MuM icon

MuM

MuM is a macOS reading-first Markdown application with native AppKit typesetting, project navigation, multi-format document reading, and PNG/PDF export. Its CLI adds windowless rendering and structured JSON output for automated document workflows.

MuM

Overview

MuM is a macOS reading-first Markdown application built with AppKit. Its main purpose is to present Markdown and related documents in a typeset reading environment rather than a browser-based view, with particular attention to CJK text, code, and mixed-script content.

Alongside the graphical app, MuM includes a command-line workflow for rendering and document analysis. The CLI can produce PNG or PDF output and return structured JSON from outline, search, and check commands, making the same typesetting and inspection capabilities usable in automated workflows.

Features

Reading-focused typesetting

Uses a hand-built AppKit typesetting engine with CJK line-height, punctuation compression, and mixed-script spacing adjustments.

Project and reading navigation

Keeps multiple projects open for quick switching, remembers reading position, and provides find, outline, and reading-history commands.

Cross-project search

Fuzzy-finds files by name and searches names and contents across every project, with streaming search results.

PNG and PDF export

Exports the current document to a tall PNG or paged PDF; document page-break hints become actual page breaks.

Broad document reading

Opens Markdown, code, CSV/TSV tables, RTF, images, PDF, and SRT/VTT subtitles; Office files link to the default app instead of rendering them in MuM.

Agent-oriented CLI

Provides windowless CLI rendering to PNG/PDF plus outline, search, and check commands that return stable JSON and classified exit codes.

Use cases

  • Reading project documentation

    Open a Markdown repository as a project, keep several projects available, and use outline, fuzzy file finding, and cross-project search to move through documentation.

  • Reviewing CJK and mixed-script Markdown

    Use the native reader for documents containing Chinese, Japanese, Korean, or mixed-script text where line height, punctuation spacing, and script mixing affect readability.

  • Creating shareable document outputs

    Export a document as a tall PNG for a continuous visual artifact or as a paged PDF when page boundaries and in-document break hints matter.

  • Automating document workflows

    Run rendering or analysis from scripts and let downstream tools consume PNG/PDF files, JSON results, and exit codes instead of parsing human-oriented prose.

  • Focused single-file reading

    Open a single Markdown file without adding its containing folder to the project list, then use the simplified reading view for focused, file-by-file review.

Pros and Cons

Pros

  • Combines a reading-oriented native app with a CLI for automated rendering and inspection.
  • Supports CJK-aware typesetting and semantic rendering of selected HTML elements inside Markdown.
  • Offers practical navigation across projects, files, outlines, search, and reading history.
  • Can read several document and media formats and export to PNG or paged PDF.
  • Uses structured JSON and exit codes for agent-friendly CLI output.

Cons

  • The documented platform and system requirements are limited; the site establishes a macOS/AppKit context but does not provide detailed compatibility information.
  • Pricing and licensing details are not published on the available pricing page.
  • The site does not document broad integrations or collaboration features.

FAQ

What is MuM?

MuM is a macOS reading-first Markdown application with a hand-built AppKit typesetting engine. It also provides CLI commands for rendering and document analysis.

What file types can MuM read?

The graphical app can open Markdown and also reads code, CSV/TSV tables, RTF, images, PDF, and subtitle files in SRT/VTT formats. Office files receive a page directing users to the default application.

Does MuM support command-line workflows?

Yes. The CLI can render a Markdown document directly to PNG or PDF. The site also documents outline, search, and check commands that emit stable JSON with classified exit codes.

What export formats are available?

The app can export the current document as a tall PNG or paged PDF. Page-break hints in the document are converted into page breaks in the exported output.

Does MuM require an account, and what are its system requirements?

The site describes a no-account, no-telemetry product and does not publish pricing information on the available pricing URL. Platform and system requirements beyond the macOS/AppKit implication are not specified.

Quick Facts

Category
Markdown reader and rendering tool
Platform
macOS context; built with AppKit
Primary workflows
Document reading, Markdown export, CLI rendering, and document analysis
Supported outputs
PNG and PDF; JSON for outline, search, and check commands
Account and telemetry
No account and no telemetry are stated on the product site
Installer size
1.7 MB, according to the product site