Case Study Maker

A Cursor plugin that tracks your build process, prompts reflection questions at the right moments, and generates portfolio and marketing case studies from your development journey.

No API keys. No cloud. No cost. Runs entirely on Cursor's built-in AI within your project folder.

casestudymaker.dev — Premium themes, PDF export, LinkedIn kit, and more.

---

Install

Install from the Cursor Marketplace by searching for Case Study Maker.

Or install directly from the repository:

1. Open Cursor Settings (Cmd+Shift+J)
2. Go to Features > Plugins
3. Add https://github.com/julieclarkson/case-study-maker

---

Requirements

Node.js — Used by session-end and post-commit hooks for smart reminders (uncaptured commits, suggested reflection questions). If Node isn't installed, all other features work; you just won't get those automated prompts.

• Check: node --version (if you see a version like v20.x, you're set)
• Install: nodejs.org or brew install node (macOS)

---

Quick start

Activation (choose one):

Option A: Via the Cursor plugin (recommended)

1. Open any project in Cursor (with the plugin enabled)
2. Type /case-study in the chat to see all available commands
3. Use /activate-case-study-maker to start tracking

Option B: Via csm-init (when installed from GitHub)

If you cloned or downloaded the repo and added it as a plugin, you can also activate from the terminal:

cd /path/to/your-project
/path/to/case-study-maker/csm-init

Replace /path/to/case-study-maker with the actual path where you cloned the repo (e.g. ~/case-study-maker or ~/.cursor/plugins/case-study-maker). The script copies the rule and commands into your project so the AI partner and slash commands work in chat.

Once activated, a .case-study/ directory is created in your project root. The plugin will notice significant development moments and suggest capturing reflections naturally in conversation.

---

What it does

Tracks your build process

An always-on rule watches your development flow and recognizes when you're making decisions worth documenting -- architecture tradeoffs, security considerations, constraint handling, risk mitigation, and iteration.

Prompts reflection questions

Five core questions are surfaced at the right moments, never all at once:

Question	Triggered by
Constraints	Platform limits, budget, time pressure, tech stack decisions
Tradeoffs	"Chose X over Y", architecture decisions, library evaluations
Risks	Error handling, external APIs, data migration, infrastructure changes
Security	Auth, validation, encryption, CORS, user data handling
Iteration	Refactoring, rewrites, version changes, major restructuring

AI-assisted answers

Use /auto-capture to let the AI draft reflection answers from your conversation context. You review and approve before anything is saved.

Generates case studies

Two output formats, both as self-contained HTML/CSS/JS folders:

• Portfolio (/generate-portfolio) -- For recruiters and hiring managers evaluating engineering judgment
• Marketing (/generate-marketing) -- For marketers, founders, and customers evaluating product value

---

Commands

Type /case-study in the Cursor chat to see the full menu. Available commands:

Command	What it does
/activate-case-study-maker	Initialize tracking for the current project
/capture-reflection	Manually capture a reflection at any time
/auto-capture	AI drafts reflections from your conversation
/review-timeline	Check case study completeness and find gaps
/generate-portfolio	Generate a portfolio case study
/generate-marketing	Generate a marketing case study
/generate-portfolio-card	Generate embeddable card for your portfolio (links to case study, marketplace, etc.)
/send-to-pages	Copy OUTPUTS to your GitHub Pages folder
/edit-case-study	Edit wording, flow, sections, or theme
/install-template	Install premium/custom template packs and switch themes
/integrate-figma	Pull design assets from Figma (requires Figma plugin)
/integrate-assets	Import from Linear, Notion, or other plugins

---

How data is stored

All data stays inside your project folder:

your-project/
├── .case-study/           # Added to .gitignore automatically
│   ├── events.json        # Append-only event log
│   ├── media/             # Screenshots and assets
│   └── pending.json       # Uncaptured reflection flags (auto-generated)
└── OUTPUTS/               # Generated case studies (commit to deploy)
    ├── portfolio_[project].html
    ├── marketing_[project].html
    ├── portfolio-card_[project].html
    ├── portfolio-card_[project].css   # Import to override your page styles
    └── assets/            # Screenshots

Nothing is written outside the project folder. No home directory access, no cloud uploads, no network calls.

---

Privacy and security

• Project-scoped: Only active in projects where you explicitly run /activate-case-study-maker
• No API keys: Uses Cursor's built-in AI -- no separate keys or accounts needed
• No network calls: All hook scripts run locally with no network access
• No secrets stored: The plugin stores no credentials, tokens, or keys
• Auditable: All plugin code is plain markdown and vanilla JavaScript -- read every line
• Content-Security-Policy: Generated HTML includes CSP headers to prevent injection

---

Plugin components

Component	Count	Description
Rules	1	Always-on partner that notices development moments
Skills	9	Activate, capture, auto-capture, generate, integrate, review, template install
Agents	1	Readonly analyst for gap analysis
Commands	11	Hub plus direct slash commands for activation, capture, generation, integrations, and editing
Hooks	2	Session-end capture and post-commit question flagging

---

Integrations

Works with other Cursor plugins when installed:

• Figma -- Pull design screenshots and component images
• Linear -- Import issue context and project milestones
• Notion -- Pull specs, meeting notes, and decision docs

If a plugin isn't installed, the skill offers manual alternatives.

---

Premium add-ons

The plugin is free and fully functional. Premium add-ons for professional output are available at casestudymaker.dev:

• Theme Pack — Premium HTML/CSS templates (dark, minimal, bold, agency)
• PDF & Notion Export — Generate PDF-ready and Notion-formatted case studies
• LinkedIn Portfolio Kit — LinkedIn-optimized formatting, headline copy, post drafts
• Pro Bundle — Everything above at a discount

---

Reporting issues

Found a bug? Open a GitHub issue.

Please include:

• Plugin version (see CHANGELOG)
• Cursor version
• Node version (node --version)
• Steps to reproduce
• Any error messages (or contents of .case-study/plugin-errors.log if the hooks failed)

---

License

MIT