PPTX Skill

Quick Reference

Task

Guide

Read/analyze content

python -m markitdown presentation.pptx

Edit or create from template

Read editing.md

Create from scratch

Read pptxgenjs.md

Reading Content

# Text extraction

python -m markitdown presentation.pptx

Visual overview

python scripts/thumbnail.py presentation.pptx

Raw XML

python scripts/office/unpack.py presentation.pptx unpacked/

---

## Editing Workflow

**Read [editing.md](editing.md) for full details.**

1. Analyze template with `thumbnail.py`

2. Unpack → manipulate slides → edit content → clean → pack

---

## Creating from Scratch

**Read [pptxgenjs.md](pptxgenjs.md) for full details.**

Use when no template or reference presentation is available.

---

## Design Ideas

**Don't create boring slides.** Plain bullets on a white background won't impress anyone. Consider ideas from this list for each slide.

### Before Starting

- **Pick a bold, content-informed color palette**: The palette should feel designed for THIS topic. If swapping your colors into a completely different presentation would still "work," you haven't made specific enough choices.

- **Dominance over equality**: One color should dominate (60-70% visual weight), with 1-2 supporting tones and one sharp accent. Never give all colors equal weight.

- **Dark/light contrast**: Dark backgrounds for title + conclusion slides, light for content ("sandwich" structure). Or commit to dark throughout for a premium feel.

- **Commit to a visual motif**: Pick ONE distinctive element and repeat it — rounded image frames, icons in colored circles, thick single-side borders. Carry it across every slide.

### Color Palettes

Choose colors that match your topic — don't default to generic blue. Use these palettes as inspiration:

| Theme | Primary | Secondary | Accent |

|-------|---------|-----------|--------|

| **Midnight Executive** | `1E2761` (navy) | `CADCFC` (ice blue) | `FFFFFF` (white) |

| **Forest & Moss** | `2C5F2D` (forest) | `97BC62` (moss) | `F5F5F5` (cream) |

| **Coral Energy** | `F96167` (coral) | `F9E795` (gold) | `2F3C7E` (navy) |

| **Warm Terracotta** | `B85042` (terracotta) | `E7E8D1` (sand) | `A7BEAE` (sage) |

| **Ocean Gradient** | `065A82` (deep blue) | `1C7293` (teal) | `21295C` (midnight) |

| **Charcoal Minimal** | `36454F` (charcoal) | `F2F2F2` (off-white) | `212121` (black) |

| **Teal Trust** | `028090` (teal) | `00A896` (seafoam) | `02C39A` (mint) |

| **Berry & Cream** | `6D2E46` (berry) | `A26769` (dusty rose) | `ECE2D0` (cream) |

| **Sage Calm** | `84B59F` (sage) | `69A297` (eucalyptus) | `50808E` (slate) |

| **Cherry Bold** | `990011` (cherry) | `FCF6F5` (off-white) | `2F3C7E` (navy) |

### For Each Slide

**Every slide needs a visual element** — image, chart, icon, or shape. Text-only slides are forgettable.

**Layout options:**

- Two-column (text left, illustration on right)

- Icon + text rows (icon in colored circle, bold header, description below)

- 2x2 or 2x3 grid (image on one side, grid of content blocks on other)

- Half-bleed image (full left or right side) with content overlay

**Data display:**

- Large stat callouts (big numbers 60-72pt with small labels below)

- Comparison columns (before/after, pros/cons, side-by-side options)

- Timeline or process flow (numbered steps, arrows)

**Visual polish:**

- Icons in small colored circles next to section headers

- Italic accent text for key stats or taglines

### Typography

**Choose an interesting font pairing** — don't default to Arial. Pick a header font with personality and pair it with a clean body font.

