It’s 4.30am now. My baby girl woke me up at 4am. Now, I’m in this zombiefied state where I’m exhausted but my mind is racing, so I can’t fall asleep again.
But maybe that’s how the Universe works! Tbh I just learnt Markdown because @Coinsreporter asked how to embed a link within his text. Woah, did you know that I just always copy and paste the link here? Him finally asking my unarticulated question out loud made me stumble upon the answer: Markdown.
Here, I embarrassingly admit that I thought Markdown is this cute little feature exclusive to SN. That you learn it on the job here so as to make your posts and comments more appealing. I didn’t know Markdown is so established!
Apparently, people use Markdown to pen their thoughts in plain text files. Also, you can use Markdown on Obsidian
My world has been expanded!
But I’m a clean slate. Aside from embedding a link and bolding something, I know nothing else. I probably can learn how to quote someone’s words if I try. What Markdown features do you normally use?
Why do you feel it better than plain old Microsoft?
Thanks, Stackers. Will now try to get some sleep before my real wake-up time 😅😂
The handful that I use most often:
  • Bullets *
  • Headings #
  • Quotes >
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The handful that I use most often: Bullets * Headings # Quotes >
You are the first Stacker I applied Quotes to haha
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Well done
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You write the most concise, yet comprehensive comments!
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I make a conscious effort to be concise and informative. I like to get to the point quickly and efficiently. :)
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Dr. Stacker's Ultimate Markdown Guide 🚀

Table of Contents

  1. Text Formatting
  2. Lists
  3. Links and Images
  4. Code
  5. Tables
  6. Blockquotes
  7. Footnotes
  8. Task Lists
  9. Emoji Support
  10. Appendix

Text Formatting

  • Bold: **bold text**
  • Italic: *italic text*
  • Strikethrough: ~~strikethrough~~
Combine them for bold and italic using **_bold and italic_**.

Lists

Ordered List

  1. First item
  2. Second item
  3. Third item

Unordered List

  • First item
  • Second item
  • Third item

Nested List

  1. First item
    • First nested item
      • Second nested item

Links and Images

Code

Inline code with backticks.
# Block of code def hello_world(): print("Hello, Stacker News!")

Tables

SyntaxDescription
HeaderTitle
ParagraphText
  • Align text by using colons: :---, :---:, ---: for left, center, and right alignment.

Blockquotes

Markdown is a lightweight markup language with plain-text formatting syntax. Its design allows it to be converted to many output formats.

Footnotes

Footnotes allow you to add references or comments without cluttering the text. Here's how to create them1.

Task Lists

Task lists are great for tracking progress in project files or to-do lists.
  • Completed task
  • Uncompleted task
  • Another task to do

Emoji Support

Emojis can be added to your Markdown 😃. Use the emoji shortcode (e.g., :smile:) to insert them.

Appendix

FeatureDescriptionSyntax/Example
Bold TextMake text bold.**bold text**
Italic TextItalicize text.*italic text*
StrikethroughCrosses out text.~~strikethrough~~
Ordered ListCreates a list with numbers.1. First item <br> 2. Second item
Unordered ListCreates a bullet point list.- First item <br> - Second item
Nested ListCreates a list within a list.1. First item <br> - First nested item
LinksAdds hyperlinks.[OpenAI](https://www.openai.com)
ImagesEmbeds an image.![Alt text](https://example.com/image.jpg)
CodeFormats text as inline code or code block.Inline: `code` <br> Block: ```python `code` ```
TablesOrganizes data in rows and columns.`
BlockquotesIndents text to quote it.> blockquote
Horizontal RuleInserts a thematic break.---
FootnotesAdds a reference or comment at the bottom.Text with footnote[^1] <br> [^1]: Footnote text.
Task ListsCreates a checklist.- [x] Completed task <br> - [ ] Open task
Collapsible SectionsCreates a section that can be expanded or collapsed.<details> <br> <summary>Title</summary> <br> Content <br> </details>
Custom IDs for HeadersAssigns a unique ID to headers for linking.### Header {#custom-id}
Definition ListsDefines terms and descriptions (Not widely supported).Term <br> : Definition
Text HighlightingHighlights text using HTML and CSS (Not standard Markdown).<span style="background-color: yellow;">Highlight</span>
Using HTMLAllows for HTML elements for formatting not supported by Markdown.<div style="color: red;">HTML content</div>
Emoji SupportAdds emojis to the text.:smile: → 😃
Inline Images and FiguresEmbeds images with captions using HTML.<figure><img src="url" alt="desc"><figcaption>Caption</figcaption></figure>

Footnotes

  1. This is a footnote. It can contain links, images, or even code.
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Omg this is a godsend. Bookmarking this, thank you
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Good morning dear friend. It's 2:30 AM in this part of the world. Still awake, just attending a typical whole night Hindu marriage of my cousin. Thanks for mentioning. I'm the person who believes that it always better to ask, if you don't know the way. Wait! Did you also forward the zaps towards me? Thank you so much. This is my first forwarded zap. And TBH 😂 I just realised it when I tried to zap this post. That's a perfect V4V!!!!!
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108 sats \ 1 reply \ @Lanter 8 Mar
I always forgot the shortcut so why not open new tab for GitHub
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Good advice, thanks
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Rabbit-hole activated!
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I use quotes, code blocks, inline code , and links often.
I like markdown because it’s just plain text being interpreted by a client. Not some convoluted binary file like a Microsoft word file.
Even if someone doesn’t know how to open a markdown client, the raw text is very human readable.
Edit: also, because it’s plaintext, it’s easy to see diffs between versions.
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Also, you can use Markdown on Obsidian
Obsidian is proprietary software (i.e. it's a user trap and you can't rely on it for privacy)
Use Logseq instead, if you want something similar to Obsidian. Logseq also utilises markdown (of course).
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Learning from others is a great habit. Isn't it?
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