[Epic] Ghost Split Screen Editor

[ErisDS]

The following issue is here as a way to collect together and organise the issues raised against the existing Ghost split screen editor.

The issues fall into 3 broad categories:

1. Markdown conversion bugs - mostly the result of issues in Showdown, which converts the markdown in the left screen into HTML in the right screen.
2. Editor functionality issues - largely caused by the complexity of CodeMirror - include problems with editing on small devices etc.
3. Syncing issues - problems with scrolling, flickering, and other problems with maintaining the two panels.

Below is a collection of known issues.

1. Markdown conversion

• Markdown output jumps around like a monkey on crack when writing in italics #644 Markdown output jumps around like a monkey on crack when writing in italics (closed: wontfix- requires new editor / plugin)
• Markdown bug: no new line inserted when quotes are used #974 Markdown bug: no new line inserted when quotes are used (closed: fixed)
• Set "title" attribute for images from markdown #985 Set "title" attribute for images from markdown (closed: wontfix )
• Code gets escaped #1045 Code gets escaped (closed: fixed)
• Allow multiple underscores like: _________ #1113 Allow multiple underscores like: _________ (closed: fixed)
• Markdown editor ** bold editor text #1909 Markdown editor ** bold editor text (closed: wontfix)
• Syntax highlighting bug within the editor #2664 Syntax highlighting bug within the editor (closed: wontfix)
• Support for markdown reference link syntax as well as inline syntax #2293 Support for markdown reference link syntax as well as inline syntax (closed: wontfix )
• Markdown footnotes (Enhancement) #1318 Markdown footnotes (Enhancement) (closed: wontfix)
• Allow Markdown Tables #1670 Allow Markdown Tables (closed: wontfix)
• Multiple parentheses in link breaks markdown #3203 Multiple parentheses in link breaks markdown
• Hyperlinks containing underscores are processed as italics #1501 Hyperlinks containing underscores are processed as italics
• Bug: apostrophe in image alt tag causes word count to be incorrect #2304 Bug: apostrophe in image alt tag causes word count to be incorrect
• Markdown issues with new lines. #2093 Markdown issues with new lines.

2. Editor functionality

• Restoring form-data on editor panel #553 Restoring form-data on editor panel (closed: fixed)
• Mobile Editing is buggered in iOS 7 #960 Mobile Editing is buggered in iOS 7 (closed: fixed)
• Unexpected behaviour in editor with home / end keys #1007 Unexpected behaviour in editor with home / end keys (closed: fixed)
• Forgive me for this but ghost editor need spelling checker please  #1240 Browser spellcheck doesn't work with CodeMirror (closed: wontfix - requires new editor / plugin)
• CodeMirror: Cursor does not always appear in the right place #1295 CodeMirror: Cursor does not always appear in the right place (closed: browser bug
• CodeMirror: Very hard to edit via mobile (not just iOS7) #1296 CodeMirror: Very hard to edit via mobile (not just iOS7) (closed: fixed - mobile version of editor in place)
• Wrong cursor position in Markdown editor for Unicode #2245 Wrong cursor position in Markdown editor for Unicode (closed: wontfix)
• Unexpected behaviour in editor with home / end keys #1007 Unexpected behaviour in editor with home / end keys (closed: wontfix)
• Bugs with the touchscreen editor. #2570 Bugs with the touchscreen editor. (closed: mostly fixed)
• about the ~~content~~ #2703 about the content (closed: fixed)
• Images not detected in lists #3577 Images not detected in lists (closed: wontfix)
• No spaces when typing #1299 No spaces when typing (closed: fixed)
• Character "„" doesn't show on markdown editor #2371 Character "„" doesn't show on markdown editor (closed: fixed)

3. Syncing issues

Many of these appear to be duplicates / different incarnations of the same general problem

• Editor screen: Advanced scroll features #22 Advanced scroll features (closed: wontfix)
• Editor scrolling gets stuck when typing lots of text #535 Editor scrolling gets stuck when typing lots of text (closed: fixed)
• Fucked up scrolling behaviour when typing #958 Fucked up scrolling behaviour when typing (closed: fixed)
• Weird markdown syntax highlighting #959 Weird markdown syntax highlighting (closed: wontfix)
• Images in preview pane flicker as you type #1031 Images in preview pane flicker as you type (closed: wontfix)
• Editor UI - Scroll events are not smooth #481 Editor UI - Scroll events are not smooth (closed: wontfix)
• point in preview pane corresponding to the cursor can be offscreen when typing. #1030 Point in preview pane corresponding to the cursor can be offscreen when typing
• Bug: Mobile Editor - Left Side Not Always Scrollable #3524 Bug: Mobile Editor - Left Side Not Always Scrollable

Many of these are closed as won't fix, because they cannot be resolved without fundamental changes.

Short term, some of the category 1 markdown bugs are fixable by tweaking our extension of Showdown. It may be possible to vastly improve behaviour by maintaining our own fork of Showdown for the short/mid term.

Long term, we will be replacing the editor with an entirely new component which will look and function very differently to the existing editor.

The following wontfix issues will be fixed by dropping CodeMirror (#4373):

• Forgive me for this but ghost editor need spelling checker please  #1240 Browser spellcheck doesn't work with CodeMirror
• Weird markdown syntax highlighting #959 Weird markdown syntax highlighting
• Markdown editor ** bold editor text #1909 Markdown editor ** bold editor text
• Syntax highlighting bug within the editor #2664 Syntax highlighting bug within the editor
• Wrong cursor position in Markdown editor for Unicode #2245 Wrong cursor position in Markdown editor for Unicode
• Unexpected behaviour in editor with home / end keys #1007 Unexpected behaviour in editor with home / end keys

[halfdan]

Just found this: http://epiceditor.com/

[nicoburns]

https://stackedit.io/ has a nice editor which is somewhat similar to Ghost's...

[JohnONolan]

I believe this is as done as its going to be before editor rewrite, and can be closed

[foxylad]

Love everything about Ghost, but no spellcheck... no go.

I imagine you're loathe to switch to another markdown editor since each time you do, it will throw up a whole new set of issues. But you've been promising spellcheck for at least a year now, and I think you owe it to your customers to deliver. I'd suggest that this should be your number one priority.

[ErisDS]

I'm going to close this issue now. The majority of the horrible bugs with the editor itself were killed as part of removing CodeMirror (#4368), and the spec-breaking markdown issues which can be fixed are being ironed out as part of separate issues and the PR #5167. Everything and anything else we do with the editor will be part of post-Zelda (admin UI design refresh #5273) changes, which will get their own issues.