.. include:: ../header.txt

==========================
 Docutils Front-End Tools
==========================

:Author: David Goodger
:Contact: docutils-develop@lists.sourceforge.net
:Revision: $Revision: 9370 $
:Date: $Date: 2023-05-03 13:01:03 +0200 (Mi, 03. Mai 2023) $
:Copyright: This document has been placed in the public domain.

.. contents::

--------------
 Introduction
--------------

In addition to the `generic command line front end`_, Docutils installs
several small front ends, each specialized for a specific "Reader" (which
knows how to interpret a file in context), a "Parser" (which
understands the syntax of the text), and a "Writer" (which knows how
to generate a specific data format).

Most [#]_ front ends have common options and the same command-line usage
pattern::

    <toolname> [options] [<source> [<destination>]]

See `the tools`_ below for concrete examples.

Each tool has a "``--help``" option which lists the
`command-line options`_ and arguments it supports.
Processing can also be customized with `configuration files`_.

The two arguments, "source" and "destination", are optional.  If only
one argument (source) is specified, the standard output (stdout) is
used for the destination.  If no arguments are specified, the standard
input (stdin) is used for the source.

.. [#] The exceptions are buildhtml.py_ and rst2odt_prepstyles.py_.

.. note::
   Docutils front-end tool names, install details and the set of
   auto-installed tools will change in Docutils 0.21.

   The command line usage pattern will change over the next releases.

   See `Future changes`_ in the RELEASE-NOTES.

.. _future changes: ../../RELEASE-NOTES.html#future-changes


Getting Help
============

First, try the "``--help``" option each front-end tool has.

Command line options and their corresponding configuration file entries
are detailed in `Docutils Configuration`_.

Users who have questions or need assistance with Docutils or
reStructuredText should post a message to the Docutils-users_ mailing
list.

.. _Docutils-users: mailing-lists.html#docutils-users


-----------
 The Tools
-----------

Generic Command Line Front End
==============================

:CLI name: ``docutils``
:Readers:  Standalone (default), PEP
:Parsers:  reStructuredText (default), Markdown (requires 3rd party packages)
:Writers:  html_, html4css1_, html5_ (default), latex2e_, manpage_,
           odt_, pep_html_, pseudo-xml_, s5_html_, xelatex_, xml_,
:Config_:  `[docutils application]`_

Since Docutils 0.19, you can start the generic front end like::

    docutils test.rst test.html

Alternatively, use Python's ``-m`` option, or the ``docutils-cli.py``
script in the ``tools/`` directory.

The generic front end allows combining "reader", "parser", and
"writer" components from the Docutils package or 3rd party plug-ins.
For example, to process a Markdown_ file "``test.md``" into
Pseudo-XML_::

    docutils --parser=markdown --writer=pseudoxml test.md test.txt

Use the "--help" option together with the component-selection options
to get the correct list of supported command-line options. Example::

    docutils --parser=markdown --writer=xml --help

.. _Markdown: https://www.markdownguide.org/
.. _[docutils application]: config.html#docutils-application


HTML-Generating Tools
=====================

.. _rst2html:

rst2html.py
-----------

:Reader: Standalone
:Parser: reStructuredText
:Writer: html_

`rst2html.py` is the front-end for the default Docutils HTML writer.
The default writer may change with the development of HTML, browsers,
Docutils, and the web.
The current default is html4css1_, it will change to html5_ in Docutils 2.0.

.. caution::
   Use a specific front end like rst2html4.py_ or rst2html5.py_,
   if you depend on stability of the generated HTML code
   (e.g., because you use a custom style sheet or post-processing
   that may break otherwise).

.. _html: html.html#html


.. _rst2html4:

rst2html4.py
------------

:Reader: Standalone
:Parser: reStructuredText
:Writer: html4css1_

The ``rst2html4.py`` front end reads standalone reStructuredText source
files and produces `XHTML 1.0 Transitional`_ output.
A CSS stylesheet is required for proper rendering; a simple but
complete stylesheet is installed and used by default (see Stylesheets_
below).

