--- author: - Albert Krewinkel - John MacFarlane date: 'December 6, 2017' title: Pandoc Lua Filters --- # Introduction Pandoc has long supported filters, which allow the pandoc abstract syntax tree (AST) to be manipulated between the parsing and the writing phase. [Traditional pandoc filters](filters.html) accept a JSON representation of the pandoc AST and produce an altered JSON representation of the AST. They may be written in any programming language, and invoked from pandoc using the `--filter` option. Although traditional filters are very flexible, they have a couple of disadvantages. First, there is some overhead in writing JSON to stdout and reading it from stdin (twice, once on each side of the filter). Second, whether a filter will work will depend on details of the user's environment. A filter may require an interpreter for a certain programming language to be available, as well as a library for manipulating the pandoc AST in JSON form. One cannot simply provide a filter that can be used by anyone who has a certain version of the pandoc executable. Starting with pandoc 2.0, we have made it possible to write filters in lua without any external dependencies at all. A lua interpreter and a lua library for creating pandoc filters is built into the pandoc executable. Pandoc data types are marshalled to lua directly, avoiding the overhead of writing JSON to stdout and reading it from stdin. Here is an example of a lua filter that converts strong emphasis to small caps: ``` {.lua} return { { Strong = function (elem) return pandoc.SmallCaps(elem.c) end, } } ``` or equivalently, ``` {.lua} function Strong(elem) return pandoc.SmallCaps(elem.c) end ``` This says: walk the AST, and when you find a Strong element, replace it with a SmallCaps element with the same content. To run it, save it in a file, say `smallcaps.lua`, and invoke pandoc with `--lua-filter=smallcaps.lua`. Here's a quick performance comparison, using a version of the pandoc manual, MANUAL.txt, and versions of the same filter written in compiled Haskell (`smallcaps`) and interpreted Python (`smallcaps.py`): Command Time -------------------------------------------------- ------- `pandoc MANUAL.txt` 1.01s `pandoc MANUAL.txt --filter ./smallcaps` 1.36s `pandoc MANUAL.txt --filter ./smallcaps.py` 1.40s `pandoc MANUAL.txt --lua-filter ./smallcaps.lua` 1.03s As you can see, the lua filter avoids the substantial overhead associated with marshalling to and from JSON over a pipe. # Lua filter structure Lua filters are tables with element names as keys and values consisting of functions acting on those elements. Filters are expected to be put into separate files and are passed via the `--lua-filter` command-line argument. For example, if a filter is defined in a file `current-date.lua`, then it would be applied like this: pandoc --lua-filter=current-date.lua -f markdown MANUAL.txt The `--lua-filter` option may be supplied multiple times. Pandoc applies all filters (including JSON filters specified via `--filter` and lua filters specified via `--lua-filter`) in the order they appear on the command line. Pandoc expects each lua file to return a list of filters. The filters in that list are called sequentially, each on the result of the previous filter. If there is no value returned by the filter script, then pandoc will try to generate a single filter by collecting all top-level functions whose names correspond to those of pandoc elements (e.g., `Str`, `Para`, `Meta`, or `Pandoc`). (That is why the two examples above are equivalent.) For each filter, the document is traversed and each element subjected to the filter. Elements for which the filter contains an entry (i.e. a function of the same name) are passed to lua element filtering function. In other words, filter entries will be called for each corresponding element in the document, getting the respective element as input. The return of a filter function must one of the following: - nil: this means that the object should remain unchanged. - a pandoc object: this must be of the same type as the input and will replace the original object. - a list of pandoc objects: these will replace the original object; the list is merged with the neighbors of the original objects (spliced into the list the original object belongs to); returning an empty list deletes the object. The function's output must result in an element of the same type as the input. This means a filter function acting on an inline element must return either nil, an inline, or a list of inlines, and a function filtering a block element must return one of nil, a block, or a list of block elements. Pandoc will throw an error if this condition is violated. If there is no function matching the element's node type, then the filtering system will look for a more general fallback function. Two fallback functions are supported, `Inline` and `Block`. Each matches elements of the respective type. Elements without matching functions are left untouched. See [module documentation](#module-pandoc) for a list of pandoc elements. ## Global variables Pandoc passes additional data to Lua filters by setting global variables. `FORMAT` : The global `FORMAT` is set to the format of the pandoc writer being used (`html5`, `latex`, etc.), so the behavior of a filter can be made conditional on the eventual output format. `PANDOC_READER_OPTIONS` : Table of the options which were provided to the parser. `PANDOC_VERSION` : Contains the pandoc version as a numerically indexed table, most significant number first. E.g., for pandoc 2.1.1, the value of the variable is a table `{2, 1, 1}`. Use `table.concat(PANDOC_VERSION, '.')` to produce a version string. This variable is also set in custom writers. `PANDOC_API_VERSION` : Contains the version of the pandoc-types API against which pandoc was compiled. It is given as a numerically indexed table, most significant number first. E.g., if pandoc was compiled against pandoc-types 1.17.3, then the value of the variable will be a table `{1, 17, 3}`. Use `table.concat(PANDOC_API_VERSION, '.')