Zenmd NPM | npm.io

ZenMD

Beta software: expect bugs and breaking changes...

The simplest way to transform a directory of .md files into a static site.

https://idealistspace.com/zenmd - here is a post (about why ZenMD was built) on a site that's built with ZenMD. It's meta... :)
https://thezenjournal.com - a Remix custom homepage with a ZenMD compiled posts/ directory

Just one command to build and another to deploy:

npx zenmd <inputFolder> --output <outputFolder or default: ./dist>
# Or if you prefer to install to a global command:
npm install zenmd -g
zenmd ...

Bring your own editor and host. Obsidian, Bear, Typora, VS Code... Netlify, Vercel, Cloudflare...
Publish your Obsidian digital garden.
Back to the future: edit .html layouts without compiling.
Bring your own framework, and let ZenMD render your .md files.

Simplicity at its Core: Just a npx command away to transform your markdown files into a minimalistic static site.

Transform .md to html
- GFM markdown, with all the features supported by remark-gfm.
  - That includes table, footnotes, even raw html tags, e.g.: iframe for embeds.
- Support images in markdown files.
- Wiki links: [[Another Page]] => [Another Page](/another-page).
- Auto header anchor links, so you can navigate to any H2-h5 headers directly.
- Support raw html in markdown
Custom html Layout support (any layout.html files at the same level or above will be used, if none found, default layout will be used.)
Filter docs with matching tags --tags=publish:true which will only build files with publish flag or --tags=draft:false which will not build files with draft flag.
Automatically infer title from first H1
Generates sitemap.xml at the output directory.
- Requires baseUrl option or BASE_URL env var, since sitemap.xml requires full URL.
- If missing base url, no sitemap will be generated.
Automatically generates robots.txt

Here is a list of known gaps:

This may only support a subset of your favorite markdown syntax. For example, if you work with Obsidian, your image reference will work with ![](image.jpeg), with ZenMD it needs to be more specific ![](./assets/image.jpeg)
The generated site doesn't have a RSS feed.

Feel free to create an issue or submit a PR on Github if you notice more deal breakers...

Hugo/jekyll and traditional SSG: no need to download a framework or generate a framework specific repo, your content (and npx) is all you need.
Blog starter kits: less customization, simpler setup, no git repo with a dozen configs mixed with your content. No React components.
Notion/Obsidian Publish: these are simpler solutions (no git/CLI) from bigger org and more integrated to your workflow if you use these tools heavily. ZenMD is a balance between independence and simplicity.