| name | ppt-master |
| description | AI-driven multi-format SVG content generation system. Converts source documents (PDF/DOCX/URL/Markdown) into high-quality SVG pages and exports to PPTX through multi-role collaboration. Use when user asks to "create PPT", "make presentation", "生成PPT", "做PPT", "制作演示文稿", or mentions "ppt-master".
|
PPT Master Skill
AI-driven multi-format SVG content generation system. Converts source documents into high-quality SVG pages through multi-role collaboration and exports to PPTX.
Core Pipeline: Source Document → Create Project → [Template] → Strategist → [Image_Generator] → Executor → Quality Check → Post-processing → Export
WriterAgent fork: Eight Confirmations use sidebar chat only (no Confirm UI browser). Step 6 has no live-preview server — review SVG via project files and export_presentation_project into Impress.
[!CAUTION]
🚨 Global Execution Discipline (MANDATORY)
This workflow is a strict serial pipeline. The following rules have the highest priority — violating any one of them constitutes execution failure:
- SERIAL EXECUTION — Steps MUST be executed in order; the output of each step is the input for the next. Non-BLOCKING adjacent steps may proceed continuously once prerequisites are met, without waiting for the user to say "continue"
- BLOCKING = HARD STOP — Steps marked ⛔ BLOCKING require a full stop; the AI MUST wait for an explicit user response before proceeding and MUST NOT make any decisions on behalf of the user
- NO CROSS-PHASE BUNDLING — Cross-phase bundling is FORBIDDEN. (Note: the Eight Confirmations in Step 4 are ⛔ BLOCKING — the AI MUST present recommendations and wait for explicit user confirmation before proceeding. Once the user confirms, all subsequent non-BLOCKING steps — design spec output, SVG generation, speaker notes, and post-processing — may proceed automatically without further user confirmation)
- GATE BEFORE ENTRY — Each Step has prerequisites (🚧 GATE) listed at the top; these MUST be verified before starting that Step
- NO SPECULATIVE EXECUTION — "Pre-preparing" content for subsequent Steps is FORBIDDEN (e.g., writing SVG code during the Strategist phase)
- NO SUB-AGENT SVG GENERATION — Executor Step 6 SVG generation is context-dependent and MUST be completed by the current main agent end-to-end. Delegating page SVG generation to sub-agents is FORBIDDEN
- SEQUENTIAL PAGE GENERATION ONLY — In Executor Step 6, after the global design context is confirmed, SVG pages MUST be generated sequentially page by page in one continuous pass. Grouped page batches (for example, 5 pages at a time) are FORBIDDEN
- SPEC_LOCK RE-READ PER PAGE — Before generating each SVG page, Executor MUST
read_file <project_path>/spec_lock.md. All colors / fonts / icons / images MUST come from this file — no values from memory or invented on the fly. Executor MUST also look up the current page's page_rhythm (anchor / dense / breathing), page_layouts (which template SVG to inherit, if any), and page_charts (which chart template to adapt, if any). Empty / absent entries are intentional Strategist signals — see executor-base.md §2.1. This rule exists to resist context-compression drift on long decks and to break the uniform "every page is a card grid" default
- SVG MUST BE HAND-WRITTEN, NOT SCRIPT-GENERATED — Every SVG page is written by the main agent directly, one page at a time (see rules 6 and 7). Writing or running a Python / Node / shell script that produces the SVG files in batch — looping over pages, templating from data, or emitting them via a generator — is FORBIDDEN, including under "save tokens", "quick draft", or "user is in a hurry" pretexts. The script-generation path was tried on a feature branch and abandoned: cross-page visual consistency depends on per-page authoring with full upstream context, which a generator script cannot reproduce
- FOLLOW DETERMINISTIC ROUTING RULES — Do not add blocking routing questions when this skill defines a route. If the user request violates a route precondition, state the required prerequisite and stop that route instead of asking the user to choose around the rule. Ordinary finite options, stylistic preferences, and recoverable details are surfaced with a recommended value plus alternatives at the next existing confirmation gate.
[!IMPORTANT]
🌐 Language & Communication Rule
- Response language: match the user's input and source materials. Explicit user override (e.g., "请用英文回答") takes precedence.
