.MD File Extension
Markdown Documentation File
| Developer | John Gruber |
| Popularity |
4.0 | 395 Votes |
What is an MD file?
An MD file is a text file written in Markdown, a lightweight markup language used to format plain text. It is saved in plain text format but may include inline symbols that define how to format the text (e.g., bold, indentations, headers, table formatting). Although MD files are saved as plain text, users typically convert them to HTML for display on webpages or documentation systems.
More Information
John Gruber created Markdown in 2004, with the help of Aaron Swartz, to design a simple and readable markup language that could be easily converted to HTML. Gruber released the original Markdown Perl script alongside the specification on his website, Daring Fireball.
However, Gruber has not actively developed the official Markdown implementation or updated the original specification in many years. Since then, many others have created extended versions and implementations of Markdown, such as CommonMark and GitHub Flavored Markdown (GFM), as well as tools like Pandoc, to add features and improve consistency across platforms.
Markdown Users
Various types of users, including software developers, technical writers, and researchers, use the Markdown language. For example, software developers may use MD files to create project documentation, such as README.md files that explain the purpose, installation, and usage of their software.
Technical writers often rely on Markdown to produce user guides, internal wikis, and developer documentation that can be easily converted to HTML or other formats using tools like MkDocs or Jekyll. Finally, researchers may use Markdown for writing papers, notes, and reports, often integrating it with platforms like R Markdown or Jupyter Notebooks.
NOTE: Markdown files may also use the .markdown extension (.MARKDOWN files).
How to open an MD file
You can open MD files with any text editor, including:
- Microsoft Notepad (Windows)
- Apple TextEdit (Mac)
- Vim (Linux, Mac)
- Google Chrome Text (Chrome OS)
However, if you intend to edit an MD file, you may want to open it with a Markdown editor. Markdown editors provide editing and review tools that will help you apply Markdown syntax correctly. Some Markdown editors include:
- ghostwriter (Windows, Linux)
- MacDown (Mac)
- Caret (cross-platform)
- StackEdit (Web)
Programs that open MD files
MuseData Musical Score
| Developer | Walter B. Hewlett |
| Popularity |
3.3 | 7 Votes |
An MD file may also be a MuseData musical score. It contains plain text code that represents a piece of music and metadata describing that work. While MD files are no longer widely used, you can still open them with MuseScore and create sheet music from them.
More Information
In 1983, developer Walter B. Hewlett created the MuseData music notation file format to represent the logical content of musical scores in a software-neutral fashion. To do this, Hewlett developed a format that utilized plain text notation to represent the measures, notes, rests, and emphases included in a piece of music. MD files also include a plain text header containing general information about the file, including when the file was created, what musical score, movement, or part it represents, and the instruments used to play it.
As digital music notation developed further, MD files largely became obsolete. However, many MD files are still available online, and you can open them with MuseScore, a free music composition and notation program.
How to open an MD file
You can open an MD file with MuseScore by selecting . If you receive an error message notifying you that your MD file is corrupted. If you do, click . The MD file will then appear in MuseScore as a musical score.
If you need only to see the plain text notation that an MD file contains, you can open it with any text editor, such as Microsoft Notepad, Apple TextEdit, or Github Atom.
How to convert an MD file
MuseScore can convert MD files to several different formats:
- .MSCZ - MuseScore Compressed Score
- .MSCX - MuseScore Music Score
- .MXL - Compressed MusicXML File
- .MUSICXML - MusicXML File
- .MID, .MIDI - MIDI File
- .PDF - Portable Document Format
- .PNG - Portable Network Graphic
- .SVG - Scalable Vector Graphics
- .WAV - WAVE Audio File
- .MP3 - MP3 Audio File
- .FLAC - Free Lossless Audio Codec File
- .OGG - Ogg Vorbis Audio File