#Goog minimalistic free writing software how to#

Below, we’ll break down some of the absolute best (platform-wise) as well as highlight their unique features. Thanks to the rise of the Markdown language, every major platform has a decent range of Markdown editors. If you have a cloud-based folder for storing copies of your work, switching devices should become effortless, with no distortion in your workflow or user experience. This can bring a massive difference in your productivity. Since there are dozens of really good Markdown editors for all platforms (Linux, Mac, Windows, web, etc.), you can pretty much write and edit text from any device and location. The best Markdown editor will make it easy to write your content and quickly export it to PDF, web pages, or Rich Text Format.

With that said, you might still want to export the content in the HTML format. Markdown is much easier to compose than HTML. With a collaborative Markdown editor, this is quite straightforward as multiple users can work on the same document in real-time. If you are writing on Microsoft Word and require the input of other people, you’ll need to send the document to them and then have them send it back to you so that you can merge the changes. Advantages of Using Markdown EditorsĪside from speeding up the formatting process, markdown editors offer the following benefits: Today, Markdown comes packaged in tools that don’t require you to memorize the syntax outright, so even someone with no HTML experience can use a Markdown editor to create content for the web.

#Goog minimalistic free writing software how to#

So, if you know how to make an emoticon or create a hashtag, you can leverage Markdown. To make a piece of text web-ready, Markdown uses characters and symbols you’re already familiar with. However, it’s simpler than hypertext markup, and you don’t need to worry about closing or opening text.

The language uses an easy-to-learn syntax to accomplish the same goal that HTML does. Markdown editors have existed since the turn of the decade but only became popular after John Gruber of Daring Fireball introduced Markdown back in 2004.Īfter getting frustrated having to write long, laborious HTML codes to format his content, he worked with the late computer programmer Aaron Swartz to create a plain text formatting syntax that would quickly and easily translate content into HTML. The idea is to produce web content that is as easy to read as plain text. You can use it to format lists, headers, and for emphasis, as well as to incorporate links and images. The end goal is to equip you with a minimalist writing tool that allows you to pen down your thoughts, and then export them to a CMS like WordPress without stressing too much about their appearance.Ī Markdown editor is an intuitive and lightweight text-to-HTML conversion tool for web content writers. In this post, we’ll give you a detailed explanation of what a Markdown editor is, and then provide you with an ultimate list of the best Markdown editors. When it comes to formatting, most people will use the built-in editor of their content management system to create headings, italicize the text, and build lists.įair enough, but guess what? You don’t need to rely on a complicated toolbar or apply text formatting. So, we figured it was time to introduce you to the magic of Markdown editors, and why you should be using them right now.

If you’ve ever written an article in Microsoft Word and tried moving the text into a CMS, you have probably spent a lot of time scouring for untidy formatting and obstructions that result from this cross-platform conversion.