Python Bytes

#426 Committing to Formatted Markdown

Mar 31, 2025

Discover the magic of mdformat, an opinionated Markdown auto-formatter that enforces stylish consistency. Learn how to master Markdown lists and enhance your coding efficiency with tools like PipX and pre-commit hooks. Explore the latest Python Enhancement Proposals, including PEP 578 and 781, and dive into the realm of privacy-centered search engines. Enjoy a lighthearted discussion on Python dependency management, sprinkled with humorous anecdotes that make coding quirks relatable!

29:18

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Quick takeaways

Mdformat enhances Markdown file formatting by automating style consistency, reducing version control diffs, and integrating with popular code formatting plugins.

Recent Python Enhancement Proposals aim to simplify syntax, notably allowing multiple exceptions in try-except blocks and introducing a built-in constant for type checking.

Deep dives

Introduction of Posit Connect Cloud

Posit Connect Cloud is a new offering that simplifies the deployment of data science applications on the cloud. This platform enables users to deploy their code from a repository with just a few clicks, making it easy to share data applications or documents with stakeholders. The service ensures continuous delivery by automatically updating the hosted application as new versions are pushed to the code repository. This feature is especially beneficial for data science teams needing a quick and efficient way to manage and share their work.

Intro

3min

Mastering Markdown: Lists and Tools

6min

Optimizing Pre-Commit Performance with UV and Posit Cloud Introduction

4min

PEPs and Privacy: Enhancements in Python and Search Engines

12min

Managing Python Dependencies with a Dash of Humor

4min

Topics covered in this episode:

mdformat
pre-commit-uv
PEP 758 and 781
Serie: rich git commit graph in your terminal, like magic
Extras
Joke

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About the show

Sponsored by Posit Connect Cloud: pythonbytes.fm/connect-cloud

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Michael: @mkennedy@fosstodon.org / @mkennedy.codes (bsky)
Brian: @brianokken@fosstodon.org / @brianokken.bsky.social
Show: @pythonbytes@fosstodon.org / @pythonbytes.fm (bsky)

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Brian #1: mdformat

Suggested by Matthias Schöttle
Last episode Michael covered blacken-docs, and I mentioned it’d be nice to have an autoformatter for text markdown.
Matthias delivered with suggesting mdformat
“Mdformat is an opinionated Markdown formatter that can be used to enforce a consistent style in Markdown files.”
A python project that can be run on the command line.
Uses a style guide I mostly agree with.
- I’m not a huge fan of numbered list items all being “1.”, but that can be turned off with --number, so I’m happy.
- Converts underlined headings to #, ##, etc. headings.
- Lots of other sane conventions.
- The numbering thing is also sane, I just think it also makes the raw markdown hard to read.
Has a plugin system to format code blocks

Michael #2: pre-commit-uv

via Ben Falk
Use uv to create virtual environments and install packages for pre-commit.

Brian #3: PEP 758 and 781

PEP 758 – Allow except and except* expressions without parentheses
- accepted
PEP 781 – Make TYPE_CHECKING a built-in constant
- draft status
Also, PEP Index by Category kinda rocks

Michael #4: Serie: rich git commit graph in your terminal, like magic

While some users prefer to use Git via CLI, they often rely on a GUI or feature-rich TUI to view commit logs.
Others may find git log --graph sufficient.
Goals
- Provide a rich git log --graph experience in the terminal.
- Offer commit graph-centric browsing of Git repositories.