Jitesh Gosar Jitesh Gosar
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HackMD: Write, Publish, and Share Markdown Notes Effectively

2020-09-30

HackMD is a powerful tool for writing, sharing, and collaborating on notes or blog posts using Markdown.

I use HackMD regularly to write technical notes and long-form posts. You can find all my public HackMD notes here:
https://hackmd.io/@jitesh

This post explains:

  • how to create HackMD notes
  • how to publish them
  • how to collaborate and share notes live
  • how HackMD integrates with GitHub

Creating HackMD notes (.md files)

Creating a new note using the Chrome extension

The fastest way to start writing is through the HackMD Chrome extension.

Steps:

  1. Click the HackMD Chrome extension.
  2. Click New note.

Create new HackMD note from Chrome extension

Creating a new note from the HackMD website

HackMD overview page

HackMD provides three ways to create a new note from the website:

  1. Create an empty note by clicking New note.
  2. Create a new note from an existing template.
  3. Import an existing file from GitHub.

Create new note options

Creating a new note from a template

When you select New note from template, you can either choose an existing template or create your own.

This is useful when you frequently write similar types of documents, such as meeting notes, tutorials, or project documentation.

Create a new HackMD note from template

Importing a file from GitHub and editing it in HackMD

HackMD allows you to directly import Markdown files from GitHub and edit them in the browser.

Steps:

  1. Click Import file from GitHub.
  2. Select the repository, branch, and file you want to edit.

If your GitHub account is not already linked, HackMD will prompt you to connect and authorize access.

Import GitHub file to HackMD Connect GitHub to HackMD Authorize HackMD Hub on GitHub

Once connected, you can easily:

  • Pull changes from GitHub
  • Push updates back to GitHub

Pull from GitHub or push to GitHub in HackMD

Publishing HackMD notes

Publishing a HackMD note makes it accessible to others as a read-only or collaborative document.

Steps to publish:

  1. Click the Share icon in the top-right corner.
  2. Select the view mode.
  3. (Optional) Set a custom link name.
  4. Configure permissions (read, comment, or edit).
  5. Click Publish.

Publish HackMD note window Select view mode when publishing

Sharing HackMD notes live

HackMD supports live collaboration where one person controls scrolling for all viewers. This is especially useful for presentations or walkthroughs of long notes.

Steps:

  1. Click the n ONLINE button in the top-right corner.
  2. Select the user who should act as the host.

Share live note via ONLINE menu

Host view

When a host is selected, the note creator’s screen looks like this:

Note creator screen when host is selected

Guest view

Guests can choose to follow or unfollow the host’s live view.

Note viewer screen when host is selected

Related demo videos:

Example posts: HackMD vs traditional blog

Below are two versions of the same Unreal Engine 4 tutorial, written in different formats. Comparing them highlights the visual and structural differences between HackMD-style notes and traditional blog posts.

HackMD version of the UE4 tutorial

https://hackmd.io/@jitesh/3d/edit

Blog version of the UE4 tutorial

https://jiteshgosar.com/install-unreal-engine-4-ubuntu/