Markdowner

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Markdowner is a local-first Markdown editor for macOS, built for people who want a polished writing surface without giving up plain .md files. It combines WYSIWYG editing, source editing, workspace navigation, and a Rust document core that keeps Markdown as the source of truth.

The app is also designed to work well as the editor that coding agents and command-line tools can open when they need a human to edit a buffer, review a note, or finish a commit message.

Highlights

• Markdown-native editing: WYSIWYG, source editor, and split view all work against Markdown files rather than a proprietary document format.
• Local desktop shell: open files or folders, manage tabs, save safely, restore sessions, and handle files through the native macOS app.
• Workspace navigation: file tree, Quick Open, command palette, outline panel, workspace search, document stats, and recent documents.
• Writing ergonomics: find and replace, minimap, word wrap controls, wrap guide, focus mode, typewriter mode, table editing, code blocks, checklists, and image/link support.
• Safer file writes: atomic saves, dirty-close confirmation, read-only file handling, and external-change detection with reload/keep-local flows.
• Customizable reading and editing: built-in light/dark themes, system-theme following, imported CSS themes, editor font controls, table density, and code-block theme settings.
• Agent-friendly CLI integration: install the mdner command and set EDITOR / VISUAL so terminal tools can open Markdowner directly.
• Release-aware app: update checks read GitHub Releases, and the public release workflow builds a universal macOS DMG.

Install

Markdowner currently ships for macOS.

Download the latest DMG from:

https://github.com/channprj/markdowner/releases/latest

Or install the latest release from the terminal:

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/channprj/markdowner/main/install.sh | bash

To install and launch immediately:

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/channprj/markdowner/main/install.sh | MARKDOWNER_OPEN=1 bash

The installer downloads the latest matching .dmg asset, mounts it, copies Markdowner.app into /Applications, and clears the local quarantine attribute for the installed bundle.

Markdowner uses ad-hoc signing for no-cost distribution today. Developer ID signing and notarization are planned, so macOS may still require manual approval from System Settings on first launch after a downloaded install.

Quick Start

1. Launch Markdowner.
2. Open a Markdown file with Cmd+O, or open a folder with Cmd+Shift+O.
3. Switch modes with Opt+1 for WYSIWYG, Opt+2 for Editor, and Opt+3 for Split View.
4. Use Cmd+P for Quick Open and Cmd+Shift+P for the command palette.
5. Save with Cmd+S.

Useful shortcuts:

Action	Shortcut
Quick Open	Cmd+P
Command Palette	Cmd+Shift+P
Find in Current File	Cmd+F
Search in Workspace	Cmd+Shift+F
Toggle Sidebar	Cmd+Shift+B
Toggle Outline	Cmd+Shift+D
Toggle Focus Mode	Cmd+Shift+J
Toggle Typewriter Mode	Cmd+Shift+Y
Toggle Word Wrap	Option+Z

CLI Integration

Markdowner can install a small mdner launcher so command-line tools can open files or folders in the desktop app:

mdner README.md
mdner path/to/project

From the app, open Settings and use the CLI sections to:

• install or remove /usr/local/bin/mdner
• add a managed shell snippet for EDITOR="mdner" and VISUAL="mdner"
• verify whether the command is available on your shell PATH

This is useful with tools that spawn $EDITOR for commit messages, prompts, notes, or review buffers.

Development

Markdowner is built with Tauri v2, React 19, Vite, TypeScript, Tiptap, CodeMirror 6, Tailwind CSS, and a Rust workspace.

Recommended local toolchain:

• Node.js 22+
• pnpm 10+
• Rust stable
• Xcode Command Line Tools on macOS

Install dependencies:

pnpm install

Run the desktop app in development mode:

pnpm tauri dev

The Vite dev server is pinned to http://127.0.0.1:14238 with strictPort enabled so it does not silently attach to another local app.

Build

Common commands:

pnpm build                         # type-check and build the frontend
pnpm build debug                   # debug Tauri build
pnpm build dmg                     # release DMG with ad-hoc signing
pnpm build universal dmg           # Apple Silicon + Intel universal DMG
pnpm build install                 # build and install to /Applications
pnpm build install open            # install, then launch the installed app
pnpm build:install:open            # package-script alias for install + open
pnpm build:mac:dmg                 # package-script alias for release DMG
pnpm build:mac:universal:dmg       # package-script alias for universal DMG

Install path overrides:

MARKDOWNER_INSTALL_PATH=~/Applications pnpm build install
pnpm build install -- --path ~/Applications
pnpm build install -- --no-build
pnpm build install -- --open

Test

Run the main verification suite:

pnpm test
cargo test

Useful focused checks:

pnpm exec vitest run
bash scripts/build-and-install.test.sh
cargo test -p markdowner-core
pnpm exec tsc --noEmit

Release

Markdowner uses the repo-root VERSION file and date-based versions in the form:

MAJOR.YYMMDD.PATCH

Refresh the date/patch version locally:

pnpm bump refresh

Push a release bump from main:

pnpm bump refresh --push

That command syncs VERSION into package.json, src-tauri/tauri.conf.json, src-tauri/Cargo.toml, and Cargo.lock, commits those version files, and pushes to main.

The GitHub Actions release workflow then:

1. reads VERSION
2. installs the Node and Rust toolchains
3. syncs version metadata
4. builds a universal macOS DMG
5. creates the GitHub Release with gh release create --generate-notes
6. uploads the generated DMG asset

GitHub generates the release notes by comparing the new release with the previous tag.

Repository Layout

crates/markdowner-core/      Rust document model, Markdown round-trip logic, settings, workspace runtime
crates/markdowner-macos/     Earlier macOS reference crate and regression boundary
src/                         React/Vite desktop frontend
src-tauri/                   Tauri shell, Rust command bridge, updater, macOS integration
scripts/                     Build, install, version sync, and release helper scripts
docs/                        Architecture and Markdown coverage notes

Current Status

Markdowner is usable today as a macOS desktop Markdown editor, with the core writing, navigation, settings, local build, and release paths in place.

Still planned:

• Developer ID signing and notarization
• Windows build, test, and release validation
• HTML/PDF/print export
• richer image asset workflows
• automated desktop E2E, screenshot regression, and accessibility gates

Contributing

Issues and pull requests are welcome. For code changes, keep the scope tight, run the focused tests that cover your change, and include the relevant verification commands in the PR description.

License

MIT. See LICENSE.