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Markdown Tips & Tricks

Master Markdown with advanced techniques, shortcuts, and productivity hacks used by professionals.

Keyboard Shortcuts

Speed up your Markdown writing with these essential keyboard shortcuts and editor tricks.

Common Shortcuts

Bold textCtrl+B
Italic textCtrl+I
Insert linkCtrl+K
Code blockCtrl+Shift+K
PreviewCtrl+Shift+V

Editor Tips

  • • Use Tab to indent lists
  • Shift+Tab to unindent
  • Ctrl+/ to toggle comments
  • Ctrl+D to select next occurrence
  • Ctrl+Shift+P for command palette

Advanced Formatting

Go beyond basic Markdown with advanced formatting techniques and creative solutions.

Tables

| Feature | Basic | Advanced |
|---------|-------|----------|
| Tables  | ✅    | ✅       |
| Math    | ❌    | ✅       |
| Diagrams| ❌    | ✅       |

Use tables for data comparison and structured information.

Task Lists

- [x] Completed task
- [ ] Pending task
- [ ] Another task

Perfect for project management and checklists.

Advanced Syntax Examples

Strikethrough

~~strikethrough text~~

Result: strikethrough text

Highlighting

==highlighted text==

Result: highlighted text

Productivity Tips

⚡ Speed Tips

  • Use templates for common document types
  • Create snippets for repeated content
  • Use keyboard shortcuts religiously
  • Set up auto-completion
  • Use live preview while writing

🎯 Focus Tips

  • Use distraction-free mode
  • Write in outline mode first
  • Separate writing from editing
  • Use consistent formatting
  • Keep a style guide handy

Pro Workflow

1

Plan

Create outline with headers and bullet points

2

Write

Focus on content, ignore formatting

3

Polish

Review, edit, and format properly

Platform-Specific Features

Different platforms extend Markdown with unique features. Learn to leverage these for maximum impact.

GitHub Flavored Markdown

  • • Task lists with checkboxes
  • • Strikethrough text
  • • Automatic URL linking
  • • Syntax highlighting
  • • Tables
  • • Emoji support

GitLab Extensions

  • • Mermaid diagrams
  • • PlantUML support
  • • PlantUML diagrams
  • • Math expressions
  • • Video embeds
  • • File attachments

Example: GitHub Task List

## Project Tasks

- [x] Set up development environment
- [x] Create basic project structure
- [ ] Write unit tests
- [ ] Add documentation
- [ ] Deploy to production
- [ ] Write user guide

Workflow Optimization

✅ Do This

  • • Use consistent heading hierarchy
  • • Keep line length under 80 characters
  • • Use meaningful commit messages
  • • Include a table of contents for long docs
  • • Use descriptive link text
  • • Add alt text to images
  • • Use semantic HTML when needed

❌ Avoid This

  • • Mixing heading levels randomly
  • • Using HTML when Markdown works
  • • Forgetting to close code blocks
  • • Using spaces instead of tabs
  • • Creating overly complex tables
  • • Using too many nested lists
  • • Ignoring accessibility

Essential Tools

Editors

  • • Typora
  • • Mark Text
  • • Obsidian
  • • Notion

Converters

  • • Pandoc
  • • Marked
  • • Markdownify
  • • Dillinger

Validators

  • • markdownlint
  • • Markdown Validator
  • • Prose.io
  • • Markdown Preview

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