openfreebooks-bookgenerator/CONTRIBUTING.md

Contributing to Open Free Books

Thank you for helping grow free, open textbooks. This guide focuses on curriculum, subjects, and chapters — the most common contribution.

Prerequisites: Zola, Bun. See README.md for dev setup.

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Quick reference

I want to…	Start here
Add a planned chapter (roadmap only)	§ Planned chapter
Publish a live chapter (readable page)	§ Live chapter
Add a branch in the catalog map	§ Chapter graph
Add a new subject	§ New subject
Add a curriculum filter (e.g. GCSE)	§ New curriculum label

Browse the catalog locally: bun run build:js && zola serve → http://127.0.0.1:1111/catalog/

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How the catalog fits together

data/catalog.json              → subjects in the sidebar + filter chips (DSE, IB, …)
data/{subject}-curriculum.json → strands, chapters, curriculum tags, optional graph
content/{subject}/{slug}/      → actual chapter page (when status is "live")
themes/.../partials/...        → chapter HTML content (today)

• Catalog (/catalog/) is the place to browse everything.
  • List — numbered chapter cards; live chapters link to the whole card.
  • Map — strand columns on a pannable JSON Canvas graph; live chapters link from the title only (with → and a hover underline).
• /math/ redirects to /catalog/?subject=math — there is no separate math book homepage.
• Curriculum names (DSE, IB, …) appear only in the catalog — not inside chapter text (spec.md).
• Every chapter needs a short description in curriculum JSON (shown in list and map; map clamps description to three lines).

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Add a planned chapter (roadmap)

Use this when the chapter is not written yet but should appear in the catalog.

1. Open data/{subject}-curriculum.json (e.g. data/math-curriculum.json).
2. Find the right strand (topic group).
3. Add a chapter object:

{
  "slug": "your-chapter-slug",
  "title": "Human-readable title",
  "description": "One or two sentences for the catalog list and map card.",
  "status": "planned",
  "curriculums": ["DSE"]
}

4. Use a kebab-case slug (letters, numbers, hyphens only).
5. Set curriculums to every syllabus tag that applies. Tags must exist in data/catalog.json → curriculums.
6. Run zola build and check /catalog/?subject=math (or your subject).

No content/ files needed for planned chapters.

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Publish a live chapter

A live chapter needs catalog data and a page.

1. Catalog entry

In data/{subject}-curriculum.json, set "status": "live" and include a description for the chapter (see planned chapter).

2. Zola section

Create content/{subject}/{slug}/_index.md:

+++
title = "Your chapter title"
description = "One sentence for search and previews — no curriculum names here."
template = "math/chapter.html"
weight = 10
[extra]
chapter_id = "your-chapter-slug"
+++

• slug in the path must match slug in the JSON file.
• chapter_id must match the slug (used by the template).
• weight controls order within the section (lower = earlier).

3. Chapter HTML content

Today, chapter bodies live as HTML partials under the theme, not Markdown:

1. Add themes/openfreebooks/templates/partials/math/your-chapter-slug-content.html with the lesson HTML.
2. In themes/openfreebooks/templates/math/chapter.html, include it when chapter_id matches:

{% if section.extra.chapter_id == "your-chapter-slug" %}
{% include "partials/math/your-chapter-slug-content.html" %}
{% endif %}

Use existing classes: book-prose, book-prose__heading, book-callout, etc. Copy from quadratic-equations-content.html.

Do not mention DSE, IB, or other curriculum names in the chapter body.

4. Interactive widgets (optional)

If the chapter needs a Solid widget (like the quadratic explorer):

1. Add a component under frontend/src/components/.
2. Mount it in frontend/src/main.tsx when a mount element exists.
3. Add <div id="your-widget" class="math-widget-mount"></div> in the chapter template branch.

Then run bun run build:js.

5. Check

• /catalog/?subject=math — chapter appears; live chapters link correctly.
• /math/your-chapter-slug/ — page renders; breadcrumb goes to catalog.
• bun run build completes without errors.

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Chapter graph (branches)

The Map tab (?view=tree) shows chapters as a directed graph on a canvas (strand = column, arrows = prerequisites / sequence).

• Chapters appear as cards with title, description, and curriculum badges.
• Live chapters: click the title to open the chapter (not the whole card).
• Planned chapters: shown with a “Coming soon” badge; no link.
• By default, chapters in a strand link in list order (chapter 1 → chapter 2 → …).
• For branches (one chapter leads to several next chapters), add graph.edges:

"graph": {
  "edges": [
    { "from": "quadratic-equations", "to": "sequences" },
    { "from": "quadratic-equations", "to": "functions-graphs" }
  ]
}

Rules:

• from and to are chapter slugs.
• The graph must not contain cycles (no circular prerequisites).
• Edges must reference slugs that exist in strands.

Open /catalog/?subject=math&view=tree to verify layout. Scroll the page normally; use Ctrl/Cmd + wheel on the map to zoom. Pan by clicking the map first if the “click to interact” banner appears.

If a map card looks clipped at the bottom (badges or description cut off), that is a layout bug — long titles and descriptions need enough node height. Report it or see curriculum-data.md for how heights are measured.

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Add a new subject

Example: adding Science.

1. data/catalog.json — add to subjects:

   { "id": "science", "name": "Science" }
   

2. data/science-curriculum.json — create with title, strands, and chapters (copy structure from math-curriculum.json).

3. themes/openfreebooks/templates/catalog.html — today you must wire the new file into #catalog-data (see math block). This step should get easier; see README contributor tasks.

4. content/science/ — add _index.md (redirect template like math) when you have a section.

5. Homepage — optional card in themes/openfreebooks/templates/index.html.

6. Build and test /catalog/?subject=science.

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Add a curriculum label

Example: adding GCSE.

1. Add "GCSE" to curriculums in data/catalog.json.
2. Tag chapters with "GCSE" in their curriculums arrays.
3. Add a badge style in themes/openfreebooks/sass/_catalog.scss (copy .catalog-badge--igcse pattern).
4. Add a mapping in frontend/src/lib/catalog-badge.ts → curriculumBadgeClass() (or rely on the default style).

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Pull requests

• Keep changes focused (one subject or a few chapters per PR is fine).
• Run bun run build before opening the PR.
• Do not commit public/ or copied HTML under themes/openfreebooks/static/.
• Do commit Vite output under themes/openfreebooks/static/js/ (bundle.js and hashed chunks such as catalog-app-*.js, catalog-canvas-view-*.js) after bun run build:js.
• Describe what you added in the PR: subject, chapters, live vs planned, and which curricula apply.

Questions? Open a GitHub discussion or issue.

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For maintainers & agents

Machine-oriented detail: .agents/skills/ofb/SKILL.md and .agents/skills/ofb/curriculum-data.md.