editable-pptx

name

editable-pptx

description

Build fully editable PowerPoint (.pptx) decks from code: native textboxes, shapes, tables, charts, and real PowerPoint equations (LaTeX→OMML), so the result stays editable in PowerPoint instead of being flat images. Use this whenever the user wants to make, generate, build, or rebuild a slide deck, presentation, or .pptx, including turning notes, a paper, a markdown outline, or an HTML deck into slides, adding editable equations to slides, or producing a deck programmatically, even if they don't say "pptx" explicitly. Prefer it over exporting images or hand-placing text boxes. Triggers on "make/build slides", "presentation", "slide deck", "pptx", "editable slides", "PowerPoint equations", "turn this into slides".

editable-pptx

Generate decks where every element is a native, editable PowerPoint object: text is a textbox, boxes/dividers are shapes, tables/charts are native, plus real PowerPoint equations (not pictures). Reproducible from a build script.

This is an original toolkit (MIT). It does not copy or derive from Anthropic's source-available pptx skill; it reimplements a build-then-QA workflow and adds native-equation injection independently, on open tools (pptxgenjs, pandoc, LibreOffice).

lib/deck.js            reusable pptxgenjs helpers: chrome, secLabel, h2, bullets,
                       card, codeBox (+Python syntax highlight), mathBox, callout, table
scripts/setup.sh       install toolchain locally (no sudo)
scripts/latex2omml.py  LaTeX → OMML fragment (pandoc)
scripts/add_equations.py  inject native equations into a built .pptx
scripts/render.py      pptx → pdf → png (+montage) visual QA via LibreOffice
scripts/check.py       structural QA: shape/text inventory + overlap / off-canvas finder
examples/              runnable example_deck.js + equations.json

When invoked

1. Set up once (if node_modules/ or .tools/ are missing): bash scripts/setup.sh.
2. Author the deck in JS using lib/deck.js (one slide builder per slide).
3. Build: node <deck>.js → .pptx.
4. Add native equations (optional): python scripts/add_equations.py in.pptx out.pptx equations.json.
5. QA: scripts/render.py (preview montage) and scripts/check.py (overlap/overflow).
6. Hand the .pptx to the user to confirm in real PowerPoint: the QA renderer is LibreOffice, which is not pixel-truth for fonts or equations.

Setup

bash scripts/setup.sh

Installs pptxgenjs (pnpm, from package.json), a uv venv at .tools/venv with python-pptx/pymupdf/pillow, checks pandoc, and uses system LibreOffice or extracts a LibreOffice AppImage into .tools/. Needs node, uv (or pip), and pandoc (only for equations) on PATH.

Build a deck

const { makeDeck } = require("./lib/deck");
const D = makeDeck({ title: "My Talk", author: "me", runningHead: "My Talk · 2026" });

const s = D.slide();
D.chrome(s, 1, 10, "source · citation");      // top bar + page no. + footer
D.secLabel(s, 1.3, "§ 1  ·  intro");
D.h2(s, 1.7, [{ text: "A title with an ", options: {} },
              { text: "accent", options: { color: D.C.acc, italic: true } }]);
D.card(s, 0.7, 2.8, 3.8, 1.9, "tag", "Card title", "body text");
D.codeBox(s, 4.7, 2.8, 4.0, 1.9, "def f(x):\n    return x  # comment");
D.mathBox(s, 8.9, 2.8, 3.7, 1.9, "E = m c²", "caption");
D.table(s, 0.7, 5.0, 6, [["a","b","c"],["1","2","3"]]);
D.save("deck.pptx");

Coordinates are inches on a 13.333 × 7.5 (16:9) canvas; colors are hex without # (D.C palette, D.F fonts). Override colors/fonts/size via makeDeck(opts). See lib/deck.js for every helper and examples/example_deck.js for a full deck.

Native equations

pptxgenjs can't emit PowerPoint equations, so:

1. Put each display formula as a unicode placeholder (e.g. via mathBox).
2. Build, then run add_equations.py with an equations.json list of { "slide": <1-based>, "latex": "...", "anchor": "<unique substring on that slide>" }. It converts LaTeX→OMML (pandoc) and replaces the placeholder paragraph with an a14:m/m:oMath block PowerPoint opens as an editable equation.

Inline math inside running text stays unicode (already editable); converting it to inline OMML means splitting runs and is rarely worth it.

Limitations

• LibreOffice QA ≠ PowerPoint. It substitutes missing fonts and renders OMML approximately; always confirm the final file in real PowerPoint.
• Fonts: decks default to IBM Plex; PowerPoint substitutes if absent. Pass your own fonts, or embed fonts on save when sharing.
• Absolute layout (inches): content changes can overflow; check.py catches it.
• LibreOffice AppImage comes from a third-party mirror by default; override LO_APPIMAGE_URL or install LibreOffice from your distro for trust.