For example, to process a reStructuredText file "``test.txt``" into
HTML::

    rst2html.py test.txt test.html

Now open the "``test.html``" file in your favorite browser to see the
results.  To get a footer with a link to the source file, date & time
of processing, and links to the Docutils project, add some options::

    rst2html.py -stg test.txt test.html


Stylesheets
```````````

``rst2html.py`` inserts into the generated HTML a cascading stylesheet
(or a link to a stylesheet, when passing the "``--link-stylesheet``"
option).  A stylesheet is required for proper rendering.
The default stylesheet (``docutils/writers/html4css1/html4css1.css``,
located in the installation directory) is provided for basic use.

To use different stylesheet(s), specify the stylesheets' location(s) as
comma-separated list with the "`-\-stylesheet`_"
or "`-\-stylesheet-path`_" options.
To experiment with styles, please see the
`guide to writing HTML (CSS) stylesheets for Docutils`__.

.. _XHTML 1.0 Transitional: https://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/
.. _html4css1: html.html#html4css1
.. _link-stylesheet: config.html#embed-stylesheet
.. _--stylesheet: config.html#stylesheet
.. _--stylesheet-path: config.html#stylesheet-path
__ ../howto/html-stylesheets.html


.. _rst2html5:

rst2html5.py
------------

:Reader: Standalone
:Parser: reStructuredText
:Writer: html5_

The ``rst2html5.py`` front end reads standalone reStructuredText source
files and produces `HTML 5`_ output.
Correct rendering of elements not directly supported by HTML depends on a
CSS style sheet. The provided style sheets ``minimal.css`` and ``plain.css``
define required and optional styling rules respectively.

.. _html5: html.html#html5
.. _HTML 5: https://www.w3.org/TR/html5/


rstpep2html.py
--------------

:Reader: PEP
:Parser: reStructuredText
:Writer: pep_html_

``rstpep2html.py`` reads a new-style PEP (marked up with reStructuredText)
and produces `XHTML 1.0 Transitional`_.  It requires a template file and a
stylesheet.  By default, it makes use of a "``pep-html-template``" file and
the "``pep.css``" stylesheet (both in the ``docutils/writers/pep_html/``
directory), but these can be overridden by command-line options or
configuration files.

For example, to process a PEP into HTML::

    cd <path-to-docutils>/docs/peps
    ../../tools/rstpep2html.py pep-0287.txt pep-0287.html

The same result can be achieved with the genric front end::

    docutils --reader=pep --writer=pep_html pep-0287.txt pep-0287.html

The rendering of published PEPs is done by a Sphinx-based build system
(see :PEP:`676`).

.. _pep_html: html.html#pep-html


rst2s5.py
---------

:Reader: Standalone
:Parser: reStructuredText
:Writer: s5_html_

The ``rst2s5.py`` front end reads standalone reStructuredText source
files and produces (X)HTML output compatible with S5_, the "Simple
Standards-based Slide Show System" by Eric Meyer.  A theme is required
for proper rendering; several are distributed with Docutils and others
are available; see Themes_ below.

For example, to process a reStructuredText file "``slides.txt``" into
S5/HTML::

    rst2s5.py slides.txt slides.html

Now open the "``slides.html``" file in your favorite browser, switch
to full-screen mode, and enjoy the results.

.. _S5: http://meyerweb.com/eric/tools/s5/
.. _s5_html: html.html#s5-html

Themes
``````

Each S5 theme consists of a directory containing several files:
stylesheets, JavaScript, and graphics.  These are copied into a
``ui/<theme>`` directory beside the generated HTML.  A theme is chosen
using the "``--theme``" option (for themes that come with Docutils) or
the "``--theme-url``" option (for themes anywhere).  For example, the
"medium-black" theme can be specified as follows::

    rst2s5.py --theme medium-black slides.txt slides.html

The theme will be copied to the ``ui/medium-black`` directory.

Several themes are included with Docutils:

``default``
    This is a simplified version of S5's default theme.

    :Main content: black serif text on a white background
    :Text capacity: about 13 lines
    :Headers: light blue, bold sans-serif text on a dark blue
              background; titles are limited to one line
    :Footers: small, gray, bold sans-serif text on a dark blue
              background

``small-white``
    (Small text on a white background.)

