Comparison Table Generator

Comparison Table Generator

Overview

The Comparison Table Generator skill creates interactive comparison table MicroSims for educational content. These tables allow students to compare multiple items across several criteria using color-coded star ratings, difficulty badges, logos, and hover tooltips. The skill generates complete MicroSim packages following all microsim-standardization rules, including proper documentation and mkdocs.yml navigation updates.

This skill uses pure CSS (no JavaScript library required) for lightweight, fast-loading interactive tables.

When to Use This Skill

Use the Comparison Table Generator when you need to create:

• Educational Comparisons - Linux distributions, programming languages, frameworks, tools
• Decision-Making Aids - Help students choose between multiple options with clear criteria
• Multi-Criteria Analysis - Compare items across 2-4 rating dimensions
• Visual Summaries - Quick-reference tables with ratings and categories
• Interactive Learning - Tables with hover tooltips for deeper explanations

Key Features

Star Ratings (1-5 Scale)

Color-coded ratings using Unicode stars:

• 5 stars (Green #22c55e) - Excellent
• 4 stars (Yellow-green #84cc16) - Very Good
• 3 stars (Orange #f59e0b) - Good/Average
• 2 stars (Red-orange #f97316) - Below Average
• 1 star (Red #ef4444) - Poor

Difficulty/Category Badges

Pill-shaped badges with semantic colors:

• Easy - Green background, dark green text
• Medium - Yellow background, dark orange text
• Hard - Red background, dark red text

Custom categories can be added following the same pattern.

Hover Tooltips

Pure CSS tooltips that appear on row hover:

• Smooth fade transitions
• First row tooltip appears BELOW to avoid header overlap
• Maximum 400px width for readability
• Prefixed with item name for context

Responsive Design

• Mobile breakpoint at 700px
• Horizontal scrolling for narrow screens
• Adjusted font sizes and logo dimensions

Logo Support

• SVG format recommended (32x32px)
• Consistent row heights with flexbox alignment
• Stored in logos/ subdirectory

Workflow

The skill follows a 9-step process:

1. Gather Requirements - Table title, items, ratings, logos, badges
2. Create Directory Structure - docs/sims/[microsim-name]/
3. Generate main.html - From template with star ratings and tooltips
4. Generate style.css - Copy template CSS with all patterns
5. Create index.md - Documentation with YAML frontmatter
6. Create metadata.json - Dublin Core metadata
7. Add Logo Files - SVG files in logos/ subdirectory
8. Update mkdocs.yml Navigation - Add entry to nav section
9. Validate and Report - Verify files and suggest preview

File Structure

Each generated comparison table creates:

docs/sims/[table-name]/
├── index.md          # Documentation with iframe embed
├── main.html         # Interactive comparison table
├── style.css         # Styling (star colors, badges, tooltips)
├── metadata.json     # Dublin Core metadata
└── logos/            # SVG logo files
    ├── item1.svg
    ├── item2.svg
    └── ...

Example Use Cases

1. Linux Distribution Comparison

Scenario: Help students choose the right Linux distribution.

Columns:

• Distribution (logo + name)
• User Friendly (1-5 stars)
• Stability (1-5 stars)
• Fresh Software (1-5 stars)
• Learning Curve (Easy/Medium/Hard badge)
• Best For (text description)

Items: Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, Arch Linux, Linux Mint

2. Programming Language Comparison

Scenario: Compare languages for a beginner's course.

Columns:

• Language (logo + name)
• Ease of Learning (1-5 stars)
• Job Market (1-5 stars)
• Performance (1-5 stars)
• Difficulty (Easy/Medium/Hard)
• Best For (text)

Items: Python, JavaScript, Java, C++, Go

3. Database Comparison

Scenario: Help students choose a database technology.

Columns:

• Database (logo + name)
• Query Flexibility (1-5 stars)
• Scalability (1-5 stars)
• Learning Curve (Easy/Medium/Hard)
• Best For (text)

Items: PostgreSQL, MySQL, MongoDB, Redis, SQLite

4. Cloud Provider Comparison

Scenario: Compare major cloud platforms.

Columns:

• Provider (logo + name)
• Ease of Use (1-5 stars)
• Feature Breadth (1-5 stars)
• Documentation (1-5 stars)
• Cost (Low/Medium/High)
• Best For (text)

Items: AWS, Google Cloud, Azure, DigitalOcean

Technical Details

HTML Structure

<tr data-tooltip="Item Name: Description for tooltip">
    <td class="distro-cell">
        <img src="logos/item.svg" alt="Item" class="distro-logo">
        <span class="distro-name">Item Name</span>
    </td>
    <td class="rating">
        <span class="stars stars-4">★★★★</span>
        <span class="stars-empty">★</span>
    </td>
    <td class="difficulty medium">Medium</td>
    <td class="best-for">Description text</td>
</tr>

Star Rating Pattern

<!-- 4 out of 5 stars -->
<td class="rating">
    <span class="stars stars-4">★★★★</span>
    <span class="stars-empty">★</span>
</td>

