Guided — Feature Guide¶

Last updated: 24 April 2026 (Mega redesign session)
Platform: aguidetocloud.com/guided
Status: Live — 126 certifications across 13 vendors
Quiz template: Locked as default for all certs
Pricing: Free study guides forever · $19 single cert · $59 vendor pass · $149 all-access (1 year)

This page documents every feature in the Guided practice quiz platform. Use it as a reference when onboarding users, creating marketing content, or answering "what's included?" questions.

🎯 At a Glance — 30+ Features¶

What you get	MeasureUp ($99)	Whizlabs ($20)	ExamTopics (free)	Guided ($19)
Free study guides	❌	❌	❌	✅ Forever
Detailed why-wrong explanations	✅	✅	❌	✅
Spaced repetition flashcards	❌	❌	❌	✅
Adaptive question selection	✅	❌	❌	✅
Confidence rating + analysis	❌	❌	❌	✅
High-risk miss detection	❌	❌	❌	✅
Exam readiness score	✅	❌	❌	✅
Cross-cert dashboard	❌	❌	❌	✅
Gamification (XP, streaks, badges)	❌	❌	❌	✅
Exam review before submit	✅	✅	❌	✅
Weighted scoring + pass/fail	✅	❌	❌	✅
Time limits with auto-submit	✅	✅	❌	✅
Visual share card	❌	❌	❌	✅
Sound feedback	❌	❌	❌	✅
Domain trend sparklines	❌	❌	❌	✅
Smart quiz presets	❌	❌	❌	✅
Official exam details on landing page	❌	❌	❌	✅
FAQPage JSON-LD (SEO rich snippets)	❌	❌	❌	✅
126 certs × 13 vendors	1 vendor	3 vendors	Many (dumps)	✅
No account required	❌	❌	❌ (ads)	✅

Three Study Modes¶

📝 Study Mode¶

Practice questions with instant feedback after each answer.

Select answer → Check Answer → see ✅/❌ immediately
Full explanation + "Why each wrong answer is wrong" + Exam Tip + Real World context
Hints available before answering
Skip freely, navigate with Prev/Next
Keyboard: A-D select, Enter submit, ← → navigate, F flag, S skip, C confidence

⏱️ Exam Mode¶

Real certification exam simulation — no feedback until you submit.

Select answer → Next → (answer saved silently, no ✅/❌)
Prev/Next always visible — free navigation between questions
Options stay clickable — change your answer anytime before submitting
No hints, no explanations until after submit
Weighted scoring: easy=1pt, medium=2pt, hard=3pt
80% passing score — clear PASS ✅ / FAIL ❌ on results
Time limit: No limit / 30 / 45 / 60 / 90 minutes — auto-submit at 0 with ⚠️ warning at 5min
Exam review screen before submit: grid showing answered ✅ / unanswered ❌ / flagged 🚩 — click any to go back
Must click "🏁 Submit Exam" — no accidental submission
Results say: "Switch to Study Mode for detailed explanations"
No penalty for guessing — answer everything

🃏 Flashcard Mode¶

Flip cards + spaced repetition for long-term memory.

Front: scenario + question, Back: correct answer + explanation
Rate yourself: 🔄 Again / 😤 Hard / 👍 Good / ⚡ Easy
SM-2 algorithm schedules reviews: Again→1d, Good→3-7d, Easy→14d+
"📅 N cards due for review" shown on setup screen
Due cards prioritised → unseen → reviewed
Circular SVG progress ring in header
Keyboard: Space flip, 1-4 rate, ← → navigate, Esc exit

Analytics & Insights¶

😎 Confidence Rating¶

After selecting an answer, rate: Sure / Unsure / Guessing (C key to cycle).

Results show: - Sure + Wrong = overconfidence zone (dangerous!) - Unsure + Right = hidden knowledge - Guessing + Right = lucky guesses - Coverage percentage

🚨 High-Risk Misses¶

Priority review combining: overconfident + changed-to-wrong + slow (>2 min). Clickable — goes to full review for each question.

🔄 Answer Change Tracking¶

Detects when you change your answer before submitting. "Changed 4 answers: 3 to correct, 1 to wrong — trust your instinct."

🎯 Exam Readiness Score¶

Weighted average of last 3 comparable full-length attempts. 🟢 ≥85% "Exam ready!" · 🟡 ≥70% "Getting close" · 🔴 <70% "Keep practicing"

📊 Historical Progress¶

Last 5 attempts with color-coded bars + improvement trend arrow. Domain trend sparklines — tiny SVG graphs showing per-domain improvement.

