feat: remove the Private JupyterHub launch option

CHANGELOG.md

@@ -52,6 +52,26 @@ and this project adheres to [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/spec/v2.0.0
   matched here. Site chrome (footer badge, back-to-top) keeps its own rules
   ([#167](https://github.com/QuantEcon/quantecon-theme.mystmd/pull/167)).
 
+### Removed
+- The **Private JupyterHub** launch option. The toolbar's Launch control is now a
+  direct link to Google Colab instead of a popover with a radio group and a
+  hand-typed service URL. The demand signal this was gated on came back empty:
+  the book-theme only renders its hub button when `jupyterhub_url` is set in
+  `_config.yml`, and an org-wide search finds that key in no lecture repo at all
+  — every flagship series configures `colab_url` alone — so the button has never
+  appeared on a live QuantEcon site. The MyST version was also not the same
+  feature: it had no config key, rendered unconditionally, and asked the reader
+  to type a hub URL into a box whose value was `React.useState('')` and so was
+  discarded when the popover closed. Verified against a live build, it also
+  hardcoded a `/jupyter/hub/` path segment the Sphinx theme leaves to the
+  configured URL, so it only ever addressed hubs at `<host>/jupyter/hub/` and
+  could not reach a stock JupyterHub, let alone a local Jupyter server. Removing
+  it drops `buildJupyterHubUrl`, the Radix popover and radio group, and the
+  `launch-open.png` visual baseline; `launch-colab` now asserts the anchor's
+  `href`, which also pins that the control is a link rather than a chooser.
+  Re-adding hub, Binder and local-server targets is tracked as future work
+  ([#87](https://github.com/QuantEcon/quantecon-theme.mystmd/issues/87)).
+
 ### Fixed
 - Every toolbar control was nesting a second `<button>` inside its real button
   or link, because the Radix tooltip trigger renders its own element by

PLAN.md

@@ -54,7 +54,7 @@ Derived from `quantecon-book-theme` v0.20.3 (see its `README.md`, `docs/user/*`,
 | RTL support (`dir="rtl"`) | ✅ | ❌ | **5** |
 | Collapsible stderr warnings in notebook cells | ✅ | ❓ verify | **6** |
 | Full OpenGraph / Twitter card meta tags | ✅ | ⚠️ partial | **6** |
-| **Already at parity:** dark mode, font scaling, fullscreen, search, "On this page" TOC + back-to-top, contents sidebar, downloads (PDF/notebook), Colab + private JupyterHub launch, edit-on-GitHub, author header, content-driven footer, responsive/mobile | ✅ | ✅ | — |
+| **Already at parity:** dark mode, font scaling, fullscreen, search, "On this page" TOC + back-to-top, contents sidebar, downloads (PDF/notebook), Colab launch, edit-on-GitHub, author header, content-driven footer, responsive/mobile | ✅ | ✅ | — |
 
 **Shipped state (2026-08-20).** Phase 0 completed across
 [v2.1.0](https://github.com/QuantEcon/quantecon-theme.mystmd/releases/tag/v2.1.0)–[v2.2.0](https://github.com/QuantEcon/quantecon-theme.mystmd/releases/tag/v2.2.0); Phase 1 and the Thebe half of Phase 2
@@ -339,27 +339,30 @@ stripping) + `docs/user/launch.md`.
       **GPU access** for the lectures that need it. #26 stays open as a demand-driven
       future request (an implementation existed in PR #86 and was stripped before
       merge — recoverable from that history if demand appears). The Private
-      JupyterHub option remains for now; its possible removal (collapsing the
-      launcher to a direct Colab button) is tracked in #87.
+      JupyterHub option was **removed in #87** (2026-08-26), collapsing the
+      launcher to a direct Colab link — see the note below.
 - [x] Generalise the hardcoded `.notebooks` suffix and `main` branch into config under
       `site.options` in `myst.yml` (MyST's analog of the book-theme `html_theme_options`),
       so non-default branches and naming work. New optional keys (defaults reproduce the
       historical behaviour, so existing lectures are unchanged): `launch_repo_suffix`
       (default `.notebooks`), `launch_branch` (default `main`), plus `launch_repo_url`
       to point at an arbitrary notebook repo (book-theme `nb_repository_url` parity).
       URL logic extracted to pure, unit-tested builders in `launchUrls.ts`; applies to
-      **both** the Colab and the Private-JupyterHub launch URLs. Done in
-      [#97](https://github.com/QuantEcon/quantecon-theme.mystmd/pull/97).
-- [x] Fix Colab/JupyterHub path handling for **nested** lecture dirs: strip the source
+      the Colab launch URL (and, until #87 removed it, the private-JupyterHub
+      URL). Done in [#97](https://github.com/QuantEcon/quantecon-theme.mystmd/pull/97).
+- [x] Fix Colab path handling for **nested** lecture dirs: strip the source
       extension robustly (the old `page.location.split('.')[0]` truncated paths/dirs
       containing a dot), strip `launch_source_path` (book-theme `path_to_docs`) and
       prepend `launch_notebooks_path` (book-theme `nb_path_to_notebooks`). Covered by
       `tests/unit/launch-urls.test.mjs` (same PR,
       [#97](https://github.com/QuantEcon/quantecon-theme.mystmd/pull/97)).
 