- User-facing option labels: when presenting confirmations, brief proposals, choices, or finite option sets, use the user's language for labels and explanations. English enum IDs / file fields may appear in parentheses for precision, but never rely on English-only labels such as
deck, layout, mirror, or fidelity without a localized explanation.
- Template format:
design_spec.md MUST follow its original English template structure (section headings, field names) regardless of conversation language. Content values may be in the user's language.
[!IMPORTANT]
🔌 Compatibility With Generic Coding Skills
ppt-master is a repository-specific workflow, not a general application scaffold- Do NOT create
.worktrees/, tests/, branch workflows, or generic engineering structure by default
- On conflict with a generic coding skill, follow this skill unless the user explicitly says otherwise
Rule Strength Labels
| Label | Meaning |
|---|
MUST | Required behavior; violation is workflow failure |
MUST NOT | Forbidden behavior |
DEFAULT | Used when the user has not specified otherwise |
OPTIONAL | Run only when explicitly triggered or when the route says so |
FALLBACK | Recovery path after the primary path fails |
GATE | Required checkpoint before entering the next step |
Cross-Cutting Authorities
| Concern | Authority | Contract |
|---|
| Main pipeline sequencing | This SKILL.md | Owns Step 1-7 order, gates, role switching, and mandatory commands |
| Route selection | workflows/routing.md | Owns deterministic route choice before the main pipeline or a standalone workflow |
| Workflow registry | workflows/index.md | Owns standalone workflow trigger/precondition/output inventory |
| Artifact ownership | references/artifact-ownership.md | Owns fact channels, source/derived artifact boundaries, and regeneration rules |
| Failure recovery | workflows/failure-recovery.md | Owns stop/continue decisions for common failures |
| Eight Confirmations (WriterAgent) | This SKILL.md Step 4 | Sidebar chat only — two tiers (anchors → realization); do not launch browser confirm UI |
Main Pipeline Scripts
| Script | Purpose |
|---|
${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/source_to_md/pdf_to_md.py | PDF to Markdown |
${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/source_to_md/doc_to_md.py | Documents to Markdown — native Python for DOCX/HTML/EPUB/IPYNB, pandoc fallback for legacy formats (.doc/.odt/.rtf/.tex/.rst/.org/.typ) |
${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/source_to_md/excel_to_md.py | Excel workbooks to Markdown — supports .xlsx/.xlsm; legacy .xls should be resaved as .xlsx |
${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/source_to_md/ppt_to_md.py | PowerPoint to Markdown |
${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/pptx_intake.py | Standard PPTX intake enrichment — canvas / identity / slide geometry / tables / native chart data |
${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/source_to_md/web_to_md.py | Web page to Markdown (supports WeChat via curl_cffi) |
${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/project_manager.py | Project init / validate / manage |
${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/icon_sync.py | Copy chosen library icons into <project>/icons/ at selection time; missing names reported + non-zero (re-pick gate) |
${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/analyze_images.py | Image analysis |
${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/latex_render.py | LaTeX formula rendering (manifest-driven PNG assets) |
${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/image_gen.py | AI image generation (multi-provider) |
${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/slice_images.py | Slice one AI illustration sheet into individual spot-illustration elements |
${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/svg_quality_checker.py | SVG quality check |
${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/total_md_split.py | Speaker notes splitting |
${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/finalize_svg.py | SVG post-processing (unified entry) |
${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/svg_to_pptx.py | Export to PPTX |
${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/native_enhance_pptx.py | Existing PPTX enhancement project init / validation / direct OOXML patch export |
${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/native_narration_pptx.py | Backward-compatible entrypoint for existing PPTX notes / narration enhancement |
${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/update_spec.py | Propagate a spec_lock.md color / font_family change across all generated SVGs |
For complete tool documentation, see ${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/README.md.
Windows note: if a python3 ... command fails (common on python.org installs, which provide python.exe but not python3.exe), rerun the same command with python instead.
Template Index
| Index | Path | Purpose |
|---|
| Layout templates | ${SKILL_DIR}/templates/layouts/layouts_index.json | Query available page layout templates |
| Brand presets | ${SKILL_DIR}/templates/brands/brands_index.json | Query available brand identity presets (color / typography / logo / voice) |
| Visualization templates | ${SKILL_DIR}/templates/charts/charts_index.json | Query available visualization SVG templates (charts, infographics, diagrams, frameworks) |
| Icon library | ${SKILL_DIR}/templates/icons/ | See ${SKILL_DIR}/templates/icons/README.md; search icons on demand with ls templates/icons/<library>/ | grep <keyword> |
Standalone Workflows
Route authority: Use workflows/routing.md before entering the main pipeline or any standalone workflow.
