TWiki Text Formatting

Working in TWiki is as easy as typing in text - exactly like email. You don't need to know HTML, though you can use it if you prefer. Links to topics are created automatically when you enter WikiWords. And TWiki shorthand gives you all the power of HTML with a simple coding system that takes no time to learn. It's all laid out below - refer back to this page in a pop-up window from the Edit screen.

TWiki Editing Shorthand

Formatting Command: Example: You write: You get:
Paragraphs:
Blank lines will create new paragraphs.
1st paragraph

2nd paragraph
1st paragraph

2nd paragraph

Headings:
At least three dashes at the beginning of a line, followed by plus signs and the heading text. One plus creates a level 1 heading (most important), two pluses a level 2 heading; the maximum is level 6. Note: A Table of Content can be created automatically with the %TOC% variable, see TWikiVariables. Any heading text after !! is excluded from the TOC; for example, write ---+!! text if you do not want to list a header in the TOC.
---++ Sushi

---+++ Maguro

Sushi

Maguro

Bold Text:
Words get bold by enclosing them in * asterisks.
*Bold*
Bold
Italic Text:
Words get italic by enclosing them in _ underscores.
_Italic_
Italic
Bold Italic:
Words get _bold italic by enclosing them in _ double-underscores.
__Bold italic__
Bold italic
Fixed Font:
Words get shown in fixed font by enclosing them in = equal signs.
=Fixed font=
Fixed font

Bold Fixed Font:
Words get shown in bold fixed font by enclosing them in double equal signs.
==Bold fixed==
Bold fixed
Note: Make sure there is no space between the text and the bold, italic, or other indicators (* _ __ = ==).
_This works_,
_this not _
This works,
_this not _
Verbatim Mode:
Surround code excerpts and other formatted text with <verbatim> and </verbatim> tags.
Note: Use <pre> and </pre> tags instead if you want that HTML code is interpreted.
Note: Each tag must be on a line by itself.
<verbatim>
class CatAnimal {
  void purr() {
    <code here>
  }
}
</verbatim>
class CatAnimal {
  void purr() {
    <code here>
  }
}
Separator:
At least three dashes at the beginning of a line.
-------

List Item:
Three spaces, an asterisk, and another space.
   * bullet item
  • bullet item
Nested List Item:
Six, nine, ... spaces, an asterisk, and another space.
   * level 1
      * level 2
  • level 1
    • level 2
Ordered List:
Three spaces, a number, a dot, and another space. Several types are available besides a number:
Type Generated Style Sample Sequence
1. Arabic numerals 1, 2, 3, 4...
A. Uppercase letters A, B, C, D...
a. Lowercase letters a, b, c, d...
I. Uppercase Roman Numerals I, II, III, IV...
i. Lowercase Roman Numerals i, ii, iii, iv...

   1. Sushi
   1. Dim Sum

   A. Sushi
   A. Dim Sum

   i. Sushi
   i. Dim Sum
  1. Sushi
  2. Dim Sum

  1. Sushi
  2. Dim Sum

  1. Sushi
  2. Dim Sum
Definition List:
Three spaces, a dollar sign, the term, a colon, a space, followed by the definition.
   $ Sushi: Japan
   $ Dim Sum: S.F.
Sushi
Japan
Dim Sum
S.F.
Table:
Any number of lines of text. Each line is one row of the table consisting of one or more cells. Each cell starts and ends with a vertical bar '|'. Any spaces at the beginning of a line are ignored.
Notes:
| *bold* | cells are displayed as table headers.
|   center-spaced   | cells are displayed center aligned.
|     right-spaced | cells are displayed right aligned.
| 2 colspan || cells are displayed as multi-span columns (i.e., a cell with no text spans a column).
|^| cells with a caret indicate follow-up rows of multi-span rows (this functionality is provided by TablePlugin).
• If a row contains a large amount of text, and you want it to be more readable while editing the table, split the row into multiple text lines by ending each line with a backslash character '\'.
• Table cells wrap automatically as determined by the browser.
| *L* | *C* | *R* |
| A2 |  2  |  2 |
| A3 |  3  |  3 |
| multi span |||
| A4-6 | four | four |
|^| five | five |



|^| six | six |
L C R
A2 2 2
A3 3 3
multi span
A4-6 four four
five five
six six
WikiWord Links:
CapitalizedWordsStuckTogether (or WikiWords) will produce a link automatically.
Note: In case you want to link to a topic in a different TWiki web write Otherweb.TopicName. (The link label is the the name of the web in case the is WebHome, else it is the topic name)
WebNotify

