Markdown to PDF Converter

A web application that converts Markdown text to PDF files using Spring Boot backend and a simple HTML/JavaScript frontend.

Features

• Convert Markdown to beautifully formatted PDF documents
• Real-time conversion with user-friendly interface
• Support for common Markdown elements:
  • Headers (H1-H6)
  • Bold and italic text
  • Lists (ordered and unordered)
  • Code blocks and inline code
  • Blockquotes
  • Tables
• Responsive web design
• Download PDF directly from browser

Technology Stack

Backend

• Java 17+ with Spring Boot
• Spring Web for REST API
• Apache PDFBox or similar library for PDF generation
• CORS configured for cross-origin requests

Frontend

• HTML5 with modern CSS
• Vanilla JavaScript for API interaction
• Fetch API for HTTP requests

Project Structure

/
├── backend/
│   ├── pom.xml
│   └── src/
│       └── main/
│           └── java/
│               └── com/
│                   └── example/
│                       └── markdownconverter/
│                           ├── MarkdownConverterApplication.java
│                           └── PdfController.java
├── frontend/
│   └── index.html
├── ci.yml
└── README.md

API Endpoints

POST /api/convert

Converts Markdown text to PDF.

Request Body:

{
  "markdown": "# Your Markdown Content\n\nThis will be converted to PDF."
}

Response:

• Content-Type: application/pdf
• Content-Disposition: attachment; filename="document.pdf"
• Body: PDF file bytes

Running Locally

Prerequisites

• Java 17 or higher
• Maven 3.6+
• Modern web browser

Backend

cd backend
mvn clean install
mvn spring-boot:run

The backend will start on http://localhost:8080

Frontend

cd frontend
python3 -m http.server 3000

The frontend will be available at http://localhost:3000

Running on Codesphere

This project is configured for Codesphere deployment using the ci.yml configuration file. Codesphere will automatically:

1. Install dependencies for both frontend and backend
2. Run tests
3. Start both services with proper networking configuration
4. Route frontend requests to / and API requests to /api

Usage

1. Open the web application
2. Enter your Markdown content in the textarea
3. Click "Convert to PDF"
4. The PDF will be automatically downloaded

Keyboard Shortcuts

• Ctrl + Enter: Convert to PDF

Example Markdown

# Sample Document

This is a **bold** text and this is *italic*.

## Features
- Convert Markdown to PDF
- Beautiful styling
- Easy to use

```javascript
console.log('Hello, World!');

This is a blockquote example.

Table Example

Feature	Status
Markdown Support	✅
PDF Generation	✅
Styling	✅

## Dependencies

### Backend Dependencies
- `spring-boot-starter-web`: Web framework and REST API
- `spring-boot-starter`: Core Spring Boot features
- Markdown parsing library (configured in pom.xml)
- PDF generation library (configured in pom.xml)

### Frontend Dependencies
- No external dependencies - uses vanilla JavaScript

## License

This project is a template for Codesphere applications.