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Intelligent Textbook Feature Checklist

This checklist helps authors and product managers understand what features are available in the MkDocs Material intelligent textbook ecosystem. For each feature, you'll see whether it's implemented in this book and how much effort it takes to add.

Note

A level 2+ textbook is one that has rich interactivity but does not store any personal student data. A level 2+ textbook can be converted to a level 3 textbook by sending event data to a learning record store (LRS) to create a hyper-personalized learning experience for each student. The five levels of intelligent textbooks are described in the Intelligent Textbooks course.

An intelligent textbook goes beyond static text to include interactive simulations, personalized learning paths, auto-graded quizzes, and AI-generated content. This checklist tracks which of these capabilities are present in this textbook.

Legend:

  • ✅ Feature is implemented and working
  • ❌ Feature is not yet implemented
  • 🚧 Feature is partially implemented

Effort Levels

Level Description Human Time With GenAI With GenAI Skills
Trivial Config change or copy template Minutes Seconds Seconds
Low Single file creation with standard content Hours Minutes Seconds
Medium Multiple files, some customization needed Day Hours Minutes
High Significant content generation or custom code Days Hours Minutes
Very High Complex integration, AI generation, or external tools Week+ Day Hours

Basic Features

These features come by default with MkDocs Material or require minimal configuration.

Feature Status Effort Notes
Navigation sidebar ✅ Trivial Left-side menu showing all chapters and sections
Search functionality ✅ Trivial Instant search across all pages as you type
Table of contents (per page) ✅ Trivial Right-side outline of headings on current page
Site title and description ✅ Trivial In mkdocs.yml
Site author metadata ✅ Trivial In mkdocs.yml
GitHub repository link ✅ Trivial repo_url configured
Custom logo ✅ Trivial Custom logo in header
Custom favicon ✅ Trivial Custom icon in browser tab
Color theme (primary/accent) ✅ Trivial Custom color palette
Footer navigation (prev/next) ✅ Trivial Previous/Next chapter links at bottom of each page
Navigation expand on hover ✅ Trivial Sidebar sections expand when you hover over them
Back to top button ✅ Trivial Floating button to scroll back to page top
Navigation path breadcrumbs ✅ Trivial Shows path like "Home > Chapter 3 > Feedback"
Section index pages ✅ Trivial Each folder can have its own landing page
License page ✅ Low Standard CC license template
Contact page ✅ Low Contact form or info
About page (detailed) ✅ Low Exists but minimal content
How We Built This Site ✅ Medium Describe tools and process
Copyright on every footer ✅ Trivial Copyright notice in footer

Intermediate Features

These features require plugins, extensions, or moderate configuration.

Content Enhancement

These features make your content more engaging and easier to read.

Feature Status Effort Notes
GLightBox (image zoom) ❌ Low Click any image for lightbox popup; requires mkdocs-glightbox Python library
KaTeX equation rendering ✅ Low Display beautiful math equations; uses \(...\) for inline, $$...$$ for display
MathJax equation rendering ❌ Low Alternative math rendering with broader LaTeX support
Admonitions (callout boxes) ✅ Trivial Colored boxes for notes, warnings, tips, and examples
Code blocks with copy button ✅ Trivial One-click copy for all code examples
Syntax highlighting with line numbers ✅ Trivial Code colored by language (Python, JavaScript, etc.)
Tabbed content blocks ❌ Trivial Switch between versions (e.g., Python vs. pseudocode)
Task list checkboxes ❌ Trivial Interactive checklists like [ ] and [x]
Mark/highlight text ❌ Trivial Use ==text== syntax to highlight important phrases in yellow
Strikethrough text ❌ Trivial Use ~~text~~ syntax to cross out deprecated or incorrect info
Magic links (auto-linking) ❌ Trivial URLs and emails automatically become clickable
Snippets (file includes) ❌ Trivial Use --8<-- "file.md" syntax to include content from other files
Emoji support ❌ Trivial Use :emoji_name: shortcodes like 🚀
Collapsible details blocks ✅ Trivial Hide/show content with expandable sections
Mermaid diagrams ✅ Trivial Flowcharts, sequence diagrams from text

Site-Wide Resources

These are pages and files that support the entire textbook rather than individual chapters.

