Mou - Markdown editor for web developers

[Bowerbird at aol.com]

i said:

>    the meme of markdown-based editors -- 

>    which is already in full bloom on i.o.s. machines

>    -- is coming to the mac... 


david said:

>    Indeed. It's great to see. :)


well, yes, david, this development is very great,
most certainly in a "glass-half-full" type of way.

then again, i suppose, just like everything else, 
there's a "glass-half-empty" perspective as well.

for instance, i think it'd be "great" if there were:
1) more good options for developers to turn to...
2) more good options for end-users to turn to...
3) more options outside of the mac/i.o.s. world...

***

taking the last point first, it'd be more "great"
if these new options were fully cross-platform,
and even more "great" with web-app versions.

as for the first 2 points, there are many types of
light-markup out in the world, so it'd be "great"
if there were editors based on restructured-text,
with its long and glorious history of sturdy use
as the method behind all python documentation.

it'd be great to have editors based on ascii-doc,
with its truly dizzying myriad of output formats.

and, of course, speaking of a "dizzying myriad",
what about the contortions that pandoc can do?
with its ability to read _and_ write many formats,
pandoc actually deserves the name "acrobat", so
it'd be really great to have pandoc-based editors.

don't get me wrong, because i do love markdown,
and the ways it jacked up light-markup take-up...

but it's not the only game in light-markup town.

indeed, of the ones i have mentioned just now,
it might be the _weakest_ in the whole bunch...
but gruber's soapbox has that big microphone.

further, the _inability_ of markdown developers
(a.k.a., this listserve) to get collaborative and to
forge a common standard out of all of the forks
will come home to roost as more and more apps
cause people to become increasingly aware that
the "markdown" they perceive as a unitary entity
is a mirage splintering into a-half-dozen pieces.
even a soapbox microphone as big as gruber's
won't be of any help in solving _that_ problem...

so, yes, the glass is half-empty, and half-full too.
the thing is, it's more full than it was yesterday...
probably even more full tomorrow, and next week.

-bowerbird
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