| blob | 05db15f548aba0b384f1ed780adcd2c7d6aa6f46 |
4 <html>
5 <head>
15 </head>
17 <body>
20 <!-- Caveat: if you're reading the HTML for the examples, -->
21 <!-- beware that it was hand-generated, not by Docutils/ReST. -->
28 <blockquote>
29 <p>Copyright: This document has been placed in the public domain.
30 </blockquote>
33 <p>The full details of the markup may be found on the
35 page. This document is just intended as a reminder.
38 into the HTML version of the full <a
40 specification</a> document. These are relative links; if they
41 don't work, please use the <a
47 <ul>
64 <ul>
68 <ul>
73 </ul></li>
75 <li><a href="#substitution-references-and-definitions">Substitution References and Definitions</a></li>
77 </ul></li>
79 </ul>
86 <p>Inline markup allows words and phrases within text to have
87 character styles (like italics and boldface) and functionality
88 (like hyperlinks).
91 <thead>
93 <th>Plain text
94 <th>Typical result
95 <th>Notes
96 </thead>
97 <tbody>
101 <td>Normally rendered as italics.
106 <td>Normally rendered as boldface.
110 <td>(see note at right)
112 domain- or application-dependent. It can be used for things
113 like index entries or explicit descriptive markup (like program
114 identifiers).
119 <td>Normally rendered as monospaced text. Spaces should be
120 preserved, but line breaks will not be.
131 <td>A hyperlink reference with spaces or punctuation needs to be
132 quoted with backquotes. See <a
138 <td>With two underscores instead of one, both simple and phrase
139 references may be anonymous (the reference text is not repeated
140 at the target). See <a
146 <td>A crossreference target within text.
151 <td>(see note at right)
154 definition</a>. It could be text, an image, a hyperlink, or a
155 combination of these and others.
170 <td>A standalone hyperlink.
172 </table>
174 <p>Asterisk, backquote, vertical bar, and underscore are inline
175 delimiter characters. Asterisk, backquote, and vertical bar act
176 like quote marks; matching characters surround the marked-up word
177 or phrase, whitespace or other quoting is required outside them,
178 and there can't be whitespace just inside them. If you want to use
180 (with backslash)</a> or quote them (with double backquotes; i.e.
181 use inline literals).
183 <p>In detail, the reStructuredText specification says that in
184 inline markup, the following rules apply to start-strings and
185 end-strings (inline markup delimiters):
187 <ol>
188 <li>The start-string must start a text block or be
189 immediately preceded by whitespace or any of
191 <li>The start-string must be immediately followed by non-whitespace.
192 <li>The end-string must be immediately preceded by non-whitespace.
193 <li>The end-string must end a text block (end of document or
194 followed by a blank line) or be immediately followed by whitespace
199 immediately followed by the corresponding character from
201 <li>An end-string must be separated by at least one
202 character from the start-string.
204 start-string or end-string will disable markup recognition, except
205 for the end-string of inline literals.
206 </ol>
208 <p>Also remember that inline markup may not be nested (well,
209 except that inline literals can contain any of the other inline
210 markup delimiter characters, but that doesn't count because
211 nothing is processed).
220 meaning given to markup characters and get the literal characters
221 themselves. To get a literal backslash, use an escaped backslash
222 ("\\"). For example:
225 <thead>
229 </thead>
230 <tbody>
237 </table>
239 <p>In Python strings it will, of course, be necessary
240 to escape any backslash characters so that they actually
242 The simplest way to do this is to use raw strings:
245 <thead>
249 </thead>
250 <tbody>
260 </table>
268 <thead>
272 </thead>
273 <tbody>
275 <td>
285 <br><samp>are "``= - ` : ' " ~ ^ _ * + # < >``".</samp>
286 <br><samp>The underline/overline must be at</samp>
287 <br><samp>least as long as the title text.</samp>
288 <br><samp></samp>
289 <br><samp>A lone top-level (sub)section</samp>
290 <br><samp>is lifted up to be the document's</samp>
291 <br><samp>(sub)title.</samp>
293 <td>
296 <p>Titles are underlined (or over-
297 and underlined) with a printing
298 nonalphanumeric 7-bit ASCII
299 character. Recommended choices
301 The underline/overline must be at
302 least as long as the title text.