Registry: Use workflows/index.md for the complete workflow list, triggers, preconditions, exclusions, outputs, and blocking points.
PPTX Route Boundary
| User intent | Route |
|---|
| Raw PPTX template plus new material/topic, generate a PPTX | template-fill-pptx |
| Existing PPTX, preserve page count/order and slide wording 1:1, improve layout | beautify-pptx |
| Existing PPTX as source material, rethink outline or change page count/order | Main pipeline via ppt_to_md.py plus PPTX intake |
| Build a reusable template package from a PPTX/design reference | create-template, then return with the generated template directory path |
| Finished PPTX, keep content/layout stable and add notes/audio/timing/transitions | native-enhance-pptx |
MUST: Raw .pptx template plus "generate PPTX" routes to template-fill-pptx by default. The SVG generation route consumes only an explicit template directory path that already contains a valid template design_spec.md.
MUST: Beautify is strictly 1:1. Any split, merge, drop, reorder, or page-count change routes to the main pipeline.
FALLBACK: Ambiguous requests such as "make this PPT more professional" require exactly one discriminator question: preserve original page count/order and slide wording, or treat the deck as source material and restructure it?
Workflow
Step 1: Source Content Processing
🚧 GATE: User has provided source material (PDF / DOCX / EPUB / URL / Markdown file / text description / conversation content — any form is acceptable).
No source content? When the user supplies only a topic name or requirements without any file or substantive description, run the topic-research workflow first, then return here with its products as input.
When the user provides non-Markdown content, convert immediately:
| User Provides | Command |
|---|
| PDF file | python3 ${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/source_to_md/pdf_to_md.py <file> |
| DOCX / Word / Office document | python3 ${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/source_to_md/doc_to_md.py <file> |
| XLSX / XLSM / Excel workbook | python3 ${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/source_to_md/excel_to_md.py <file> |
| CSV / TSV | Read directly as plain-text table source |
| PPTX / PowerPoint deck | python3 ${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/source_to_md/ppt_to_md.py <file> for Markdown content; after Step 2 import-sources, standard PPTX intake is also written to <project>/analysis/ |
| EPUB / HTML / LaTeX / RST / other | python3 ${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/source_to_md/doc_to_md.py <file> |
| Web link | python3 ${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/source_to_md/web_to_md.py <URL> |
| WeChat / high-security site | python3 ${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/source_to_md/web_to_md.py <URL> (requires curl_cffi, included in requirements.txt) |
| Markdown | Read directly |
Office vector assets (EMF/WMF) from DOCX/PPTX sources:
doc_to_md.py / ppt_to_md.py extract embedded Office vector images (.emf/.wmf)
alongside bitmap images. After import-sources, these land in images/
together with image_manifest.json and are first-class assets in §VIII Image Resource List.
Do NOT convert EMF/WMF to PNG. The PPT Master pipeline preserves them as external
references (finalize_svg.py skips them) and svg_to_pptx.py embeds them as
PPTX-native media via image/x-emf / image/x-wmf MIME — PowerPoint renders them at full vector fidelity.
Converting via LibreOffice/Inkscape introduces CJK font substitution drift and
rasterization loss; the original EMF/WMF is always higher fidelity than the converted PNG.
Browser-based live preview cannot render EMF (will show blank) — this is expected;
the PPTX output is the source of truth.
✅ Checkpoint — Confirm source content is ready, proceed to Step 2.
Step 2: Project Initialization
🚧 GATE: Step 1 complete; source content is ready (Markdown file, user-provided text, or requirements described in conversation are all valid).
python3 ${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/project_manager.py init <project_name> --format <format>
Format options must be named with concrete dimensions. Default: ppt169 = 1280x720, viewBox="0 0 1280 720". Other examples: ppt43 = 1024x768, story = 1080x1920, banner = 1920x1080. For the full format list, see references/canvas-formats.md.