Feature Status Effort Notes
Glossary ✅ Medium 55 terms with ISO 11179 compliant definitions
FAQ page ✅ Medium 72 answers to common student questions
References page ✅ Medium Curated bibliography with links per chapter or site-wide
Custom CSS styling ✅ Low Override theme colors, fonts, and layouts
Custom JavaScript ✅ Low Add interactivity beyond built-in features
Google Analytics ✅ Trivial Track page views and user behavior

Publishing Features

These features help your textbook look professional when shared on social media.

Feature Status Effort Notes
Social media preview cards ✅ Medium Auto-generated images shown when sharing links
Edit page button ✅ Trivial "Edit this page" link to GitHub for community contributions

Advanced Features

These features require significant effort, custom code, or AI assistance.

Interactive Learning

MicroSims are small, browser-based simulations that let students experiment with concepts.

Feature Status Effort Notes
MicroSims (interactive simulations) ✅ High 23 browser-based apps for hands-on learning
MicroSim index catalog ✅ Medium Visual gallery with cards showing all available simulations
Per-chapter quizzes ❌ High 0 quiz files with questions aligned to learning objectives

Learning Graph System

A learning graph maps every concept in the course and shows which concepts depend on others.

Feature Status Effort Notes
Course description ✅ Medium Goals and outcomes using Bloom's Taxonomy levels
Concept list (~200-300 concepts) ✅ High Every topic students need to learn, extracted with AI help
Learning graph CSV ✅ High Spreadsheet defining which concepts depend on others
Learning graph JSON ✅ Low Machine-readable format for the graph viewer
Learning graph viewer (vis-network) ✅ Medium Interactive diagram where you can click and explore concepts
Concept taxonomy classification ✅ Medium Grouping concepts into categories
Quality metrics report ✅ Low Statistics about graph completeness and structure
Book metrics ✅ Medium Word counts, reading time, and chapter statistics
Chapter metrics ✅ Medium Detailed stats for each chapter individually
Glossary quality report ❌ Low Check definitions follow standards
FAQ quality report ✅ Low Check FAQ completeness
FAQ coverage gaps ❌ Low Find concepts not addressed in FAQ
Quiz generation report ❌ Low Quality report for generated quizzes

Content Generation

These features involve creating the actual educational content.

Feature Status Effort Notes
Chapter content ✅ Very High 16 chapters with full text, examples, and exercises
Sample prompts collection ✅ Medium Saved AI prompts so content can be regenerated consistently

Feature Dependencies

Some features require others to be implemented first.

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Course Description
    └── Concept List
        └── Learning Graph (CSV)
            ├── Learning Graph (JSON)
            │   └── Graph Viewer
            ├── Glossary
            │   └── Glossary Quality Report
            ├── FAQ
            │   ├── FAQ Quality Report
            │   └── FAQ Coverage Gaps
            └── Chapter Content
                ├── Per-Chapter Quizzes
                ├── Per-Chapter References
                └── Book/Chapter Metrics

Cost Considerations

Most intelligent textbook features use free, open-source software.

Feature Category License Cost Notes
MkDocs Material Free (MIT) Static site generator and theme
Python dependencies Free Pillow and CairoSVG for social preview images
vis-network.js Free (MIT) JavaScript library for interactive graph diagrams
p5.js Free (LGPL) JavaScript library for creative coding and simulations
KaTeX Free (MIT) Fast math equation rendering in the browser
AI image generation $20+/month Required for creating infographics with DALL-E or ImageFX
Claude/ChatGPT for content Varies Used to draft chapters, quizzes, and glossary entries

Quick Start: Adding Missing Features

Start with the easiest wins and work your way up.

Highest Impact, Lowest Effort

These can be done in under an hour:

  1. License page - Copy the standard Creative Commons template
  2. Contact page - Add author email or feedback form
  3. Edit page button - One line in mkdocs.yml enables "Suggest an edit" links
  4. Social media cards - Auto-generate preview images when shared

Medium Effort, High Value

These use Claude Code skills to generate content:

  1. Glossary - Use the glossary-generator skill to create searchable definitions
  2. FAQ - Use the faq-generator skill to answer common student questions
  3. Book metrics - Use the book-metrics-generator skill to track completeness
  4. Per-chapter quizzes - Use the quiz-generator skill for auto-graded practice

High Effort, Transformative

These take more time but significantly enhance the learning experience:

  1. Additional MicroSims - Each simulation takes 2-4 hours; aim for 10-20 total
  2. AI-generated infographics - Requires paid image generation subscription
  3. Instructor's guide - Helps teachers adopt your textbook

Generated by book-installer feature-checklist-generator

Last updated: February 2026