| Header Font | Body Font |

|-------------|-----------|

| Georgia | Calibri |

| Arial Black | Arial |

| Calibri | Calibri Light |

| Cambria | Calibri |

| Trebuchet MS | Calibri |

| Impact | Arial |

| Palatino | Garamond |

| Consolas | Calibri |

| Element | Size |

|---------|------|

| Slide title | 36-44pt bold |

| Section header | 20-24pt bold |

| Body text | 14-16pt |

| Captions | 10-12pt muted |

### Spacing

- 0.5" minimum margins

- 0.3-0.5" between content blocks

- Leave breathing room—don't fill every inch

### Avoid (Common Mistakes)

- **Don't repeat the same layout** — vary columns, cards, and callouts across slides

- **Don't center body text** — left-align paragraphs and lists; center only titles

- **Don't skimp on size contrast** — titles need 36pt+ to stand out from 14-16pt body

- **Don't default to blue** — pick colors that reflect the specific topic

- **Don't mix spacing randomly** — choose 0.3" or 0.5" gaps and use consistently

- **Don't style one slide and leave the rest plain** — commit fully or keep it simple throughout

- **Don't create text-only slides** — add images, icons, charts, or visual elements; avoid plain title + bullets

- **Don't forget text box padding** — when aligning lines or shapes with text edges, set `margin: 0` on the text box or offset the shape to account for padding

- **Don't use low-contrast elements** — icons AND text need strong contrast against the background; avoid light text on light backgrounds or dark text on dark backgrounds

- **NEVER use accent lines under titles** — these are a hallmark of AI-generated slides; use whitespace or background color instead

---

## QA (Required)

**Assume there are problems. Your job is to find them.**

Your first render is almost never correct. Approach QA as a bug hunt, not a confirmation step. If you found zero issues on first inspection, you weren't looking hard enough.

### Content QA

python -m markitdown output.pptx

Check for missing content, typos, wrong order.

**When using templates, check for leftover placeholder text:**

python -m markitdown output.pptx | grep -iE "xxxx|lorem|ipsum|this.(page|slide).layout"

If grep returns results, fix them before declaring success.

### Visual QA

**⚠️ USE SUBAGENTS** — even for 2-3 slides. You've been staring at the code and will see what you expect, not what's there. Subagents have fresh eyes.

Convert slides to images (see [Converting to Images](#converting-to-images)), then use this prompt:

Visually inspect these slides. Assume there are issues — find them.

Look for:

• Overlapping elements (text through shapes, lines through words, stacked elements)

• Text overflow or cut off at edges/box boundaries

• Decorative lines positioned for single-line text but title wrapped to two lines

• Source citations or footers colliding with content above

• Elements too close (< 0.3" gaps) or cards/sections nearly touching

• Uneven gaps (large empty area in one place, cramped in another)

• Insufficient margin from slide edges (< 0.5")

• Columns or similar elements not aligned consistently

• Low-contrast text (e.g., light gray text on cream-colored background)

• Low-contrast icons (e.g., dark icons on dark backgrounds without a contrasting circle)

• Text boxes too narrow causing excessive wrapping

• Leftover placeholder content

For each slide, list issues or areas of concern, even if minor.

Read and analyze these images:

1. /path/to/slide-01.jpg (Expected: [brief description])

1. /path/to/slide-02.jpg (Expected: [brief description])

Report ALL issues found, including minor ones.

### Verification Loop

- Generate slides → Convert to images → Inspect

- **List issues found** (if none found, look again more critically)

- Fix issues

- **Re-verify affected slides** — one fix often creates another problem

- Repeat until a full pass reveals no new issues

**Do not declare success until you've completed at least one fix-and-verify cycle.**

## Converting to Images

Convert presentations to individual slide images for visual inspection:

python scripts/office/soffice.py --headless --convert-to pdf output.pptx

pdftoppm -jpeg -r 150 output.pdf slide

This creates `slide-01.jpg`, `slide-02.jpg`, etc.

To re-render specific slides after fixes:

pdftoppm -jpeg -r 150 -f N -l N output.pdf slide-fixed