Automated Web PublishingNo-Tags Markup Example.ntm
*****No-Tags Markup Example Document*****Formatted WYSIWYG text is great, but isn't always available or convenient. The _No-Tags Markup_ system is based on the belief that writers have developed a reasonable _ad hoc_ system for conveying formatting and structural information within the constraints of "least common denominator" ASCII text. You can find examples in:
- news postings
- "forum" messages
Looking at the raw source text, would anyone dispute that the above is a list? (You may be reading the formatted version, which had better look like a list!) Unfortunately, most formal markup systems ignore the "new line" (carriage return) character that is so meaningful to you and I, thus destroying the list.
^#UP^
___Still More Examples___
How about headings? That one should be pretty clear. A numbered list can also be useful. For example, I could introduce different sorts of formatting:
# _emphasize_ your point
# act *boldly*
# avoid taking things too `literally`
I'll grant that the # isn't perfect, but it beats numbering by hand. While it may not follow existing practice to the letter, it is easy to read and easy to write, since # is clearly associated with numbers. Note that the _No-Tags_ parser is smart, so I can toss in a random *, _ or ` without fear.
***Allowing different approaches***
I don't like rigid rules; so there's another way to create a headline.
Venturing beyond the simple and obvious, a different sort of wrapping applies to the following:
``
Some text should not be rendered in that silly, throwback to an earlier era, typewriter looking, rather dull, fixed-width, mono-spaced type, but should merely be indented as a block, then wrapped according to the current margins.
``
Then, of course, is the ever-present source code:
`
for i = 1 to 10
do something!
`
---
Ok, on to a new section. That shouldn't be too controversial.
___Getting Fancy___
The obvious hypertext link here is to the ^unformatted version, No-Tags Markup Example.ntm^ of this example (which you may be reading). Or, just ^up, #UP^ to the "still more examples" section (borrowing the # character from HTML's local reference).
No-Tags Markup Example