CBT Exam Simulator

An Obsidian plugin for creating interactive, timed exams from your notes. It uses a human-readable syntax to render professional computer-based testing (CBT) environments directly within your vault.

Features

• Integrated Exam View: Runs as a native workspace tab with an integrated timer and question navigator.
• 7 Question Types: Supports Multiple Choice, Select All (SATA), True/False, Fill in the Blank, Matching, and Short/Long answers.
• Adaptive Study Mode: Intelligently identifies your weak points and creates a targeted study session.
• Exam History: Each quiz tracks your past attempts in a sidecar {exam-title}-history.md file, letting you monitor progress over time.
• Mark for Review: Flag questions during the exam with a yellow marker to return to them later.
• Enhanced Results Dashboard: Detailed statistics including accuracy, total score, and time taken.
• Retake Exam: Quickly restart an exam after viewing your results.
• Review Mode: Review your results with color-coded navigation (green/red) and persistent marks.
• Markdown & LaTeX Support: Full support for standard Obsidian Markdown and LaTeX (MathJax) in questions and options.
• Shuffle & Timer: Configurable time limits and question/option shuffling managed via note frontmatter.

Demo

CBT-Exam-Demo.mp4

YAML Frontmatter

Configure quiz settings at the beginning of the file using YAML frontmatter.

Option	Type	Description	Example
quiz-title	String	The title of the quiz	quiz-title: "My Quiz"
time-limit	Number	Time limit for the quiz in minutes	time-limit: 30
pass-score	Number	Minimum percentage required to pass	pass-score: 70
shuffle	Boolean	Whether to shuffle the question order	shuffle: true
show-answer	Boolean	Whether to show answers during the quiz (flashcard mode)	show-answer: true
exam-range	String	Filter questions by sequence number (e.g., "1-20, 50-")	exam-range: "-"

Note

Exam Ranges (exam-range): You can filter the exam to include specific questions by their sequence number. The format supports multiple segments separated by commas. Examples:

• exam-range: "1-20": Questions 1 through 20.
• exam-range: "-10, 20-30, 50-": Start to 10, 20 to 30, and 50 to end.
• exam-range: "5, 10, 15": Only questions 5, 10, and 15.
• exam-range: "-": Full exam (default).

Note: If any part of the range is invalid, you will be prompted to launch the full exam instead.

Example:

---
quiz-title: "Science Quiz"
time-limit: 15
pass-score: 80
shuffle: true
show-answer: true
exam-range: "-"
---

Question Syntax

Questions are defined using specific markers followed by the question text and answer details.

Markers

Marker	Type	Answer Format
@mc	Multiple Choice	= b
@sata	Select All That Apply	= a, c, e
@tf	True/False	= true / = false
@fib	Fill in the Blank	= answer1, answer2
@match	Matching	Left | Right pairs
@sa	Short Answer	= text
@la	Long Answer	= text

Standard Rules

1. Marker: Start a question with @type (e.g., @mc).
2. Question Numbering: Every question must start with a numeric sequence number followed by a parenthesis or period (e.g., 1) or 2.). Questions are automatically sorted by this number.
3. Options: Use a), b), c)... for choices (lowercase letters followed by a parenthesis).
4. Answer: Use the = prefix followed by a space (e.g., = a).
5. Multiple Answers: Separate multiple answers with a comma and space (e.g., = a, c).
6. Question Separator: Questions should be separated by a blank line or the next marker.

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Installation

Using BRAT (Beta Reviewers Auto-update Tool)

1. Install the BRAT plugin from the Community Plugins list.
2. Enable the BRAT plugin in Settings.
3. Go to BRAT settings and click on Add Beta plugin.
4. Paste the repository URL: https://github.com/nazdridoy/obsidian-cbt-exam
5. Click Add Plugin.
6. Turn on CBT Exam Simulator in Settings > Community Plugins.

Manual Installation

1. Download main.js, manifest.json, and styles.css from the latest release.
2. Create cbt-exam in your vault's .obsidian/plugins/ directory.
3. Move the downloaded files into that folder.
4. Enable CBT Exam Simulator in Obsidian Settings > Community Plugins.

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Usage

1. Create a Quiz File

Add quiz metadata to your note's frontmatter and write questions using the markers above.

Example (quiz.md)

---
quiz-title: "Sample Quiz"
time-limit: 30
pass-score: 70
shuffle: true
exam-range: "-"
---

# Physics Quiz (@mc)

@mc 1) Calculate the force if $m=5kg$ and $a=2m/s^2$.
a) $10N$
b) $7N$
c) $3N$
d) $2.5N$
= a

# Chemistry (@sata)

@sata 2) Which of these are **Nobel Gases**?
a) Helium
b) Oxygen
c) Argon
d) Neon
= a, c, d

Tip

See FLASHQUIZ_SPEC.md for full syntax documentation and ExampleQuiz.md for a comprehensive example file.

2. Start the Exam

• Right-click: Right-click any Markdown file and select "Start exam" from the context menu.
• Ribbon: With the file open, click the graduation cap icon 🎓 in the left ribbon.
• Command Palette: Search for "Start exam from current file" (Ctrl/Cmd + P).

3. Adaptive Study Mode

Focus on your weak points with a targeted study session.

• How it works: The plugin analyzes your history to identify questions you've struggled with.
• Launch: Click the Adaptive Study button on the exam landing page (only available after you have some history).
• Mix Ratio: You can configure the ratio of "Improvable" vs. "Mastered" questions in the plugin settings (default is 70% improvable).

4. Navigation & Submission

• Use the Question Navigator tab to jump between questions.
• Use the Quit button to exit the exam at any time.
• Click Submit (or wait for the timer) to view results.

5. Results & Review

The results dashboard provides a breakdown of your performance: accuracy, points, and time.

• Review Answers: Analyze your performance question-by-question.
• View History: Open past attempts for this quiz and review them anytime.
• Retake Exam: Immediately restart the exam.
• Close Exam: Return to your vault.

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Companion Tools

• vce2flashquiz: A tool to convert VCE exam files directly into the Markdown format used by this plugin.

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License

This project is licensed under the MIT License. See LICENSE for details.