Import source content (choose based on the situation):
| Situation | Action |
|---|
| Has source files (PDF/MD/etc.) | python3 ${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/project_manager.py import-sources <project_path> <source_files...> --move |
| User provided text directly in conversation | No import needed — content is already in conversation context; subsequent steps can reference it directly |
For PPTX sources, import-sources automatically runs the standard intake enrichment:
python3 ${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/pptx_intake.py <project_path>/sources/<source.pptx> -o <project_path>/analysis
For each PPTX it writes <stem>.identity.json (canvas, theme palette/fonts, observed usage) and <stem>.slide_library.json (text slots, geometry, native tables, native chart caches), and merges that deck's Strategist-facing digest into the single multi-deck index analysis/source_profile.json (decks[], one self-contained entry per source deck, with prefixed artifact pointers). In the main generation path these are source facts and recommendation candidates, not replica constraints; beautify and template-fill workflows decide separately which fields become locked constraints.
Multi-deck: several PPTX files may be imported into one main-pipeline project — each gets its own <stem>.* artifacts and a deck entry in source_profile.json. source_profile.json stays the single must-read index (one entry for a one-deck project, several for a combined-source project). Stems must be distinct; re-importing the same stem replaces that deck's entry. The beautify / template-fill workflows remain single-deck (1:1 to one chosen source deck) and read that deck's <stem>.* artifacts.
⚠️ MUST use --move (not copy): all source files — Step 1's generated Markdown, original PDFs / MDs / images — go into sources/ via import-sources --move. After execution they no longer exist at the original location. Intermediate artifacts (e.g., _files/) are handled automatically.
✅ Checkpoint — Confirm project structure created successfully, sources/ contains all source files, converted materials are ready. Proceed to Step 3.
Step 3: Template Option
🚧 GATE: Step 2 complete; project directory structure is ready.
Default — free design. Proceed directly to Step 4. Do NOT query any *_index.json unless triggered. Do NOT ask the user. Do NOT proactively suggest, hint at, or fuzzy-match any template based on content, slug-like words, or vague style descriptions.
Hard boundary — raw PPTX template references are not Step 3 templates. PPTX-as-source remains valid in Step 1 / Step 2, and raw PPTX template + generated PPTX routes to template-fill. But if the user wants the SVG/template-based generation route from that PPTX, stop before Step 3. The user must first run workflows/create-template.md, then return with the generated template directory path. Step 3 only consumes an explicit template directory that already contains design_spec.md with kind: brand / kind: layout / kind: deck.
Do not reinterpret this boundary as 1:1 redesign or free SVG generation. Use template-fill for raw PPTX template + generated PPTX requests; use beautify only when the source deck's page count, order, and wording are preserved.
Template flow triggers ONLY on explicit directory paths supplied by the user in their initial message. The trigger rule is mechanical, not interpretive:
| User input contains | Step 3 action |
|---|
One or more explicit template directory paths (each resolves to a directory containing design_spec.md with kind: brand / kind: layout / kind: deck in its YAML frontmatter) | Read each spec's kind, dispatch per the kind matrix below, fuse if multiple |
| Anything else — bare template names ("用 academic_defense"), style descriptions ("麦肯锡风格"), brand mentions ("招商银行风格"), vague intent ("想用个模板"), or silence | Skip Step 3, free design |
There is no slug matching, no name lookup, no fuzzy resolution. A name without a path does not trigger — the user must give a path the AI can cd into.
Style descriptions ("麦肯锡风格" / "Keynote 风" / "极简风" / etc.) never trigger Step 3. They flow into Strategist's Eight Confirmations as a style brief (color / typography / tone in confirmations e–g).
Bare names ("academic_defense", "招商银行", "anthropic") do NOT trigger Step 3 even if a matching directory exists in the library. The user must give a path. AI must not "helpfully" resolve a name to a path.
"What templates exist?" is out-of-band Q&A — answer by listing entries from brands_index.json / layouts_index.json / decks_index.json together with their paths. Listing alone does not advance the pipeline; the user must send a path back to trigger Step 3.
To create a new layout or deck, read workflows/create-template.md. To create a new brand, read workflows/create-brand.md.
