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Add to SafariWhen comparing Byword 2 vs LightPaper, the Slant community recommends Byword 2 for most people. In the question“What are the best Markdown editors for OS X?” Byword 2 is ranked 2nd while LightPaper is ranked 21st. The most important reason people chose Byword 2 is:
Byword de-emphasizes the syntax itself while emphasizing its effects. It appropriately adds style, like italic and bold, to text that's designated by markdown and dims the syntax so it does not get in the way of comprehension. Additionally, there are commonly used hotkeys (⌘b, ⌘i, etc) that can be used to apply style without having to know the syntax or having to type it out each time.
Specs
Question Ranking
Pros
Pro Great Markdown support without being intrusive
Byword de-emphasizes the syntax itself while emphasizing its effects. It appropriately adds style, like italic and bold, to text that's designated by markdown and dims the syntax so it does not get in the way of comprehension. Additionally, there are commonly used hotkeys (⌘b, ⌘i, etc) that can be used to apply style without having to know the syntax or having to type it out each time.
Pro Available for all Apple devices
Byword is available on a Mac, an iPhone and iPad.
Pro Extremely simple
Byword is as simple as Markdown editors can get. Even though Markdown itself is not hard, Byword offers assistance to make it even easier with very little configuration required.
The UI is minimalistic and un-intrusive, the syntax auto-completion is excellent, and there are multiple small but helpful features that make writing Markdown with Byword a breeze.
Pro Syncs using iCloud and Dropbox
Documents can be synced using iCloud or Dropbox from within the editor for use across all devices.
Pro Direct publishing to web platforms
Byword allows users to publish their markdown files directly to web platforms such as Wordpress, Tumblr, Blogger and even Evernote.
Pro Word count support
Has a built-in word counter.
Pro Multiple export options
You can export to HTML, PDF, RTF.
Pro A dark theme is available
For people who enjoy working during the night, there's a dark theme available that reduces strain on the eyes.
Pro Includes features that speed up writing
For example, while authoring a bulleted list hitting return automatically prepares a new bulleted line.
Pro Live update support
Byword has a "Preview Markdown" option where it does exactly what it promises. It immediately compiles and displays the rendered Markdown file, making it easy for the user to understand how they are actually formatting their document.
Pro Supports Multimarkdown
Byword supports all the table types in Multimarkdown including table captions. MathJax support is added via metadata at the beginning of file was well as support for various diagrams. Table of Contents is also supported.
Pro Supports iCloud Drive and Handoff
One of the few (well, Ok, only for far) that has been updated for Yosemite features. Jan 2015.
Pro Updated frequently
Byword gets frequent updates which add new features or fix existing bugs.
Pro Extended markdown support
Can be extended to support Multimarkdown, GFM-style code fences with syntax highlighting and even math rendering.
Pro Advanced file-management built-in
Can browse and open files and even has a built-in fuzzy file search.
Pro Built-in preview
Pro PDF & HTML export
Pro Your own preview template is supported
You can create your own template that is aligned with your branding.
Cons
Con No support for code blocks
I need my markdown editor to support code blocks like
def foo(bar, baz):
qux()This one does not.
Con Publishing requires additional in-app purchase
The feature to publish Markdown files to web services costs an additional $5 of in-app purchase.
Con Expensive
Con Limited customizability
One of the things that makes Byword so easy to use is the fact that it needs very little setup and option-tweaking. However, that severely limits the ability to customize the editor itself. For example, there are only two themes available, a light one and a dark one.
Con Crashed repeatedly and refused to open without crashing after theme installation
Con Spell checking needs to be activated every time you open a file
In order to activate the spell checker you have to do so every time you open a file in LightPaper. There's no way to leave this setting on by default.
