Markdown Code Block Generator

To create a code block in Markdown, you have two main options:

1.Fenced code blocks: Use triple backticks before and after your code, like:

```javascript console.log("Hello"); ```

2.Indented code blocks: Indent each line with 4 spaces or 1 tab:····console.log("Hello");

Fenced code blocks are generally preferred as they support syntax highlighting and are easier to read.

To specify a language for syntax highlighting in a Markdown code block, add the language identifier right after the opening triple backticks with no spaces:

```python print("Hello, world!") ```

Common language identifiers include: javascript, python, java, c, cpp, csharp, ruby, php, css, html, bash, sql, and many more. This works on GitHub, GitLab, and most modern Markdown renderers. Indented code blocks don't support language specification.

Markdown code blocks support syntax highlighting for dozens of programming languages. The exact list varies by platform, but most common languages are supported across all major Markdown processors. Here's a list of frequently used language identifiers:

• Web: javascript, typescript, html, css, scss, jsx, json, xml
• Programming: python, java, c, cpp, csharp, go, rust, swift, kotlin, dart
• Scripting: bash, powershell, ruby, perl, php, lua
• Data: sql, yaml, toml, markdown, csv, graphql
• Others: diff (for showing changes), docker, nginx, plaintext

On GitHub, over 200 languages are supported with their Linguist library. Many platforms also accept aliases like 'js' for JavaScript or 'py' for Python.

To display code in GitHub markdown, use fenced code blocks with triple backticks. For syntax highlighting, add the language identifier after the opening backticks:

```javascript // Your JavaScript code here ```

GitHub supports advanced features like:
1. Adding a filename:```javascript title="app.js"
2. Line highlighting: Add{1-3} after a line to highlight it
3. Collapsed sections with<details> and<summary> tags
GitHub's markdown also displays diffs correctly when you use```diff as the language.

To display backticks within a code block, you can either:

1. Use more backticks for the fence than you need to show inside. For example, to show triple backticks, use four backticks to open and close your fence:

```````javascript````

2. Use an indented code block (4 spaces) if you need to show a fenced code block.

3. For inline code containing backticks, use more backticks in the delimiters:

`` `code with backtick` ``

To show code differences (like git diffs) in Markdown, use the "diff" language identifier with fenced code blocks. Then prefix added lines with "+" and removed lines with "-":

```diff
- This line was removed
+ This line was added
  This line is unchanged
```

This works especially well on GitHub, GitLab, and other platforms that support GitHub Flavored Markdown. The removed lines will typically display in red, and added lines in green.

Adding a filename to a Markdown code block depends on the platform. In GitHub Flavored Markdown, you can use the title attribute after the language identifier:

```javascript title="app.js" // Your code here ```

Some other platforms and processors use different syntaxes:
-GitHub, GitLab: Use the title attribute as shown above
-Some documentation generators (like VuePress):```js:app.js
-Jekyll and others:```javascript fileName="app.js"
The GitHub/GitLab approach is most widely supported.

Standard Markdown doesn't support line numbers natively. However, many Markdown processors and platforms provide extensions for this through custom syntax or configurations:

Platform-specific methods:

- GitHub: Doesn't directly support line numbers in code blocks, but you can reference specific lines in discussions.

- Documentation tools: Jekyll, Hugo, MkDocs, and others often have plugins or settings for enabling line numbers.

- Prism.js/highlight.js: These syntax highlighting libraries used by many sites have line number plugins.

If you need line numbers for visual reference only, consider adding them manually in your code or using a specialized editor to prepare your snippets.

Fenced code blocks (using triple backticks) andindented code blocks (using 4 spaces) have several key differences:

Fenced code blocks:

✓ Support syntax highlighting via language identifiers

✓ Can specify filenames and other metadata

✓ Easier to distinguish from regular text

✓ Standard in GitHub Flavored Markdown

✓ Better for code that already contains indentation

Indented code blocks:

✓ Part of the original Markdown spec

✓ More universally supported in older Markdown processors

✓ Can be useful inside lists where backticks might be problematic

✓ Simpler syntax without special characters

Most modern usage favors fenced code blocks due to their flexibility and support for syntax highlighting.