⏱️ Per-Question Timer¶

Tracks seconds per question. Slow questions (>120s) flagged as high-risk. Live elapsed counter in fullscreen header.

Smart Features¶

🎯 Adaptive Question Selection¶

Weighted random: wrong questions appear more, mastered ones less. Unseen = 3× weight, mastered = 0.5× weight. Happens automatically.

📋 Recommended Next Step¶

Top of results screen: "Focus on D2 (weakest at 45%)" with one-click practice button.

Smart Quiz Presets¶

🎯 Focus Weak Area — auto-detects weakest domain
🚫 Exclude Mastered — hides questions correct 3+ times
⚖️ Equal Per Domain — balanced sampling

📌 Bookmarked Questions¶

Save questions → practice only bookmarked ones. Persists across sessions.

Gamification¶

XP System¶

Action	XP
Answer a question	+10
Correct answer	+5
Perfect score	+50
Flashcard review	+5

9 Badges¶

🎓 First Steps · 💯 Century · 🔥 On Fire (3d) · ⚡ Week Warrior (7d) · 🏆 Monthly Master (30d) · 🌟 Perfect Score · 📚 Scholar (500 XP) · 🎯 Expert (2000 XP) · ⚙️ Grinder (500 Qs)

Daily Streak¶

Consecutive days studying. Visible on setup + dashboard + flashcard header.

Cross-Cert Dashboard¶

/guided/dashboard/ — single page showing progress across ALL certifications.

Gamification hero: streak, XP, questions answered, accuracy %
Due flashcards callout across all certs
Badge gallery (earned + locked)
Cert cards: readiness %, sparkline, best score, due count, last activity
Responsive: 3→2→1 column

UX Features¶

🖥️ Fullscreen Immersive Mode¶

Auto-enters on quiz/flashcard start. Sticky header with progress + timer + score. Esc to minimize, ↗ Focus button to re-enter.

👋 First-Run Welcome¶

One-time overlay explaining 3 modes. Dismissible with "Got it, let's go!"

⚠️ Tab Close Protection¶

beforeunload warning prevents accidental tab close during active quiz.

🔊 Sound Feedback¶

Web Audio API tones: ascending = correct, buzz = wrong, arpeggio = streak. 🔊/🔇 toggle in both fullscreen header and inline action bar. Persisted.

Canvas-generated branded PNG (600×340) with score, domain bars, branding. Copies to clipboard or downloads. Share on LinkedIn/Twitter.

📋 Copy Summary¶

Plain-text clipboard export: score, domains, mode, branding URL.

⌨️ Keyboard Shortcuts (styled `<kbd>` pills)¶

Quiz: A-D select · Enter submit · ← → navigate · F flag · S skip · C confidence · Esc fullscreen Flashcards: Space flip · 1-4 rate · ← → navigate · Esc exit

📑 Collapsible Results¶

Score + Domain always visible. Deep Analytics and Review Questions in expandable accordions.

Question ID¶

Monospace ID shown on every question (e.g. ab100-d1-015) for support reference.

Data Format Support¶

Question Type	Status
MCQ (4 options)	✅
True / False	✅
Multi-Select (5 options)	✅
Matching (dropdowns)	✅
Ordering (click-sequence)	✅
String-format options	✅ Auto-normalised
Object-format options	✅ Native

Data & Privacy¶

All data stored locally in your browser (localStorage). No accounts, no server, no tracking.

Key	What it stores
`guided-quiz-progress`	In-progress quiz state
`guided-history`	Attempt history per cert
`guided-bookmarks`	Bookmarked question IDs
`guided-sr`	Spaced repetition card data
`guided-perf`	Per-question performance
`guided-gamification`	XP, streak, badges
`guided-sound`	Sound preference
`guided-welcome-dismissed`	First-run overlay state

QA Guardrail¶

Every change to quiz code must pass the automated QA test (node test-guided-qa.cjs) before deploy. 14+ Playwright checks covering option rendering, selection, feedback, fullscreen, results flow, mobile, and zero JS errors. Tested on both string-format (AB-100) and object-format (AB-730) certs.