` to produce a version string from this table. This variable is also set in custom writers. `PANDOC_SCRIPT_FILE` : The name used to involve the filter. This value can be used to find files relative to the script file. This variable is also set in custom writers. `PANDOC_STATE` : The state shared by all readers and writers. It is used by pandoc to collect and pass information. The value of this variable is of type [CommonState](#type-ref-CommonState) and is read-only. # Pandoc Module The `pandoc` lua module is loaded into the filter's lua environment and provides a set of functions and constants to make creation and manipulation of elements easier. The global variable `pandoc` is bound to the module and should generally not be overwritten for this reason. Two major functionalities are provided by the module: element creator functions and access to some of pandoc's main functionalities. ## Element creation Element creator functions like `Str`, `Para`, and `Pandoc` are designed to allow easy creation of new elements that are simple to use and can be read back from the lua environment. Internally, pandoc uses these functions to create the lua objects which are passed to element filter functions. This means that elements created via this module will behave exactly as those elements accessible through the filter function parameter. ## Exposed pandoc functionality Some pandoc functions have been made available in lua: - [`walk_block`](#walk_block) and [`walk_inline`](#walk_inline) allow filters to be applied inside specific block or inline elements; - [`read`](#read) allows filters to parse strings into pandoc documents; - [`pipe`](#pipe) runs an external command with input from and output to strings; - the [`pandoc.mediabag`](#module-pandoc.mediabag) module allows access to the "mediabag," which stores binary content such as images that may be included in the final document; - the [`pandoc.utils`](#module-pandoc.utils) module contains various utility functions. # Lua interpreter initialization The way the Lua interpreter is set-up can be controlled by placing a file `init.lua` in pandoc's data directory. The default init file loads the `pandoc` and `pandoc.mediabag` modules: ``` {.lua} pandoc = require 'pandoc' pandoc.mediabag = require 'pandoc.mediabag' ``` A common use-case would be to add code to load additional modules or to alter default modules. E.g., the following snippet adds all unicode-aware functions defined in the [`text` module](#module-text) to the default `string` module, prefixed with the string `uc_`. ``` {.lua} for name, fn in pairs(require 'text') do string['uc_' .. name] = fn end ``` This makes it possible to apply these functions on strings using colon syntax (`mystring:uc_upper()`). # Examples The following filters are presented as examples. A repository of useful lua filters (which may also serve as good examples) is available at . ## Macro substitution. The following filter converts the string `{{helloworld}}` into emphasized text "Hello, World". ``` {.lua} return { { Str = function (elem) if elem.text == "{{helloworld}}" then return pandoc.Emph {pandoc.Str "Hello, World"} else return elem end end, } } ``` ## Default metadata file This filter causes metadata defined in an external file (`metadata-file.yaml`) to be used as default values in a document's metadata: ``` {.lua} -- read metadata file into string local metafile = io.open('metadata-file.yaml', 'r') local content = metafile:read("*a") metafile:close() -- get metadata local default_meta = pandoc.read(content, "markdown").meta return { { Meta = function(meta) -- use default metadata field if it hasn't been defined yet. for k, v in pairs(default_meta) do if meta[k] == nil then meta[k] = v end end return meta end, } ``` ## Setting the date in the metadata This filter sets the date in the document's metadata to the current date: ``` {.lua} function Meta(m) m.date = os.date("%B %e, %Y") return m end ``` ## Extracting information about links This filter prints a table of all the URLs linked to in the document, together with the number of links to that URL. ``` {.lua} links = {} function Link (el) if links[el.target] then links[el.target] = links[el.target] + 1 else links[el.target] = 1 end return el end function Doc (blocks, meta) function strCell(str) return {pandoc.Plain{pandoc.Str(str)}} end local caption = {pandoc.Str "Link", pandoc.Space(), pandoc.Str "count"} local aligns = {pandoc.AlignDefault, pandoc.AlignLeft} local widths = {0.8, 0.2} local headers = {strCell "Target", strCell "Count"} local rows = {} for link, count in pairs(links) do rows[#rows + 1] = {strCell(link), strCell(count)} end return pandoc.Doc( {pandoc.Table(caption, aligns, widths, headers, rows)}, meta ) end ``` ## Replacing placeholders with their metadata value Lua filter functions are run in the order > *Inlines → Blocks → Meta → Pandoc*. Passing information from a higher level (e.g., metadata) to a lower level (e.g., inlines) is still possible by using two filters living in the same file: ``` {.lua} local vars = {} function get_vars (meta) for k, v in pairs(meta) do if v.t == 'MetaInlines' then vars["$" .. k .. "$"] = {table.unpack(v)} end end end function replace (el) if vars[el.text] then return pandoc.Span(vars[el.text]) else return el end end return {{Meta = get_vars}, {Str = replace}} ``` If the contents of file `occupations.md` is ``` {.markdown} --- name: Samuel Q. Smith occupation: Professor of Phrenology --- Name : \$name\$ Occupation : \$occupation\$ ``` then running `pandoc --lua-filter=meta-vars.lua occupations.md` will output: ``` {.html}
Name

Samuel Q. Smith

Occupation

Professor of Phrenology

