUsually they collect all data and then sending it in background from some hidden background service, it also may use some specific protocols to hide what is actually sent.

author: shapirus
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 21, 2025, 03:02:52 pm
content: Quote from: radiolistener on May 21, 2025, 02:55:32 pmThere's no background service.It's not really a spyware kind of thing. The readme in the git repo explains what's going on there:https://github.com/joeyespo/grip?tab=readme-ov-file#accessWhether github itself does anything with the data it receives via that API we don't know. The answer is maybe. Avoid using it for sensitive data if you care.

author: krish2487
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 21, 2025, 03:56:14 pm
content: Personally, I am a huge fan of Obsidian and have adapted my workflow to use it.. but you can always tryhttps://b3log.org/siyuan/en/It is a obsidian like editor.. and you might find this a little more convenient

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 21, 2025, 09:37:27 pm
content: Quote from: kripton2035 on May 19, 2025, 07:31:00 pmMain problem with this one is it asks if you want to save the changes. Like, every time, even if you've only opened a file for viewing and made no changes whatsoever.Probably best to skip over it being electron based

author: DiTBho
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 21, 2025, 09:42:23 pm
content: Quote from: DiTBho on May 19, 2025, 08:22:07 amExcept Geany + MD-plugin, it seems no other editor support this, which is a must for me

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 22, 2025, 08:12:38 am
content: Quote from: DiTBho on May 21, 2025, 09:42:23 pmDo you mean via keyboard shortcuts (like ctl-up for start of line)? Marktext and Typora (and probably others) have sidebars with headings shown as an outline. Click one and there you are.

author: DiTBho
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 22, 2025, 09:45:57 am
content: Quote from: PlainName on May 22, 2025, 08:12:38 amI mean something like the "symbols area" in Geany.It is particularly useful when the document has many subchapters that you develop out of order.And a feature like that allows you to scroll through them and access directly without having to scroll through the entire doc.Saves a lot of times!!!

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 22, 2025, 12:16:18 pm
content: Typora has similar (but, better, highlights the heading you're looking at).Marktext has simillar but the target is positioned mid-screen rather than at the top. Don't know why the images didn't load in that, though.