---
name: install-mkdocs-template
description: This skill creates a complete MkDocs Material project structure for intelligent textbooks. It sets up a Conda virtual environment named 'mkdocs', installs all dependencies, generates mkdocs.yml with all Material theme options, custom CSS for branding, the social_override plugin for custom social media cards, builds the site, and deploys to GitHub Pages. Use this skill when starting a new intelligent textbook project.
---

# Install MkDocs Template

This skill creates a complete MkDocs Material project structure optimized for intelligent textbooks.

## What This Skill Creates

1. **mkdocs.yml** - Complete configuration with all Material theme options
2. **docs/css/extra.css** - Custom CSS with branding color variables
3. **docs/img/** - Directory for logo and favicon
4. **plugins/** - Social override plugin for custom social media cards
5. **setup.py** - Plugin installation configuration
6. **docs/index.md** - Home page template

## Prerequisites

- Conda (Miniconda or Anaconda) installed
- Git repository initialized with remote origin configured
- GitHub repository created (for GitHub Pages deployment)

## Workflow

### Step 1: Create Conda Environment

Create a new Conda environment named `mkdocs` with Python 3:

```bash
conda create -n mkdocs python=3.11 -y
```

### Step 2: Activate Environment and Install Dependencies

Activate the environment and install MkDocs with Material theme:

```bash
conda activate mkdocs
pip install mkdocs mkdocs-material mkdocs-material-extensions pillow cairosvg
```

The additional packages (`pillow`, `cairosvg`) are required for social media card generation.

### Step 3: Gather Project Information

Before creating files, collect the following information from the user:

1. **site_name** - The title of the textbook (e.g., "Introduction to Machine Learning")
2. **site_description** - A brief description for SEO and social sharing
3. **site_author** - Author name(s)
4. **repo_name** - GitHub repository display name (default: "GitHub Repo")
5. **site_url** - Full URL where the site will be hosted (e.g., "https://username.github.io/repo-name/")
6. **repo_url** - GitHub repository URL
7. **primary_color_rgb** - Primary brand color as RGB values (default: 218, 120, 87 - Anthropic brown)
8. **google_analytics_id** - Optional Google Analytics property ID

### Step 4: Create Directory Structure

Create the following directory structure in the current working directory:

```
project-root/
├── docs/
│   ├── css/
│   │   └── extra.css
│   ├── img/
│   │   ├── logo.png (placeholder - user must provide)
│   │   └── favicon.ico (placeholder - user must provide)
│   ├── chapters/
│   │   └── index.md
│   ├── learning-graph/
│   │   └── index.md
│   ├── sims/
│   │   └── index.md
│   └── index.md
├── plugins/
│   ├── __init__.py
│   └── social_override.py
├── mkdocs.yml
└── setup.py
```

### Step 5: Create mkdocs.yml

Use the template from `assets/mkdocs-template.yml` as the base. Replace placeholders with user-provided values:

- `{{SITE_NAME}}` - site_name
- `{{SITE_DESCRIPTION}}` - site_description
- `{{SITE_AUTHOR}}` - site_author
- `{{REPO_NAME}}` - repo_name
- `{{SITE_URL}}` - site_url
- `{{REPO_URL}}` - repo_url
- `{{GOOGLE_ANALYTICS_ID}}` - google_analytics_id (remove analytics section if not provided)

### Step 6: Create extra.css

Use the template from `assets/extra.css` as the base. Replace the RGB color values with user-provided primary_color_rgb if different from default.

### Step 7: Create Social Override Plugin

Copy the following files from assets:

- `assets/plugins/__init__.py` → `plugins/__init__.py`
- `assets/plugins/social_override.py` → `plugins/social_override.py`
- `assets/setup.py` → `setup.py`

### Step 8: Create Starter Content Files

Create minimal starter files for each directory:

**docs/index.md:**
```markdown
# Welcome to {{SITE_NAME}}

{{SITE_DESCRIPTION}}

## Getting Started

This intelligent textbook is built with MkDocs Material theme.

## Navigation

Use the navigation menu on the left to explore chapters and content.
```

**docs/chapters/index.md:**
```markdown
# Chapters

This section contains the main chapter content of the textbook.
```

**docs/learning-graph/index.md:**
```markdown
# Learning Graph

This section contains the learning graph visualization and concept dependencies.
```

**docs/sims/index.md:**
```markdown
# Interactive Simulations

This section contains MicroSims - interactive educational simulations.
```

### Step 9: Install the Social Override Plugin

After creating all files, install the social_override plugin in editable mode:

```bash
pip install -e .
```

### Step 10: Build the Site

Build the static site to verify everything is configured correctly:

```bash
mkdocs build
```

This creates a `site/` directory with the generated HTML. Check for any build warnings or errors.