``` ## Modifying pandoc's `MANUAL.txt` for man pages This is the filter we use when converting `MANUAL.txt` to man pages. It converts level-1 headers to uppercase (using `walk_block` to transform inline elements inside headers), removes footnotes, and replaces links with regular text. ``` {.lua} -- we use preloaded text to get a UTF-8 aware 'upper' function local text = require('text') function Header(el) if el.level == 1 then return pandoc.walk_block(el, { Str = function(el) return pandoc.Str(text.upper(el.text)) end }) end end function Link(el) return el.content end function Note(el) return {} end ``` ## Creating a handout from a paper This filter extracts all the numbered examples, section headers, block quotes, and figures from a document, in addition to any divs with class `handout`. (Note that only blocks at the "outer level" are included; this ignores blocks inside nested constructs, like list items.) ``` {.lua} -- creates a handout from an article, using its headings, -- blockquotes, numbered examples, figures, and any -- Divs with class "handout" function Pandoc(doc) local hblocks = {} for i,el in pairs(doc.blocks) do if (el.t == "Div" and el.classes[1] == "handout") or (el.t == "BlockQuote") or (el.t == "OrderedList" and el.style == "Example") or (el.t == "Para" and #el.c == 1 and el.c[1].t == "Image") or (el.t == "Header") then table.insert(hblocks, el) end end return pandoc.Pandoc(hblocks, doc.meta) end ``` ## Counting words in a document This filter counts the words in the body of a document (omitting metadata like titles and abstracts), including words in code. It should be more accurate than `wc -w` run directly on a Markdown document, since the latter will count markup characters, like the `#` in front of an ATX header, or tags in HTML documents, as words. To run it, `pandoc --lua-filter wordcount.lua myfile.md`. ``` {.lua} -- counts words in a document words = 0 wordcount = { Str = function(el) -- we don't count a word if it's entirely punctuation: if el.text:match("%P") then words = words + 1 end end, Code = function(el) _,n = el.text:gsub("%S+","") words = words + n end, CodeBlock = function(el) _,n = el.text:gsub("%S+","") words = words + n end } function Pandoc(el) -- skip metadata, just count body: pandoc.walk_block(pandoc.Div(el.blocks), wordcount) print(words .. " words in body") os.exit(0) end ``` ## Converting ABC code to music notation This filter replaces code blocks with class `abc` with images created by running their contents through `abcm2ps` and ImageMagick's `convert`. (For more on ABC notation, see .) Images are added to the mediabag. For output to binary formats, pandoc will use images in the mediabag. For textual formats, use `--extract-media` to specify a directory where the files in the mediabag will be written, or (for HTML only) use `--self-contained`. ``` {.lua} -- Pandoc filter to process code blocks with class "abc" containing -- ABC notation into images. -- -- * Assumes that abcm2ps and ImageMagick's convert are in the path. -- * For textual output formats, use --extract-media=abc-images -- * For HTML formats, you may alternatively use --self-contained local filetypes = { html = {"png", "image/png"} , latex = {"pdf", "application/pdf"} } local filetype = filetypes[FORMAT][1] or "png" local mimetype = filetypes[FORMAT][2] or "image/png" local function abc2eps(abc, filetype) local eps = pandoc.pipe("abcm2ps", {"-q", "-O", "-", "-"}, abc) local final = pandoc.pipe("convert", {"-", filetype .. ":-"}, eps) return final end function CodeBlock(block) if block.classes[1] == "abc" then local img = abc2eps(block.text, filetype) local fname = pandoc.sha1(img) .. "." .. filetype pandoc.mediabag.insert(fname, mimetype, img) return pandoc.Para{ pandoc.Image({pandoc.Str("abc tune")}, fname) } end end ``` ## Building images with tikz This filter converts raw LaTeX tikz environments into images. It works with both PDF and HTML output. The tikz code is compiled to an image using `pdflatex`, and the image is converted (if necessary) from pdf to png format using ImageMagick's `convert`, so both of these must be in the system path. Converted images are cached in the working directory and given filenames based on a hash of the source, so that they need not be regenerated each time the document is built. (A more sophisticated version of this might put these in a special cache directory.) ``` {.lua} local function tikz2image(src, filetype, outfile) local tmp = os.tmpname() local tmpdir = string.match(tmp, "^(.*[\\/])") or "." local f = io.open(tmp .. ".tex", 'w') f:write("\\documentclass{standalone}\n\\usepackage{tikz}\n\\begin{document}\n") f:write(src) f:write("\n\\end{document}\n") f:close() os.execute("pdflatex -output-directory " .. tmpdir .. " " .. tmp) if filetype == 'pdf' then os.rename(tmp .. ".pdf", outfile) else os.execute("convert " .. tmp .. ".pdf " .. outfile) end os.remove(tmp .. ".tex") os.remove(tmp .. ".pdf") os.remove(tmp .. ".log") os.remove(tmp .. ".aux") end extension_for = { html = 'png', html4 = 'png', html5 = 'png', latex = 'pdf', beamer = 'pdf' } local function file_exists(name) local f = io.open(name, 'r') if f ~= nil then io.close(f) return true else return false end end function RawBlock(el) local filetype = extension_for[FORMAT] or "png" local fname = pandoc.sha1(el.text) .. "." .. filetype if not file_exists(fname) then tikz2image(el.text, filetype, fname) end return pandoc.Para({pandoc.Image({}, fname)}) end ``` Example of use: pandoc --lua-filter tikz.lua -s -o cycle.html <, >=latex] ({360/\n * (\s - 1)+\margin}:\radius) arc ({360/\n * (\s - 1)+\margin}:{360/\n * (\s)-\margin}:\radius); } \end{tikzpicture} EOF # Lua type reference This section describes the types of objects available to Lua filters. See the [pandoc module](#module-pandoc}) for functions to create these objects. ## Pandoc {#type-ref-pandoc} Pandoc document Object equality is determined via [`pandoc.utils.equals`](#utils-equals). `blocks` : document content ([List] of [Block]s) `meta` : document meta information ([Meta] object) ## Meta {#type-ref-meta} Meta information on a document; string-indexed collection of [MetaValue]s. Object equality is determined via [`pandoc.utils.equals`](#utils-equals). ## MetaValue {#type-ref-MetaValue} Document meta information items. Object equality is determined via [`pandoc.utils.equals`](#utils-equals). ### MetaBlocks {#type-ref-MetaBlocks} A list of blocks usable as meta value ([List] of [Block]s) Fields: `tag`, `t` : the literal `MetaBlocks` (string) ### MetaBool {#type-ref-MetaBool} Plain Lua boolean value (boolean) ### MetaInlines {#type-ref-MetaInlines} List of inlines used in metadata ([List] of [Inline]s) Fields: `tag`, `t` : the literal `MetaInlines` (string) ### MetaList {#type-ref-iMetaList} A list of other [MetaValue]s. ([List]) Fields: `tag`, `t` : the literal `MetaList` (string) ### MetaMap {#type-ref-MetaMap} A string-indexed map of meta-values. (table) Fields: `tag`, `t` : the literal `MetaMap` (string) *Note*: The fields will be shadowed if the map contains a field with the same name as those listed. ### MetaString {#type-ref-MetaString} Plain Lua string value (string) ## Block {#type-ref-Block} Object equality is determined via [`pandoc.utils.equals`](#utils-equals). ### BlockQuote {#type-ref-BlockQuote} A block quote element content: : block content ([List] of [Block]s) `tag`, `t` : the literal `BlockQuote` (string) ### BulletList {#type-ref-BulletList} A bullet list `content` : list of items ([List] of [Block]s) `tag`, `t` : the literal `BulletList` (string) ### CodeBlock {#type-ref-CodeBlock} Block of code. `text` : code string (string) `attr` : element attributes ([Attr]) `identifier` : alias for `attr.identifier` (string) `classes` : alias for `attr.classes` ([List] of strings) `attributes` : alias for `attr.attributes` ([Attributes]) `tag`, `t` : the literal `CodeBlock` (string) ### DefinitionList {#type-ref-DefinitionList} Definition list, containing terms and their explanation. `content` : list of items `tag`, `t` : the literal `DefinitionList` (string) ### Div {#type-ref-Div} Generic block container with attributes `content` : block content ([List] of [Block]s) `attr` : element attributes ([Attr]) `identifier` : alias for `attr.identifier` (string) `classes` : alias for `attr.classes` ([List] of strings) `attributes` : alias for `attr.attributes` ([Attributes]) `tag`, `t` : the literal `Div` (string) ### Header {#type-ref-Header} Creates a header element. `level` : header level (integer) `content` : inline content ([List] of [Inline]s) `attr` : element attributes ([Attr]) `identifier` : alias for `attr.identifier` (string) `classes` : alias for `attr.classes` ([List] of strings) `attributes` : alias for `attr.attributes` ([Attributes]) `tag`, `t` : the literal `Header` (string) ### HorizontalRule {#type-ref-HorizontalRule} A horizontal rule. `tag`, `t` : the literal `HorizontalRule` (string) ### LineBlock {#type-ref-LineBlock} A line block, i.e. a list of lines, each separated from the next by a newline. `content` : inline content `tag`, `t` : the literal `LineBlock` (string) ### Null {#type-ref-Null} A null element; this element never produces any output in the target format. `tag`, `t` : the literal `Null` (string) ### OrderedList {#type-ref-OrderedList} An ordered list. `content` : list items ([List] of [Block]s) `listAttributes` : list parameters ([ListAttributes]) `start` : alias for `listAttributes.start` (integer) `style` : alias for `listAttributes.style` (string) `delimiter` : alias for `listAttributes.delimiter` (string) `tag`, `t` : the literal `OrderedList` (string) ### Para {#type-ref-Para} A paragraph `content` : inline content ([List] of [Inline]s) `tag`, `t` : the literal `Para` (string) ### Plain {#type-ref-Plain} Plain text, not a paragraph `content` : inline content ([List] of [Inline]s) `tag`, `t` : the literal `Plain` (string) ### RawBlock {#type-ref-RawBlock} Raw content of a specified format. `format` : format of content (string) `text` : raw content (string) `tag`, `t` : the literal `RawBlock` (string) ### Table {#type-ref-Table} A table. `caption` : table caption ([List] of [Inline]s) `aligns` : column alignments ([List] of [Alignment]s) `widths` : column widths (number) `headers` : header row ([List] of [table cells]) `rows` : table rows ([List] of [List]s of [table cells]) `tag`, `t` : the literal `Table` (string) A [table cell]{#table-cell} is a list of blocks. *[Alignment]{#Alignment}* is a string value indicating the horizontal alignment of a table column. `AlignLeft`, `AlignRight`, and `AlignCenter` leads cell content tob be left-aligned, right-aligned, and centered, respectively. The default alignment is `AlignDefault` (often equivalent to centered). [Alignment]: #type-ref-Alignment [table cells]: #type-ref-table-cell ## Inline {#type-ref-Inline} Object equality is determined via [`pandoc.utils.equals`](#utils-equals). ### Cite {#type-ref-Cite} Citation `content` : ([List] of [Inline]s) `citations` : citation entries ([List] of [citations]) `tag`, `t` : the literal `Cite` (string) ### Code {#type-ref-Code} Inline code `text` : code string (string) `attr` : attributes ([Attr]) `identifier` : alias for `attr.identifier` (string) `classes` : alias for `attr.classes` ([List] of strings) `attributes` : alias for `attr.attributes` ([Attributes]) `tag`, `t` : the literal `Code` (string) ### Emph {#type-ref-Emph} Emphasized text `content` : inline content ([List] of [Inline]s) `tag`, `t` : the literal `Emph` (string) ### Image {#type-ref-Image} Image: alt text (list of inlines), target `attr` : attributes ([Attr]) `caption` : text used to describe the image ([List] of [Inline]s) `src` : path to the image file (string) `title` : brief image description `identifier` : alias for `attr.identifier` (string) `classes` : alias for `attr.classes` ([List] of strings) `attributes` : alias for `attr.attributes` ([Attributes]) `tag`, `t` : the literal `Image` (string) ### LineBreak {#type-ref-LineBreak} Hard line break `tag`, `t` : the literal `LineBreak` (string) ### Link {#type-ref-Link} Hyperlink: alt text (list of inlines), target `attr` : attributes ([Attr]) `content` : text for this link ([List] of [Inline]s) `target` : the link target (string) `identifier` : alias for `attr.identifier` (string) `classes` : alias for `attr.classes` ([List] of strings) `attributes` : alias for `attr.attributes` ([Attributes]) `tag`, `t` : the literal `Link` (string) ### Math {#type-ref-Math} TeX math (literal) `mathype` : specifier determining whether the math content should be shown inline (`InlineMath`) or on a separate line (`DisplayMath`) (string) `text` : math content (string) `tag`, `t` : the literal `Math` (string) ### Note {#type-ref-Note} Footnote or endnote `content` : ([List] of [Block]s) `tag`, `t` : the literal `Note` (string) ### Quoted {#type-ref-Quoted} Quoted text `quotetype` : type of quotes to be used; one of `SingleQuote` or `DoubleQuote` (string) `content` : quoted text ([List] of [Inline]s) `tag`, `t` : the literal `Quoted` (string) ### RawInline {#type-ref-RawInline} Raw inline `format` : the format of the content (string) `text` : raw content (string) `tag`, `t` : the literal `RawInline` (string) ### SmallCaps {#type-ref-SmallCaps} Small caps text `content` : ([List] of [Inline]s) `tag`, `t` : the literal `SmallCaps` (string) ### SoftBreak {#type-ref-SoftBreak} Soft line break `tag`, `t` : the literal `SoftBreak` (string) ### Space {#type-ref-Space} Inter-word space `tag`, `t` : the literal `Space` (string) ### Span {#type-ref-Span} Generic inline container with attributes `attr` : attributes ([Attr]) `content` : wrapped content ([List] of [Inline]s) `identifier` : alias for `attr.identifier` (string) `classes` : alias for `attr.classes` ([List] of strings) `attributes` : alias for `attr.attributes` ([Attributes]) `tag`, `t` : the literal `Span` (string) ### Str {#type-ref-Str} Text `text` : content (string) `tag`, `t` : the literal `Str` (string) ### Strikeout {#type-ref-Strikeout} Strikeout text `content` : inline content ([List] of [Inline]s) `tag`, `t` : the literal `Strikeout` (string) ### Strong {#type-ref-Strong} Strongly emphasized text `content` : inline content ([List] of [Inline]s) `tag`, `t` : the literal `Strong` (string) ### Subscript {#type-ref-Subscript} Subscripted text `content` : inline content ([List] of [Inline]s) `tag`, `t` : the literal `Subscript` (string) ### Superscript {#type-ref-Superscript} Superscripted text `content` : inline content ([List] of [Inline]s) `tag`, `t` : the literal `Superscript` (string) ## Element components ### Attr {#type-ref-Attr} A set of element attributes Object equality is determined via [`pandoc.utils.equals`](#utils-equals). `identifier` : element identifier (string) `classes` : element classes ([List] of strings) `attributes` : collection of key/value pairs ([Attributes]) ### Attributes {#type-ref-Attributes} List of key/value pairs. Values can be accessed by using keys as indices to the list table. ### Citation {#type-ref-Citation} Single citation entry Object equality is determined via [`pandoc.utils.equals`](#utils-equals). `id` : citation identifier, e.g., a bibtex key (string) `mode` : citation mode, one of `AuthorInText`, `SuppressAuthor`, or `NormalCitation` (string) `prefix` : citation prefix ([List] of [Inline]s) `suffix` : citation suffix ([List] of [Inline]s) `note_num` : note number (integer) `hash` : hash (integer) ### ListAttributes {#type-ref-ListAttributes} List attributes Object equality is determined via [`pandoc.utils.equals`](#utils-equals). `start` : number of the first list item (integer) `style` : style used for list numbers; possible values are `DefaultStyle`, `Example`, `Decimal`, `LowerRoman`, `UpperRoman`, `LowerAlpha`, and `UpperAlpha` (string) `delimiter` : delimiter of list numbers; one of `DefaultDelim`, `Period`, `OneParen`, and `TwoParens` (string) ## Hierarchical Element {#type-ref-Element} Hierarchical elements can be either *Sec* (sections) or *Blk* (blocks). *Blk* elements are treated like [Block]s. ### Sec {#type-ref-Sec} Section elements used to provide hierarchical information on document contents. **Objects of this type are read-only.** `level` : header level (integer) `numbering` : section numbering ([list] of integers) `attr` : header attributes ([Attr]) `label` : header content ([list] of [Inline]s) `contents` : list of contents in this section ([list] of [hierarchical element]s) `tag`, `t` : constant `Sec` (string) [hierarchical element]: #Element ## ReaderOptions {#type-ref-ReaderOptions} Pandoc reader options `abbreviations` : set of known abbreviations (set of strings) `columns` : number of columns in terminal (integer) `default_image_extension` : default extension for images (string) `extensions` : string representation of the syntax extensions bit field (string) `indented_code_classes` : default classes for indented code blocks (list of strings) `standalone` : whether the input was a standalone document with header (boolean) `strip_comments` : HTML comments are stripped instead of parsed as raw HTML (boolean) `tab_stop` : width (i.e. equivalent number of spaces) of tab stops (integer) `track_changes` : track changes setting for docx; one of `AcceptChanges`, `RejectChanges`, and `AllChanges` (string) ## CommonState {#type-ref-CommonState} The state used by pandoc to collect information and make it available to readers and writers. `input_files` : List of input files from command line ([List] of strings) `output_file` : Output file from command line (string or nil) `log` : A list of log messages in reverse order ([List] of [LogMessage]s) `request_headers` : Headers to add for HTTP requests; table with header names as keys and header contents as value (table) `resource_path` : Path to search for resources like included images ([List] of strings) `source_url` : Absolute URL or directory of first source file (string or nil) `user_data_dir` : Directory to search for data files (string or nil) `trace` : Whether tracing messages are issued (boolean) `verbosity` : Verbosity level; one of `INFO`, `WARNING`, `ERROR` (string) ## LogMessage {#type-ref-LogMessage} A pandoc log message. Object have no fields, but can be converted to a string via `tostring`. [Block]: #type-ref-Block [List]: #module-pandoc.list [MetaValue]: #type-ref-MetaValue [Inline]: #type-ref-Inline [Attr]: #type-ref-Attr [Attributes]: #type-ref-Attributes [citations]: #type-ref-Citation [LogMessage]: #type-ref-LogMessage # Module text UTF-8 aware text manipulation functions, implemented in Haskell. These are available to any lua filter. However, the module must be explicitly loaded: ``` {.lua} -- uppercase all regular text in a document: text = require 'text' function Str (s) s.text = text.upper(s.text) return s end ``` ### lower {#text-lower} `lower (s)` Returns a copy of a UTF-8 string, converted to lowercase. ### upper {#text-upper} `upper (s)` Returns a copy of a UTF-8 string, converted to uppercase. ### reverse {#text-reverse} `reverse (s)` Returns a copy of a UTF-8 string, with characters reversed. ### len {#text-len} `len (s)` Returns the length of a UTF-8 string. ### sub {#text-sub} `sub (s)` Returns a substring of a UTF-8 string, using Lua's string indexing