Markdown & YAML

Markdown & YAML

Content & data

Markup languages like HTML for representing content & data

Markdown — simplified HTML
YAML — simplified JavaScript data

Can be combined together: Markdown in YAML & YAML in Markdown

Why use Markdown or YAML?

They’re easier to write
They’re ubiquitous & standardized (mostly)
They can be written without special tools

Where are they used?

READMEs for open source projects
All your assignment descriptions
Configuration for applications
All your assignment requirements
Making auto-generated websites
Pretty much the whole of Learn the Web

Extensions & editors

Use Atom or Sublime or anything for editing

.md — Markdown (can have YAML inside)
.yml — YAML (can have Markdown inside)

Atom provides built-in Markdown preview:

Packages > Markdown Preview

Markdown

# For heading level 1                         <!-- Denote headings with # -->
## For heading level 2
### For heading level 3

- List item 1                                 <!-- Unordered list -->
- List item

1. Numbered list item 1                       <!-- Ordered list -->
2. Numbered list item 2

Just a *plain* old **paragraph**!             <!-- Paragraphs are just lines by themselves -->
                                              <!-- Single * is italic. Double ** is bold -->

Link to [Wikipedia](https://wikipedia.org/).

![](images/dino.jpg)

YAML

---                                       # Start the file
name: Tyrannosaurus                       # A list, like a <dl>
period: Late Cretaceous
dimensions:                               # List inside a list!
  width: 3 metres
  height: 8 metres

likes_to_eat:                             # Another list, like a <ul>
  - Other dinosaurs
  - Meat

desc: |                                   # Markdown in my YAML!
  ## The T.Rex

  ![](images/trex.jpg)

  The **most fearsome** of all *dinosaurs*.