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A Beginner's Guide To Writing Markdown

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37 views4 pages

A Beginner's Guide To Writing Markdown

Uploaded by

ismith1024
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as TXT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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A Beginner’s Guide to Writing Markdown

Markdown is a lightweight markup language that is simple to learn and widely used
for formatting plain text. It is commonly used for creating documentation, README
files, blogs, and notes. This tutorial provides an overview of Markdown's syntax
and practical tips for writing your own Markdown files.

What is Markdown?
Markdown allows you to format text using plain-text syntax, which is then rendered
as structured HTML or styled text in Markdown-compatible viewers. Its simplicity
and readability make it a popular choice for both technical and non-technical
users. Markdown files typically have the .md or .markdown extension.

Basic Markdown Syntax


1. Headers
Headers are created by using the # symbol, with the number of # symbols indicating
the level of the header.

markdown
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# Header 1
## Header 2
### Header 3
#### Header 4
##### Header 5
###### Header 6
Output:

Header 1
Header 2
Header 3
2. Paragraphs and Line Breaks
Simply type your text as normal to create a paragraph. For a line break, leave two
spaces at the end of the line or insert an empty line between blocks of text.

markdown
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This is a paragraph.

This is another paragraph.


Output:
This is a paragraph.

This is another paragraph.

3. Emphasis (Italics and Bold)


Use * or _ for italics and ** or __ for bold.

markdown
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*Italicized text* or _Italicized text_

**Bold text** or __Bold text__


Output:
Italicized text
Bold text

4. Lists
Unordered lists use *, -, or +.
Ordered lists use numbers followed by a period (1.).
markdown
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- Item 1
- Item 2
- Sub-item 2.1
- Sub-item 2.2

1. First item
2. Second item
1. Sub-item 2.1
2. Sub-item 2.2
Output:

Item 1
Item 2
Sub-item 2.1
Sub-item 2.2
First item
Second item
Sub-item 2.1
Sub-item 2.2
5. Links and Images
Links are created using [link text](URL) syntax.
Images use the same syntax but are prefixed with an exclamation mark (!).

markdown
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[OpenAI](https://www.openai.com)

![Alt text](https://example.com/image.png)
Output:
OpenAI

6. Blockquotes
Use the > symbol to create blockquotes.

markdown
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> This is a blockquote.
> It can span multiple lines.
Output:

This is a blockquote.
It can span multiple lines.

7. Code Blocks and Inline Code


Inline code is wrapped in backticks (`).
Code blocks are wrapped in triple backticks (```) or indented with four spaces.

markdown
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Inline code: `print('Hello, world!')`

Code block:
def hello(): print("Hello, world!")

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Output:
Inline code: print('Hello, world!')

scss
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def hello():
print("Hello, world!")
8. Tables
Tables use pipes (|) and hyphens (-) to create rows and columns.

markdown
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| Column 1 | Column 2 | Column 3 |
|----------|----------|----------|
| Data 1 | Data 2 | Data 3 |
| Data 4 | Data 5 | Data 6 |
Output:

Column 1 Column 2 Column 3


Data 1 Data 2 Data 3
Data 4 Data 5 Data 6
9. Horizontal Lines
Use three or more dashes (---), asterisks (***), or underscores (___) to create a
horizontal line.

markdown
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---
***
___
Output:
10. Escaping Characters
If you need to display a literal Markdown character (e.g., * or #), escape it with
a backslash (\).

markdown
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\*This text is not italicized.\*
Output:
*This text is not italicized.*

Advanced Tips for Writing Markdown


Use a Markdown Editor
Tools like VS Code, Obsidian, or dedicated Markdown editors like Typora provide
live previews and syntax highlighting.

Combine Markdown with HTML


If Markdown lacks a feature you need, you can embed raw HTML directly.

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<p>This is a paragraph in HTML.</p>
Extensions for GitHub Flavored Markdown (GFM)
GFM supports additional features, such as task lists and tables.
markdown
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- [x] Task 1
- [ ] Task 2
Output:
Task 1
Task 2
Conclusion
Markdown's simple syntax makes it an essential tool for anyone creating formatted
documents or web content. By mastering its basic and advanced features, you can
quickly produce clean and professional-looking text. Experiment with Markdown in a
live preview editor to gain confidence and explore its full potential.

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