rules. # Module pandoc Lua functions for pandoc scripts. ## Pandoc Document ### Pandoc {#Pandoc} `Pandoc (blocks[, meta])` A complete pandoc document Parameters: `blocks`: : list of [Blocks] `meta`: : [Meta] value (see below) ## Metadata ### Meta {#Meta} `Meta (table)` Create a new [Meta] object. Parameters: `table`: : table with string keys and [MetaValue] values ## MetaValue ### MetaBlocks {#MetaBlocks} `MetaBlocks (blocks)` Block-level metadata content. Parameters: `blocks`: : list of [Blocks] ### MetaInlines {#MetaInlines} `MetaInlines (inlines)` Inline-level metadata content. Parameters: `inlines`: : list of [Inlines] ### MetaList {#MetaList} `MetaList (meta_values)` List of metadata items. Parameters: `meta_values`: : list of [MetaValues][MetaValue] ### MetaMap {#MetaMap} `MetaMap (key_value_map)` Field/value map of metadata items. Parameters: `key_value_map`: : a table with string keys and [MetaValue] values ### MetaString {#MetaString} `MetaString (str)` String metadata content. Parameters: `str`: : string value ### MetaBool {#MetaBool} `MetaBool (bool)` Boolean metadata content. Parameters: `bool`: : boolean value ## Blocks {#Blocks} ### BlockQuote {#BlockQuote} `BlockQuote (content)` Creates a BlockQuote element Parameters: `content`: : list of [Blocks] Returns: BlockQuote element ### BulletList {#BulletList} `BulletList (content)` Creates a BulletList element Parameters: `content`: : list of items (where each item is a list of [Blocks]) Returns: BulletList element ### CodeBlock {#CodeBlock} `CodeBlock (text[, attr])` Creates a CodeBlock element Parameters: `text`: : string (the code) `attr`: : [Attr]{#Attr} (code attributes) Returns: CodeBlock element ### DefinitionList {#DefinitionList} `DefinitionList (content)` Creates a DefinitionList element Parameters: `content`: : list of items (where each item is a two element list, where the first element is a list of [Inlines], the term, and the second is a list of lists of [Blocks], the definitions) Returns: DefinitionList element ### Div {#Div} `Div (content[, attr])` Creates a Div element Parameters: `content`: : list of [Blocks] `attr`: : [Attr]{#Attr} (Div attributes) Returns: Div element ### Header {#Header} `Header (level, content[, attr])` Creates a Header element. Parameters: `level`: : Header level (integer) `content`: : list of [Inlines] (header title) `attr`: : [Attr]{#Attr} (header attributes) Returns: Header element ### HorizontalRule {#HorizontalRule} `HorizontalRule ()` Creates a HorizontalRule element. Returns: HorizontalRule element ### LineBlock {#LineBlock} `LineBlock (content)` Creates a LineBlock element. Parameters: `content`: : list of lines (where each line is a list of [Inlines]) Returns: LineBlock element ### Null {#Null} `Null ()` Creates a Null block element. Returns: Null element ### OrderedList {#OrderedList} `OrderedList (items[, listAttributes])` Creates an OrderedList element. Parameters: `items`: : list of items (where each item is a list of [Blocks]) `listAttributes`: : [ListAttributes]{#ListAttributes} Returns: OrderedList element ### Para {#Para} `Para (content)` Creates a Para element. Parameters: `content`: : list of [Inlines] Returns: Para element ### Plain {#Plain} `Plain (content)` Creates a Plain element. Parameters: `content`: : list of [Inlines] Returns: Plain element ### RawBlock {#RawBlock} `RawBlock (format, text)` Creates a RawBlock of the specified format. Parameters: `format`: : string (format of content, e.g. 'latex') `text`: : string content Returns: RawBlock element ### Table {#Table} `Table (caption, aligns, widths, headers, rows)` Creates a Table element. Parameters: `caption`: : table caption (list of [Inlines]) `aligns`: : alignments (a list of `pandoc.AlignDefault`, `pandoc.AlignLeft`, `pandoc.AlignRight`, `pandoc.AlignCenter`, one for each column) `widths`: : column widths (a list of floats, one for each column, denoting the fraction of the textwidth needed for the column, 0.5 = half width; OR an empty list for a simple table where cells need not wrap) `headers`: : header row (a list of cells, each cell a list of [Blocks]) `rows`: : table rows (a list of rows, each row a list of cells, each cell a list of [Blocks]) Returns: Table element ## Inlines {#Inlines} ### Cite {#Cite} `Cite (content, citations)` Creates a Cite element Parameters: `content`: : list of [Inlines] `citations`: : list of [Citation]s Returns: citations element ### Code {#Code} `Code (text[, attr])` Creates a Code inline element Parameters: `text`: : string (the code) `attr`: : [Attr]{#Attr} (code attributes) Returns: Code element ### Emph {#Emph} `Emph (content)` Creates an Emph inline element Parameters: `content`: : list of [Inlines] Returns: Emph element ### Image {#Image} `Image (alt, src[, title[, attr]])` Creates a Image inline element Parameters: `alt`: : list of [Inlines]: alt text (or, for implicit figures, caption) `src`: : string: path to the image file `title`: : string: title attribute `attr`: : [Attr]{#Attr}: additional image attributes Returns: Image element ### LineBreak {#LineBreak} `LineBreak ()` Create a LineBreak inline element Returns: linebreak element ### Link {#Link} `Link (content, target[, title[, attr]])` Creates a Link inline element Parameters: `content`: : list of [Inlines]: the linked text `target`: : string: the link target `title`: : string: the title attribute `attr`: : [Attr]{#Attr}: additional link attributes Returns: image element ### Math {#Math} `Math (mathtype, text)` Creates a Math inline element, either inline or displayed. Parameters: `mathtype`: : either `pandoc.InlineMath` or `pandoc.DisplayMath` `text`: : string: raw tex math Returns: Math element ### DisplayMath {#DisplayMath} `DisplayMath (text)` Creates a DisplayMath element (DEPRECATED, use `Math`). Parameters: `text`: : string: raw tex math Returns: Math element ### InlineMath {#InlineMath} `InlineMath (text)` Creates an InlineMath inline element (DEPRECATED, use [Math]{#Math}). Parameters: `text`: : string: raw tex math Returns: Math element ### Note {#Note} `Note (content)` Creates a Note inline element Parameters: `content`: : list of [Blocks] (content of footnote) ### Quoted {#Quoted} `Quoted (quotetype, content)` Creates