    :Main content: black serif text on a white background
    :Text capacity: about 15 lines
    :Headers: black, bold sans-serif text on a white background;
              titles wrap
    :Footers: small, dark gray, bold sans-serif text on a white
              background

``small-black``
    :Main content: white serif text on a black background
    :Text capacity: about 15 lines
    :Headers: white, bold sans-serif text on a black background;
              titles wrap
    :Footers: small, light gray, bold sans-serif text on a black
              background

``medium-white``
    :Main content: black serif text on a white background
    :Text capacity: about 9 lines
    :Headers: black, bold sans-serif text on a white background;
              titles wrap
    :Footers: small, dark gray, bold sans-serif text on a white
              background

``medium-black``
    :Main content: white serif text on a black background
    :Text capacity: about 9 lines
    :Headers: white, bold sans-serif text on a black background;
              titles wrap
    :Footers: small, light gray, bold sans-serif text on a black
              background

``big-white``
    :Main content: black, bold sans-serif text on a white background
    :Text capacity: about 5 lines
    :Headers: black, bold sans-serif text on a white background;
              titles wrap
    :Footers: not displayed

``big-black``
    :Main content: white, bold sans-serif text on a black background
    :Text capacity: about 5 lines
    :Headers: white, bold sans-serif text on a black background;
              titles wrap
    :Footers: not displayed

If a theme directory contains a file named ``__base__``, the name of
the theme's base theme will be read from it.  Files are accumulated
from the named theme, any base themes, and the "default" theme (which
is the implicit base of all themes).

For details, please see `Easy Slide Shows With reStructuredText &
S5 <slide-shows.html>`_.


buildhtml.py
------------

:Readers: Standalone, PEP
:Parser:  reStructuredText
:Writers: html_, html5_, pep_html_
:Config_: `[buildhtml application]`_

The ``buildhtml.py`` script can be found in the ``/tools`` directory of
the "docutils" source. It is not included in binary packages. [#]_

Use ``buildhtml.py`` to generate ``*.html`` from all the ``*.txt`` files
(including PEPs) in each <directory> given, and their subdirectories
too.  (Use the ``--local`` option to skip subdirectories.)

Usage::

    buildhtml.py [options] [<directory> ...]

After unpacking the Docutils source package, the following shell commands
will generate HTML for all included documentation::

    cd docutils/tools
    buildhtml.py ..

For official releases, the directory may be called "docutils-X.Y",
where "X.Y" is the release version.  Alternatively::

    cd docutils
    tools/buildhtml.py --config=tools/docutils.conf

The current directory (and all subdirectories) is chosen by default if
no directory is named.  Some files may generate system messages
(docs/user/rst/demo.txt contains intentional errors); use the
``--quiet`` option to suppress all warnings.  The ``--config`` option
ensures that the correct settings are in place (a ``docutils.conf``
`configuration file`_ in the current directory is picked up
automatically).  Command-line options may be used to override config
file settings or replace them altogether.

.. [#] The Debian package "python3-docutils" includes the script
   under the name ``rst-builthtml``.

.. _[buildhtml application]: config.html#buildhtml-application
.. _configuration file: `configuration files`_


LaTeX-Generating Tools
======================

rst2latex.py
------------

:Reader: Standalone
:Parser: reStructuredText
:Writer: latex2e_

The ``rst2latex.py`` front end reads standalone reStructuredText
source files and produces LaTeX_ output. For example, to process a
reStructuredText file "``test.txt``" into LaTeX::

    rst2latex.py test.txt test.tex

The output file "``test.tex``" should then be processed with ``latex``
or ``pdflatex`` to get a document in DVI, PostScript or PDF format for
printing or on-screen viewing.

For details see `Generating LaTeX with Docutils`_.

.. _latex2e:
.. _Generating LaTeX with Docutils: latex.html


rst2xetex.py
------------

:Reader: Standalone
:Parser: reStructuredText
:Writer: _`xelatex`

The ``rst2xetex.py`` front end reads standalone reStructuredText source
files and produces `LaTeX` output for processing with Unicode-aware
TeX engines (`LuaTeX`_ or `XeTeX`_). For example, to process a
reStructuredText file "``test.txt``" into LaTeX::

    rst2xetex.py test.txt test.tex

The output file "``test.tex``" should then be processed with ``xelatex`` or
``lualatex`` to get a document in PDF format for printing or on-screen
viewing.

