Markpion

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Import & export ​

A PDF import is empty ​

Problem: importing a PDF gives an empty document and a message that the PDF has no selectable text.

Possible cause: the PDF is a scan, made of images of pages rather than text. Text recognition (OCR) isn't supported.

Solution: run the PDF through an OCR tool first, so it has selectable text (you can check by trying to select text in a PDF viewer), then import it again.

Imported text has the wrong structure ​

Problem: headings, lists or tables from a PDF come out as plain paragraphs.

Possible cause: PDFs store positioned text, not structure. Markpion infers headings from font size and lists from bullets or numbers, which doesn't always match the original.

Solution: fix the structure in the editor, for example with Ctrl+Alt+1–6 for headings and Ctrl+Shift+8 for lists. If you have the original Word file, import that instead: .docx keeps headings, lists and tables reliably.

"Some characters need a different PDF method" ​

Problem: exporting to PDF warns that the document contains characters the built-in PDF font can't display.

Possible cause: Export as PDF uses a built-in font covering Latin, Greek and Cyrillic scripts. Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Arabic, emoji and some symbols aren't in it.

Solution: choose Use Print → Save as PDF, which uses your system fonts, or export as Word or HTML.

Formulas appear as LaTeX text in PDF or Word ​

Problem: a PDF export shows formulas as their LaTeX source, or a Word export shows some formulas as LaTeX.

Possible causes:

  • Export as PDF draws display formulas ($$…$$) as vector drawings on every system; inline formulas ($…$) are set as text, including arrows, set symbols, negated symbols such as \notin, nested scripts and matrices, except ones with accents (\hat{x}, \vec{v}) or less common commands such as \binom, which stay LaTeX text.
  • In Export as Word, formulas become Word equations, except those using something outside the supported subset, such as a matrix (\begin{pmatrix}), an aligned environment or a line break (\\). Those keep their LaTeX so nothing is converted wrongly. See Math.
  • Settings → Preview → Render LaTeX math is off, so $ signs are treated as text.

Solution: for a PDF, use File → Print / Save as PDF…, which renders formulas exactly as in the preview. For Word, simplify the formula, or use Export as HTML.

A diagram appears as code in PDF or Word ​

Possible causes:

  • The diagram has a syntax error. The preview shows Diagram error: too; fix the diagram (see Mermaid).
  • Settings → Preview → Render Mermaid diagrams is off, so all exports keep the code.
  • The version is older than 0.12.0, which exported diagrams as code. Update Markpion.

"Files larger than 100 MB can't be imported" ​

Solution: split the source document, or reduce its size (for example, by compressing images in Word), then import it again.

Export Folder says the folder has one file or none ​

Problem: Combine Folder or Export Folder reports "This folder has only one Markdown file" or "No Markdown files found in this folder".

Solution: these commands need at least two Markdown files in the open folder. For a single file, use Export as PDF or Export as Word.

Report an issue ​

If a document converts badly and you can share it (or a similar one), report it on GitHub. Samples help us improve the converters.