LaTeX Template Platform

A metadata-driven LaTeX template platform foundation for a growing personal library of reusable document templates. The repository is organized to support future browsing, indexing, validation, and eventual web-based discovery without pretending that unfinished categories are already populated.

Platform States

The repository uses three explicit platform states:

State	Meaning	Where It Appears
Real template	A catalog entry intended to be treated as an actual reusable template package.	Per-template metadata: kind = real-template
Scaffold	A reference foundation meant to be specialized into future templates, not presented as a finished template.	Per-template metadata: kind = scaffold
Empty placeholder category	A category root that exists for roadmap clarity but has no real template or scaffold entry yet.	registry/categories.json: category_state = empty-placeholder

Current Inventory

The repository currently contains:

• one preserved real slide template under templates/slides/ldv-beamer/
• one reusable report-family scaffold under templates/reports/_scaffold/
• explicit empty category placeholders for future growth

ID	Kind	Maturity	Category	Engine	Preview	Compile Status	Path
slides-ldv-beamer	Real template	Production	slides	lualatex	No thumbnail yet	Not checked in this platform pass	templates/slides/ldv-beamer/
reports-family-scaffold	Scaffold	Reference	reports	pdflatex	No thumbnail yet	Verified	templates/reports/_scaffold/

Platform Architecture

.
├── assets/
│   ├── downloads/
│   └── previews/
├── docs/
├── registry/
├── scripts/
├── shared/
├── templates/
│   ├── slides/
│   ├── reports/
│   ├── articles/
│   ├── books/
│   ├── theses/
│   ├── dissertations/
│   ├── cv/
│   ├── resumes/
│   ├── letters/
│   ├── posters/
│   ├── handouts/
│   ├── lecture-notes/
│   ├── assignments/
│   ├── journals/
│   └── misc/
└── web/

Metadata and Registry

Template metadata is stored alongside each template or scaffold in metadata.json.

• Per-template metadata lives next to the template package.
• registry/categories.json defines the category taxonomy and whether each category is active, scaffold-backed, or still an empty placeholder.
• registry/templates.json is the generated entry index.
• registry/catalog.json is the frontend-oriented aggregate feed with category summaries, filter options, and featured entries.
• registry/schema/ documents the source and generated data contracts.

Refresh and validate the registry with:

python3 scripts/build_registry.py
python3 scripts/validate_registry.py
python3 scripts/list_preview_gaps.py

Static Site

The repository now includes a real static site foundation under web/.

• The frontend is built with Astro in static output mode.
• Site pages are generated from the registry layer rather than from hand-maintained cards.
• web/scripts/sync-registry.mjs copies registry outputs into the web data layer and stages preview or demo assets for the static build.
• The site is base-path aware so it can work on a github.io root domain, a project subpath, or a future portfolio section.

Local site workflow:

cd web
npm install
npm run build

For live local development:

cd web
npm run dev

Working With Templates

Compile the preserved slide template from its own directory:

cd templates/slides/ldv-beamer
latexmk example.tex

Compile the report-family scaffold:

cd templates/reports/_scaffold
latexmk -pdf main.tex

Category States

The repository already exposes category roots for future growth, but they are intentionally honest about their current state:

Category	State	Notes
slides	real-templates-present	Contains one preserved real template package.
reports	scaffold-backed	Contains the report-family scaffold but no finished report template yet.
articles, books, theses, dissertations, lecture-notes	empty-placeholder	Intended to bootstrap from the report-family scaffold later.
cv, resumes, letters, posters, handouts, assignments, journals, misc	empty-placeholder	Future categories only; not presented as populated.

Documentation

• Repository architecture: docs/architecture.md
• Platform philosophy: docs/platform-philosophy.md
• Template lifecycle: docs/template-lifecycle.md
• Report-family architecture: docs/report-family-architecture.md
• Adding a new template: docs/adding-a-template.md
• Metadata reference: docs/metadata-guide.md
• Naming conventions: docs/naming-conventions.md
• Platform conventions: docs/platform-conventions.md
• Web integration: docs/web-integration.md
• Site deployment: docs/site-deployment.md

Design Preservation Note

Existing template packages are integrated into the platform through moves, metadata, registry references, and surrounding documentation. Their internal design files are treated as preserved package contents rather than restyled assets.