Markdown Bloggers

Half of the bloggers in this sample describe their use of distraction-free writing programs and the benefits of their features (Eddie Smith, David Sparks, Michael Schechter), with two of them specifically identifying Markdown itself as a key component of a distraction-free writing environment. However, the other half of the bloggers in the sample either explicitly reject the idea that such applications are valuable (Dr. Drang), or deny that hiding other applications while writing is useful (Brett Terpstra and Dr. Drang), or do not mention the issue at all (Gabe Weatherhead).

This narrow sample of bloggers who write about Markdown was constructed after an initial broad web search for blog posts using the terms “markdown” and “markdown plain text.” These searches returned many different kinds of pages (such as magazine articles or reference pages), but only personal blog sites were saved in order to restrict data to self-sponsored accounts of writing processes. Many of the blog posts returned by the searches linked back to a handful of other bloggers, the six mentioned above. These key bloggers turned out to be a tightly interconnected group who link to each other, comment on each other’s posts, communicate with each other publicly through Twitter, and, in some cases, appear on each others’ podcasts. Although Markdown is not the central focus of any of their blogs, it does appear in many posts on each site.

This loose community of bloggers serves as a useful sample for this project because they represent a community of practice, meaning that they have a “shared domain of interest,” “engage in joint activities and discussions, help each other, and share information,” and have developed “a shared repertoire of resources: experiences, stories, tools, [and] ways of addressing recurring problems” (Wenger, 2006). Several common themes stretch across these blogs, including a focus on Apple platforms (Macintosh OS X and iOS) and productivity issues (e.g., how to write and use task lists is a common topic). Most important for this project is their shared interest in writing, especially writing processes and the tools that support them. Their efforts to engage with one another’s posts demonstrate a commitment toward shared inquiry into improving their writing practices, and as such, makes them an interesting analog to an academic discipline. These writers could be labeled amateur bloggers–people with professional jobs as lawyers, actuaries, IT support, engineers, or programmers who blog on the side.

One important note about this sample: all of these bloggers are men. Early broad searches for the key terms related to Markdown did not turn up any posts that appeared to be written by women. At this point, it’s not clear if these search techniques have missed important places where women are writing about Markdown or whether this conversation is primarily dominated by men. A search of popular blogger Gina Trapani’s work with the Lifehacker.com blog and her own blog site only turned up one passing reference: “I have mixed feelings about using Markdown in my text files–I platform-hop, and Markdown just doesn’t look great in editors which don’t support it” (Trapani, 2011).

Bloggers in the Sample

Dr. Drang | Michael Schechter | Eddie Smith | David Sparks | Brett Terpstra | Gabe Weatherhead

Dr. Drang

Blog: And now it’s all this

Dr. Drang is a pseudonym used by this blogger, who is a structural engineer. Because he often serves as an expert witness, he prefers to remain anonymous in his posts so that his credibility is never called into question based on something written on the blog (as he explained in his appearance on David Sparks’ podcast). He often posts narratives describing how he has written various scripts for manipulating text and making calculations (such as scripts for analyzing blog posts based on word counts or adding links to Markdown text using Google’s “I’m Feeling Lucky” service).

His blog has linked at least once to each of the other bloggers in this sample:

He has also appeared on several of these bloggers’ podcasts:

Back to List

Michael Schechter

Blog: A Better Mess

Michael Schechter describes himself in the sidebar of his blog as someone who struggles “with creativity and productivity” and writes “about how we can improve at both pursuits through the use of technology.” He writes often about Markdown, offering reasons for using it and tutorials describing how, as well as long lists of the software he uses.

His blog has linked at least once to each of the other bloggers in this sample:

Schechter hosts a podcast called “Mikes on Mics” where several bloggers from this sample have appeared:

He has also appeared on several podcasts from other bloggers in this sample:

Back to List

Eddie Smith

Blog: Practically Efficient

Eddie Smith is an actuary who now works to create educational material for other actuaries. He has posted several detailed descriptions of his writing process that double as tutorials for reader about Markdown and has co-authored an e-book with David Sparks on the subject, which offers many tutorials and screencasts.

His blog has linked at least once to each of the other bloggers in this sample:

He has also appeared on several podcasts from other bloggers in this sample:

Back to List

David Sparks

Blog: MacSparky

David Sparks is an attorney by day and prolific technology writer by night. He has written many articles for MacWorld magazine, two traditional print books on working with Macs and iPads, and three self-published ebooks, one of them co-authored with Eddie Smith about Markdown and another co-authored with Brett Terpstra. He writes often about his love for plain text, Text Expander snippets, and solicits screen captures of people’s iPhone screens to share.

His blog has linked at least once to each of the other bloggers in this sample:

He also hosts a podcast with Katie Floyd called “Mac Power Users” where several bloggers from this sample have appeared:

He has also appeared on several podcasts from other bloggers in this sample:

Back to List

Brett Terpstra

Blog: brettterpstra.com

Brett Terpstra is a software and web developer who works for a number of prominent blogs (such as Engadget and Joystiq). In addition to writing about his own writing practices and reviewing apps, Terpstra has created and shared (nearly always for free) many tools for working with Markdown on Mac computers. The most popular include the lightweight writing app nvAlt, the Markdown service tools, the Markdown preview app Marked, and the web service Marky. He has also written an ebook with David Sparks.

His blog has linked at least once to each of the other bloggers in this sample:

He also hosts a podcast called “Systematic,” where several bloggers from this sample have appeared:

He has also appeared on several podcasts from other bloggers in this sample:

Back to List

Gabe Weatherhead

Blog: Macdrifter

Gabe Weatherhead works for a pharmaceutical company doing technical work with computers, although he also has a PhD in chemistry. Many of his blog posts detail his customizations of plain text editors, scripts that he has written, or macros for the program Keyboard Maestro. Additionally, he is the developer, along with Erik Hess, of CriticMarkup, a supplement to Markdown that simulates “Track Changes” functionality for plain text documents.

His blog has linked at least once to each of the other bloggers in this sample:

He also hosts a podcast called “Generational,” where all of the bloggers from this sample have appeared:

He has also appeared on several podcasts hosted by other bloggers in this sample:

Back to List