micron-syntax

Micron Markup Language

Micron is a compact, terminal-friendly markup language used by NomadNet for rendering formatted text in terminals. It uses backtick-prefixed commands for formatting, colors, links, and interactive elements.

Quick Reference Table

Category	Tags	Description
Formatting	`!	Toggle bold
	`*	Toggle italic
	`_	Toggle underline
	``	Reset all formatting to default
Alignment	`c	Center text (line start)
	`l	Left-align text (line start)
	`r	Right-align text (line start)
	`a	Return to default alignment
Colors	`FXXX	Set foreground color (3-digit hex)
	`f	Reset foreground to default
	`BXXX	Set background color (3-digit hex)
	`b	Reset background to default
	`gXX	Grayscale color (00-99)
Sections	>	Top-level heading
	>>	Sub-heading (level 2)
	>>>	Sub-sub-heading (level 3+)
	<	Reset section depth to 0
Dividers	-	Horizontal divider
	-X	Divider with character X
Links	`[dest]	Simple link
	`[label`dest]	Labeled link
	`[label`path`fields]	Request link with field submission
Fields	`<name`value>	Text input field
	`<width|name`value>	Sized input field
	`<!|name`value>	Masked (password) input
	`<?|name|value`>	Checkbox
	`<^|name|value`>	Radio button
Controls	# (line start)	Comment (not displayed)
	`=	Toggle literal mode (code blocks)
	\	Escape next character
Page Headers	#!c=X	Cache time in seconds (0 = no cache)
	#!fg=XXX	Default page foreground color
	#!bg=XXX	Default page background color

Core Concepts

Formatting Tags

Formatting tags toggle on/off. Apply the same tag again to turn off formatting:

`!Bold text`! and `*italic text`* with `_underlines`_

Combine formatting by stacking tags:

`!`*`_Bold italic underlined`_`*`!

Reset all formatting with double backtick ( ``).

Color System

3-digit hex colors expand to 6-digit: F0af becomes #00aaff

`F00f Blue text `f back to default
`Bf00 Red background `b back to default

Grayscale uses gXX where XX is 00 (black) to 99 (white):

`g50 Medium gray text`f

Section Headings

Section depth increases with each > and creates indentation:

>Main Heading
Text indented under main heading

>>Sub-heading
More indented text

<
Back to no indentation

Links

Link format: `[label`destination] or just `[destination]

`[Home`:/page/index.mu]
`[Visit Node`a1b2c3d4e5f6g7h8:/page/about.mu]

Form Fields

Basic text field:

Username: `B444`<username`>`b

Sized and masked fields:

Password: `B444`<!16|password`>`b

Checkboxes and radio buttons:

`<?|agree|yes`> I agree to terms
`<^|color|red`> Red
`<^|color|blue`> Blue

Request Links (Form Submission)

Submit all fields:

`[Submit`:/page/handler.mu`*]

Submit specific fields:

`[Login`:/page/auth.mu`username|password]

Include preset variables:

`[Search`:/page/search.mu`query|action=search|limit=10]

Parser Implementation Notes

When implementing a Micron parser:

1. State machine approach: Track formatting state (bold, italic, underline), colors, alignment, section depth, and literal mode
2. Line-based processing: Some tags only work at line start (>, <, -, #, alignment)
3. Inline processing: Most formatting and colors work anywhere in text
4. Literal mode: When `= toggles literal mode on, pass through all text unchanged until `= again
5. Section indentation: Typically 2 spaces per depth level

Additional Resources

Reference Files

For comprehensive documentation, consult:

• references/syntax-spec.md - Complete Micron specification from NomadNetwork
• references/parser-implementations.md - Cross-reference of Python and JavaScript parser implementations
• references/examples.md - Practical Micron code examples for common patterns

Key Source Files

Reference implementations for parser development:

• Python: NomadNet/nomadnet/ui/textui/MicronParser.py (887 lines)
• JavaScript (meshchat): reticulum-meshchat/src/frontend/js/MicronParser.js (714 lines)
• JavaScript (rBrowser): rBrowser/script/micron-parser_original.js (905 lines)