Just curious, when using Markdown documents, how often are you:
- Just composing and viewing the rendered Markdown?
- Exporting to other formats, e.g., to PDF documents?
Mostly. saving as MD as size very small, which I appreciate. Using the Markdownload app which is handy and gives good metata. Usually I edit out the links to un-needed photos on Assets. Works fine 99% of time. Rarely use DEVONthink sorter or extension anymore–do use these when I copy/paste from something.
I convert to PDF when the MD file (created with Markdownload app) has needed graphics. Makes for a stand-alone document independent of Assets. Then I delete the MD file.
Not asked but I’ll say anyway. When I create stuff, mostly in Scrivener as I have a number of long-form documents underway at any moment in time. For short stuff (letters) email, Word or Pages–not fussy, and I dislike/hate neither of these fine apps. For notes – mostly in Reminders, PostIts, or whatever. I don’t bother formalise that sort of stuff.
1 Like
I’m almost always just composing and viewing. To me, it’s sort of an in-between state between plain text and RTF. I like to have some degree of formatting, but also want to both keep my text extremely portable and future proof.
I also understand that I may be in the minority, and many people use it for PDF and export to the web.
1 Like
Mostly composing and viewing
1 Like
Mostly composing and viewing as well.
1 Like
For the last five years mostly composing and viewing but there’s been a recent uptick in the number of times I’ve printed to PDF for work. I think my notes are becoming more “valuable” to other people and, with a very WIDE spectrum of technical knowledge in that group, a PDF is the simplest way to distribute.
I’ve been using Terpstra’s Marked 2 to handle rendering. The main reason being that it stays on the document I need Need NEED to focus on getting out, while in DT I can be doing about 10 things across 4 projects at a time (notes, receipts, bookmarking) so having Marked 2 in the tab-switch is a good way to take my focus back to where I need it. It’s a my-brain hack not a tech hack.
2 Likes
Mostly composing and viewing. I occasionally have to generate a docx to share with colleagues for their input (e.g. track changes). I often do this using pandoc as i have different macos services that execute different pandoc commands to pick up different ms word templates when generating the docx.
1 Like
in DEVONthink it’s only viewing for me.
But I’m a corner case, my databases are indexed and I create/edit all of my MD files in BBEdit and view the render in DEVONthink. Works well for me.
1 Like
90% just this for notes I create directly in DT. I will often end up copying text for moving to other pieces of work, often in another app, at a later date, but it’s very rare (my 10% allocated here) that I will need a note exactly as it is. Usually I’m only copying the bit of text I need.
I like the simplicity of markdown, which means that copying and pasting my writing across apps usually doesn’t cause any problems (most the apps I use will accept markdown text, and the ones that don’t usually handle all formatting badly anyway so saving in a different filetype wouldn’t have made my life any easier).
Caveat though that my behaviour is different with Drafts. While over half the notes I start there end up in DT eventually, as markdown files, the remainder get sent off to other places, e.g. Deletion Heaven (many simply never leave and get deleted), emails, Google Docs, Slack messages, etc.
2 Likes
I use MD mostly for short notes, keeping track of information. For this, its Markdown, without conversion or export.
(Mostly outside DT) I use MD to write texts, with a focus on the writing process. Those texts are usually turned into pdfs and printed.
The printing of pdfs from MD files is not really working well for me. For this reason, I am considering the upcoming Marked3, where the export and printing is more comfortable.
1 Like
All of my notes I want to keep long term I write in DT in markdown. No conversion at the end.
1 Like
Why are you asking? I write in Markdown (using split view), and when I review the content later without editing, I only have the viewer open. I never convert to PDF or other formats, except when I need to share the file with others. Why should I otherwise convert my files?
Mostly composing. Having a great built-in markdown writing environment is important to me. Second most often would be exporting the markdown itself (sending the file, pasting into another editor etc.)
1 Like
Two distinct workflows: I clip all but the fussiest web pages to Markdown for archiving, because it’s so compact, pared-back, and tweakable – but documents created in Markdown are always exported to something else (usually rich text or HTML, never PDF in any of my use cases) at the point of their dissemination to other humans, even if it’s just complicated e-mails drafted in DT MD, then pasted from the Best Available pane. Partly this is because nobody I know IRL uses Markdown, especially if they’re under 40 – but it’s also a legacy of the original concept of Markdown as a plain-text format for export, a stepping-stone to something else.
I never gave Markdown the time of day before I tumbled into the DT pitcher plant; plain text, TeX, and .*ML were all a gentleman needed to stand well with the world. But DT’s Markdown editor is so seductive that you start innocently with text Annotations and one morning wake to find that you’ve ditched Keynote for iA Presenter and are grumbling on forums about underline support.
3 Likes
Composing and viewing, here. I use DT as a knowledge base and also for record keeping. That’s mostly in PDF.
For instance, I sit on two community boards, one of unquestioned value, the other requiring sharp oversight. I keep records of the organizations and during meetings take notes in Markdown.
1 Like
Same here. I liked plain text and wasn’t consistent with my file types, but then I adopted DT and one day I woke up and all my notes were in markdown 
3 Likes
Composing and viewing, occasionally converting to ePub for taking content with me for offline reading.
1 Like
Mostly composing and viewing: very occasionally converting to PDF.
Stephen
1 Like
In DEVONthink, composing and viewing. When I translate to other formats I use pandoc. (Which does an awesome job converting to docx, much better than struggling with Word or Google Docs.)
1 Like
Are you unaware you can export a Markdown document to Word via File > Export > as Word 2007 Document (DOCX)?
1 Like