Three template kinds
The architecture has three independent reference bundles. Full schema in docs/zh/templates-architecture.md. Summary:
| Kind | Physical dir | Contains | Frontmatter |
|---|
| brand | templates/brands/<id>/ | identity-only segment: color / typography / logo / voice / icon style | kind: brand |
| layout | templates/layouts/<id>/ | structure-only segment: canvas / page structure / page types / SVG roster | kind: layout |
| deck | templates/decks/<id>/ | full replica: identity + structure + middle (template overview) segments | kind: deck |
Segment ownership (governs fusion override priority):
| Segment | Sections | Owner kind on fusion |
|---|
| Identity | Color Scheme / Typography / Logo / Voice & Tone / Icon Style | brand |
| Structure | Canvas / Page Structure / Page Types / SVG Roster | layout |
| Middle | Template Overview (use cases / design intent) | deck (no other kind writes this) |
Single-path dispatch
User path's kind | Step 3 action |
|---|
kind: brand | design_spec.md + non-image assets → <project>/templates/; logo / illustration / icon bitmaps → <project>/images/. Strategist locks identity segment as truth; structure stays free. |
kind: layout | design_spec.md + SVG roster → <project>/templates/; any bitmap assets → <project>/images/. Strategist locks structure; identity decided in Eight Confirmations e–g. |
kind: deck | design_spec.md + template SVGs → <project>/templates/; logos / backgrounds / other bitmaps → <project>/images/. Strategist locks all segments; Eight Confirmations narrows to deck-content fields (audience / page count / outline / tone tweaks). |
TEMPLATE_DIR=<user-supplied path>
cp -r ${TEMPLATE_DIR}/* <project_path>/templates/
find <project_path>/templates -type f \( -iname '*.png' -o -iname '*.jpg' -o -iname '*.jpeg' -o -iname '*.gif' -o -iname '*.webp' -o -iname '*.bmp' \) -exec mv {} <project_path>/images/ \;
The same split applies to all three kinds — bitmaps always land in images/, the rest in templates/. The spec's kind field tells Strategist how to read the templates/ side; downstream code doesn't distinguish. (Template SVGs in templates/ are reference material only — the rendered pages live in svg_output/ and reference images via ../images/.)
Multi-path fusion
When the user gives two or more paths of different kinds, Step 3 fuses them into a single <project>/templates/design_spec.md. Default granularity is segment-level integer replacement — entire identity / structure / middle segments are taken from the highest-priority source for that segment, no implicit field-level mixing.
Override priority by segment:
| Combination | Identity from | Structure from | Middle from |
|---|
| brand only | brand | (free design) | (none) |
| layout only | (free design) | layout | (none) |
| deck only | deck | deck | deck |
| brand + layout | brand | layout | (none) |
| brand + deck | brand (overrides deck) | deck | deck |
| layout + deck | deck | layout (overrides deck) | deck |
| brand + layout + deck | brand | layout | deck |
Field-level micro-adjustment (e.g. "use anthropic brand but primary changed to #FF0000") is not part of Step 3 fusion — it flows into Strategist Eight Confirmations e–g as a normal user request.
Same-kind multiple paths — conflict resolution
When the user gives two paths of the same kind (e.g. brands/anthropic + brands/google), Step 3 surfaces a conflict prompt before fusing — like resolving a git merge conflict:
AI: 你给了两个 brand，检测到段级冲突：
- Color Scheme（Anthropic 橙红 vs Google 多色）
- Typography（Styrene/AnthropicSans vs GoogleSans/Roboto）
- Logo（Anthropic 标 vs Google 标）
- Voice & Tone（restrained vs friendly）
- Icon Style（stroke vs filled）
要 (a) 全部按 Anthropic / (b) 全部按 Google / (c) 逐段挑？
Rules:
- Default: no implicit ordering — every cross-source segment difference is reported as a conflict
- Only when the user picks
(c) does AI walk through each segment one by one
- Field-level conflicts are out of scope — segment-level only
- Three or more same-kind paths are not supported — ask the user to converge to at most two
Fused spec provenance
When fusion happens (any multi-path case), the resulting <project>/templates/design_spec.md carries a provenance block immediately under its H1:
> **Fused from:**
> - deck: `templates/decks/招商银行/` （base）
> - brand: `templates/brands/anthropic/` （identity override）
> - layout: `templates/layouts/academic_defense/` （structure override）
> - conflicts resolved: Color Scheme from anthropic（user picked a）
Single-path Step 3 does not add provenance (the source is self-evident from the copied files).
