README Viewer
A Markdown preview for reading, not editing. Pick a theme, open a .md file, read.
Install
Search "README Viewer" in the Extensions tab. Or grab the .vsix from the releases page.
Use
Open a Markdown file. Run README Viewer: Open Preview from the command palette, or click the book icon in the editor title bar.
Pick a theme from the dropdown in the toolbar.
Themes
17 themes plus Auto.
Light: notebook (default), paper, docs, sepia, solarized, book, magazine, cards, cheatsheet, tutorial, hero, focus, manuscript, contrast.
Dark: dark, nord, tokyonight.
Auto follows VS Code's color theme.
Features
- Live updates as you type. Scroll position is preserved.
- Outline sidebar with click-to-scroll and active-section highlight.
- Reading progress bar at the top.
- Word count and estimated reading time in the toolbar.
- Print to PDF.
- Export as standalone HTML.
- External links open in your default browser.
- Strict Content Security Policy. Raw HTML in Markdown is escaped, not rendered.
Commands
README Viewer: Open PreviewREADME Viewer: Open Preview to SideREADME Viewer: Toggle Table of ContentsREADME Viewer: Cycle ThemeREADME Viewer: Reset Reading Settings
Settings
All settings live under readmeViewer.*.
| Setting |
Default |
Description |
theme |
auto |
Reader theme. |
followVscodeTheme |
true |
In auto mode, follow VS Code light/dark. |
showToc |
true |
Show the outline when the document has 3 or more headings. |
tocPosition |
right |
left or right. |
liveUpdate |
true |
Refresh on typing. Set to false to refresh only on save. |
liveUpdateDebounceMs |
200 |
Typing refresh delay in ms, 50 to 2000. |
Build
npm install
npm run build
npm run package
npm run check runs typecheck and tests.
License
MIT