-**Note:** removing the Private JupyterHub option (collapse to a single Colab button, #87)
-is deliberately kept out of this work — it's gated on a maintainer demand signal — so the
-generalisation above covers both Colab and the hub. See #87.
+**Note:** the Private JupyterHub option was **removed (#87, 2026-08-26)** and the launcher
+is now a direct Colab link. The demand signal it was gated on came back empty: no lecture
+repo has ever set the book-theme's `jupyterhub_url`, so that button never rendered on a live
+site, while the MyST version shipped a hand-typed URL box that hardcoded the `/jupyter/hub/`
+path and so only worked for one hub layout. Re-adding hub, Binder and local-server targets
+properly is tracked as future work — see the enhancement issues linked from #87.
 
 **Effort:** M. **Risk:** low–medium. **Deps:** Phase 0.
 

README.md

@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ QuantEcon lectures and books, distributed as a zip attached to each
 [GitHub Release](https://github.com/QuantEcon/quantecon-theme.mystmd/releases).
 
 - Responsive and mobile ready
-- Notebook launch (Google Colab / private JupyterHub) with configurable repo, branch and paths
+- Notebook launch (Google Colab) with configurable repo, branch and paths
 - In-page live compute via Thebe (JupyterLite / Pyodide by default)
 - Git history in page headers ("Last changed" plus an inline changelog)
 - Page Footer based on MyST Content
@@ -54,12 +54,17 @@ downloads:
 
 ### Launch Notebooks
 
-The launch notebooks capability has been developed to mirror capabilities in the previous QuantEcon theme. By default it assumes the `.notebooks` suffix convention for repository naming when launching both Google Colab and Private Jupyter Hub sessions.
-
-Colab is the primary launch target (it provides GPU access for the lectures that
-need it). BinderHub is deliberately not offered — it proved flaky in practice;
-see issue [#26](https://github.com/QuantEcon/quantecon-theme.mystmd/issues/26),
-kept open as a demand-driven future request.
+The launch notebooks capability has been developed to mirror capabilities in the previous QuantEcon theme. By default it assumes the `.notebooks` suffix convention for repository naming when locating the notebook to launch.
+
+The **Launch** control in the toolbar is a direct link to Google Colab, the
+single launch target — it provides GPU access for the lectures that need it.
+Two other targets are deliberately not offered today, each tracked as a
+demand-driven future request: BinderHub, which proved flaky in practice
+([#26](https://github.com/QuantEcon/quantecon-theme.mystmd/issues/26)), and a
+private JupyterHub, whose launcher entry was removed in
+[#87](https://github.com/QuantEcon/quantecon-theme.mystmd/issues/87) because no
+lecture repo had ever configured one. For running cells without leaving the
+page, see [Live compute](#live-compute-thebe--jupyterlite) below.
 
 The repo/branch/path conventions are configurable under `site.options` in
 `myst.yml` (MyST's theme-options section). All keys are optional and the

app/components/toolbar/LaunchButton.tsx

@@ -1,23 +1,17 @@
 import { useProjectManifest, useSiteManifest } from '@myst-theme/providers';
-import * as Popover from '@radix-ui/react-popover';
-import * as RadioGroup from '@radix-ui/react-radio-group';
 import { CirclePlay } from 'lucide-react';
 import type { SiteManifest } from 'myst-config';
-import React from 'react';
 import { usePage } from '../PageProvider';
 import type { TemplateOptions } from '~/types';
-import { buildColabUrl, buildJupyterHubUrl, type LaunchConfig } from './launchUrls';
+import { buildColabUrl, type LaunchConfig } from './launchUrls';
 import { Tooltip } from './Tooltip';
 
