WriteRoom Guide

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Markdown Formatting ​

Every Markdown mark visibleEvery Markdown mark visible

The same passage with Live Preview hiding the markupThe same passage with Live Preview hiding the markup

Markdown formats text with plain characters: **bold**, # Heading, - list item. WriteRoom colors the markup as you type and has commands to write it for you.

The Format menu works in Markdown documents. In a plain text document WriteRoom offers to make it Markdown first. See Plain Text & Markdown.

Text ​

To format text ​

Select some text, or place the caret in a word, then:

  • Format > Bold (Command-B)
  • Format > Italic (Command-I)
  • Format > Highlight (Shift-Command-H)
  • Format > Strikethrough (Shift-Command--)
  • Format > Code > Inline Code (Shift-Command-M)

Use the same command again to remove the formatting.

To remove formatting ​

  • Format > Clear Formatting (Command-\). Press it again to clear the next level out.

Blocks ​

To make a heading ​

  • Format > Headings > Heading 1 through Heading 6 (Command-1 through Command-6)

To make a list ​

  • Format > Lists > Bulleted List (Command-L)
  • Format > Lists > Task List (Option-Command-L)
  • Format > Lists > Ordered List (Shift-Command-L)

Press Return to continue a list. Press it on an empty item to step out a level. Tab and Shift-Tab indent and outdent list items.

Numbered lists renumber as you edit, or use Format > Lists > Renumber List.

WriteRoom > Settings > Markdown > Lists sets bullets and renumbering.

To add a line break ​

  • Press Shift-Return to start a new line in the same paragraph, list item or quote.

See Hard-Wrapped Markdown for line breaks and unwrapping paragraphs.

To check off a task ​

  • Click its checkbox
  • Or use Format > Lists > Mark as Completed (Shift-Command-C)

Checking a task checks its subtasks too. Checking the last open subtask checks its parent. Turn this off in WriteRoom > Settings > Markdown > Lists.

To make other blocks ​

  • Format > Quote (Shift-Command-')
  • Format > Code > Code Block (Option-Command-C)
  • Format > Body turns a heading, list item, or quote back into a plain paragraph.
  • Format > Links & Footnotes > Add Link… (Command-K). The selection becomes the link text and the caret moves to where the URL goes.

Reference links and footnotes are on their own page: Links & Footnotes.

To add a horizontal rule ​

  • Edit > Insert > Horizontal Rule (Control-Command--)

Table of Contents ​

A table of contents is a list of links to your document's headings. WriteRoom writes it as ordinary Markdown between two comments, so it works anywhere Markdown is read.

markdown
<!-- toc -->
- [Installing](#installing)
  - [Requirements](#requirements)
- [Usage](#usage)
<!-- /toc -->

To add a table of contents ​

  • Format > Headings > Generate Table of Contents

It goes above your first section, after any title and introduction. To move it, cut and paste.

To update a table of contents ​

  • Format > Headings > Generate Table of Contents

It updates the one already there, rewriting only the entries that changed.

To go to a heading ​

  • Command-click its entry
  • Or Go > Open Link (Command-Return) with the caret in the entry

What's listed? ​

Every heading except the title, which is a lone # heading at the start of the document. Headings in quotes, lists and code blocks aren't listed.

Links use the same heading anchors as GitHub. To give a heading your own anchor, end it with {#name}: ## Installing {#setup}.

Options ​

Options go in the opening comment, then Generate Table of Contents to apply them.

  • levels=2-3 lists only heading levels 2 through 3. levels=2 lists level 2 alone.
markdown
<!-- toc levels=2-3 -->

Hide Formatting ​

WriteRoom hides Markdown markup until your caret reaches it, so **bold** reads as bold. Choose what's hidden in WriteRoom > Settings > Markdown > Live Preview:

  • Hide formatting marks: emphasis, code, highlight, and strikethrough
  • Hide link and footnote marks: a link shows only its text
  • Number headings: a heading's # marks show as its outline number, such as 2.1
  • Typeset math: see Math

All are on by default.

Tables ​

See Markdown Tables.

Code ​

Code spans and code blocks are set in a monospace font. Name a language after a code block's opening fence to color it:

markdown
```swift
let greeting = "Hello"
```

WriteRoom colors JavaScript, TypeScript, JSON, HTML, XML, CSS, YAML, Rust, Python, Swift, Go, C, C++, Shell, Java, Kotlin, C#, Ruby, SQL, Lua, Scala, Haskell, OCaml, F#, Lisp, Elixir, Objective-C, PHP, Dart, PowerShell, LaTeX, Mermaid, TOML, Dockerfile, and diffs.

More Markdown ​

WriteRoom also reads these extensions from Pandoc:

  • Superscript and subscript: x^2^ and H~2~O
  • Definition lists: a term on one line, then : and its definition on the next
  • Attributes: {#id .class} at the end of a heading
  • Front matter: a block of settings between --- lines at the top of the document. It folds when the document opens.

Math ​

Write LaTeX math between dollar signs: $E = mc^2$ inline, or $$…$$ for a display equation. With Settings > Markdown > Typeset math turned on, WriteRoom typesets it in place. Move the caret into an equation to edit its source, with the typeset result shown above it.

See also ​