Coming Soon¶

Feature	Status
Community discussion per question	Planned
Cheat sheet / PDF summaries	Planned
PWA / offline mode	Planned
PDF results export	Planned
Component extraction (sub-components)	Tech debt

Built by A Guide to Cloud — making certification prep accessible to everyone. |-------------|:-:|:-:|:-:| | Detailed why-wrong explanations | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | | Confidence rating + analysis | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ | | High-risk miss detection | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ | | Spaced repetition flashcards | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ | | Adaptive question selection | ✅ | ❌ | ✅ | | Exam readiness score | ✅ | ❌ | ✅ | | Cross-cert progress dashboard | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ | | Gamification (XP, streaks, badges) | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ | | Answer change tracking | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ | | Domain trend sparklines | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ | | 126 certs × 13 vendors | 1 vendor | 3 vendors | ✅ |

📝 Study Mode¶

What it does: Practice questions one at a time with immediate feedback after each answer.

How to use:

Go to any cert's practice page (e.g., /guided/ab-100/practice/)
Set your filters (domain, difficulty, type, question count)
Click 📝 Study Mode
Answer each question → see explanation, why-wrong analysis, exam tips, and real-world context instantly

Value: This is how you learn. Every wrong answer becomes a teaching moment with detailed "why" for each option. MeasureUp and Whizlabs offer this — we match them.

Keyboard shortcuts:

Key	Action
`A`-`D`	Select answer option
`Enter`	Submit answer / Next question
`← →`	Navigate between questions
`F`	Flag for review
`S`	Skip to next
`C`	Cycle confidence rating
`Esc`	Toggle fullscreen

⏱️ Exam Mode¶

What it does: Simulates real exam conditions — timed, no hints, no explanations until the end.

How to use:

Click ⏱️ Exam Mode on the setup screen
Answer all questions under timed conditions
See full results + explanations only after completing all questions

Value: Builds exam-day confidence. The timer and pacing feedback tell you if you're fast enough for the real test. MeasureUp calls this "Certification Mode" — ours includes richer analytics.

🃏 Flashcard Mode¶

What it does: Flip cards to test recall. Front shows the question, back shows the correct answer + explanation. Built-in spaced repetition schedules reviews at optimal intervals.

How to use:

Click 🃏 Flashcards on the setup screen
Read the question → tap the card (or press Space) to reveal the answer
Rate yourself: 🔄 Again / 😤 Hard / 👍 Good / ⚡ Easy
The system schedules your next review based on your rating:
- Again → review tomorrow
- Hard → review in 1-2 days
- Good → review in 3-7 days
- Easy → review in 7-14+ days
Next time you visit, cards due for review appear first

Value: This is what Anki charges for and Brainscape builds their entire business around. We use the SM-2 algorithm — the same spaced repetition science used by medical students worldwide. No other cert platform offers this for free.

🧠 Spaced Repetition Engine¶

What it does: Behind the scenes, the SM-2 algorithm tracks each flashcard and schedules reviews at scientifically optimal intervals to move knowledge from short-term to long-term memory.

How it works:

Each card has an ease factor (how easy it is for you) and an interval (days until next review)
Rating "Again" resets the interval to 1 day
Rating "Good" or "Easy" increases the interval exponentially
Cards you find hard are shown more frequently; easy cards space out
The system shows "📅 N cards due for review" on the setup screen

Value: This is the #1 requested feature on cert study forums. People buy Anki decks specifically for this. We built it directly into the quiz engine — no separate app needed.

🎯 Adaptive Question Selection¶

What it does: Instead of random question selection, the system weights questions based on your past performance. Questions you've gotten wrong appear more frequently; mastered questions appear less.

How it works:

Every answer is tracked per question (attempts + correct count)
When starting a new quiz, unseen questions get 3× weight
Questions with low accuracy get higher weight
Mastered questions (high accuracy) get 0.5× weight
This happens automatically — no toggle needed

Value: Kaplan and IllumiTrain charge premium prices for adaptive learning. Ours works the same way but is transparent — you can see your per-question performance driving the selection.

😎 Confidence Rating¶

What it does: After selecting an answer (before checking), rate your confidence: 😎 Sure, 🤔 Unsure, or 🎲 Guessing.

How to use:

Select your answer
Three confidence pills appear below — click one (or press C to cycle)
Check your answer
On the results screen, see 🧠 Confidence Analysis:
- Sure + Wrong = overconfidence zone (dangerous — study these!)
- Unsure + Right = you know more than you think
- Guessing + Right = lucky guesses (don't rely on these)

Value: Kaplan's "confidence-based testing" is their premium selling point. We include it free and add richer analysis. The "Sure + Wrong" insight is the most actionable data point in exam prep.

