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Markdown vs Pandoc: What are the differences?
Introduction
Markdown is a lightweight markup language used for formatting and styling plain text. It is widely used in websites and online platforms for creating web pages or blog posts. On the other hand, Pandoc is a document converter that allows converting files from one markup format to another. Although Pandoc supports Markdown, it also supports various other file formats. Here are the key differences between Markdown and Pandoc.
- Markdown Syntax: Markdown has a set of specific syntax rules for formatting text, while Pandoc provides an extended set of syntax options. Pandoc offers additional features like footnotes, metadata, tables, citations, and cross-references that are not available in standard Markdown.
- File Conversion: Markdown is primarily used for creating and formatting text, whereas Pandoc is meant for converting files from one format to another. Pandoc can convert Markdown files to various other formats like HTML, PDF, DOCX, LaTeX, and more. It also supports converting between different markup formats like reStructuredText, HTML, LaTeX, and others.
- Plugins and Extensions: Markdown has a limited set of features and does not provide extensive support for plugins or extensions. On the other hand, Pandoc offers a wide range of extensions and plugins that can be used to enhance the functionality and customize the conversion process. These plugins and extensions allow users to include additional features and formats during the conversion process.
- Table of Contents: Markdown does not have an inbuilt feature for generating a table of contents, while Pandoc can automatically generate a table of contents based on the headings or sections present in the document. This feature is especially useful for creating longer documents or books.
- Mathematical Equations: Pandoc supports mathematical equations using LaTeX syntax, which can be rendered into various output formats like PDF or HTML with properly formatted equations. Markdown, on the other hand, does not have native support for mathematical equations and requires additional tools or plugins for rendering equations.
- Custom Configuration: Pandoc allows users to define custom configuration files that can be used to customize the conversion process according to specific requirements. Markdown does not have this level of customization and relies on the default configuration settings of the rendering platform.
In summary, Markdown is a lightweight markup language used for formatting text, while Pandoc is a versatile document converter that supports various markup formats and provides advanced features like table of contents, mathematical equations, plugins, and custom configurations. Pandoc extends and enhances the functionality of Markdown, making it suitable for complex document conversions and advanced formatting requirements.
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Learn MorePros of Markdown
Pros of Pandoc
Pros of Markdown
- Easy formatting345
- Widely adopted246
- Intuitive194
- Github integration132
- Great for note taking41
- Defacto GitHub lingo2
Pros of Pandoc
- Markdown2
- More popular and active on github1
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Cons of Markdown
Cons of Pandoc
Cons of Markdown
- Cannot centralise (HTML code needed)2
- Inconsistend flavours eg github, reddit, mmd etc1
- Limited syntax1
- Not suitable for longer documents1
- Non-extensible1
- No right indentation1
- No underline1
- Unable to indent tables1
Cons of Pandoc
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- No public GitHub repository available -
What is Markdown?
Markdown is two things: (1) a plain text formatting syntax; and (2) a software tool, written in Perl, that converts the plain text formatting to HTML.
What is Pandoc?
It is a free and open-source document converter, widely used as a writing tool and as a basis for publishing workflows. It converts files from one markup format into another. It can convert documents in (several dialects of) Markdown, reStructuredText, textile, HTML, DocBook, LaTeX, MediaWiki markup, TWiki and many more.
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What companies use Markdown?
What companies use Pandoc?
What companies use Markdown?
What companies use Pandoc?
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What tools integrate with Markdown?
What tools integrate with Pandoc?
What tools integrate with Markdown?
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What are some alternatives to Markdown and Pandoc?
MarkUp
It allows you to turn your website into a dynamic canvas ready for feedback and collaboration. Streamline your feedback with a quicker, easier, and clearer process.
JavaScript
JavaScript is most known as the scripting language for Web pages, but used in many non-browser environments as well such as node.js or Apache CouchDB. It is a prototype-based, multi-paradigm scripting language that is dynamic,and supports object-oriented, imperative, and functional programming styles.
Python
Python is a general purpose programming language created by Guido Van Rossum. Python is most praised for its elegant syntax and readable code, if you are just beginning your programming career python suits you best.
Node.js
Node.js uses an event-driven, non-blocking I/O model that makes it lightweight and efficient, perfect for data-intensive real-time applications that run across distributed devices.
HTML5
HTML5 is a core technology markup language of the Internet used for structuring and presenting content for the World Wide Web. As of October 2014 this is the final and complete fifth revision of the HTML standard of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). The previous version, HTML 4, was standardised in 1997.