-function LaunchPanel() {
+export function LaunchButton({ size, showLabel }: { size: number; showLabel?: boolean }) {
   const project = useProjectManifest();
   const page = usePage();
   const launchOptions: TemplateOptions =
     (useSiteManifest() as SiteManifest & TemplateOptions)?.options ?? {};
-  const [service, setService] = React.useState<string | undefined>('colab');
-  const [privateServiceUrl, setPrivateServiceUrl] = React.useState<string>('');
 
-  const hasGitHub = !!project?.github;
   // Source org/repo from `project.github`, minus the `.myst` suffix if present.
   const orgRepo = project?.github
     ? new URL(project.github).pathname.slice(1).replace(/\.myst$/, '')
@@ -32,113 +26,33 @@ function LaunchPanel() {
     launch_source_path,
   } = launchOptions;
 
-  const handleSelect = React.useCallback((value: string) => setService(value), []);
-  const handleLaunch = React.useCallback(() => {
-    if (!orgRepo || !location) return;
-    const config: LaunchConfig = {
-      repoUrl: launch_repo_url,
-      repoSuffix: launch_repo_suffix,
-      branch: launch_branch,
-      notebooksPath: launch_notebooks_path,
-      sourcePath: launch_source_path,
-    };
-    let url: string | undefined;
-    if (service === 'colab') {
-      url = buildColabUrl(orgRepo, location, config);
-    } else if (privateServiceUrl) {
-      url = buildJupyterHubUrl(privateServiceUrl, orgRepo, location, config);
-    }
-    if (url) window.open(url, '_blank');
-  }, [
-    service,
-    privateServiceUrl,
-    orgRepo,
-    location,
-    launch_repo_url,
-    launch_repo_suffix,
-    launch_branch,
-    launch_notebooks_path,
-    launch_source_path,
-  ]);
+  // Without a source repo or a page path there is no notebook to open, so the
+  // control is not rendered at all rather than shown as an inert affordance.
+  if (!orgRepo || !location) return null;
 
-  return (
-    <div className="p-3 space-y-3">
-      <div className="text-lg">Notebook Launcher</div>
-      <p className="text-sm text-opacity-80">
-        Choose public or private cloud service for "Launch" button.
-      </p>
-      <p className="text-sm border-b-[1px] border-b-qetoolbar-border">Select a server</p>
-      <RadioGroup.Root
-        className="flex flex-col space-y-3 text-sm"
-        defaultValue="colab"
-        onValueChange={handleSelect}
-        disabled={!hasGitHub}
-      >
-        <RadioGroup.Item
-          value="colab"
-          id="launch-colab"
-          autoFocus
-          className={`p-2 border-2 gap-2
-            border-qetoolbar-border data-[state="checked"]:border-qeborder-blue data-[state="checked"]:bg-qeborder-blue/20 
-            flex justify-items-center items-center`}
-        >
-          Google Colab
-        </RadioGroup.Item>
-        <RadioGroup.Item
-          value="private"
-          id="launch-private"
-          className={`p-2 border-2
-            border-qetoolbar-border data-[state="checked"]:border-qeborder-blue data-[state="checked"]:bg-qeborder-blue/20 
-            flex justify-items-center items-center gap-2`}
-        >
-          <div>Private</div>
-          <input
-            type="text"
-            className="w-full p-1 border dark:bg-qetoolbar-dark rounded-xs border-qetoolbar-border text-qetext-light dark:text-qetext-dark"
-            placeholder="Service URL/Endpoint"
-            value={privateServiceUrl}
-            onChange={(e) => setPrivateServiceUrl(e.target.value)}
-          />
-        </RadioGroup.Item>
-      </RadioGroup.Root>
-      <button
-        disabled={!service || (service === 'private' && !privateServiceUrl)}
-        className="w-full p-1 font-light text-white bg-qeborder-blue/80 hover:bg-qeborder-blue/90 active:bg-qeborder-blue/100 dark:disabled:bg-qetoolbar-dark/90 disabled:bg-qetoolbar-border"
-        onClick={handleLaunch}
-      >
-        Launch Notebook
-      </button>
-    </div>
-  );
-}
+  const config: LaunchConfig = {
+    repoUrl: launch_repo_url,
+    repoSuffix: launch_repo_suffix,
+    branch: launch_branch,
+    notebooksPath: launch_notebooks_path,
+    sourcePath: launch_source_path,
+  };
 