🚨 High-Risk Misses¶

What it does: Identifies your most dangerous knowledge gaps by combining multiple signals: overconfidence, answer changes, and slow response times.

How it works:

Questions appear in the "High-Risk Misses" section if they match ANY of:

❌ You were sure but wrong (overconfident)
🔄 You changed your answer to wrong (second-guessed correctly)
🐢 You took over 2 minutes (slow = uncertain)

Value: No competitor has this. MeasureUp shows what you got wrong. We show what you got wrong AND why it's dangerous — so you know exactly where to focus.

📊 Historical Progress Tracking¶

What it does: Stores every quiz attempt and shows your improvement over time.

What you see on the setup screen:

📊 Your Progress card with last 5 attempts
Color-coded progress bars (🟢 ≥70%, 🟡 ≥50%, 🔴 <50%)
Labels: mode (study/exam), type (full/retest/bookmarks), date
📈/📉 Trend arrow between comparable attempts
Domain trend sparklines — tiny graphs showing per-domain improvement

Value: MeasureUp has basic score tracking. Our per-domain sparklines and trend analysis give you a clear picture of exactly where you're improving and where you're stuck.

🎯 Exam Readiness Score¶

What it does: Calculates "X% exam ready" from your recent comparable full-length attempts.

How it works:

Uses weighted average of last 3 full-length attempts (recent = more weight)
Only counts comparable attempts (same scope, sufficient length)
Shows on setup screen with colour-coded badge:
- 🟢 ≥85% — "You're exam ready! Consider booking your test."
- 🟡 ≥70% — "Getting close — focus on weak domains."
- 🔴 <70% — "Keep practicing — review your focus areas."

Value: This is the question every student asks: "Am I ready?" We answer it with data, not guesswork. Target: 85% across all domains before booking the real exam.

📌 Bookmarked Questions¶

What it does: Save questions for later review. Practice only your bookmarked questions.

How to use:

During a quiz, click 📌 Save on any question
On the setup screen, click 📌 Bookmarked Only to filter to saved questions
Bookmarks persist across sessions (stored locally)

Value: Build your own "difficult questions" collection. Unlike ExamTopics where you screenshot questions, our bookmarks are built in and filterable.

🔄 Answer Change Tracking¶

What it does: Detects when you change your answer before submitting and analyses whether changes helped or hurt.

What you see in results:

"You changed your answer on N questions"
"✓ M changed to correct" / "✗ K changed to wrong"
Insight: "Your first instinct was often right" or "Good review instinct"

Value: Helps students learn whether to trust their gut or take time to reconsider. This is exam strategy coaching, not just practice.

🏆 Gamification (XP, Streaks, Badges)¶

What it does: Motivates daily study habits with experience points, streaks, and achievement badges.

XP System:

Action	XP
Answer a question	+10
Answer correctly	+5 bonus
Perfect score	+50 bonus
Flashcard review	+5

Badges:

Badge	Requirement
🎓 First Steps	Answer 1 question
💯 Century	100 questions answered
🔥 On Fire	3-day streak
⚡ Week Warrior	7-day streak
🏆 Monthly Master	30-day streak
🌟 Perfect Score	Score 100% on a quiz
📚 Scholar	500 XP earned
🎯 Expert	2,000 XP earned
⚙️ Grinder	500 questions answered

Value: Duolingo proved that streaks and badges keep people coming back daily. We're the only cert platform with built-in gamification.

📊 Cross-Cert Dashboard¶

What it does: A single page showing your progress across ALL certifications at /guided/dashboard/.

What you see:

Gamification hero: streak, total XP, questions answered, overall accuracy
Due flashcards: total cards due across all certs
Badge gallery: earned + locked upcoming badges
Cert cards: one per certification with readiness %, attempt count, sparkline trend, best score, due flashcard count, last activity date

Value: Students studying for 2-3 certs (common: AZ-900 + SC-900 + AI-900) need a central view. CertStud charges for this. We include it.

🎯 Smart Quiz Presets¶

What it does: One-click quiz configuration based on your performance data.

Available presets:

Preset	What it does
🎯 Focus Weak Area	Auto-sets domain filter to your weakest performing domain
🚫 Exclude Mastered	Hides questions you've answered correctly 3+ times
⚖️ Equal Per Domain	Pulls equal questions from each domain instead of random

Presets only appear when your data supports them — no empty buttons.

Value: Replaces the manual "what should I study next?" decision with data-driven presets.