Main.TWikiUsers
WebNotify

TWikiUsers

Forced Links:
You can create a forced internal link by enclosing words in double square brackets.
Note: Text within the brackets may contain optional spaces; the topic name is formed by capitalizing the initial letter and by removing the spaces; for example, [[text formatting FAQ]] links to topic TextFormattingFAQ. You can also refer to a different web and use anchors.
Note: To "escape" double square brackets that would otherwise be a correct link, prefix the leading left square brackets with an exclamation point, that is, begin with ![[....
[[wiki syntax]]

[[Main.TWiki users]]

escaped:
![[wiki syntax]]
wiki syntax

Main.TWiki users

escaped: [[wiki syntax]]

Specific Links:
Create a link where you can specify the link text and the link reference separately, using nested square brackets like [[reference][text]]. Internal link references (e.g. WikiSyntax) and external link references (e.g. http://TWiki.org/) are supported.
Note: The same Forced Links rules apply for internal link references.
Note: For external link references, you can simply use a space instead of ][ to separate the link URL from the descriptive text.
Note: Anchor names can be added as well, like [[WebHome#MyAnchor][go home]] and [[http://gnu.org/#Action][GNU Action]].
[[WikiSyntax][syntax]]

[[http://gnu.org][GNU]]

[[http://xml.org XML]]
syntax

GNU

XML

Anchors:
You can define a link reference inside a TWiki topic (called an anchor name) and link to that. To define an anchor write #AnchorName at the beginning of a line. The anchor name must be a WikiWord. To link to an anchor name use the [[MyTopic#MyAnchor]] syntax. You can omit the topic name if you want to link within the same topic.
[[WikiWord#NotThere]]

[[#MyAnchor][Jump]]

#MyAnchor To here
WikiWord#NotThere

Jump

To here

Prevent a Link:
Prevent a WikiWord from being linked by prepending it with an exclamation point.
!SunOS
SunOS
Disable Links:
You can disable automatic linking of WikiWords by surrounding text with <noautolink> and </noautolink> tags.
Note: Each tag must be on a line by itself.
Note: This also works for TWiki tables, but only if you add a blank line between the end of the table and the closing </noautolink> tag (known issue of the TablePlugin).
 <noautolink>
 RedHat &
 SuSE
 </noautolink>
RedHat & SuSE
Mailto: Links:
To create 'mailto:' links that have more descriptive link text, specify subject lines or message bodies, or omit the email address, you can write [[mailto:user@domain descriptive text]].
[[mailto:a@z.com Mail]]

[[mailto:?subject=Hi Hi]]
Mail

Hi

Using HTML

You can use just about any HTML tag without a problem - however, there are a few usability and technical considerations to keep in mind.

HTML and TWiki Usability

TWiki HTML Rendering

TWiki and JavaScript

You can use JavaScript for your TWiki applications. Since TWiki rendering might interfere with JavaScript code you need to escape it with HTML comments and <pre> tags:

<script type="text/javascript">
<!-- Hide JavaScript and <pre> escape TWiki rendering
... put your JavaScript code here...
// Stop hiding and stop </pre> escaping TWiki rendering -->
</script>

Hyperlinks

Being able to create links without any formatting required is a core TWiki feature, made possible with WikiWords. New TWiki linking rules are a simple extension of the syntax that provide a new set of flexible options.

Internal Links

External Links

TWiki Variables

Variables are names that are enclosed in percent signs % that are expanded on the fly.

TWikiPlugin Formatting Extensions

Plugins provide additional text formatting capabilities and can extend the functionality of TWiki into many other areas. For example, the optional SpreadSheetPlugin lets you create a spreadsheet with the same basic notation used in TWiki tables.

Available Plugins are located in the Plugins web on TWiki.org. Currently enabled plugins on this TWiki installation, as listed by %PLUGINDESCRIPTIONS%:

Check on current Plugin status and settings for this site in TWikiPreferences.

Common Editing Errors

TWiki formatting rules are fairly simple to use and quick to type. However, there are some things to watch out for, taken from the TextFormattingFAQ:

-- TWiki:Main.MikeMannix - 02 Dec 2001
-- TWiki:Trash.PeterThoeny - 01 Aug 2004