Added Markdown support via pandoc

Makefile

@@ -20,6 +20,10 @@ PLATFORM := $(shell uname)
 
 all: build
 
+md:
+	$(MAKE) -C ./markdown
+	$(MAKE) build
+
 setup:
 	@echo "Current Platform: $(PLATFORM)"
 	@echo "Current Distribution: $(DIST)"

README.md

@@ -61,6 +61,17 @@ you think you've already solved the problem in the LaTeX sources, maybe try a
 `cleanall` before insisting. Sometimes the underlying build programs (namely
 `latexmk`) get stuck in inconsistent temporary files.
 
+
+Compile it from markdown using pandoc:
+
+```
+make md
+```
+
+`md` will compile all the markdown files inside `/markdown/content/`, merged alphabetically, into a two latex files that **will overwrite** `cover.tex` and `matter.tex`.
+After this, the `build` target will run.
+For more information please read `/markdown/README.md`
+
 ## How to use the template
 
 This is all great, but how can this repository be used as a starting point for

markdown/.gitignore

@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+.venv/
+venv/
+filters/pandoc-minted/
+matter.tex
+cover.tex

markdown/Makefile

@@ -0,0 +1,52 @@
+#SHELL := /bin/bash
+
+all:
+	. .venv/bin/activate && \
+	pandoc \
+		-f markdown /dev/null \
+		-o ../cover.tex \
+		--template=./templates/cover_template.tex \
+		--metadata-file=metadata.yaml && \
+	pandoc \
+		--filter ./filters/acronyms.py \
+		--filter ./filters/citations.py \
+		--filter ./filters/pandoc-minted/pandoc-minted.py \
+		--template=./templates/matter_template.tex \
+		-o ../matter.tex \
+		--top-level-division=chapter \
+		--metadata-file=metadata.yaml \
+		./content/*.md && \
+	pandoc \
+		--filter ./filters/acronyms.py \
+		--filter ./filters/citations.py \
+		--filter ./filters/pandoc-minted/pandoc-minted.py \
+		-o ../appendix.tex \
+		--top-level-division=chapter \
+		--metadata-file=metadata.yaml \
+		./appendixes/*.md
+
+install:
+	python3 -m venv .venv
+	. .venv/bin/activate && \
+	pip3 install -r requirements.txt
+
+	cd filters && \
+	git clone https://github.com/nick-ulle/pandoc-minted.git
+
+test:
+	. .venv/bin/activate && \
+	pandoc \
+		-f markdown /dev/null \
+		-o ../cover.tex \
+		--template=./templates/cover_template.tex \
+		--metadata-file=metadata.yaml && \
+	pandoc \
+		--filter ./filters/acronyms.py \
+		--filter ./filters/citations.py \
+		--filter ./filters/pandoc-minted/pandoc-minted.py \
+		--template=./templates/matter_template.tex \
+		-o ../matter.tex \
+		--top-level-division=chapter \
+		--metadata-file=metadata.yaml \
+		./demo.md
+

markdown/README.md

@@ -0,0 +1,99 @@
+# Writing Your Thesis in Markdown
+
+It is possible to use the UA thesis template with markdown + pandoc.
+
+## File Structure
+
+The `markdown` directory is structured as follows:
+
+```
+.
+├── content
+│   └── thesis.md 
+├── demo.md
+├── filters
+│   ├── acronyms.py
+│   └── pandoc-minted
+│       ├── LICENSE
+│       ├── pandoc-minted.py
+│       └── README.md
+├── Makefile
+├── metadata.yaml
+├── README.md
+├── requirements.txt
+└── templates
+    ├── cover_template.tex
+    └── matter_template.tex
+```
+
+`content` is where all the markdown files for the thesis will reside.
+
+`thesis.md` is where one should write their thesis, or one of its parts.
+
+`demo.md` is a demo file showcasing pandoc's markdown functionality.
+
+`filters` contains the filters in use, see [What is Installed](#what-is-installed) for more details.
+
+`Makefile` contains a couple targets that compile the files in various scenarios. See [Cmake Targets](#cmake-targets) for more details.
+
+`metadata.yaml` is where the template is configured.
+
+`README.md` is this file, containing an overview of how to use pandoc and markdown to write a thesis.
+
+`requirements.txt` contains the python dependencies needed for the filters. See [What is Installed](#what-is-installed) for more details.
+
+`templates` contains modified versions of `matter.tex` and `cover.tex` that allow for customization via yaml configuration.
+
+## Cmake targets
+
+`all` compiles all the markdown files in `content`. To actually compile the thesis please also run `make` in the repository's root directory (or run `make md` from there to do it all in one step).
+
+`install` installs all dependencies. See [Installation](#installation) for more details.
+
+`test` compiles `demo.md`, using it in the thesis template. To actually compile the thesis please also run `make` in the repository's root directory. 
+
+## Installation
+
+In order for the compilation to work, some filters and python dependencies have to be installed.
+
+Please run `make install` inside this directory to create a python virtual environment in this directory under `.venv`
+
+It will be automatically used when compiling the markdown into latex.
+
+### What is installed
+
+Pandoc filters:
+
+- [pandoc-minted](https://github.com/nick-ulle/pandoc-minted), to use `minted` for typesetting, as the template uses.
+
+Python dependencies:
+
+- [pandocfilters](https://pypi.org/project/pandocfilters/), to be able to make python pandoc filters
+- [pyyaml](https://pypi.org/project/PyYAML/), to be able to read yaml data for the metadata
+
+## Usage
+
+In order to compile the thesis from markdown into pdf, use `make md` in the repository root.
+
+If you only need to compile the markdown into the latex files, use `make` inside this directory.
+
+Citations are made with inline latex and bibliography is stored in the `/bib` directory
+
+Acronyms are managed by the `acronym` package and wrapped by the `filters.py` filter. In the metadata, place all acronyms under the `acronyms` field in the following format:
+
+```yaml
+# Example
+- id: <the string to replace in the text>
+  short: <the short form to replace the string with>
+  long: <the long form to be used in the first occurence>
+```
+
+Example:
+
+```yaml
+# Every time `ai` is written in the document, replace it with `AI`, or `Artificial Intelligence (AI)` in the first occurence
+acronyms:
+  - id: ai 
+    short: AI
+    long: Artificial Intelligence
+```