Markdown has gained a considerable measure of popularity in recent years thanks to its ease of use and widespread application in software development projects. In this tutorial, we will explore how to use Markdown in your TypeScript projects. This will allow you to reap the benefits that Markdown databases offer, including enhanced readability and ease in sharing code.

Prerequisites

Before we proceed, ensure that you have a fundamental understanding of TypeScript and Markdown. Furthermore, it is paramount that you have the necessary software, including Node.js and npm (Node Package Manager), installed on your development environment.

Table of Content

  1. Introduction to TypeScript and Markdown
  2. Using markdown-it with TypeScript
  3. Code examples
  4. Conclusion

1. Introduction to TypeScript and Markdown

TypeScript

TypeScript is a robust, statically typed superset of JavaScript that compiles to pure JavaScript. It offers optional static typing, class-based object-oriented programming, along with other features, that makes it essential for creating large-scale applications.

Markdown

On the other hand, Markdown is a simple language used for formatting text. It utilizes plain text syntax to generate HTML or XHTML content, making it useful for writing software documentation, programming comments, blog articles, and more.

2. Using markdown-it with TypeScript

To facilitate the use of Markdown in TypeScript, we will use the markdown-it package, a fast and easy-to-use Markdown parser done in JavaScript. It offers full markdown compliance, and in case of TypeScript, it comes with TypeScript definition files.

To install the markdown-it package, navigate to your TypeScript project folder and type the following code in your terminal:

npm install markdown-it --save

This command will add markdown-it to your list of project dependencies.

3. Code Examples

Now, let’s tackle how we can utilize markdown-it in your TypeScript code:

Consider the following TypeScript code:

import MarkdownIt from 'markdown-it';

let md = new MarkdownIt();
let markdown_text = '# Hello, TypeScript!';

let result = md.render(markdown_text);
console.log(result);

When you run this code, the renderer will convert the markdown text into HTML, and therefore the output will be:

<h1>Hello, TypeScript!</h1>

Working with markdown-it plugins with TypeScript

You can extend the functionality of markdown-itParser with various plugins. For example, the markdown-it-highlightjs plugin adds support for syntax highlighting to your markdown scripts.

Let’s add this plugin to our existing project:

npm install markdown-it-highlightjs

Then, modify your existing TypeScript code to use the plugin:

import MarkdownIt from 'markdown-it';
import highlightjs from 'markdown-it-highlightjs';

let md = new MarkdownIt().use(highlightjs);
let markdown_text = `
# Hello TypeScript
\`\`\`typescript
let greeting: string = "Hello World";
console.log(greeting);
\`\`\`
`;

let result = md.render(markdown_text);
console.log(result);

Now, when you run the code, it’ll render the markdown string markdown_text into HTML with syntax-highlighted code.

<h1>Hello, TypeScript!</h1>
<pre><code class="hljs lang-typescript">let greeting: string = "Hello World";
console.log(greeting);
</code></pre>

4. Conclusion

I hope this tutorial gives a good introduction to how to use Markdown in TypeScript using markdown-it library. Be sure to explore the various plugins available to extend its functionality based on your specific needs. Remember, the primary reason to use Markdown is its simplicity and readability, so keeping your Markdown usage straightforward will help you the most.