markpage

Markpage

A standalone npm package for building and rendering markdown-based content with distributed navigation structure for any framework.

Project Structure

This is a monorepo with the following packages:

• packages/markpage - The main package that gets published to npm
• packages/tests - Comprehensive test suite for the package
• packages/examples - Example SvelteKit project demonstrating usage

Features

• Distributed Navigation: Each folder defines its own structure with .index.json files
• Multiple Output Formats: App bundles, website navigation, and static HTML sites
• Type-Safe: Full TypeScript support with Zod validation
• Framework Agnostic: Works with any framework or no framework at all
• Flexible: Point to any directory with markdown and .index.json files
• Comprehensive Testing: >90% test coverage with comprehensive test suite

Development

Prerequisites

• Node.js 18+
• npm

Setup

# Install dependencies for all packages
npm install

# Build the main package
npm run build

# Run tests
npm test

# Build examples
npm run build:examples

# Start examples in development mode
npm run dev:examples

Package Scripts

• npm run build - Build the main markpage package
• npm run dev - Watch mode for the main package
• npm test - Run all tests
• npm run test:watch - Run tests in watch mode
• npm run test:coverage - Run tests with coverage report
• npm run build:examples - Build the example SvelteKit project
• npm run dev:examples - Start the example project in development mode

Installation

npm install markpage

Quick Start

1. Create Content Structure

Create a directory with your markdown content and .index.json files:

my-content/
├── .index.json
├── getting-started.md
└── guides/
    ├── .index.json
    └── installation.md

2. Define Navigation

Root level (my-content/.index.json):

{
  "items": [
    { "name": "getting-started", "type": "page", "label": "Getting Started" },
    { "name": "guides", "type": "section", "label": "Guides" }
  ]
}

Section level (my-content/guides/.index.json):

{
  "items": [
    { "name": "installation", "type": "page", "label": "Installation" }
  ]
}

3. Build Documentation

import { buildPages } from 'markpage/builder';

await buildPages('./my-content', {
  appOutput: './src/lib/content',
  websiteOutput: './src/lib/content',
  includeContent: true
});

4. Use in Your App

import { NavigationTree, loadContent } from 'markpage/renderer';
import navigationData from './src/lib/content/navigation.json';
import contentBundle from './src/lib/content/content.json';

const navigation = new NavigationTree(navigationData);
const content = await loadContent('getting-started.md', contentBundle);

CLI Usage

Build for App/Website

npx markpage build ./my-content --output ./src/lib/content

Generate Static Site

npx markpage static ./my-content --output ./dist

API Reference

Builder Module

buildPages(contentPath, options?)

Builds documentation from a content directory.

import { buildPages } from 'markpage/builder';

const result = await buildPages('./content', {
  appOutput: './src/lib/content',
  websiteOutput: './src/lib/content',
  includeContent: true
});

generateStaticSite(contentPath, outputPath, options?)

Generates a complete static HTML site.

import { generateStaticSite } from 'markpage/builder';

const result = await generateStaticSite('./content', './dist', {
  title: 'My Documentation',
  baseUrl: 'https://example.com',
  includeIndex: true
});

Renderer Module

NavigationTree

Manages navigation structure and provides navigation utilities.

import { NavigationTree } from 'markpage/renderer';

const navigation = new NavigationTree(navigationData);

// Find items
const item = navigation.findItemByPath('guides/installation.md');

// Get breadcrumbs
const breadcrumbs = navigation.getBreadcrumbs('guides/installation.md');

// Get siblings
const siblings = navigation.getSiblings('guides/installation.md');
const nextSibling = navigation.getNextSibling('guides/installation.md');
const prevSibling = navigation.getPreviousSibling('guides/installation.md');

ContentLoader

Manages content loading and processing.

import { ContentLoader } from 'markpage/renderer';

const loader = new ContentLoader(contentBundle);

// Load content
const content = loader.loadAndProcess('getting-started.md');

// Check availability
const hasContent = loader.hasContent('guides/installation.md');
const paths = loader.getAvailablePaths();

loadContent(path, contentBundle, processor?)

Loads and processes content for a specific path.

import { loadContent } from 'markpage/renderer';

const content = await loadContent('getting-started.md', contentBundle);

Content Processing

Custom Processors

You can provide custom content processors for advanced transformations:

const processor = {
  process(content: string): string {
    // Add table of contents
    return addTableOfContents(content);
  }
};

const content = await loadContent('page.md', contentBundle, processor);

Utility Functions

import { 
  extractHeadings, 
  extractTableOfContents, 
  addTableOfContents 
} from 'markpage/renderer';

// Extract headings from markdown
const headings = extractHeadings(content);

// Generate table of contents
const toc = extractTableOfContents(content);

// Add table of contents to content
const contentWithToc = addTableOfContents(content);

Content Structure

Index.json Format

Each directory can contain a .index.json file that defines the navigation structure:

{
  "items": [
    { "name": "page-name", "type": "page", "label": "Page Label" },
    { "name": "section-name", "type": "section", "label": "Section Label" }
  ]
}

Item Properties

• name: File/directory name (without extension)
• type: Either "page" or "section"
• label: Display label for navigation
• collapsed: Optional boolean to collapse sections by default
• url: Optional external URL

File Structure

• Pages: {name}.md files
• Sections: {name}/ directories with their own .index.json

Use Cases

Documentation Sites

npx markpage build ./docs --output ./src/lib/docs

Blog Systems

npx markpage build ./blog --output ./src/lib/blog

Knowledge Bases

npx markpage build ./kb --output ./src/lib/kb

Static Sites

npx markpage static ./content --output ./dist

Integration Examples

SvelteKit Integration

<!-- src/routes/docs/[...slug]/+page.svelte -->
<script lang="ts">
  import { NavigationTree } from 'markpage/renderer';
  import { DocsSidebar, DocsContent } from 'markpage/components';
  import navigationData from '$lib/content/navigation.json';
  
  export let data;
  let { content, slug } = data;
  
  let navigation = $state(new NavigationTree(navigationData));
</script>

<div class="docs-layout">
  <DocsSidebar {navigation} currentPage={slug} />
  <DocsContent {content} />
</div>

App Integration

<!-- src/lib/components/ContentPopover.svelte -->
<script lang="ts">
  import { NavigationTree, loadContent } from 'markpage/renderer';
  import { DocsSidebar, DocsContent } from 'markpage/components';
  import navigationData from '$lib/content/navigation.json';
  import contentBundle from '$lib/content/content.json';
  
  let navigation = $state(new NavigationTree(navigationData));
  let currentPage = $state<string | null>(null);
  let pageContent = $state<string | null>(null);
  
  $effect(() => {
    if (currentPage) {
      loadContent(currentPage, contentBundle).then(content => {
        pageContent = content;
      });
    }
  });
</script>

<div class="content-popover">
  <DocsSidebar {navigation} bind:currentPage />
  <DocsContent {pageContent} />
</div>

Contributing

• Fork the repository
• Create a feature branch
• Make your changes
• Add tests for new functionality
• Ensure all tests pass
• Submit a pull request

License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details.