markdown-converter/README.md

# MarkdownConverter

A powerful cross-platform Markdown editor and document converter powered by Pandoc, built with Electron. 100% open-source with no proprietary dependencies.

## Features

### Markdown Editor
<img width="1920" height="1032" alt="image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/5f53ba94-7663-47c3-b12b-b7b8bd2645aa" />
- **Multi-tab editing** - Work on multiple files simultaneously
- **Live preview** - Real-time markdown rendering with syntax highlighting
- **Dynamic splitter** - Drag to resize editor and preview panes
- **25+ themes** - Light and dark themes including Atom One Light, Dracula, Nord, Sepia, and more
- **Find & Replace** - Search and replace with regex support
- **Line numbers** - Toggle line numbers in the editor
- **Auto-save** - Automatic saving every 30 seconds
- **Math support** - KaTeX integration for mathematical expressions

### PDF Viewer & Editor
<img width="1920" height="1032" alt="image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/f10f62be-af3d-496e-81df-37ab4f91abfd" />

- **Built-in PDF viewer** - Open and view PDF files directly in the app
- **Page navigation** - Navigate pages with keyboard or buttons
- **Zoom controls** - Zoom in/out, fit to width, fit to page
- **Rotation** - Rotate pages left or right
- **PDF Editor tools**:
  - Merge multiple PDFs
  - Split PDFs by page range
  - Compress PDFs
  - Rotate pages
  - Delete pages
  - Reorder pages
  - Add watermarks
  - Password protection
  - Remove passwords
  - Set permissions

### Export Options
- **PDF** - Export to PDF with customizable page sizes and orientation
- **DOCX** - Standard and Enhanced (template-based) Word export
- **ODT** - OpenDocument format
- **HTML** - Web-ready HTML export
- **PowerPoint** - PPTX presentation export
- **EPUB** - E-book format
- **LaTeX** - Academic document format
- **RTF** - Rich Text Format

### Advanced Features
- **Custom headers & footers** - Add headers/footers to exports with dynamic fields
- **Page size configuration** - A3, A4, A5, B4, B5, Letter, Legal, Tabloid, or custom sizes
- **Batch conversion** - Convert entire folders of markdown files
- **ASCII Art Generator** - Create text banners and diagrams
- **Word templates** - Use custom Word templates for enhanced exports
- **Import documents** - Import from 30+ formats (DOCX, PDF, HTML, etc.)
- **MarkItDown import** - Any file → Markdown via [Microsoft MarkItDown](https://github.com/microsoft/markitdown): PDF, DOCX, PPTX, XLSX, Outlook .msg, EPUB, images, ZIP (audio/OCR with the `[all]` extras)
- **Excel export** - Markdown tables to native .xlsx workbooks (one sheet per table)
- **AI Assistant** - Multi-provider AI help (OpenAI/Anthropic/Ollama/LM Studio): chat panel, summarize/improve/translate commands, grammar proofreading
- **Inline comments** - Anchor-based document comments in `.comments/` sidecars with F8 navigation
- **Wiki-links & Backlinks** - `[[Note]]` links with click-to-create and a "what links here?" panel (local knowledge base)
- **Crash recovery** - Session restore of open tabs and unsaved buffers after a crash
- **Version history** - Automatic pre-save snapshots with restore/diff/delete from the History panel
- **Vim mode & snippet expansion** - Vim keybindings toggle; Tab expands saved snippets
- **Quick Note** - Global scratchpad (Ctrl+Alt+Q) that appends to `notes/quick-notes.md`
- **Real PDF encryption** - Password protection, removal, and permissions actually work
- **Offline math & diagrams** - KaTeX bundled locally; PlantUML renders locally when the CLI is installed

## Installation

### Prerequisites
- [Node.js](https://nodejs.org/) (v16 or later)
- [Pandoc](https://pandoc.org/installing.html) (required for export functionality)
- Optional: [MarkItDown](https://github.com/microsoft/markitdown) (`pip install "markitdown[all]"`) for any-file → Markdown import

### Install Dependencies
```bash
npm install
```

### Run the Application
```bash
npm start
```

### Build for Distribution
```bash
# Windows
npm run build:win

# macOS
npm run build:mac

# Linux
npm run build:linux
```

## Keyboard Shortcuts

| Action | Shortcut |
|--------|----------|
| New File | Ctrl+N |
| Open File | Ctrl+O |
| Open PDF | Ctrl+Shift+O |
| Save | Ctrl+S |
| Save As | Ctrl+Shift+S |
| Export | Ctrl+E |
| Print | Ctrl+P |
| Find | Ctrl+F |
| Undo | Ctrl+Z |
| Redo | Ctrl+Shift+Z |
| New Tab | Ctrl+T |
| Close Tab | Ctrl+W |
| Toggle Preview | Ctrl+Shift+V |
| Zoom In | Ctrl+Shift++ |
| Zoom Out | Ctrl+Shift+- |
| Command Palette | Ctrl+Shift+P |
| Zen Mode | F11 |
| Writing Analytics | Ctrl+Shift+A |
| Quick Note | Ctrl+Alt+Q |
| Universal Converter | Ctrl+Shift+C |
| Table Generator | Ctrl+Shift+T |
| ASCII Art Generator | Ctrl+Shift+A |
| Next Comment | F8 |
| Add Comment at Cursor | Ctrl+Alt+M |

## Themes

### Light Themes
- Atom One Light (Default)
- GitHub Light
- Light
- Solarized Light
- Gruvbox Light
- Ayu Light
- Sepia
- Paper
- Rose Pine Dawn
- Concrete Light

### Dark Themes
- Dark
- One Dark
- Dracula
- Nord
- Monokai
- Material
- Gruvbox Dark
- Tokyo Night
- Palenight
- Ayu Dark
- Ayu Mirage
- Oceanic Next
- Cobalt2
- Concrete Dark
- Concrete Warm

## PDF Viewer

Open PDF files directly in MarkdownConverter:
- **File > Open PDF** or **Ctrl+Shift+O**
- Navigate pages with arrow buttons or page input
- Zoom controls: +/- buttons, Fit Width, Fit Page
- Rotate pages left or right
- Close PDF to return to editor

## Bundled Dependencies, Legal Notices & Credits

MarkdownConverter ships as a self-contained package. Everything needed for the
core workflows is **bundled**; a few large optional tools are detected from
the system when present.

### Bundled with the app

| Component | License | Role |
|---|---|---|
| [Pandoc](https://pandoc.org) 3.9 | GPL-2.0+ (separate process) | 25+ export/import formats |
| [FFmpeg](https://ffmpeg.org) (via ffmpeg-static) | GPL-3.0+ build (separate process) | audio/video tools |
| [MarkItDown](https://github.com/microsoft/markitdown) (MIT) + embedded Python runtime (PSF) | MIT / PSF | any-file → Markdown import (PDF/DOCX/PPTX/XLSX/Outlook/EPUB/images/ZIP) |
| [sharp](https://sharp.pixelplumbing.com) + libvips | Apache-2.0 / LGPL-2.1+ (dynamic) | image tools |
| [KaTeX](https://katex.org), [marked](https://marked.js.org), [highlight.js], [DOMPurify], [mermaid], [CodeMirror 6], pdf-lib (@cantoo fork), pdfjs-dist, JSZip, simple-git | MIT / Apache-2.0 / BSD-3 / MPL-2.0 | editor, preview, PDF, Git |
| JetBrains Mono & Fira Code fonts | SIL OFL 1.1 | editor typography |

GPL-licensed tools run as **separate processes** (never linked into the app)
and their complete corresponding sources are offered in
[SOURCES.md](SOURCES.md). Full details: [THIRD-PARTY-NOTICES.md](THIRD-PARTY-NOTICES.md),
also available inside the app under **Help → Third-Party Notices & Licenses**.

### Not bundled (used when installed)

LibreOffice (Office conversion), MiKTeX/TeX Live (LaTeX PDF), ImageMagick
(extra image formats), PlantUML + Java (local diagrams), Calibre (MOBI),
MarkItDown `[all]` extras (audio transcription / OCR).

### Credits

Built on open source: [Electron], [CodeMirror], [marked], [KaTeX],
[highlight.js], [DOMPurify](https://github.com/cure53/DOMPurify),
[mermaid](https://mermaid.js.org), [pdf-lib], [pdf.js](https://mozilla.github.io/pdf.js/),
[sharp]/libvips, [Pandoc], [FFmpeg], [MarkItDown] by Microsoft,
[simple-git], [JSZip], [JetBrains Mono], [Fira Code]. Thank you to all their
authors and maintainers.

## Open Source

MarkdownConverter is 100% open-source. All dependencies are permissively licensed:
- **Electron** - MIT License
- **pdf-lib** - MIT License
- **pdfjs-dist** - Apache 2.0 License
- **marked** - MIT License
- **highlight.js** - BSD 3-Clause License
- **dompurify** - Apache 2.0/MIT License
- **docx** - MIT License
- **xlsx** - Apache 2.0 License (SheetJS Community Edition)

## License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details.

## Author

Amit Haridas (amit.wh@gmail.com)

## Version

v4.7.0