🖥️ Fullscreen Immersive Mode¶

What it does: When you start a quiz or flashcard session, the entire viewport is taken over — no header, no navigation, no distractions. Just you and the questions.

How to use:

Quizzes auto-enter fullscreen on start
Press Esc to minimize (page chrome returns)
Click ↗ Focus in the action bar to re-enter fullscreen
Sticky header shows: question counter, progress bar, score, Minimize, Exit

Value: MeasureUp and Kaplan have this. We match them — the experience feels like sitting the real exam.

📋 Copy Results Summary¶

What it does: One-click copy of your quiz results as plain text — share with study groups, paste into notes, or track externally.

What gets copied:

📊 Quiz Results — 16/20 (80%)
⏱ Time: 18:30
Mode: exam · full

By Domain:
  D1 — Core M365: 7/8 (88%)
  D2 — Data Protection: 5/6 (83%)
  D3 — Copilot & Agents: 4/6 (67%)

❌ 4 wrong

— aguidetocloud.com/guided

🔑 Keyboard Shortcuts¶

Every mode has keyboard shortcuts displayed as styled pill badges at the bottom of the screen.

Quiz Mode¶

Key	Action
`A`-`D`	Select answer
`Enter`	Submit / Next
`← →`	Navigate
`F`	Flag for review
`S`	Skip
`C`	Cycle confidence
`Esc`	Toggle fullscreen

Flashcard Mode¶

Key	Action
`Space`	Flip card
`1`-`4`	Rate (Again/Hard/Good/Easy)
`← →`	Previous / Next card
`Esc`	Exit to setup

🛡️ Data & Privacy¶

All data stored locally in your browser (localStorage)
No accounts, no server, no tracking
Data persists across sessions on the same device
Clear browser data = reset everything

Storage keys used:

Key	What it stores
`guided-quiz-progress`	In-progress quiz state (auto-resume)
`guided-history`	Attempt history per cert
`guided-bookmarks`	Bookmarked question IDs
`guided-sr`	Spaced repetition card data
`guided-perf`	Per-question performance
`guided-gamification`	XP, streak, badges

🚀 Coming Soon¶

Feature	Status
Community discussion per question	Planned
Cheat sheet / PDF summaries	Planned
PWA / offline mode	Planned
PDF results export	Planned

Built by A Guide to Cloud — making certification prep accessible to everyone.

Guided — Feature Guide¶

🎯 At a Glance — 30+ Features¶

Three Study Modes¶

📝 Study Mode¶

⏱️ Exam Mode¶

🃏 Flashcard Mode¶

Analytics & Insights¶

😎 Confidence Rating¶

🚨 High-Risk Misses¶

🔄 Answer Change Tracking¶

🎯 Exam Readiness Score¶

📊 Historical Progress¶

⏱️ Per-Question Timer¶

Smart Features¶

🎯 Adaptive Question Selection¶

📋 Recommended Next Step¶

Smart Quiz Presets¶

📌 Bookmarked Questions¶

Gamification¶

XP System¶

9 Badges¶

Daily Streak¶

Cross-Cert Dashboard¶

UX Features¶

🖥️ Fullscreen Immersive Mode¶

👋 First-Run Welcome¶

⚠️ Tab Close Protection¶

🔊 Sound Feedback¶

🖼️ Visual Share Card¶

📋 Copy Summary¶

⌨️ Keyboard Shortcuts (styled <kbd> pills)¶

📑 Collapsible Results¶

Question ID¶

Data Format Support¶

Data & Privacy¶

QA Guardrail¶

Coming Soon¶

📝 Study Mode¶

⏱️ Exam Mode¶

🃏 Flashcard Mode¶

🧠 Spaced Repetition Engine¶

🎯 Adaptive Question Selection¶

😎 Confidence Rating¶

🚨 High-Risk Misses¶

📊 Historical Progress Tracking¶

🎯 Exam Readiness Score¶

📌 Bookmarked Questions¶

🔄 Answer Change Tracking¶

🏆 Gamification (XP, Streaks, Badges)¶

📊 Cross-Cert Dashboard¶

🎯 Smart Quiz Presets¶

🖥️ Fullscreen Immersive Mode¶

📋 Copy Results Summary¶

🔑 Keyboard Shortcuts¶

Quiz Mode¶

Flashcard Mode¶

🛡️ Data & Privacy¶

🚀 Coming Soon¶

⌨️ Keyboard Shortcuts (styled `<kbd>` pills)¶