### Step 11: Test Locally (Optional)

To preview the site locally before deploying:

```bash
mkdocs serve
```

The site will be accessible at http://localhost:8000

### Step 12: Deploy to GitHub Pages

Deploy the site to GitHub Pages:

```bash
mkdocs gh-deploy
```

This command:
1. Builds the site
2. Creates/updates the `gh-pages` branch
3. Pushes to GitHub
4. Configures GitHub Pages to serve from that branch

### Step 13: Provide the GitHub Pages URL

After deployment, provide the user with the live site URL:

```
https://{{GITHUB_USERNAME}}.github.io/{{REPO_NAME}}/
```

For example, if the repo_url is `https://github.com/dmccreary/my-textbook`, the site URL would be:

```
https://dmccreary.github.io/my-textbook/
```

**Important**: The site may take 1-2 minutes to become available after the first deployment. Subsequent deployments are usually faster.

### Step 14: Verify Deployment

Instruct the user to:

1. Visit the GitHub Pages URL
2. Check that the home page loads correctly
3. Verify navigation works
4. Test on mobile devices for responsive layout

## MkDocs Material Features Included

The template includes these Material theme features:

### Navigation

- `navigation.expand` - Expandable navigation sections
- `navigation.path` - Breadcrumb navigation path
- `navigation.prune` - Prune inactive navigation items
- `navigation.indexes` - Section index pages
- `navigation.top` - Back to top button
- `navigation.footer` - Previous/next page links in footer
- `toc.follow` - Table of contents follows scroll

### Content

- `content.code.copy` - Copy button for code blocks
- `content.action.edit` - Edit on GitHub button

### Plugins

- `search` - Full-text search
- `social` - Social media card generation
- `social_override` - Custom social media images per page

### Markdown Extensions

- `md_in_html` - Markdown inside HTML blocks
- `admonition` - Callout boxes (note, warning, tip, etc.)
- `attr_list` - Add HTML attributes to elements
- `pymdownx.details` - Collapsible content blocks
- `pymdownx.superfences` - Enhanced code fencing
- `pymdownx.highlight` - Syntax highlighting with line numbers

## Customizing Social Media Cards

To use a custom social media image for any page, add frontmatter:

```markdown
---
title: My Page Title
image: img/my-custom-social-card.png
---

# Page Content Here
```

The social_override plugin will use the custom image instead of the auto-generated one.

## Logo and Favicon

After running the skill, the user must provide:

1. `docs/img/logo.png` - Site logo (recommended: 50x50px)
2. `docs/img/favicon.ico` - Browser favicon

## Quick Reference - All Commands

Here is the complete sequence of commands for reference:

```bash
# Step 1: Create Conda environment
conda create -n mkdocs python=3.11 -y

# Step 2: Activate and install dependencies
conda activate mkdocs
pip install mkdocs mkdocs-material mkdocs-material-extensions pillow cairosvg

# Steps 3-8: Create files (done by Claude)

# Step 9: Install social_override plugin
pip install -e .

# Step 10: Build the site
mkdocs build

# Step 11: Test locally (optional)
mkdocs serve

# Step 12: Deploy to GitHub Pages
mkdocs gh-deploy

# Step 13: Access your site at:
# https://<username>.github.io/<repo-name>/
```

## Reactivating the Environment

When returning to work on the textbook in a new terminal session:

```bash
conda activate mkdocs
```

## Notes

- The template uses a custom primary color defined in CSS rather than Material's built-in palette
- Google Analytics is optional - remove the `analytics` section from mkdocs.yml if not needed
- The edit_uri points to the `blob/master/docs` path - adjust if using a different branch
- The Conda environment is reusable across multiple MkDocs projects
- First deployment may take 1-2 minutes to appear on GitHub Pages