Markdown is a simple markup language with plain text formatting and a lot less use of angle brackets than HTML or XML.

• Pandoc can be used to create HTML or nearly any other format you’d like out of markdown.
• It can be written easily in a text editor like vi or notepad.
• Unlike HTML, Markdown is well readable in the text editor.
• So for programmers, it feels very natural to write stuff in markdown. In fact, I’m writing this blog in markdown, using the JP Markdown plugin for WordPress.
• Here’s a link to a fine Markdown Cheatsheet, handling the Github-variation of Markdown.
• This complete post including links, italics, bold and unordered list does not contain a single angle bracket.

Finish

UPDATE 2022/09/21

In the last few days I needed to move my blog and in teh process I lost the Jetpack Markdown plugin, as it is no longer available. WordPress says This plugin has been closed as of April 28, 2019 and is not available for download. Reason: Guideline Violation.
This may be a replacement: https://wptavern.com/new-wordpress-plugin-offers-a-markdown-editor-solution