Static Spa Conversion

Static SPA Conversion

> Schema authority: all window.COURSE field names come from [_shared/domain-primitives.md](../shared/domain-primitives.md). When the schema example below diverges from that file, that file wins. > > Starter templates (copy these, don't re-derive): > > - [templates/index.html](templates/index.html) — scaffold shell with render pipeline skeleton > - [templates/course-data.template.js](templates/course-data.template.js) — empty schema example with TODO markers for every primitive > - [../teaching-site-design-system/templates/tokens.css](../teaching-site-design-system/templates/tokens.css) — paste into ` block, or copy as style.css next to index.html > > **Reference implementation**: d:/GitHub/ai-workshop/index.html (4125 lines, fully populated). Use as visual + render-pattern reference; do not copy course-specific content from it. > > **Filename convention (English-first)**: course-package/, day{n}/outline.md, day{n}/content.md, materials/, overview.md. Legacy Chinese names (完整課程包/, 課程大綱.md, 教學素材/, etc.) are deprecated — see shared/domain-primitives.md` §0 for full mapping.

This skill turns chapter-based markdown content into a working single-page app. The architectural commitments are deliberate and worth understanding before you start.

The Three Architectural Commitments

1. Vanilla HTML + JS, no framework, no bundler. No React, no Vite, no TypeScript build. Why: course websites have multi-year lifespans and are often handed to non-developer instructors. A .html you can open and edit beats a node_modules graveyard every time. Also: the content is the value, not the tech.

1. Data and rendering live in different files. A course-data.js holds everything the course is as a single JS object (window.COURSE). An index.html holds how the course is shown. Instructors editing tomorrow's lesson never need to touch HTML.

1. localStorage for persistence, no backend. Progress, theme, zoom — all client-side. Easier hosting, no privacy headaches. The cost: state is per-browser. Accept it.

Standard File Layout

project-root/
├── index.html              ← the single SPA (CSS + JS inline; ~3000 lines is normal)
├── course-data.js          ← window.COURSE = { ... }
├── instructor-data.js      ← optional: window.INSTRUCTOR (if scraped/external)
├── tools-data.js           ← optional: window.TOOLS (if showcasing tools)
├── package.json            ← just `{"scripts": {"serve": "npx serve ."}}` and scraping tooling
├── assets/                 ← images, illustrations
└── course-package/             ← markdown source (read-only from SPA's perspective)
    └── materials/           ← files linked from the SPA via getMaterialUrl()

index.html includes data files via plain ` — no module imports, no fetch. The browser loads them in order, populating window.COURSE before init()` runs.

The window.COURSE Schema

The single most important artifact. Design it carefully — every render function depends on it. Standard shape:

window.COURSE = {
  meta: {                              // top-level course metadata
    title: '...',
    audience: '...',
    hoursTotal: 24,
    days: [                            // index drives sidebar chapter list
      { id: 'day1', title: 'Day 1: ...', hours: 6, schedule: '...' },
      ...
    ],
    classroom: { name: '...', mapUrl: '...' }
  },
  sharedCase: { /* persistent fictional scenario */ },
  day1: {
    hero: { title, lead, illustration },
    units: [
      {
        id: 'u-1',                     // stable, never renamed
        title: '...',
        timeRange: '14:00–14:50',
        goals: [...],                  // learning outcomes
        tasks: [                       // ← these IDs are localStorage keys
          { id: 'd1-u1-t1', text: '...', done: false }
        ],
        prompts: [                     // optional: copyable templates
          { id: '...', title: '...', body: '...' }
        ],
        materials: [                   // optional: per-unit material refs
          { id: '...', name: '...', type: 'PDF 文件' }
        ],
        illustrations: [               // 1–3 entries, see Stage 5 Coverage Floor
          { name: 'day1-u1-hero.png',  kind: 'hero',    alt: '...', spec: '...' },
          { name: 'day1-u1-flow.svg',  kind: 'diagram', alt: '...', spec: '...' }
        ]
        // legacy single `illustration: 'day1-u1.png'` still accepted; treat as
        // illustrations: [{ name, kind: 'hero' }] and migrate when convenient
      },
      ...
    ]
  },
  day2: { /* same shape */ },
  ...
  materials: [                         // cross-day material index for the "all materials" tab
    { id: 'm-1', name: '...', type: '...', desc: '...' }
  ],
  quiz: [                              // optional: end-of-course assessment
    { id: 'q1', question: '...', options: [...], answer: 0, sourceUnit: 'day1.u-2' }
  ]
};