Difficulty Badge Pattern

<td class="difficulty easy">Easy</td>
<td class="difficulty medium">Medium</td>
<td class="difficulty hard">Hard</td>

First Row Tooltip Fix

The CSS automatically positions the first row's tooltip below (instead of above) to avoid being hidden by the table header:

.comparison-table tbody tr:first-child[data-tooltip]::after {
    bottom: auto;
    top: calc(100% + 10px);
}

Customization

Custom Badge Categories

To add categories beyond Easy/Medium/Hard:

.difficulty.beginner {
    background-color: #dbeafe;  /* Light blue */
    color: #1e40af;             /* Dark blue */
}

.difficulty.advanced {
    background-color: #fae8ff;  /* Light purple */
    color: #86198f;             /* Dark purple */
}

Custom Star Colors

Modify in style.css:

.stars-5 { color: #22c55e; }  /* Green */
.stars-4 { color: #84cc16; }  /* Yellow-green */
.stars-3 { color: #f59e0b; }  /* Orange */
.stars-2 { color: #f97316; }  /* Red-orange */
.stars-1 { color: #ef4444; }  /* Red */

Iframe Height Calculation

Approximately 60px per row + 150px for header/legend:

• 3 rows: ~330px
• 5 rows: ~450px (default 470px)
• 8 rows: ~630px
• 10 rows: ~750px

Educational Framework Integration

Bloom's Taxonomy Alignment

Comparison tables support multiple cognitive levels:

• Remember - Identify items and their characteristics
• Understand - Interpret rating scales and categories
• Apply - Use comparisons to make decisions
• Analyze - Compare trade-offs between options
• Evaluate - Assess which option best fits specific needs

Learning Objectives Template

After reviewing this comparison, students should be able to:

1. **Identify** the major [items] and their characteristics
2. **Compare** [items] based on different criteria
3. **Evaluate** which [item] is best for specific use cases
4. **Analyze** the trade-offs between [criteria]

Best Practices

Content Guidelines

1. Limit items - 3-8 items per table for readability
2. Limit rating columns - 2-4 rating criteria maximum
3. Consistent tooltips - Always prefix with item name
4. Clear badges - Use semantic colors (green=easy, red=hard)
5. Meaningful descriptions - "Best For" column should be actionable

Logo Guidelines

1. SVG format - Scalable, small file size
2. 32x32px - Consistent dimensions
3. Simple designs - Clear at small sizes
4. Official sources - Check brand guidelines or vectorlogo.zone

Accessibility

1. Semantic colors - Green=positive, Red=challenging
2. Sufficient contrast - WCAG AA compliant
3. Clear labels - Descriptive column headers
4. Text alternatives - Logo alt text, tooltip descriptions

Comparison with Other Skills

vs. ChartJS Generator

• Comparison Table: Categorical comparisons with ratings
• ChartJS: Numerical data visualization (bar, line, pie charts)

Use Comparison Table for: Side-by-side feature comparisons Use ChartJS for: Quantitative data trends and distributions

vs. Radar Chart (ChartJS)

• Comparison Table: Multiple items, multiple criteria, badges
• Radar Chart: Multi-dimensional profile visualization

Use Comparison Table for: Discrete ratings with categories Use Radar for: Continuous metrics with overlapping profiles

vs. Vis-Network

• Comparison Table: Static comparisons in table format
• Vis-Network: Interactive network graph diagrams

Use Comparison Table for: Linear comparisons Use Vis-Network for: Relationship networks and dependencies

Troubleshooting

Tooltip Hidden Behind Header

Cause: First row tooltip positioned above table header Solution: CSS automatically handles this - verify tr:first-child rules are present

Row Heights Misaligned

Cause: Logos with different aspect ratios Solution: Set explicit height on .distro-cell (default 60px)

Stars Not Colored

Cause: Missing star color classes Solution: Ensure stars-N class matches the rating value (1-5)

Badges Not Styled

Cause: Class name doesn't match CSS Solution: Use lowercase class names: easy, medium, hard

Related Skills

• ChartJS Generator - Data visualization charts
• Microsim-P5 - Custom interactive simulations
• MicroSim Standardization - Quality validation for MicroSims
• MicroSim Matcher - Select the right generator for specifications

References

• CSS Flexbox Guide - Layout for logo cells
• Pure CSS Tooltips - Tooltip implementation
• Vector Logo Zone - Source for SVG logos
• Dublin Core Metadata - Metadata standards

Quick Start Example

To generate a comparison table:

Input Requirements:
- Title: Linux Distribution Comparison
- MicroSim Name: linux-distro-comparison
- Items: Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, Arch, Mint (with logos and tooltips)
- Rating Columns: User Friendly, Stability, Fresh Software
- Badge Column: Learning Curve (Easy/Medium/Hard)
- Description Column: Best For

Output: Complete MicroSim package with:

• Interactive table with hover tooltips
• Color-coded star ratings
• Difficulty badges with legend
• Responsive design
• Documentation with learning objectives
• Dublin Core metadata
• mkdocs.yml navigation entry

Comparison tables integrate seamlessly into MkDocs Material textbooks as iframe-embedded MicroSims with professional styling and educational metadata.