-export function LaunchButton({ size, showLabel }: { size: number; showLabel?: boolean }) {
+  // The tooltip merges onto the anchor (`asChild`) rather than rendering its
+  // own trigger inside it -- see Tooltip.tsx and the GitHubButton for the
+  // same shape. The anchor is the one interactive element.
   return (
-    <Popover.Root>
-      <Tooltip label="Launch Notebook" asChild>
-        <Popover.Trigger aria-label="Launch notebook" className="flex items-center cursor-pointer">
-          <CirclePlay className="opacity-90 hover:scale-110" width={size} height={size} />
-          {showLabel && <span className="ml-2">Launch</span>}
-        </Popover.Trigger>
-      </Tooltip>
-      <Popover.Portal>
-        <Popover.Content
-          sideOffset={3}
-          className={`
-            z-10 w-[360px] rounded bg-white dark:bg-qepage-dark p-5
-            text-qetext-light dark:text-qetext-dark
-            will-change-[transform,opacity]
-            shadow-md
-            dark:shadow-sm
-            dark:shadow-white/20
-            ring-0
-            has(:focus-visible):ring-1
-            `}
-        >
-          <Popover.Arrow className="shadow-md stroke-2 fill-white dark:fill-qepage-dark" />
-          <LaunchPanel />
-        </Popover.Content>
-      </Popover.Portal>
-    </Popover.Root>
+    <Tooltip label="Launch notebook in Google Colab" asChild>
+      <a
+        href={buildColabUrl(orgRepo, location, config)}
+        target="_blank"
+        rel="noopener noreferrer"
+        aria-label="Launch notebook"
+        className="flex items-center cursor-pointer"
+      >
+        <CirclePlay className="opacity-90 hover:scale-110" width={size} height={size} />
+        {showLabel && <span className="ml-2">Launch</span>}
+      </a>
+    </Tooltip>
   );
 }

app/components/toolbar/launchUrls.ts

@@ -76,20 +76,3 @@ export function buildColabUrl(
   return `${COLAB_BASE_URL}${orgRepo}/blob/${branch}/${relPath}`;
 }
 
-/** Private JupyterHub (nbgitpuller `git-pull`) launch URL for the given page. */
-export function buildJupyterHubUrl(
-  hubBaseUrl: string,
-  sourceOrgRepo: string,
-  location: string,
-  config: LaunchConfig = {},
-): string {
-  const orgRepo = notebookOrgRepo(sourceOrgRepo, config);
-  const repoName = orgRepo.split('/')[1] ?? '';
-  const branch = config.branch ?? DEFAULT_BRANCH;
-  const relPath = notebookRelPath(location, config);
-  // Drop a trailing slash on the user-provided hub URL to avoid `//jupyter`.
-  // Query values are left unencoded to match the book-theme `launch.py` /
-  // nbgitpuller format that the production QuantEcon hubs already accept.
-  const base = hubBaseUrl.replace(/\/+$/, '');
-  return `${base}/jupyter/hub/user-redirect/git-pull?repo=https://github.com/${orgRepo}&branch=${branch}&urlpath=tree/${repoName}/${relPath}`;
-}

app/types.ts

@@ -15,7 +15,7 @@ export interface TemplateOptions {
   git_metadata?: GitMetadata;
 
   // Notebook launcher configuration (set under `site.options` in myst.yml).
-  // Generalises the previously hardcoded Colab/JupyterHub launch URLs so
+  // Generalises the previously hardcoded Colab launch URLs so
   // non-default branches, repo naming and nested lecture dirs work. All keys
   // are optional; the defaults reproduce the historical behaviour
   // (`<github>.notebooks`, branch `main`, and no source/notebooks path

package.json

@@ -36,8 +36,6 @@
     "@myst-theme/styles": "^1.3.0",
     "@radix-ui/react-dialog": "^1.1.15",
     "@radix-ui/react-dropdown-menu": "^2.1.6",
-    "@radix-ui/react-popover": "^1.1.6",
-    "@radix-ui/react-radio-group": "^1.2.3",
     "@radix-ui/react-select": "^2.1.6",
     "@radix-ui/react-tooltip": "^1.1.8",
     "@radix-ui/react-visually-hidden": "^1.2.4",