xhub
A Chrome extension that adds LaTeX math, charts, graphs, and YouTube embeds to GitHub pages.
What is xhub?
xhub is a Chrome browser extension that extends GitHub's Markdown rendering capabilities. It allows users to embed LaTeX mathematics, Chart.js charts, Plotly graphs, and YouTube videos directly in GitHub READMEs, issues, and wikis. It solves the problem of GitHub's limited native support for rich technical and visual content.
Developers, researchers, and technical writers who publish content on GitHub and need to include mathematical notation, data visualizations, or embedded media in their documentation.
xhub provides a simple, install-and-forget solution that enhances GitHub pages without requiring server-side changes or complex setup. It offers reliable rendering where GitHub's native features may be buggy or insufficient.
Overview
Extend GitHub pages with math, graphs etc.
Use Cases
Best For
- Writing technical documentation with mathematical equations on GitHub
- Embedding interactive charts in GitHub READMEs
- Adding data visualizations to GitHub issues or wikis
- Including YouTube tutorial videos in project documentation
- Publishing scientific or academic content on GitHub
- Enhancing GitHub project pages with rich media content
Not Ideal For
- Teams requiring content to be universally viewable without browser extensions
- Projects with users primarily on non-Chrome browsers like Firefox or Safari
- Static site generation or documentation that needs server-side rendering for compatibility
- Organizations that strictly adhere to GitHub's native features to avoid dependency on third-party tools
Pros & Cons
Pros
Uses KaTeX to render complex scientific notation in inline and display math, providing a reliable alternative to GitHub's buggy native math rendering as noted in the README.
Integrates Chart.js and Plotly via JSON blocks, allowing configurable and interactive data visualizations directly in Markdown without server-side changes.
Embeds responsive YouTube videos with customizable attributes like width and height through simple code blocks, overcoming GitHub's lack of native video support.
Available as a one-click install from the Chrome Web Store, with automatic enhancement of GitHub pages and no complex setup required.
Cons
Exclusively a Chrome browser extension, so it doesn't work on other browsers like Firefox or Safari, limiting cross-browser accessibility.
Content enhancements are only visible to users who have installed the xhub extension, making it ineffective for collaboration with non-users or in static exports.
Due to GitHub's changes, the old LaTeX syntax ($`...`$) is unreliable, forcing users to adapt to new syntax (`$...$`), which can break existing documentation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Related Projects
MathJaXJavaScript engine to render mathematical formulas on the web. The outcome looks really slick. foss
mimeTeXmimeTeX is a rather old tool to render LaTeX formulas to PNG figures for your web site, without actually needing a LaTeX installation on your server. foss
KaTeXKaTeX is a math rendering library made by Khan Academy focusing on fast load times. All output is processed as plain HTML instead of fixed images. foss
Franklin.jlStatic site generator with KaTeX support, code evaluation, LaTeX-like commands and optional pre-rendering, in Julia. foss
Found a gem we're missing?
Open-Awesome is built by the community, for the community. Submit a project, suggest an awesome list, or help improve the catalog on GitHub.