computer science

Pandoc

Pandoc is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Pandoc rather than just read about it. In short: Pandoc is a free-software document converter, widely used as a writing tool (especially by scholars) and as a basis for publishing workflows. It was created by John MacFarlane, a philosophy professor at the University of California, Berkeley.

Key takeaways

Pandoc belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Pandoc to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Pandoc from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Pandoc is a free-software document converter, widely used as a writing tool (especially by scholars) and as a basis for publishing workflows. It was created by John MacFarlane, a philosophy professor at the University of California, Berkeley.

Functionality Pandoc dubs itself a "markup format" converter. It can take a document in one of the supported formats and convert only its markup to another format. Maintaining the look and feel of the document is not a priority. Plug-ins for custom formats can also be written in Lua, which has been used to create an exporting tool for the Journal Article Tag Suite, for example.

CiteProc An included CiteProc option allows pandoc to use bibliographic data from reference management software in any of five formats: BibTeX, BibLaTeX, CSL JSON or CSL YAML, or RIS. The information is automatically transformed into a citation in various styles (such as APA, Chicago, or MLA) using an implementation of the Citation Style Language. This allows the program to serve as a simpler alternative to LaTeX for producing academic writing in Markdown with inline citation keys. Or the program can be used to convert any bibliographic data stream in the accepted formats into a list of citations in a chosen style.

Supported file formats

Input formats The input format with the most support is Pandoc's extended version of Markdown. Notwithstanding, pandoc can also read in the following formats:

Output formats Pandoc can create files in the following output formats, the set of which is not the same as the set of input formats:

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Pandoc

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Pandoc claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Pandoc before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Pandoc ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Pandoc

In research: Pandoc appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Pandoc in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Pandoc is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 2006 software, File conversion software, Free software programmed in Haskell, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Pandoc outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

Affiliate

Preply — study more efficiently by working with a personal tutor. 50% off.

How to study Pandoc in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Pandoc means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Pandoc out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Pandoc in simple terms?

Why does Pandoc matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Pandoc?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Pandoc.