Getting Started with Markdown

• Introduction
• Headings

Getting started with Markdown is easy. All you need is a text editor and a basic understanding of the syntax.

The Basic Workflow

To write in Markdown, you simply add special characters to your text. For example, to make a word bold, you wrap it in two asterisks:

When you're done writing, you use a Markdown processor (also called a "parser" or "implementation") to convert your Markdown-formatted text into HTML. Most modern text editors and many online platforms have built-in Markdown processors.

Of course, if you're using an online Markdown editor like the one above, the processor is built right in. You can see the results of your Markdown code as you type it. You can also get the HTML code by clicking the "HTML" button.

Markdown Flavors

While the original Markdown specification is the foundation, many different "flavors" of Markdown have emerged over the years. These flavors add extra features like tables, task lists, and more. Some common flavors include:

• CommonMark: A highly compatible, standardized version of Markdown.
• GitHub Flavored Markdown (GFM): Used by GitHub, it adds support for tables, task lists, and more.
• MultiMarkdown: Adds features like tables and footnotes.

In this tutorial, we will focus on standard Markdown while also mentioning popular features from GFM, as it is widely used.

On the next page, we'll dive into the syntax, starting with headings.

• Introduction
• Headings