Convert Textile to HTML

Why Convert Textile to HTML?

Converting Textile to HTML is the most natural conversion path for Textile markup, as Textile was specifically designed to produce clean HTML output. This conversion transforms your concise Textile syntax into proper, valid HTML tags that can be directly used in web pages, embedded in CMS systems, or processed by web applications.

Textile was created by Dean Allen in 2002 with the explicit goal of making HTML authoring easier. Each Textile construct maps directly to HTML elements: h1. becomes <h1>, *bold* becomes <strong>, _italic_ becomes <em>, and so on. This one-to-one mapping ensures that the conversion is precise and produces semantically correct HTML output.

One of Textile's unique advantages is its built-in support for CSS classes and IDs. You can write p(intro). for a paragraph with class "intro", or h2(#main-title). for a heading with ID "main-title". These CSS attributes are preserved in the HTML output, giving you styling control without writing raw HTML. This makes Textile particularly powerful as a content authoring format for styled web pages.

The conversion is especially useful for Redmine users who want to publish their wiki content on external websites, Textpattern CMS users migrating content to other platforms, and developers who prefer writing in Textile's compact syntax and then deploying the HTML output. The resulting HTML is clean, properly indented, and ready for web publishing with or without additional CSS styling.

Key Benefits of Converting Textile to HTML:

• Web Publishing: Produce browser-ready HTML from concise Textile markup
• Clean Output: Textile generates valid, semantic HTML code
• CSS Integration: Textile's class/ID support carries over to HTML
• CMS Migration: Move Redmine/Textpattern content to any web platform
• SEO-Friendly: Proper heading hierarchy and semantic tags
• Email Templates: Convert Textile content for HTML email newsletters
• Universal Compatibility: HTML works in every web browser

Practical Examples

Example 1: Web Page Content

Input Textile file (page.textile):

h1. Welcome to Our Site

p(intro). We provide *professional*
services for your business needs.

h2. Our Services

* Web Development
* Mobile Applications
* Cloud Solutions

"Contact us":mailto:[email protected]

Output HTML file (page.html):

<h1>Welcome to Our Site</h1>

<p class="intro">We provide
<strong>professional</strong>
services for your business needs.</p>

<h2>Our Services</h2>

<ul>
  <li>Web Development</li>
  <li>Mobile Applications</li>
  <li>Cloud Solutions</li>
</ul>

<a href="mailto:[email protected]">
Contact us</a>

Example 2: Redmine Wiki Export

Input Textile file (wiki.textile):

h1. Project Setup Guide

h2. Prerequisites

# Install Ruby 3.0+
# Install PostgreSQL
# Clone the repository

h2. Configuration

|_. Variable   |_. Value       |
| DATABASE_URL | postgres://.. |
| RAILS_ENV    | production    |
| SECRET_KEY   | your-key      |

bc. bundle install
rails db:migrate
rails server

Output HTML file (wiki.html):

Clean HTML output with:
✓ Semantic heading tags (h1, h2)
✓ Ordered list for prerequisites
✓ Proper HTML table with thead
✓ Code block in pre element
✓ Ready for web publishing
✓ Valid HTML5 structure
✓ CSS-ready for styling

Example 3: Blog Post

Input Textile file (post.textile):

h1. Getting Started with Textile

p. *Textile* is a _lightweight markup_
language that makes writing for the
web incredibly easy.

h2. Why Use Textile?

bq. "Write content, not code."
-- Dean Allen

p. Unlike raw HTML, Textile lets you
focus on your content rather than tags.

Output HTML file (post.html):

<h1>Getting Started with Textile</h1>

<p><strong>Textile</strong> is a
<em>lightweight markup</em>
language...</p>

<h2>Why Use Textile?</h2>

<blockquote><p>"Write content,
not code." -- Dean Allen</p>
</blockquote>

✓ Perfect HTML for any CMS
✓ Blog-ready formatted content

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q: What is Textile markup?

A: Textile is a lightweight markup language created by Dean Allen in 2002, specifically designed to make writing HTML content easier. It uses simple punctuation characters for formatting: *bold*, _italic_, h1. for headings, # for numbered lists, * for bullet lists, and pipe characters for tables. Textile is used in Redmine, Textpattern CMS, and many other web applications.

Q: Does Textile produce valid HTML?

A: Yes! One of Textile's core design goals is to produce clean, valid HTML output. The converter generates properly nested tags, correct semantic elements, and well-formed HTML that passes W3C validation. This is a significant advantage over writing HTML manually, where syntax errors are common.

Q: Are CSS classes preserved in the HTML output?

A: Yes! Textile uniquely supports CSS class and ID attributes directly in its syntax. For example, p(highlight). creates a paragraph with class="highlight", and h2(#section-title). creates a heading with id="section-title". These attributes are faithfully converted to the HTML output, allowing you to apply CSS styling without modifying the generated HTML.

Q: How does Textile compare to Markdown for HTML generation?

A: Both generate HTML, but Textile was designed specifically for this purpose and has some advantages: built-in CSS class/ID support, better table formatting, and more HTML-aware syntax. Markdown is more widely used and has more editor support. Textile uses different syntax -- for example, *bold* in Textile vs **bold** in Markdown, and h1. vs # for headings.

Q: Can I use the HTML output in my CMS?

A: Absolutely! The generated HTML can be pasted directly into any CMS that accepts HTML content, including WordPress, Drupal, Joomla, and static site generators. The clean, semantic HTML output works perfectly as content for web pages without any additional processing or modification needed.

Q: Does the converter produce a full HTML page or just body content?

A: The converter produces a complete HTML document with proper DOCTYPE, head section (including meta charset), and body tags. If you only need the body content for embedding in an existing page, you can extract the content between the body tags. The full page output is ready to be saved and opened directly in any web browser.

Q: Can I convert Textile tables to HTML?

A: Yes! Textile has excellent table support using pipe characters. Headers are marked with |_. and regular cells with |. The converter produces proper HTML tables with thead, tbody, th, and td elements. Column spanning and row spanning are also supported in Textile and converted to the corresponding HTML colspan and rowspan attributes.

Q: How does Textile handle inline HTML?

A: Textile supports inline HTML passthrough, meaning you can include raw HTML tags directly in your Textile document. These tags are preserved as-is in the HTML output. This is useful when you need HTML features that Textile's syntax does not cover, such as custom data attributes, embedded videos, or complex form elements.