annaScript is a simple, easy-to-use markup language that compiles to HTML. It features a rich, simple syntax and an easily extendible macro system. Because annaScript uses a minimalistic approach to parse data, realtime compilation is possible without any noticable lag (Average Compile Time: < 30ms).
annaScript Studio is a sophisticated editor for annaScript with realtime preview. With it, the language becomes the perfect solution for note taking, especially if you like markdown syntax but miss CSS features.
Like mentioned above, extending or adjusting the language is easy due to the macro and theme system. All themes are defined through CSS files. In this repository, you'll find three base themes you can use out of the box, modify or use as template to create new ones.
If you are on Windows, the .exe version is the easiest way to get started.
Simply download the installer from the latest release and run it. It will not only
install annaScript and annaScript Studio together but will also register the filetype
.ascr which makes using the editor a lot easier.
If you want to use the Python version, simply follow these instructions:
- Download the source code from the latest release
- Install all dependencies with
pip install -r "requirements.txt - Run main.py
You can also build annaScript Studio for any other OS using PyInstaller. Make sure to enable dynamic linking in order to comply with the PySide6 license.
Most of the syntax is similar to markdown, with some features extending its functionality. Below you'll find all current elements of annaScript's syntax.
These tags that have to be placed at the beginning at the document (but aren't necessary) define meta elements of the document, such as author, title and style. The style tag defines the CSS theme that is linked in the HTML. Below are all current meta tags available:
@title: My Document
@author: Annabeth Kisling
@style: default
@darkmode: true
Headings use the same syntax as markdown. They are directly equivalent to <h1>-<h6> tags in HTML.
# H1 heading
## H2 heading
### H3 heading
#### H4 heading
Paragraphs are separated by at least one blank line.
This is paragraph one.
It continues here.
This is paragraph two.
Text formatting works by wrapping text in certain characters. Currently, annaScript supports bold, italic and highlighted texts, code blocks and sub/superscript.
*italic*
**bold**
***both***
==highlight==
`code block`
^^super^^
,,sub,,
Links follow the same syntax as in markdown as well.
[Visit My Website](http://tk-dev-software.com)
There is support for ordered and unordered lists, as well as for sub items.
Unordered:
- Item A
- Item B
- Subitem
- Subitem
Ordered:
1. First
2. Second
Macros are the highlight of annaScript and are the easiest to add your own elements to your document. All macros follow the same syntax rules:
::type optional-attributes
content inside macro...
::
There are a few built-in macros:
::box type=danger title="Attention!"
Danger awaits...
::
::box type=warning title="Warning!"
Be warned!
::
::box type=info title="Information"
Be informed!
::
::def
(a+b)^^2^^ = a^^2^^ + 2ab + b^^2^^
::
::note
Remember this!
::
::box
Hello, I'm just a box!
::
::center
Centered text
::
These macros are equivalent to CSS classes, which makes it easy to add your own. Simply add a new class to your theme CSS file and use its name inside the macro definition.
Tables are written using the separator ("|"). If there are dashes below the first row, the row becomes a table header.
| Name | Age | Grade |
|-------|-----|-------|
| Alice | 17 | A |
| Bob | 16 | B |
Note: This version of annaScript is mainly meant for casual usage. If you want to modify annaScript, I'd recommend using the barebone version in this repository
When I started creating annaScript, it was because I was fed up with taking notes at school in Word and struggling with its formatting system. I tried using markdown but quickly realised that it was missing some features like sub/superscript or macros. Also, it was a problem that different markdown engines used different syntax versions.
Because of this, I decided to build my own markup language - annaScript was born. The engine itself is really basic and features the typical "interpreted language" features like a simple parser, tokenizer, AST nodes and a HTML renderer. However, because this language is very much tailored to my own specific needs, I decided to keep it easily customiziable so anyone can adjust the syntax to their likings.
If you simply want to create your own elements, you don't need to modify the engine itself. You can simply create your theme (or modify an existing one) and add your macro's CSS definitions inside a CSS class.
Creating and using your own themes is really simple: Navigate to the /themes folder and create a new folder with your desired theme name (e.g. "myTheme"). Inside that folder, create two CSS files: light.css and dark.css. Now, you can write your own style definitions for your documents. My recommendation is to start of by modifying one of the built-in themes to understand what elements need to have style attributes.
With the new theme created, import and use it in your document by placing this meta tag at the top:
@style: myTheme
Optionally, you can also use dark mode (default is light):
@darkmode: true
This project is the counter part to annaScript, the barebones version of annaScript without the editor. Check it out on its GitHub repository!
Whilst annaScript itself isn't using any external dependencies, annaScript Studio uses PySide6 for its GUI. All Qt libraries are used with dynamic linking, which complies to the license.
All annaScript compiler source code and the built-in themes are made by the author and subject to her copyright. All code is released under the MIT-License (see license.md) and therefore allows anyone to modify, copy, use or release it under the condition the author's work is credited and the license is included.
If you created a theme and think it could be useful for others, feel free to make a pull request to the repo!
Annabeth Kisling