303 <p>A lone top-level (sub)section is
304 lifted up to be the document's
305 (sub)title.
306 </table>
314 <thead>
318 </thead>
319 <tbody>
321 <td>
328 <td>
329 <p>This is a paragraph.
331 <p>Paragraphs line up at their left edges, and are normally
332 separated by blank lines.
334 </table>
342 <thead>
346 </thead>
347 <tbody>
349 <td>
362 <td>Bullet lists:
363 <ul>
367 Continuing text must be aligned
368 after the bullet and whitespace.
369 </ul>
370 <p>Note that a blank line is required before the first
371 item and after the last, but is optional between items.
372 </table>
380 <thead>
384 </thead>
385 <tbody>
387 <td>
395 <br><samp> numbered, but need not start at 1</samp>
399 <td>Enumerated lists:
402 <li>This is the second item
403 <li>Enumerators are arabic numbers, single letters,
404 or roman numerals
405 <li>List items should be sequentially numbered,
406 but need not start at 1 (although not all
407 formatters will honour the first index).
408 <li>This item is auto-enumerated
409 </ol>
410 </table>
418 <thead>
422 </thead>
423 <tbody>
425 <td>
427 <br>
431 <br>
433 <br><samp> The term is a one-line phrase, and the</samp>
434 <br><samp> definition is one or more paragraphs or</samp>
438 <td>Definition lists:
439 <dl>
441 <dd>Definition lists associate a term with
442 a definition.
445 <dd>The term is a one-line phrase, and the
446 definition is one or more paragraphs or
447 body elements, indented relative to the
448 term. Blank lines are not allowed
449 between term and definition.
450 </dl>
451 </table>
459 <thead>
463 </thead>
464 <tbody>
466 <td>
471 <p><samp> (and sundry other good-natured folks)</samp>
475 <td>
476 <table>
479 <td>Tony J. (Tibs) Ibbs,
480 David Goodger
481 <tr><td><td>(and sundry other good-natured folks)
484 </table>
485 </table>
487 <p>Field lists are used as part of an extension syntax, such as
489 records meant for further processing. Field lists may also be
490 used as generic two-column table constructs in documents.
498 <thead>
502 </thead>
503 <tbody>
505 <td>
506 <p><samp>
507 -a command-line option "a"
508 <br>-b file options can have arguments
509 <br> and long descriptions
510 <br>--long options can be long also
512 <br> arguments
513 <br>/V DOS/VMS-style options too
514 </samp>
516 <td>
519 <tr>
522 <tr>
524 <td>options can have arguments and long descriptions
525 <tr>
527 <td>options can be long also
528 <tr>
530 <td>long options can also have arguments
531 <tr>
533 <td>DOS/VMS-style options too
534 </table>
535 </table>
537 <p>There must be at least two spaces between the option and the
538 description.
546 <thead>
550 </thead>
551 <tbody>
553 <td>
557 <br>
559 <br>
563 <br>
566 <br>
572 <br>
573 <br><samp> It's very convenient to use this form.</samp>
574 <br>
579 <br>
583 <br>
586 <br>
590 <td>
591 <p>A paragraph containing only two colons
592 indicates that the following indented or quoted
593 text is a literal block.
595 <pre>
596 Whitespace, newlines, blank lines, and
597 all kinds of markup (like *this* or
598 \this) is preserved by literal blocks.
600 The paragraph containing only '::'
601 will be omitted from the result.</pre>
605 omitted if it is preceded by whitespace.
607 colon if preceded by text, like this:
609 <pre>
610 It's very convenient to use this form.</pre>
612 <p>Literal blocks end when text returns to
613 the preceding paragraph's indentation.
614 This means that something like this is possible:
616 <pre>
617 We start here
618 and continue here
619 and end here.</pre>
621 <p>Per-line quoting can also be used on
622 unindented literal blocks:
624 <pre>
625 > Useful for quotes from email and
627 </table>
635 <thead>
639 </thead>
640 <tbody>
642 <td>
648 <br><samp>| Line breaks and initial indents</samp>
652 <br><samp> with spaces in place of vertical bars.</samp>
654 <td>
664 </div>
666 of long lines; they begin
667 with spaces in place of vertical bars.</div>
668 </div>
669 </table>
677 <thead>
681 </thead>
682 <tbody>
684 <td>
689 <p><samp> and they may nest.</samp>
690 <td>
691 Block quotes are just:
692 <blockquote>
693 <p>Indented paragraphs,
694 <blockquote>
695 <p>and they may nest.
