Our Verdict
Many of us here atMacworldare fans ofMarkdown , a nifty markup speech that have you compose for the Web using plain text anda simple formatting syntax . We also frequently write in HTML . But one of the challenges in writing in these “ languages , ” if you will , is that it ’s tough to see incisively how what you ’re pen will depend once it ’s published on the entanglement .
A couple old age back , Ireviewed Marked , a marvellous utility that demonstrate you a live trailer of Markdown- , HTML- , and XML - initialise files . Even better , Marked can utilise usage CSS template , so you’re able to make those previews look almost exactly like your school text will appear on your website or web log . Marked can even convert your code ’s tantamount HTML for paste into that web log or CMS , and it can export your preview to a issue of document types , include PDF , RTF , and .doc .
I subsequentlycovered a big update to Markedthat added extra trailer style , motorcar - scroll your preview to the locating of your modish edits , multi - file previews , custom Indian file mainframe , and support for tables of content , among other changes .
The developer of Marked , Brett Terpstra , has since releasedMarked 2 , and theimprovements in version 2have made one of my best-loved apps even better .
Many of the new feature in Marked 2 focus on aid you write better . For object lesson , the app offers a batch of keyword - highlight feature in previews . These admit nonremittal lists of “ overused ” phrases that you might want to avoid or supplant ; you could add your own lyric and phrases — either to avoid them , or to foreground them for other intellect . ( You also get a notepad , visible in the app ’s Keyword Drawer , that lets you sum up temporary keywords you ’d like to foreground in just the current document . ) Another useful highlighting feature is Visualize Word Repetitions , which highlights words you ’ve used repeatedly , either at the paragraph or papers level . flick a highlighted word to dim the prevue except for that news , making it wanton to see just how often you ’ve used it .
Similarly , Marked can observe your schoolbook for the use of passive part , and provide papers statistics such as the turn of paragraphs , condemnation , and characters ; readability metrics ( translate ease , course level , pellucidity ) ; and more . Taken together , these highlight , monitoring , and statistical features wo n’t make a good author out of a spoiled one , but they can help conscientious writers meliorate their prose .
Another big area of focal point is hunt and browsing . you may search within your preview for text strings , and Marked offers fount - tender and whole - word searches , along with regex searching . If your original document includes headers , Marked offers a table of contents for browsing those sections , and lets you well collapse and thrive document sections — I often utilise the latter lineament when previewing long document . you’re able to also manually create bookmarks within each document and then speedily navigate among those bookmarks using keyboard shortcut .
When sour with longer documents , Marked 2 offers a couple other features for convenient wake and navigating . A nifty Zoom option lets you quickly zoom out to see a sort of bird - eye view of your document preview . Just as utilitarian , at least to me , is the Mini Map , which displays a tiny thumbnail - like version of the document along the correct - hand side of the windowpane ; click any part of this mini translation to jump to the corresponding spot in the full - size of it preview .
One of my favourite new feature is the capacity to have stigmatize 2 monitor an entirefolderof text edition file , automatically preview the one that ’s been redact most recently . And a new Preview Clipboard feature Lashkar-e-Tayyiba Marked expose a preview of the contents of the clipboard — for deterrent example , if you ’ve copied some Markdown or hypertext mark-up language text from a internet site or other document .
Marked 2 also now supports the Fountain and CriticMarkup syntax , as well as Multi - Markdown 4.2 ( which include the capacity to include footnote , something not useable in standard Markdown ) . Version 2 also summate support for MarsEdit , VoodooPad , Ulysses III , Day One , and a few other apps that do n’t store your writings in traditional plain - text files .
I ’m really just pertain the open here of what Marked 2 can do . Thedetailed online documentationis a must - read for anyone see to get the most out of the service program . It ’s an essential part of my writing life sentence .
This review is part of Macworld’sGemFest 2014 . Every weekday from July until September , the Macworld staff will use the Mac Gems web log to briefly cover a standout free , low - cost , or groovy - time value program . you could consider a lean of this year ’s apps , update daily , on our ready to hand GemFest chart , and you could visit the Mac Gems homepage for preceding Mac Gems reviews .
