GUIDE 4 — LISTS

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bullet lists

marktxt

• first item
• second item
• third item

;- first item ;.
;- second item ;.
;- third item ;.

markdown

- first item
- second item
- third item

html

<ul>
  <li>first item</li>
  <li>second item</li>
  <li>third item</li>
</ul>

numbered lists

marktxt

1. first item
2. second item
3. third item

;1. first item ;.
;2. second item ;.
;3. third item ;.

markdown

1. first item
2. second item
3. third item

html

<ol>
  <li>first item</li>
  <li>second item</li>
  <li>third item</li>
</ol>

checkboxes

marktxt

• buy groceries
• write the guide
• publish to github

;+ buy groceries ;.
;* write the guide ;.
;+ publish to github ;.

;+ = unchecked. ;* = checked.

markdown

- [ ] buy groceries
- [x] write the guide
- [ ] publish to github

html

<ul>
  <li><input type="checkbox"> buy groceries</li>
  <li><input type="checkbox" checked> write the guide</li>
  <li><input type="checkbox"> publish to github</li>
</ul>

nested lists

marktxt

• fruits
• apple
• banana
• cherry

• vegetables
• carrot
• broccoli

;- fruits
  ;- apple ;.
  ;- banana ;.
  ;- cherry ;.
;|
;- vegetables
  ;- carrot ;.
  ;- broccoli ;.
;|

;. = leaf (no children). ;| = branch (has children inside).

markdown

- fruits
  - apple
  - banana
  - cherry
- vegetables
  - carrot
  - broccoli

markdown uses indentation for nesting — fragile with mixed tabs/spaces.

html

<ul>
  <li>fruits
    <ul>
      <li>apple</li>
      <li>banana</li>
      <li>cherry</li>
    </ul>
  </li>
  <li>vegetables
    <ul>
      <li>carrot</li>
      <li>broccoli</li>
    </ul>
  </li>
</ul>

why it matters

markdown: - is a list item — but also appears in yaml, CLI flags, and separators.
marktxt: ;- is always a list item. ;1. is always numbered. no ambiguity.

nesting uses structural closers ( ;. vs ;|) instead of fragile indentation.

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