696 </blockquote>
697 </blockquote>
698 </table>
701 contexts, such as block quotes and directive contents.</p>
709 <thead>
713 </thead>
714 <tbody>
716 <td>
724 <td>
725 <p>Doctest blocks are interactive
726 Python sessions. They begin with
727 "<samp>>>></samp>" and end with a blank line.
731 </table>
735 module searches a module's docstrings for text that looks like an
736 interactive Python session, then executes all such sessions to
737 verify they still work exactly as shown." (From the doctest docs.)
744 <p>There are two syntaxes for tables in reStructuredText. Grid
745 tables are complete but cumbersome to create. Simple tables are
746 easy to create but limited (no row spans, etc.).</p>
749 <thead>
753 </thead>
754 <tbody>
756 <td>
760 <br><samp>| Header 1 | Header 2 | Header 3 |</samp>
762 <br><samp>| body row 1 | column 2 | column 3 |</samp>
764 <br><samp>| body row 2 | Cells may span columns.|</samp>
766 <br><samp>| body row 3 | Cells may | - Cells |</samp>
768 <br><samp>| body row 4 | | - blocks. |</samp>
770 <td>
774 <tr>
778 </tr>
779 </thead>
781 <tr>
785 </tr>
786 <tr>
789 </tr>
790 <tr>
794 <ul>
795 <li>Cells
796 <li>contain
797 <li>blocks.
798 </ul>
799 </tr>
800 <tr>
802 </tr>
803 </table>
805 <td>
811 <br><samp> A B A or B</samp>
819 <td>
822 <colgroup>
826 </colgroup>
828 <tr>
830 <th>Output
831 <tr>
832 <th>A
833 <th>B
834 <th>A or B
836 <tr>
837 <td>False
838 <td>False
839 <td>False
840 <tr>
841 <td>True
842 <td>False
843 <td>True
844 <tr>
845 <td>False
846 <td>True
847 <td>True
848 <tr>
849 <td>True
850 <td>True
851 <td>True
852 </table>
854 </table>
862 <thead>
866 </thead>
867 <tbody>
869 <td>
870 <p><samp>
881 <td>
882 <p>A transition marker is a horizontal line
883 of 4 or more repeated punctuation
884 characters.</p>
886 <hr>
888 <p>A transition should not begin or end a
889 section or document, nor should two
890 transitions be immediately adjacent.
891 </table>
893 <p>Transitions are commonly seen in novels and short fiction, as a
894 gap spanning one or more lines, marking text divisions or
895 signaling changes in subject, time, point of view, or emphasis.
900 <p>Explicit markup blocks are used for constructs which float
901 (footnotes), have no direct paper-document representation
902 (hyperlink targets, comments), or require specialized processing
903 (directives). They all begin with two periods and whitespace, the
904 "explicit markup start".
912 <thead>
916 </thead>
917 <tbody>
920 <td>
929 <td>
931 Note that footnotes may get rearranged, e.g., to the bottom of
932 the "page".
934 <p><table>
936 <!-- <tr><td colspan="2">Footnotes: -->
939 </table>
942 <td>
954 <td>
955 Autonumbered footnotes are possible, like using <sup><a
958 <p>They may be assigned 'autonumber labels' - for instance,
962 <p><table>
964 <!-- <tr><td colspan="2">Footnotes: -->
969 </table>
972 <td>
978 <td>
979 Auto-symbol footnotes are also
983 <p><table>
985 <!-- <tr><td colspan="2">Footnotes: -->
988 </table>
990 </table>
992 <p>The numbering of auto-numbered footnotes is determined by the
993 order of the footnotes, not of the references. For auto-numbered
994 footnote references without autonumber labels
995 ("<samp>[#]_</samp>"), the references and footnotes must be in the
996 same relative order. Similarly for auto-symbol footnotes
997 ("<samp>[*]_</samp>").
1005 <thead>
1009 </thead>
1010 <tbody>
1013 <td>
1031 <td>
1033 Note that citations may get rearranged, e.g., to the bottom of
1034 the "page".
