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unit29868 / pressbooks

PressBooks - The CMS for books.
http://pressbooks.com/
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Epub 3 specific content generation support (MathML/Canvas/JScript/etc) #45

Open unit29868 opened 10 years ago

unit29868 commented 10 years ago

From a user perspective, Audio assets and Video assets are supported at the interface level. If you so desire, you can edit HTML markup to include assets in your post content directly, but the interface provides a means to select the audio or video file, and embed it into your post content for you.

Is there a desire to support MathML, Canvas drawing and Javascript manipulation in a similar manner?

Using MathML as a specific case of the above general issue, we are entertaining two methods of approach:

1.) Send site users to external MathML generators like http://www.firemath.info/ or http://www.fmath.info/, have them create their MathML expression there, then cut and paste the markup content into their post for viewing/exporting.

2.) Include/embed some way for site users to concoct a MathML expression, view it, then inject the MathML markup into their post automatically.

For option #2, something like http://www.fmath.info/plugins/TinyMCE/demo.jsp might be sufficient for the MathML content generation problem, but what about Canvas and Javascript?

Thoughts on this?

bdolor commented 10 years ago

Canvas and javascript manipulation are low priority for us as far as EPUB3 development goes, but that's not to say they are off the table, just low on the stack. The interface that comes with the math.info plugin is close to what would be good for our use case but it looks like that particular plugin just produces an image. I haven't found an interface that produces MathML and I don't know enough math content specialists to speak with authority on what they would prefer. I only know that Tex / LaTeX is something mathematicians have been using for a while, so I'm comfortable with providing them that option for now.

The best example of an equations interface that I've come across so far is what the devs at oerpub have done with the Aloha Editor. http://oerpub.github.io/github-bookeditor/ — again, the options that they give the user are to enter ASCIIMath or LaTeX.

Even if we find an gui that produces MathML, the problem of how it renders on PDF output will still have to be resolved. For now, the plugins that we've come across are at least able to produce an image of the formula which renders in a print format.