5.3 KiB
Message formatting
Zulip uses Markdown to allow you to easily format your messages. Even if you've
never heard of Markdown, you are probably familiar with basic Markdown
formatting, such as using * at the start of a line in a bulleted list, or
around text to indicate emphasis.
This page provides an overview of all the formatting available in Zulip. There is a convenient message formatting reference in the Zulip app that you can use whenever you need a reminder of the formatting syntax below.
- Text emphasis
- Bulleted lists
- Numbered lists
- Links
- Code blocks
- LaTeX
- Quotes
- Spoilers
- Emoji and emoticons
- Mentions
- Status messages
- Global times
- Tables
- To-do lists
- Paragraphs and lines
Text emphasis
{!emphasis.md!}
!!! tip "" You can also use buttons or keyboard shortcuts (Ctrl + B or Ctrl + I) to make text bold or italic. Learn more.
{!format-lists.md!}
Links
{!links-intro.md!}
{!links-examples.md!}
!!! tip "" You can also use a button or a keyboard shortcut (Ctrl + Shift + L) to insert a link. Learn more.
Code blocks
{!code-blocks-intro.md!}
{!code-blocks-examples.md!}
LaTeX
{!latex-intro.md!}
{!latex-examples.md!}
Quotes
{!quotes-intro.md!}
{!quotes-examples.md!}
!!! tip ""
There is a handy option to [quote and reply](/help/quote-and-reply) to a
message in Zulip.
Spoilers
{!spoilers-intro.md!}
{!spoilers-examples.md!}
Emoji and emoticons
To translate emoticons into emoji, you'll need to enable emoticon translations. You can also add custom emoji.
:octopus: :heart: :zulip: :)
Mentions
Learn more about mentions here.
Users: @**Polonius** or @**aaron|26** or @**|26** (two asterisks)
User group: @*support team* (one asterisk)
Silent mention: @_**Polonius** or @_**|26** (@_ instead of @)
The variants with numbers use user IDs, and are intended for disambiguation (if multiple users have the same name) and bots (for the variant that only contains the user ID).
Status messages
/me is away
Global times
When collaborating with people in another time zone, you often need to express a specific time clearly. Rather than typing out your time zone and having everyone translate the time in their heads, in Zulip, you can mention a time, and it'll be displayed to each user in their own time zone (just like the timestamps on Zulip messages).
A date picker will appear once you type <time.
Our next meeting is scheduled for <time:2020-05-28T13:30:00+05:30>
A person in San Francisco will see:
Our next meeting is scheduled for Thu, May 28 2020, 1:00 AM.
While someone in India will see:
Our next meeting is scheduled for Thu, May 28 2020, 1:30 PM.
You can also use other formats such as UNIX timestamps or human readable
dates, for example, <time:May 28 2020, 1:30 PM IST>.
Tables
The initial pipes (|) are optional if every entry in the first column is non-empty.
The header separators (---) must be at least three dashes long.
|| yes | no | maybe
|---|---|:---:|------:
| A | left-aligned | centered | right-aligned
| B | extra spaces | are | ok
| C | **bold** *italic* ~~strikethrough~~ :smile: ||
To-do lists
Sending a message with the text /todo creates a simple collaborative
to-do list. Any user who can access the message can add tasks by
entering the task's title and description and clicking "Add task". Once
created, task titles and descriptions cannot be edited.
Tasks can be marked (and unmarked) as completed by clicking the checkboxes on the left.
Paragraphs and lines
One blank space for a new paragraph
New line, same paragraph
New paragraph
---, ***, or ___ for a horizontal line
Over the line
---
Under the line
Message formatting reference
A summary of the formatting syntax above is available in the Zulip app.
{start_tabs}
{!start-composing.md!}
- Click the question mark () icon at the bottom of the compose box.
{end_tabs}