Documentation

This repository holds the source files of the OutSystems product documentation.

Check how you can contribute.

Writing

All documentation present in this repository should be written in Markdown (check here for the basic syntax).

The Markdown-to-HTML conversion process is done through the Python Markdown package. The following Markdown extensions are currently being used in the conversion step:

Extension	Description
markdown.extensions.extra	Meta-extension adding support to a series of smaller extensions (check documentation). Currently supports the definition lists syntax.
markdown.extensions.meta	Read metadata from each Markdown front-matter section (discarded in HTML output). Can be used for specifying custom page titles, for example (not used by the default template).
markdown.extensions.toc	Only used to get automatic bookmarks in headings.
markdown.blankline	Adds Markdown syntax so it is possible to add a blank line (by writing %%). Currently used inside table cells.
markdown-include	Include other Markdown files in a given file. [Currently not used]

Editor settings

Before editing any Markdown document that you wish to push to this repository, you should configure your preferred editor with the following generic settings:

• When the tab key is pressed, insert 4 spaces instead of a Tab character (.editorconfig file available for configuring several editors automatically);
• Use soft-wrapping, if available, avoiding carriage returns inside paragraphs.

The 4-spaces setting follows the R&D development recommendations for configuring Visual Studio.

Recommended editors

Visual Studio Code

Very powerful and extensible editor. Get it from here.

Has Markdown support out-of-the-box, with preview capabilities (just press Control+K, V when editing a saved .md file).

Settings

Install EditorConfig for VS Code extension for handling common editor settings (4 spaces instead of tabs).

Set up soft-wrapping

In the same pane (User Settings), make sure the following settings are defined:

{
    (...)            
    "editor.wordWrapColumn": 80,
    "editor.wordWrap": "bounded"
}

Note: For some reason, Markdown documents do not automatically assume these settings. You will have to define a [markdown] language definition section with the same settings:

{
    (These are the 2 settings described above. Mind the new trailing comma after "bounded"!)

    "editor.wordWrapColumn": 80,
    "editor.wordWrap": "bounded",
    "[markdown]": {
        "editor.wordWrapColumn": 80,
        "editor.wordWrap": "bounded"
    }
}

Install a spell checker

1. Open View > Extensions.
2. Search and install the offline spell checker by Michael Vernier, called SpellChecker.
3. Reload the window.

Visual Studio 2017 (with Markdown Editor extension)

If you already use Visual Studio, you can install the Markdown Editor extension and keep using the same IDE for editing Markdown documents.

Settings

Visual Studio 2017 supports EditorConfig out of the box.

Notepad++

Check the markdown_npp language definition. There's no preview available.

Note: it has a few syntax highlighting limitations, when compared with more powerful implementations.

Settings

Install the EditorConfig Notepad++ plugin to set up your workspace settings while editing Markdown files in this repository.

Vim (with vim-markdown plugin)

If you use Vim, install the vim-markdown plugin and get a load of new features related to Markdown editing.

Note: Mentioning Vim here just for completeness. :)