Defuddle is an open-source command-line tool that converts HTML to Markdown, aiming to be a simpler and more robust alternative to Readability. It focuses on extracting the main content from web pages while preserving basic formatting like headings, lists, and code blocks, outputting clean Markdown suitable for archiving, note-taking, or further processing. Unlike Readability, which primarily targets article-like content, Defuddle attempts to handle a wider variety of HTML structures. It's written in Go and prioritizes speed and predictable output.
Introducing Defuddle, a novel command-line tool presented on Hacker News as an alternative to Readability for converting HTML content into Markdown. Unlike Readability, which focuses on extracting the main readable content of a webpage for a cleaner reading experience, Defuddle prioritizes faithfully reproducing the structure and formatting of the original HTML document in Markdown format. This makes it particularly suitable for archiving web pages and preserving their original layout, as close to the original HTML as possible within the constraints of Markdown.
Defuddle is written in Go and leverages the power of the Goldmark Markdown parser. It operates by parsing the provided HTML input and then systematically transforming it into Markdown elements. This includes converting HTML headings (h1, h2, etc.) into their Markdown equivalents (#, ##, etc.), paragraphs into Markdown paragraphs, lists (ordered and unordered) into their Markdown counterparts, and links into Markdown link syntax. The tool aims to handle a wide range of HTML elements and attributes, striving to retain the original document's structure and semantic meaning within the Markdown output.
While Readability excels at creating a distilled reading experience by removing clutter and focusing on core content, Defuddle fills a different niche. Its primary objective is not readability optimization, but rather accurate HTML-to-Markdown conversion for purposes such as archiving, documentation, or any situation where preserving the original document's structure is paramount. This approach offers a distinct advantage for users who need a reliable method to convert HTML to Markdown while maintaining the original formatting as accurately as possible, offering a more comprehensive representation of the source material than a readability-focused tool.
Summary of Comments ( 55 )
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=44067409
HN commenters generally praised Defuddle for its simplicity and effectiveness in converting HTML to Markdown, particularly for archiving web pages. Several appreciated its focus on content extraction over perfect formatting, finding the resulting Markdown more usable. Some suggested improvements like better image handling, code block formatting, and handling of certain HTML elements. One commenter highlighted its usefulness for researchers and academics, while others compared it favorably to other similar tools, noting Defuddle's speed and accuracy. The project's open-source nature and reliance on a single Go binary were also lauded.
The Hacker News post about "Defuddle, an HTML-to-Markdown alternative to Readability" generated a moderate number of comments, mostly focused on comparing Defuddle to existing tools, discussing potential use cases, and exploring technical aspects.
Several commenters compared Defuddle to Readability, noting that while Readability aims to create a clean reading experience, Defuddle focuses on preserving the original structure and converting it to Markdown. This distinction was highlighted as potentially useful for archiving web pages and making them easily editable. One user specifically mentioned preferring Markdown over the output of Readability for archiving purposes.
The discussion also touched upon alternative tools like
pandocand its limitations with complex HTML. Some commenters suggested that Defuddle might be a better choice for certain websites wherepandocstruggles. Another user proposed combininglynx(a text-based web browser) withpandocas a potential alternative workflow.The technical implementation of Defuddle was also a topic of interest. One commenter inquired about the choice of Python over Javascript for the project, to which the author (kepano) responded by explaining their preference for Python's ecosystem and the availability of robust HTML parsing libraries. The author also highlighted their choice of
Beautiful Soup 4for HTML parsing and addressed questions regarding the handling of specific elements like<pre>tags and code blocks.One commenter explored the potential use case of integrating Defuddle into a note-taking workflow, envisioning a scenario where web content could be easily converted to Markdown and incorporated into notes. They also suggested exploring the use of Readability's API to improve the cleaning process, while acknowledging potential cost implications.
Finally, some users shared their positive experiences with Defuddle, praising its simplicity and effectiveness. One commenter even reported successful usage on a challenging website where other tools had failed.
In summary, the comments section offered a valuable discussion around Defuddle, comparing it to existing tools, exploring its potential uses, and delving into some of its technical aspects. The comments generally highlighted the potential of Defuddle as a useful tool for converting HTML to Markdown, especially for archiving and editing web content.