a Quoted inline element Parameters: `quotetype`: : either `pandoc.DoubleQuote` or `pandoc.SingleQuote` `content`: : list of [Inlines] Returns: Quoted element ### SingleQuoted {#SingleQuoted} `SingleQuoted (content)` Creates a single-quoted inline element (DEPRECATED, use [Quoted]{#Quoted}). Parameters: `content`: : list of [Inlines] Returns: Quoted element ### DoubleQuoted {#DoubleQuoted} `DoubleQuoted (content)` Creates a double-quoted inline element (DEPRECATED, use [Quoted]{#Quoted}). Parameters: `content`: : list of [Inlines] Returns: Quoted element ### RawInline {#RawInline} `RawInline (format, text)` Creates a RawInline inline element Parameters: `format`: : string (format of the contents) `text`: : string (content) Returns: RawInline element ### Smallcaps {#SmallCaps} `SmallCaps (content)` Creates text rendered in small caps Parameters: `content`: : list of [Inlines] Returns: SmallCaps element ### SoftBreak {#SoftBreak} `SoftBreak ()` Creates a SoftBreak inline element. Returns: SoftBreak element ### Space {#Space} `Space ()` Create a Space inline element Returns: Space element ### Span {#Span} `Span (content[, attr])` Creates a Span inline element Parameters: `content`: : list of [Inlines] `attr`: : [Attr]{#Attr}: span attributes Returns: Span element ### Str {#Str} `Str (text)` Creates a Str inline element Parameters: `text`: : string Returns: String element ### Strikeout {#Strikeout} `Strikeout (content)` Creates a Strikeout inline element Parameters: `content`: : list of [Inlines] Returns: Strikeout element ### Strong {#Strong} `Strong (content)` Creates a Strong inline element. Parameters: `content`: : list of [Inlines] Returns: Strong element ### Subscript {#Subscript} `Subscript (content)` Creates a Subscript inline element Parameters: `content`: : list of [Inlines] Returns: Subscript element ### Superscript {#Superscript} `Superscript (content)` Creates a Superscript inline element Parameters: `content`: : list of [Inlines] Returns: Superscript element ## Element components ### Attr {#Attr} `Attr ([identifier[, classes[, attributes]]])` Create a new set of attributes (Attr). Parameters: `identifier`: : string: element identifier `classes`: : list of strings: classes `attributes`: : table containing string keys and values Returns: Attr ### Citation {#Citation} `Citation (id, mode[, prefix[, suffix[, note_num[, hash]]]])` Creates a single Citation. Parameters: `id`: : string citation identifier (like a bibtex key) `mode`: : `pandoc.AuthorInText`, `pandoc.SuppressAuthor`, or `pandoc.NormalCitation` `prefix`: : list of [Inlines] for citation prefix `suffix`: : list of [Inlines] for citation suffix `note_num`: : int: note number `hash`: : int: hash number ### ListAttributes {#ListAttributes} `ListAttributes ([start[, style[, delimiter]]])` Creates a set of list attributes Parameters: `start`: : int: number of the first list item (default: 1) `style`: : `pandoc.DefaultStyle` (default), `pandoc.Decimal`, `pandoc.LowerRoman`, `pandoc.UpperRoman`, `pandoc.LowerAlpha`, or `pandoc.UpperAlpha` `delimiter`: : `pandoc.DefaultDelim` (default), `pandoc.Period`, `pandoc.OneParen`, `pandoc.TwoParens` Returns: list attributes table ## Helper functions ### pipe {#pipe} `pipe (command, args, input)` Runs command with arguments, passing it some input, and returns the output. Returns: - Output of command. Raises: - A table containing the keys `command`, `error_code`, and `output` is thrown if the command exits with a non-zero error code. Usage: local output = pandoc.pipe("sed", {"-e","s/a/b/"}, "abc") ### walk_block {#walk_block} `walk_block (element, filter)` Apply a filter inside a block element, walking its contents. Parameters: `element`: : the block element `filter`: : a lua filter (table of functions) to be applied within the block element Returns: the transformed block element ### walk_inline {#walk_inline} `walk_inline (element, filter)` Apply a filter inside an inline element, walking its contents. Parameters: `element`: : the inline element `filter`: : a lua filter (table of functions) to be applied within the inline element Returns: the transformed inline element ### read {#read} `read (markup[, format])` Parse the given string into a Pandoc document. Parameters: `markup`: : the markup to be parsed `format`: : format specification, defaults to `"markdown"`. Returns: pandoc document Usage: local org_markup = "/emphasis/" -- Input to be read local document = pandoc.read(org_markup, "org") -- Get the first block of the document local block = document.blocks[1] -- The inline element in that block is an `Emph` assert(block.content[1].t == "Emph") # Module pandoc.utils This module exposes internal pandoc functions and utility functions. ### blocks\_to\_inlines {#utils-blocks_to_inlines} `blocks_to_inlines (blocks[, sep])` Squash a list of blocks into a list of inlines. Parameters: `blocks`: : List of [Blocks] to be flattened. `sep`: : List of [Inlines] inserted as separator between two consecutive blocks; defaults to `{ pandoc.Space(), pandoc.Str'¶', pandoc.Space()}`. Returns: - ({[Inline][#Inline]}) List of [Inlines] Usage: local blocks = { pandoc.Para{ pandoc.Str 'Paragraph1' }, pandoc.Para{ pandoc.Emph 'Paragraph2' } } local inlines = pandoc.utils.blocks_to_inlines(blocks) -- inlines = { -- pandoc.Str 'Paragraph1', -- pandoc.Space(), pandoc.Str'¶', pandoc.Space(), -- pandoc.Emph{ pandoc.Str 'Paragraph2' } -- } ### equals {#utils-equals} `equals (element1, element2)` Test equality of AST elements. Elements in Lua are considered equal if and only if the objects obtained by unmarshaling are equal. Parameters: `element1`, `element2`: : Objects to be compared. Acceptable input types are [Pandoc](#type-ref-pandoc), [Meta](#type-ref-meta), [MetaValue](#type-ref-MetaValue), [Block](#type-ref-Block), [Inline](#type-ref-Inline), [Attr](#type-ref-Attr), [ListAttributes](#type-ref-ListAttributes), and [Citation](#type-ref-Citation). Returns: - Whether the two objects represent the same element (boolean) ### hierarchicalize {#utils-hierarchicalize} `hierarchicalize (blocks)` Convert list of [Blocks] into an hierarchical list. An hierarchical elements is either a normal block (but no Header), or