The .mdl format

An .mdl file is a standard ZIP archive with a different extension. It contains everything needed to reproduce a document on another device:

document.md     the Markdown
doc.json        title, profile reference and per-document overrides
profile.json    the document's profile
theme.css       only if the profile uses your own theme
theme.json      details of that theme (a URL theme keeps its URL)
assets/…        every image, in the same folders

Export and import

• Export .mdl… (macOS: ⇧⌘S/, Windows and Linux: Ctrl+Shift+S) in the editor’s ⋯ menu, or in the Library row menu.
• Import .mdl in the Library, or drop .mdl files onto the Library. An installed MDLeaf (Chromium) opens .mdl files directly.

Importing always creates a new document, even for the same file twice.

Profiles and themes on import

• If you already have a profile with the same page setup and theme, the document uses it. Otherwise a new profile Name (imported) is created.
• A built-in theme is used as is. Your own theme is matched by its exact CSS; otherwise it is created from the archive.

Safety checks

An archive is rejected if document.md or doc.json is missing, if it contains paths with .. or absolute paths, any other files outside assets/, or more than 500 MB of content.

The samples on this site are .mdl files — download any of them from an example and import it.