For details see `Generating LaTeX with Docutils`_.

.. _LaTeX: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LaTeX
.. _XeTeX: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XeTeX
.. _LuaTeX: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LuaTeX


Man-Page-Generating Tools
=========================

rst2man.py
----------

:Reader: Standalone
:Parser: reStructuredText
:Writer: manpage_

The ``rst2man.py`` front end reads standalone reStructuredText source
files and produces troff_ sources for Unix man pages.

.. _manpage: manpage.html
.. _troff: https://troff.org/


OpenDocument-Generating Tools
=============================

rst2odt.py
----------

:Reader: Standalone
:Parser: reStructuredText
:Writer: odt_

The ``rst2odt.py`` front end reads standalone reStructuredText
source files and produces ODF/.odt files that can be read, edited,
printed, etc with OpenOffice_ ``oowriter`` or LibreOffice_ ``lowriter``.
A stylesheet file is required.  A
stylesheet file is an OpenOffice .odt file containing definitions
of the styles required for ``rst2odt.py``.
For details, see `Odt Writer for Docutils`_.

.. _OpenOffice: https://www.openoffice.org/
.. _LibreOffice: https://www.libreoffice.org/
.. _odt:
.. _Odt Writer for Docutils: odt.html

rst2odt_prepstyles.py
`````````````````````

A helper tool to prepare a word-processor-generated STYLE_FILE.odt for
use with the "odt" writer: [#]_ ::

  rst2odt_prepstyles.py STYLE_FILE.odt

See `Odt Writer for Docutils`__ for details.

.. [#] The call pattern will change in Docutils 0.20, see
       `Future changes`_ in the RELEASE-NOTES.

__ odt.html#page-size


reStructuredText-Generating Tools
=================================

Currently, there is no reStructuredText writer in Docutils and therefore
an ``rst2rst.py`` tool is still missing.

To generate reStructuredText documents with Docutils, you can use
the XML (Docutils native) writer and the xml2rst_ processor.


XML-Generating Tools
====================

rst2xml.py
----------

:Reader: Standalone
:Parser: reStructuredText
:Writer: _`XML` (Docutils native)

The ``rst2xml.py`` front end produces Docutils-native XML output.
This can be transformed with standard XML tools such as XSLT
processors into arbitrary final forms. An example is the xml2rst_ processor
in the Docutils sandbox.

.. _xml2rst: ../../../sandbox/xml2rst


Testing/Debugging Tools
=======================

rst2pseudoxml.py
----------------

:Reader: Standalone
:Parser: reStructuredText
:Writer: _`Pseudo-XML`

``rst2pseudoxml.py`` is used for debugging the Docutils "Reader to
Transform to Writer" pipeline.  It produces a compact pretty-printed
"pseudo-XML", where nesting is indicated by indentation (no end-tags).
External attributes for all elements are output, and internal
attributes for any leftover "pending" elements are also given.


---------------
 Customization
---------------

Most front-end tools support the options/settings from the generic
`configuration file sections`_ plus the sections of their components
(reader, writer, parser). [#]_
Some front-end tools also add application-specific settings.

.. [#] The exception is rst2odt_prepstyles.py_.


Command-Line Options
====================

Command-line options are intended for one-off customization.
They take priority over configuration file settings.

Use the "--help" option on each of the front ends to list the
command-line options it supports.


Configuration Files
===================

Configuration files are used for persistent customization; they can be
set once and take effect every time you use a front-end tool.

Command-line options and their corresponding configuration file entry
names are listed in the `Docutils Configuration`_ document.

.. _Docutils Configuration: config.html
.. _Config:
.. _configuration file sections:
   config.html#configuration-file-sections-entries


..
   Local Variables:
   mode: indented-text
   indent-tabs-mode: nil
   sentence-end-double-space: t
   fill-column: 70
   End:
