What file uses .md extension and how should I edit them?

Question

On GitHub, several projects have README.md files. It seems like a simple format file to express text and pictures.

I guess there is an editor or syntax explanation somewhere.

Where can I find an introduction to .md files?

Answer 1

Markdown is a plain-text file format. The extensions .md and .markdown are just text files written in Markdown syntax. If you have a Readme.md in your repo, GitHub will show the contents on the home page of your repo. Read the documentation:

• Standard Markdown
• GitHub Flavored Markdown

You can edit the Readme.md file in GitHub itself. Click on Readme.md, you will find an edit button. You can preview your changes and even commit them from there.

Since it is a text file, Notepad or Notepad++ (Windows), TextEdit (Mac) or any other text editor can be used to edit and modify it. Specialized editors exist that automatically parse the markdown as you type it and generate a preview, while others apply various syntax coloring and decorations to the displayed text. In both cases though, the saved file is still a readable text file.

If you want to create an md file with preview and if you prefer not to install any special editors, you can use online editors like dillinger.io and stackedit.io. They provide live preview. You can also export your files to Google Drive or Dropbox.