Lately we got some new apps for Macintosh that use the Markdown language. I have never paid attention to Markdown as I do not have a use for it and I am not a programmer. But these new apps coming made me interested. I think it was MacDown that showed first but as it was not largely advertised I didn’t see it or pay attention. The first big impact was when Retro Action posted a video about his new app. It is still in alpha tho. The next day Markette showed and introduced itself as a live Markdown notebook. This one looked really polished and also as it is presented as shareware I see the authors put some time to make it really cool. I liked the guides included. They are short and quick to read and learn. This is where I jumped into the Markdown journey. Googled some pages etc. More that I read more I like it. I think these apps have some futures and I am very happy they can be used on old hardware. The files are really interchangeable, you can actually open them on modern computers with applications like Obsidian, share notes or continue to work with. What I am missing from all 3 apps is the Print menu. Printing a note or saving it as a file would be great and I am sure the authors will implement it in future versions.
Markette (Latest release 1.0.1)
Features: Live styling. Folding sections. Links between notes. Live checkboxes. Plaintext files. Search.
This was the most interesting and polished application I have used. I liked the Tour Guides. Surely feels like you will find a use for it regularly.
Author: Azaro Labs LLC - @teemaw
Requires: System 4 through Mac OS 9
Price: Shareware
Overall rating: ****/5
MacDown (Latest release 1.0.0)
Features: Markdown-aware editing, Auto todo list toggle, Multi-document support, Integrated file browser, Modern keyboard shortcuts
Looks like a personal project with no attempt to get a greater audience. I liked the file browser. It uses a little different formatting than the other two. I could not make it run on emulator and System 7.
Author: Rockwell Schrock - @schrockwell
Requires: System 6/7 (I get crash on emulators with System)
Price: Free
Overall rating: ***/5
ArtfulType (Latest release v0.1.2-alpha)
First one that introduced me to the Markdown language.
Liked the simplicity and no distraction when using it but missing the Apple menu to get desk accessories available.
Features: Writer mode, Markdown mode, Cut/Copy/Paste, Adjustable zoom
Author: Sean Malseed - @Action Retro Requires: System 6/7
Price: Free
Overall rating: ***/5
Markette (Latest release 1.0.1)
Features: Live styling. Folding sections. Links between notes. Live checkboxes. Plaintext files. Search.
This was the most interesting and polished application I have used. I liked the Tour Guides. Surely feels like you will find a use for it regularly.
Author: Azaro Labs LLC - @teemaw
Requires: System 4 through Mac OS 9
Price: Shareware
Overall rating: ****/5
MacDown (Latest release 1.0.0)
Features: Markdown-aware editing, Auto todo list toggle, Multi-document support, Integrated file browser, Modern keyboard shortcuts
Looks like a personal project with no attempt to get a greater audience. I liked the file browser. It uses a little different formatting than the other two. I could not make it run on emulator and System 7.
Author: Rockwell Schrock - @schrockwell
Requires: System 6/7 (I get crash on emulators with System)
Price: Free
Overall rating: ***/5
ArtfulType (Latest release v0.1.2-alpha)
First one that introduced me to the Markdown language.
Liked the simplicity and no distraction when using it but missing the Apple menu to get desk accessories available.
Features: Writer mode, Markdown mode, Cut/Copy/Paste, Adjustable zoom
Author: Sean Malseed - @Action Retro Requires: System 6/7
Price: Free
Overall rating: ***/5
