The main document is written in individual chapters using a markdown language. These are simple text files that can be edited in any text editor, like Notepad on Windows and TextEdit on Mac.
The key to the markdown language is that basic elements like headings and quotations are indicated by symbols at the beginning of the line. So, to make headings, subheadings, and quotes, you type:
# A main heading
## A subheading at level 1
### A sub-subheading at level 2
>> An inspirational quote
Using markdown is intended to avoid proprietary word processors, compatibility issues, and the increasing encroachment of AI; you can edit these with a simple text editor.
The full markdown language can do more than just headings (e.g. tables and lists). It is an industry standard and is described here.
There are a few special codes; these are unique to Project 2029.
References are inserted like this:
This is a citation [@murphy_example_2020].
This is another one [@murphy_example_2020; murphy_example2_2018].
For references to appear correctly, they must also be in the Zotero library, and they must be specified using a unique ID. The procedure for ensuring this is currently to send me (John Murphy) the reference and your preferred ID, which should be something simple but distinctive, like murphy_word_year. References appear as footnotes on the page where they occur, and in a reference list at the end of the book.
Annotations are inserted like this:
# Here is a heading in the text
:-:JTM: Here is a comment by JTM
:-:KAT: Here is a comment by KAT
Annotations are intended to allow a limited number of individuals to insert their own commentary such that a special version of the book can be created with their annotations. This is mainly intended for candidates: candidate 'A' can produce a copy that includes points where she disagrees with the text, or add clarification about which of several possible positions she favors. Each candidate has a unique ID (e.g, 'JTM'); these annotations are added like this:
Most of the time when the full book is generated, these will not appear. A special version of the book can be generated, however, that includes comments by JTM, or KAT, or both.
How does it go from markdown to pdf? I have a script that processes it using pandoc and LaTeX to assemble the individual markup chapters into a pdf in book format.