The Render Pipeline

index.html is one big `` at the bottom. Its shape:

// 1. Utilities (top, ~50 lines)
const el = (tag, attrs, children) => { /* tiny DOM helper */ };
const store = {
  load() { /* read localStorage */ },
  save(state) { /* write localStorage */ },
  reset() { /* clear */ }
};

// 2. Render functions, each takes data → returns/appends DOM
function renderOverview(meta) { ... }
function renderSharedCase(case_) { ... }
function renderDay(day) { ... }
function renderUnit(unit, dayId) { ... }
function renderMaterials(materials) { ... }
function renderToolbox(tools) { ... }    // optional
function renderQuiz(quiz) { ... }        // optional

// 3. Sidebar + scrollspy + theme — see static-spa-interactions

// 4. Entry point
function init() {
  renderOverview(window.COURSE.meta);
  renderSharedCase(window.COURSE.sharedCase);
  for (const dayKey of ['day1', 'day2', 'day3', 'day4']) {
    renderDay(window.COURSE[dayKey]);
  }
  renderMaterials(window.COURSE.materials);
  renderQuiz(window.COURSE.quiz);
  // ... then interactivity wiring (see static-spa-interactions)
}
document.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded', init);

Keep each render function pure: it receives data, it produces DOM. No reading from globals beyond its parameter. This makes adding a new section trivial.

The Material URL Router (getMaterialUrl)

The trickiest piece. The SPA needs to map a material's name and type to a real URL on disk. The router lives near the top of the script section:

function getMaterialUrl(name, type) {
  const base = 'course-package/materials';
  if (type === 'PDF 文件') {
    // PDFs trigger download instead of inline view
    if (name.includes('員工差勤')) return `${base}/pdf/員工差勤辦法.pdf`;
    if (name.includes('客訴SOP')) return `${base}/pdf/客訴處理SOP.pdf`;
    // ... one rule per PDF
    return null;  // unknown PDF → caller hides the link
  }
  // Other types open in new tab
  if (name.includes('FAQ')) return `${base}/FAQ官方版.md`;
  if (name.includes('差勤')) return `${base}/員工差勤辦法.md`;
  // ...
}

The three-place sync rule — when adding a material, update all of:

1. Drop the file into course-package/materials/
2. Add an entry to course-data.js:materials[] (and any unit's materials[])
3. Add the name.includes(...) rule to getMaterialUrl()

Forgetting any one breaks the link. Consider adding a CI check that diffs filesystem vs. data vs. router.

The Task ID Lifecycle

// Save
function toggleTask(taskId) {
  const state = store.load();
  state.tasks[taskId] = !state.tasks[taskId];
  store.save(state);
  // re-render checkbox only, not whole page
}

// Load on render
function renderTask(task) {
  const state = store.load();
  const checked = !!state.tasks[task.id];
  return el('label', {}, [
    el('input', { type: 'checkbox', checked, onchange: () => toggleTask(task.id) }),
    task.text
  ]);
}

Never change task.id once published. The localStorage key tasks[task.id] is what survives across visits. Renaming wipes progress for every student.

Local Development

# Required: file:// blocks localStorage in Chrome — always serve via HTTP
npx serve .
# → http://localhost:3000

Add this to package.json:

{
  "scripts": {
    "serve": "npx serve ."
  }
}

Mention this prominently in any README. Double-clicking index.html produces a confusing "my progress doesn't save" bug that wastes hours.

Migration: Markdown → course-data.js

When porting an existing .md outline + content to course-data.js:

1. Parse the outline first to get the day/unit skeleton.
2. For each unit's content .md, extract tasks, prompts, materials references using grep-style passes (look for the marker patterns from course-content-authoring).
3. Generate course-data.js as one big object literal. Don't try to make it pretty programmatically — let prettier/eslint format it, or just leave it as-is.
4. Manually review: every unit ID in markdown should exist in course-data.js; the day count and hours should match meta.

When This Skill Hands Off

Tell the user:

• "SPA scaffold is live. Run npm run serve and open http://localhost:3000."
• "Next: invoke static-spa-interactions for progress persistence, sidebar, theme, RWD."
• "Don't rename course-data.js paths or task IDs from this point — students' localStorage depends on them."

Source & license

This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

• Author: kevintsai1202
• Source: kevintsai1202/teaching-site-skills
• License: MIT

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.