mdlive

name	mdlive
description	>- Use when this capability is needed.

mdlive

Serve markdown files as live-reloading HTML previews in the browser using mdlive.

When to use

Use mdlive whenever you produce markdown that benefits from rendered presentation:

• Plans and proposals
• Architecture or design documents
• Reports, comparisons, or summaries with tables
• Anything containing Mermaid diagrams
• Multi-file documentation sets
• Any time the user asks to "preview" or "render" markdown

Use mdlive when markdown is more than about 40 to 60 lines, has complex formatting, or is likely to go through multiple edit/review iterations with the user.

Do not use mdlive for short conversational answers, single code snippets, trivial one-paragraph responses, or any markdown that fits comfortably within a terminal window.

Workflow

1. Write the markdown file (e.g. plan.md).
2. Start mdlive using the Bash tool with run_in_background: true:

   command: mdlive plan.md
   run_in_background: true
   

   The browser opens automatically. mdlive auto-cycles to the next available port if 3000 is in use — no port checking needed.
3. Continue editing the file — changes reload automatically.
4. When the task is finished and the preview is no longer needed, stop the background task using TaskStop with the task ID.

Directory mode

When producing multiple related markdown files, serve the parent directory instead:

command: mdlive docs/
run_in_background: true

This gives the user a collapsible tree sidebar to navigate between files, including any nested subdirectories.

Mermaid diagrams

Use Mermaid diagrams when they improve clarity over plain text:

• Flowcharts — processes and decision trees
• Sequence diagrams — API and service interactions
• Entity-relationship diagrams — data models
• State diagrams — state machines

Prefer Mermaid over ASCII art when the diagram has more than a few elements or shows relationships and flow.

Installation

mdlive must be installed on the user's system. If the mdlive command is not found, ask the user how they would like to install it using AskUserQuestion with these options:

1. Cargo — cargo install mdlive
2. Build from source — git clone https://github.com/bearded-giant/mdlive && cd mdlive && cargo build --release

Then run the corresponding install command for them.

---

Converted and distributed by TomeVault — claim your Tome and manage your conversions.