next_url:   install.html
next_title: Installation

Python-Markdown
===============

This is a Python implementation of John Gruber's 
[Markdown](http://daringfireball.net/projects/markdown/). 
It is almost completely compliant with the reference implementation,
though there are a few very minor differences. See John's 
[Syntax Documentation](http://daringfireball.net/projects/markdown/syntax) 
for the syntax rules.

See the [installation instructions](install.html) to get started.

Features
--------

In addition to the basic markdown syntax, Python-Markdown supports the following
features:

* __International Input__

    Python-Markdown will accept [input](reference.html#text) in any language 
    supported by Unicode including bi-directional text. In fact the test suite 
    includes documents written in Russian and Arabic.

* __Middle-Word Emphasis__

    Python-Markdown defaults to ignoring middle-word emphasis. In other words,
    `some_long_filename.txt` will not become `some<em>long</em>filename.txt`.
    This can be switched off if desired. See the 
    [Library Reference](reference.html#smart_emphasis) for details.

* __Extensions__

    Various [extensions](extensions/index.html) are provided (including 
    [extra](extensions/extra.html)) to expand the base syntax. Additionally, 
    a public [Extension API](extensions/api.html) is available to write 
    your own extensions.

* __Output Formats__

    Python-Markdown can output documents in HTML4, XHTML and HTML5. See the
    [Library Reference](reference.html#output_format) for details.

* __"Safe Mode"__

    When using Python-Markdown to parse input from untrusted users on the web,
    the handling of raw HTML can be controlled in various ways to prevent 
    harmful code from being injected into your site. See the
    [Library Reference](reference.html#safe_mode) for details.

* __Command Line Interface__

    In addition to being a Python Library, a 
    [command line script](cli.html) is available for your convenience.

Support
-------

You may ask for help and discuss various other issues on the [mailing list][] 
and report bugs on the [bug tracker][].

[mailing list]: http://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/python-markdown-discuss
[bug tracker]: http://github.com/waylan/Python-Markdown/issues