Markdown2Python (md2py)

md2py converts markdown into a Python parse tree. This allows you to navigate a markdown file as a document structure.

See tex2py for a LaTeX parse tree.

Usage

Markdown2Python offers only one function md2py, which generates a Python object from markdown text. This object is a navigable, "Tree of Contents" abstraction for the markdown file.

Take, for example, the following markdown file.

chikin.md

# Chikin Tales

## Chapter 1 : Chikin Fly

Chickens don't fly. They do only the following:

- waddle
- plop

### Waddling

## Chapter 2 : Chikin Scream

### Plopping

Plopping involves three steps:

1. squawk
2. plop
3. repeat, unless ordered to squat

### I Scream

Akin to a navigation bar, the TreeOfContents object allows you to expand a markdown file one level at a time. Running md2py on the above markdown file will generate a tree, abstracting the below structure.

          Chikin Tales
          /           \
    Chapter 1       Chapter 2
      /               /     \
  Waddling      Plopping    I Scream

At the global level, we can access the title.

>>> toc = md2py(markdown)
>>> toc.h1
Chikin Tales
>>> str(toc.h1)
'Chikin Tales'

Notice that at this level, there are no h2s.

>>> list(toc.h2s)
[]

The main h1 has two h2s beneath it. We can access both.

>>> list(toc.h1.h2s)
[Chapter 1 : Chikin Fly, Chapter 2 : Chikin Scream]
>>> toc.h1.h2
Chapter 1 : Chikin Fly

In total, there are 3 h3s in this document. However, only 1 h3 is actually nested within 'Chapter 1 : Chikin Fly' (accessible via toc.h1.h2). As a result, toc.h1.h2.h3s will only show one h3s.

>>> list(toc.h1.h2.h3s)
['Waddling']

The TreeOfContents class also has a few more conveniences defined. Among them is support for indexing. To access the ith child of an <element> - instead of <element>.branches[i] - use <element>[i].

See below for example usage.

>>> toc.h1.branches[0] == toc.h1[0] == toc.h1.h2
True
>>> list(toc.h1.h2s)[1] == toc.h1[1]
True
>>> toc.h1[1]
Chapter 2 : Chikin Scream
>>> list(toc.h1[1].h3s)
[Plopping, I Scream]
>>> list(map(str, toc.h1[1].h3s))
['Plopping', 'I Scream']

Installation

Install via pip.

pip install md2py

Additional Notes

• Behind the scenes, the md2py uses BeautifulSoup. All md2py objects have a source attribute containing a BeautifulSoup object.