slide-maker

name slide-maker description Create slide presentations from topics, URLs, PDFs, git repos, or vault notes. Use this skill when the user asks to make slides, create a presentation, build a deck, or says "slides about X". Handles research, synthesis, outline, and creation. Default output is reveal.js HTML; pptx available on request. Also handles editing existing slide decks (HTML or pptx). Triggers on /slides, /slide-maker, or any request involving presentation creation. allowed-tools Bash, Read, Write, Edit, Agent, Grep, Glob, WebFetch, WebSearch argument-hint <topic, URLs, file paths, or vault notes> End-to-end slide creation: from raw sources or a topic to a polished presentation. Handles research, synthesis, outlining, and slide generation. Produces self-contained reveal.js HTML by default (easy to edit, preview in any browser). Can delegate to pptx skill when PowerPoint output is requested. <Use_When> User asks to create slides or a presentation about a topic User provides sources (URLs, PDFs, repos, vault notes) and wants slides User wants to edit an existing HTML or pptx slide deck User uses /slides or /slide-maker </Use_When> <Do_Not_Use_When> User wants a research note, not slides (use /research) User just wants to read/extract text from a pptx (use pptx skill directly) </Do_Not_Use_When> All intermediate files go in `temp/slides/` (gitignored). Structure: ``` temp/slides/ ├── research/ # Source research files (one per source) ├── images/ # Downloaded images (diagrams, charts, screenshots) ├── outline.md # Approved outline └── output.html # Draft before copying to notes/slides/ ``` Create workspace + output directories at the start of every session: mkdir -p temp/slides/research temp/slides/images notes/slides Final output always goes to notes/slides/<presentation-name>.html (or .pptx ). Images used by the presentation are copied to notes/slides/images/ . The temp/slides/ workspace is for intermediate files only. Stage 1: PARSE — Classify Inputs Parse $ARGUMENTS and any user context. Classify each input: Input type Detection Strategy URL starts with http(s):// WebFetch + download images Git repo github.com or git URL clone to temp, read key files PDF .pdf extension Read tool (for local) or download Vault note (Type) Name or [[wikilink]] Read via MCP or Read tool Existing slides (.html) .html extension Editing mode Existing slides (.pptx) .pptx extension Delegate to pptx skill Raw topic none of the above WebSearch + WebFetch Auto-detect research depth: Quick mode : 1-2 simple sources or a short topic → inline research, no subagents Thorough mode : 3+ sources, complex topic, or broad request → parallel research agents Present what was detected: Detected sources: 1. [URL] blog post — will fetch + extract 2. [URL] paper PDF — will download and read 3. "transformer architecture" — will web search Mode: thorough (3 sources → parallel research) Proceeding to research... Don't wait for confirmation unless something is ambiguous. Stage 2: DISCOVER — Understand the Goal Before researching, understand what the user actually needs. Ask up to 5 focused questions in a single message. Adapt questions to what's already known — skip anything the user already specified. Questions to consider (pick the ones that aren't already answered): Goal & context — What's this presentation for? (class lecture, team meeting, conference talk, pitch, self-study, sharing with a friend?) Audience — Who's watching? (technical experts, general audience, exec stakeholders, students?) What do they already know? Language — What language should the slides be in? (Don't assume English — the user may want slides in their native language or a mix) Angle & emphasis — What's the ONE thing the audience should walk away with? Any specific aspects to emphasize or skip? Vibe & format — Formal or casual? Dense/technical or visual/storytelling? Any color or style preferences? Dark or light theme? How to ask — be conversational, not interrogation-style: Before I start researching, a few quick questions so I build the right deck: 1. What's this for — conference talk, team meeting, class? 2. Who's the audience? What do they already know about [topic]? 3. What language should the slides be in? 4. Any specific angle — what should the audience walk away remembering? 5. Style preference — formal/minimal, bold/visual, dark/light theme? (Skip any that don't apply — I'll use sensible defaults) After the user responds , synthesize their answers into a creative brief that guides all downstream stages. Save it to temp/slides/brief.md : # Creative Brief **Topic** : [topic] **Goal** : [what this presentation accomplishes] **Audience** : [who, what they know, what they care about] **Language** : [language for slide content] **Key takeaway** : [the ONE thing the audience should remember] **Tone** : [formal / casual / technical / storytelling / provocative] **Style direction** : [dark/light, color mood, density level] **Emphasis** : [specific aspects to highlight] **Skip** : [anything the user explicitly wants to avoid] **Format** : [reveal.js HTML / pptx] **Duration** : [if mentioned — affects slide count] Palette selection : Based on the brief, choose a palette from the Design Principles table (or craft a custom one). The palette should feel designed for THIS topic and THIS audience — not generic. Include your palette choice and reasoning in the brief. Skip this stage when : Editing an existing deck (the design decisions are already made) The user explicitly says "just do it" or provides all context upfront Then proceed to research with the brief guiding what to look for. Stage 3: RESEARCH — Gather Information Thorough mode (3+ sources or complex topic) Read the agent definition: Read("${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/agents/source-researcher.md") Spawn one source-researcher agent per source, all in parallel in a single message . Each agent: Receives: one source, its output file path, images directory Writes structured research to temp/slides/research/source-NN-slug.md Downloads relevant images to temp/slides/images/ Returns a 3-5 sentence summary (keeps orchestrator context small) Uses sonnet model Agent( model="sonnet", prompt="You are Source Researcher. Follow these instructions: [INSERT FULL CONTENT OF agents/source-researcher.md] SOURCE: [url/path/topic] SOURCE_NUMBER: [NN] OUTPUT_FILE: temp/slides/research/source-NN-slug.md IMAGES_DIR: temp/slides/images/ Research this source and write findings to the output file. Return only a 3-5 sentence summary." ) If a source fails, continue with what succeeded — note the failure. For raw topics with no other sources, spawn one agent that does WebSearch (2-3 queries) + WebFetch (top 3 results). Quick mode (1-2 simple sources) Skip agents. Do inline research: WebFetch each URL (or Read each file) For raw topics: WebSearch + WebFetch top 2-3 results Download key images to temp/slides/images/ Write a single research file to temp/slides/research/source-01-topic.md Image handling During research (both modes), download diagrams, charts, and screenshots that could enhance slides. Skip decorative/stock images. Save to temp/slides/images/ with descriptive names. curl -sL "IMAGE_URL" -o temp/slides/images/descriptive-name.png Stage 4: OUTLINE — Synthesize + User Approval (MANDATORY) Read all research files from disk: Glob(pattern="temp/slides/research/*.md") # Then Read each file Read the creative brief from temp/slides/brief.md — use it to guide content selection, ordering, emphasis, language, and tone. Build a slide outline. Present it to the user: ## Slide Outline **Title** : [Presentation Title — in the brief's language] **Audience** : [from brief] **Language** : [from brief] **Tone** : [from brief] **Palette** : [from brief — name + hex values] **Key takeaway** : [the ONE thing from the brief] **Slides** : ~[N] slides --- 1. **Title Slide** — [title + subtitle] 2. **[Insight headline, not label]** — [2-3 key points] | Layout: [type] 3. **[Insight headline]** — [key points] | Image: [image-name.png] 4. ... N. **Closing / Key Takeaways** — [summary points] Headline rule : every slide headline should be an insight ("Attention is $O(n^2)$ — that's the bottleneck"), not a label ("Attention Mechanism"). ALWAYS wait for user approval before proceeding to Stage 4. The user may: Approve as-is → proceed Request changes → revise and re-present Add/remove slides → adjust Save the approved outline to temp/slides/outline.md . Stage 5: CREATE or EDIT Path A: New reveal.js HTML deck (default) Read the agent definition and template: Read("${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/agents/slide-writer.md") Read("${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/references/reveal-template.html") Launch the slide-writer agent: Agent( model="sonnet", prompt="You are Slide Writer. Follow these instructions: [INSERT FULL CONTENT OF agents/slide-writer.md] CREATIVE BRIEF: [content of temp/slides/brief.md] OUTLINE: [approved outline from temp/slides/outline.md] RESEARCH FILES (read each for detailed content): [list of temp/slides/research/*.md paths] IMAGE FILES AVAILABLE: [list of temp/slides/images/* paths] TEMPLATE: [reveal-template.html content] OUTPUT_FILE: temp/slides/output.html Build the presentation following the brief's language, tone, palette, and audience direction. Write the HTML to the output file." ) Path B: New pptx deck (when user explicitly requests PowerPoint) Option 1 — Convert from HTML (preferred, faster): First create the reveal.js HTML (Path A), then convert to pptx: npx -- yes -p pptxgenjs node " ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR} /scripts/html2pptx.js" notes/slides/name.html notes/slides/name.pptx This preserves palette, layouts, and content from the HTML. Review the output and fix any issues. Option 2 — Direct pptx creation (for complex cases): Delegate to the pptx skill at .agents/skills/pptx/ . Pass: Approved outline Research file paths Image paths Design choices from outline (palette, tone) Path C: Edit existing HTML slides Read the existing HTML file Apply requested changes using the Edit tool (HTML is plain text — trivial) For structural changes (add/remove slides): read, modify section, write back Path D: Edit existing pptx Delegate to pptx skill's unpack/edit/pack workflow. Stage 6: PREVIEW + ITERATE After the slide-writer agent finishes: Copy the HTML + images to their final location: # Generate a slug from the presentation title SLUG= "presentation-name" # kebab-case from title cp temp/slides/output.html "notes/slides/ ${SLUG} .html" # Copy any images referenced by the presentation cp -r temp/slides/images/ "notes/slides/images/" 2>/dev/null || true Tell the user: Presentation created: notes/slides/[name].html Open in your browser to preview (File → Open or drag into browser). Let me know if you'd like any changes — I can edit individual slides, adjust colors, reorder, add/remove content. Need PowerPoint? I can export to .pptx too. For iteration: HTML edits use the Edit tool directly on notes/slides/[name].html Fast — no rebuild needed, HTML is plain text Track which slides the user wants changed Apply targeted edits, not full regeneration <Design_Principles> Borrowed from the pptx skill — apply to ALL slide formats. Color Palettes Pick a palette that matches the topic. Don't default to generic blue. 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) Cherry Bold #990011 (cherry) #FCF6F5 (off-white) #2F3C7E (navy) Layout Rules Every slide needs a visual element — image, chart, diagram, large number, or shape Vary layouts — don't repeat the same structure across slides Dominance over equality — one color dominates (60-70%), others support Dark/light contrast — dark backgrounds for title + closing, light for content Layout options: two-column, icon+text rows, grids, half-bleed images, stat callouts, timelines Typography (for reveal.js) Use Google Fonts for variety (loaded via CDN in template) Title slides: 2.5-3em bold Slide headlines: 1.5-2em Body text: 0.9-1.1em Size contrast matters — headlines must visually dominate body text Avoid (Common Mistakes) Don't repeat the same layout across slides Don't center body text — left-align; center only titles Don't use low-contrast text Don't create text-only slides — add visual elements Don't default to blue — match the topic NEVER use accent lines under titles — hallmark of AI slides Don't cram too much on one slide — fewer points, more slides </Design_Principles> <Tool_Usage> WebSearch : Find sources for raw topics WebFetch : Fetch URL content, extract insights Read/Glob : Read local files, vault notes, research files