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diff --git a/content/blog/2024-04-06-convert-onenote-to-markdown.md b/content/blog/2024-04-06-convert-onenote-to-markdown.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..682969a --- /dev/null +++ b/content/blog/2024-04-06-convert-onenote-to-markdown.md @@ -0,0 +1,115 @@ ++++ +date = 2024-04-06 +title = "Convert OneNote to Markdown or Org-Mode" +description = "" +draft = false ++++ + +If you\'re looking to convert your OneNote content to another format, +such as Markdown or Org-Mode, you\'re in luck. I use a solution that +doesn\'t require other programs, such as Evernote or Notion. Personally, +I used this solution on a managed corporate laptop that doesn\'t allow +installation of other programs like these. + +This solution uses OneNote and Pandoc on Windows 10. + +# Export OneNote Content to Word + +To start, export any pages or tabs from OneNote to the Word format +(`.docx`): + +1. Open OneNote desktop. +2. Select `File` and then `Export`. +3. Select the scope of content to export, such as `Tab` or + `Page`. +4. Name and save the file in an easy to remember location. I recommend + your Downloads or Desktop folder. + +See below for a visual walkthrough of the export process. + + + + + + + +# Download Pandoc + +Start by downloading Pandoc from their [GitHub +releases](https://github.com/jgm/pandoc/releases) page. I cannot install +`.msi` files on my corporate laptop, so I downloaded the +`pandoc-3.1.12.3-windows-x86_64.zip` file, which contains a +simple `.exe` file that you do not need to install - you will +simply run it from the command line below. + +Once downloaded, unzip the archive and move the `pandoc.exe` +file to the same folder where your Word documents were saved above. If +you prefer, you can move this file to an easier location, such as +`C:\Users\youruser\Downloads`. + +# Convert Word to Markdown + +In this example, I will be converting the Word documents to Markdown, +but Pandoc supports [a ton of different formats for +conversion](https://github.com/jgm/pandoc?tab=readme-ov-file#the-universal-markup-converter). +Choose the format you prefer and then modify the following commands as +needed. + +To perform the conversion, open the Command Prompt. If you can\'t find +it, open the start menu and search for it. + +Within the command prompt, navigate to the directory where you stored +the `pandoc.exe` file and the Word documents. + +```ps1 +cd "C:\Users\yourusername\Downloads" +``` + +You can verify that you\'re in the correct directory with the +`dir` command. + +```ps1 +dir +``` + +Once you have verified that you have the command prompt open in the +correct directory with the `pandoc.exe` and the Word +documents, you can run the following loop to convert all Word documents +to Markdown. + +```ps1 +for %f in (*.docx) do (pandoc.exe --extract-media=. --wrap=preserve "%f" -o "%f.md") +``` + +This loop will perform the following actions: + +1. Find all documents matching the pattern `*.docx`, which + means all Word documents ending with that file extension. +2. Iterate through all files found in step 1. +3. For each file, perform the pandoc command. +4. Within the pandoc command, `--extract-media` saves all + media found in the files to the current folder, with pandoc + automatically creating a `media` subfolder to hold all + images. +5. Within the pandoc command, `--wrap=preserve` will attempt + to prseerve the wrapping from the source document. +6. Within the pandoc command, the final step is to specify the output + path with `-o`. This option adds the `.md` + file extension to recognize the output files as Markdown files. + + + +If you want to export to another format, simply specify the +`-f=`/`--from=` and `-t=`/`--to=` options. + +For example, you can convert the Word document to org-mode. You can also +convert to one format and subsequently convert to other formats as +needed. + +```ps1 +pandoc.exe -f docx -t org file.docx +``` |