1036 <p>Citation labels contain alphanumerics, underlines, hyphens
1037 and fullstops. Case is not significant.
1042 <p><table>
1044 <!-- <tr><td colspan="2">Citations: -->
1046 (as often used in journals).
1048 </table>
1050 </table>
1061 <thead>
1065 </thead>
1066 <tbody>
1073 <td>
1076 <tr><td>External hyperlinks, like
1078 </table>
1080 <td>
1083 <tr><td>External hyperlinks, like
1086 <p><table>
1090 </table>
1091 </table>
1092 </table>
1095 documents (think of the indirect hyperlink being "folded in" like
1096 ingredients into a cake), and "<em>call-out</em>" is more suitable for
1097 printed documents, where the link needs to be presented explicitly, for
1098 example as a footnote. You can force usage of the call-out form by
1099 using the
1101 directive.
1105 a convenience at the expense of readability. A hyperlink
1106 reference may directly embed a target URI inline, within angle
1107 brackets. The following is exactly equivalent to the example above:
1110 <thead>
1114 </thead>
1115 <tbody>
1121 <td>External hyperlinks, like
1123 </table>
1129 <thead>
1133 </thead>
1134 <tbody>
1142 <td>
1145 <!-- Note that some browsers may not like an "a" tag that -->
1146 <!-- does not have any content, so we could arbitrarily -->
1147 <!-- use the first word as content - *or* just trust to -->
1148 <!-- luck! -->
1151 crossreference target.
1152 </table>
1154 <td>
1160 <br>This is an example crossreference target.
1161 </table>
1163 </table>
1171 <thead>
1175 </thead>
1176 <tbody>
1179 <td>
1187 <td>
1190 programming language</a>.
1192 </table>
1194 <p>The second hyperlink target (the line beginning with
1195 "<samp>__</samp>") is both an indirect hyperlink target
1198 target</b>. In the text, a double-underscore suffix is used to
1200 hyperlink target, the reference text is not repeated. This is
1201 useful for references with long text or throw-away references, but
1202 the target should be kept close to the reference to prevent them
1203 going out of sync.
1210 <p>Section titles, footnotes, and citations automatically generate
1211 hyperlink targets (the title text or footnote/citation label is
1212 used as the hyperlink name).
1218 </thead>
1219 <tbody>
1222 <td>
1227 <td>
1230 targets, too</a>.
1231 </table>
1238 <p>Directives are a general-purpose extension mechanism, a way of
1239 adding support for new constructs without adding new syntax. For
1240 a description of all standard directives, see <a
1242 Directives</a>.
1245 <thead>
1249 </thead>
1250 <tbody>
1256 <td>
1257 For instance:
1259 </table>
1266 <p>Substitutions are like inline directives, allowing graphics and
1267 arbitrary constructs within text.
1270 <thead>
1274 </thead>
1275 <tbody>
1277 <td><samp>
1282 <p><samp>
1285 <td>
1288 must be used on containers used to dispose of medical waste.
1290 </table>
1297 <p>Any text which begins with an explicit markup start but doesn't
1298 use the syntax of any of the constructs above, is a comment.
1301 <thead>
1305 </thead>
1306 <tbody>
1309 <br><samp> (but, for instance, in HTML might be</samp>
1313 <!-- This text will not be shown -->
1314 <!-- (but, for instance in HTML might be -->
1315 <!-- rendered as an HTML comment) -->
1318 <td>
1324 <p><samp> So this block is not "lost",</samp>
1325 <br><samp> despite its indentation.</samp>
1326 <td>
1327 An "empty comment" does not
1328 consume following blocks.
1329 (An empty comment is ".." with
1330 blank lines before and after.)
1331 <blockquote>
1332 So this block is not "lost",
1333 despite its indentation.
1334 </blockquote>
1335 </table>
1340 <p>Users who have questions or need assistance with Docutils or
1341 reStructuredText should <a
1347 site</a> has more information.
1349 <p><hr>
1350 <address>
1351 <p>Authors:
1354 and David Goodger
1356 </address>
1357 <!-- Created: Fri Aug 03 09:11:57 GMT Daylight Time 2001 -->
1358 </body>
1359 </html>