a `Sec` element. The latter has the following fields: - level: level in the document hierarchy; - numbering: list of integers of length `level`, specifying the absolute position of the section in the document; - attr: section attributes (see [Attr](#Attr)); - contents: nested list of hierarchical elements. Returns: - List of hierarchical elements. Usage: local blocks = { pandoc.Header(2, pandoc.Str 'first'), pandoc.Header(2, pandoc.Str 'second'), } local elements = pandoc.utils.hierarchicalize(blocks) print(table.concat(elements[1].numbering, '.')) -- 0.1 print(table.concat(elements[2].numbering, '.')) -- 0.2 ### run\_json\_filter {#utils-run_json_filter} `run_json_filter (doc, filter[, args])` Filter the given doc by passing it through the a JSON filter. Parameters: `doc`: : the Pandoc document to filter `filter`: : filter to run `args`: : list of arguments passed to the filter. Defaults to `{FORMAT}`. Returns: - ([Pandoc](#Pandoc)) Filtered document Usage: -- Assumes `some_blocks` contains blocks for which a -- separate literature section is required. local sub_doc = pandoc.Pandoc(some_blocks, metadata) sub_doc_with_bib = pandoc.utils.run_json_filter( sub_doc, 'pandoc-citeproc' ) some_blocks = sub_doc.blocks -- some blocks with bib ### normalize_date {#utils-normalize_date} `normalize_date (date_string)` Parse a date and convert (if possible) to "YYYY-MM-DD" format. We limit years to the range 1601-9999 (ISO 8601 accepts greater than or equal to 1583, but MS Word only accepts dates starting 1601). Returns: - A date string, or nil when the conversion failed. ### sha1 {#utils-sha1} `sha1 (contents)` Returns the SHA1 has of the contents. Returns: - SHA1 hash of the contents. Usage: local fp = pandoc.utils.sha1("foobar") ### stringify {#utils-stringify} `stringify (element)` Converts the given element (Pandoc, Meta, Block, or Inline) into a string with all formatting removed. Returns: - A plain string representation of the given element. Usage: local inline = pandoc.Emph{pandoc.Str 'Moin'} -- outputs "Moin" print(pandoc.utils.stringify(inline)) ### to\_roman\_numeral {#utils-to_roman_numeral} `to_roman_numeral (integer)` Converts an integer \< 4000 to uppercase roman numeral. Returns: - A roman numeral string. Usage: local to_roman_numeral = pandoc.utils.to_roman_numeral local pandoc_birth_year = to_roman_numeral(2006) -- pandoc_birth_year == 'MMVI' # Module pandoc.mediabag The `pandoc.mediabag` module allows accessing pandoc's media storage. The "media bag" is used when pandoc is called with the `--extract-media` or `--standalone`/`-s` option. ### insert {#mediabag-insert} `insert (filepath, mime_type, contents)` Adds a new entry to pandoc's media bag. Parameters: `filepath`: : filename and path relative to the output folder. `mime_type`: : the file's MIME type `contents`: : the binary contents of the file. Usage: local fp = "media/hello.txt" local mt = "text/plain" local contents = "Hello, World!" pandoc.mediabag(fp, mt, contents) ### list {#mediabag-list} `list ()` Get a summary of the current media bag contents. Returns: A list of elements summarizing each entry in the media bag. The summary item contains the keys `path`, `type`, and `length`, giving the filepath, MIME type, and length of contents in bytes, respectively. Usage: -- calculate the size of the media bag. local mb_items = pandoc.mediabag.list() local sum = 0 for i = 1, #mb_items: sum = sum + mb_items[i].length end print(sum) ### lookup {#mediabag-lookup} `lookup (filepath)` Lookup a media item in the media bag, returning mime type and contents. Parameters: `filepath`: : name of the file to look up. Returns: - the entries MIME type, or nil if the file was not found. - contents of the file, or nil if the file was not found. Usage: local filename = "media/diagram.png" local mt, contents = pandoc.mediabag.lookup(filename) ### fetch {#mediabag-fetch} `fetch (source, base_url)` Fetches the given source from a URL or local file. Returns two values: the contents of the file and the mime type (or an empty string). Returns: - the entries MIME type, or nil if the file was not found. - contents of the file, or nil if the file was not found. Usage: local diagram_url = "https://pandoc.org/diagram.jpg" local contents = pandoc.mediabag.fetch(diagram_url, ".") # Module pandoc.List Pandoc\'s List type and helper methods ## Metamethods ### concat {#pandoc.List:__concat} `pandoc.List:__concat (list)` Concatenates two lists. Parameters: `list`: : second list concatenated to the first Returns: a new list containing all elements from list1 and list2 ## Methods ### clone {#pandoc.List:clone} `pandoc.List:clone ()` {#pandoc.List:clone} Returns a (shallow) copy of the list. ### includes {#pandoc.List:includes} `pandoc.List:includes (needle, init)` Checks if the list has an item equal to the given needle. Parameters: `needle`: : item to search for `init`: : index at which the search is started Returns: true if a list item is equal to the needle, false otherwise ### find {#pandoc.List:find} `pandoc.List:find (needle, init)` Returns the value and index of the first occurrence of the given item. Parameters: `needle`: : item to search for `init`: : index at which the search is started Returns: first item equal to the needle, or nil if no such item exists. ### find_if {#pandoc.List:find_if} `pandoc.List:find_if (pred, init)` Returns the value and index of the first element for which the predicate holds true. Parameters: `pred`: : the predicate function `init`: : index at which the search is started Returns: first item for which \`test\` succeeds, or nil if no such item exists. ### extend {#pandoc.List:extend} `pandoc.List:extend (list)` Adds the given list to the end of this list. Parameters: `list`: : list to appended ### map {#pandoc.List:map} `pandoc.List:map (fn)` Returns a copy of the current list by applying the given function to all elements. Parameters: `fn`: : function which is applied to all list items. ### filter {#pandoc.List:filter} `pandoc.List:filter (pred)` Returns a new list containing all items satisfying a given condition. Parameters: `pred`: : condition items must satisfy. Returns: a new list containing all items for which \`test\` was true.