Getting Started with ThiefMD

ThiefMD may be intimidating or lack luster when you first open it. A window with not a lot in it.

Today, we’re giving a crash course on getting started with ThiefMD.

Your First Project

When you first open ThiefMD, you’re presented with an empty library. Click on the Add Folder icon to add a Folder to the Library.

Alternatively, you can drag a folder into the Library pane.

Creating a File

To create a new file in your project, click on the New File icon. You can also hit Ctrl+N which will bring up the same new file popup.

Enter in a file name. If you plan on using Jekyll or another static site generator, following the pattern YYYY-MM-DD-title-of-post will make managing your post easier later on.

If you’re writing a novel or long document, any filename will do. We recommend you go into preferences and enable Keep library order. This creates additional hidden files in the project directory for building and exporting larger projects. The hamburger icon, or Ctrl+, will open the Preferences window.

Writing some Markdown

Clicking on the filename will open the file in the Markdown editor.

If you’re not familiar with Markdown, Ctrl+H will bring up a markdown cheat sheet.

Markdown is great for writers, and is easy to learn. There’s many articles online about it, and maybe we’ll add our own getting started guide later on.

Previewing Markdown

To preview your work, hit Ctrl+Shift+P, or click on the Hamburger icon and choose Preview. The preview window shows your Markdown rendered in HTML.

If you don’t like the default preview style, you can download additional Export CSS Packages from https://themes.thiefmd.com/export-css and add it in the Preferences.

Export to Anything

To export your work, right click on the Library item you wish to export. For an individual file, right-click on the file you want to export.

The Publishing Preview Window is similar to the Preview window, but it can compile multiple files into a single file for exporting.

The toolbar also has options for the Export file type, changing the Export CSS, and additional menu options depending on the Export file type chosen.

If you’re a blogger, you can add a blog as a Connection in the Preferences window. Your blog will appear as an Export Option in the Publishing Preview Window.

Happy Writing

This is just a quick start guide to ThiefMD. If you poke around the preferences, you’ll see more features and details we’ll cover in future articles. Feel free to play around or reach out with any questions you have.