✅ Checkpoint — Default path proceeds to Step 4 without user interaction. If the user supplied one or more explicit template paths, those have been dispatched (or fused) into <project_path>/templates/ before advancing.
Step 4: Strategist Phase (MANDATORY — cannot be skipped)
🚧 GATE: Step 3 complete; default free-design path taken, or (if triggered) template files copied into the project.
First, read the role definition:
Read references/strategist.md
⚠️ Mandatory gate: before writing design_spec.md, Strategist MUST read_file templates/design_spec_reference.md and follow its full I–XI section structure. See strategist.md Section 1.
Artifact ownership: fact-channel and source/derived artifact boundaries are defined in references/artifact-ownership.md. This Step uses those ownership rules; it does not redefine them.
<project_path>/analysis/ is the project's intermediate-analysis folder: the canonical home for machine-extracted source/asset facts — the PPTX intake bundle (source_profile.json index + per-deck <stem>.identity.json / <stem>.slide_library.json) and image_analysis.csv. It holds facts, not design contracts — design_spec.md / spec_lock.md stay at the project root. The MUST-read contract covers only the compact structured data files (.json / .csv); other artifacts that may live under analysis/ (e.g. a beautify source_svg_import/ vector reference package) are NOT bulk-read — they are read selectively only when a specific workflow step calls for them. Before the Eight Confirmations, Strategist MUST read the auto-extracted fact files already in analysis/ — currently source_profile.json (PPTX intake), when present. This file is the multi-deck index: read it once for the decks[] digests (canvas / chart / table entries per source deck), then open a specific deck's <stem>.identity.json / <stem>.slide_library.json only if you need its full raw facts. Use these entries as factual source context (format default + content facts); when several decks are present, synthesize across all of them. The source's palette / typography / visual identity are a reference, not a constraint: the main pipeline may inherit them where they fit the content and the confirmed style, or design fresh where they don't — the Strategist's judgment, never an obligation to either keep or discard. (Template-fill preserves the native source design by editing cloned slides directly; beautify defaults to the source identity but still follows the confirmed values; the main pipeline treats source identity as reference only and defaults to fresh design.) (image_analysis.csv lands later, at the image-analysis step below, and is the authoritative regenerated image-fact view there — re-derived from the live images/ folder, not a durable store.)
Channel ownership — read each fact once from its owning channel. In the main pipeline the content contract is the Markdown (sources/<stem>.md): text, tables, and chart data values all come from there (ppt_to_md now transcribes native chart data into Markdown tables). The analysis/ chart / table entries are a structural digest for outline decisions (which slides carried charts, type, series names) — not a second copy of the values; do NOT also pull chart values from <stem>.slide_library.json in the main pipeline. The <stem>.slide_library.json full structured data is owned by the direct-PPTX workflows: template-fill uses it as the native fill contract; beautify uses it for native chart / table data while keeping slide text from the Markdown.
Eight Confirmations (full template: templates/design_spec_reference.md):
⛔ BLOCKING: present the Eight Confirmations and wait for explicit user confirmation or modification before outputting Design Specification & Content Outline. This is the single core confirmation gate — once the final confirmation lands, all subsequent steps proceed automatically. WriterAgent uses sidebar chat only (reply_to_user) in two tiers (anchors → re-derive → realization).
- Canvas format
- Page count range
- Target audience
- Style objective
- Color scheme
- Icon usage approach
- Typography plan, including formula rendering policy
- Image usage approach
Chat confirmation (Mandatory — WriterAgent / LibreOffice sidebar): present the Eight Confirmations in two chat rounds — Tier 1 confirms the anchors; after the user replies, re-derive the realization layer from their actual anchors and present Tier 2; wait for final confirmation before writing design_spec.md / spec_lock.md. Do NOT launch confirm_ui/server.py or any localhost browser server.
| Tier | Confirms | Driven by |
|---|
| 1 — anchors | canvas · audience + core message + content_divergence + delivery_purpose (PPT only — omitted on non-PPT canvases) (all §c key info) · mode + visual_style | the source + user intent |
| 2 — realization (re-derived from Tier 1) | page count · color · typography (font + size) · icons · formula policy · image usage + generated-image style · generation mode · refine-spec toggle | the confirmed Tier 1 |
Why two tiers. Every realization field is anchored by the same few choices (visual_style anchors color / icon / typography / image; delivery_purpose sets the body size, page density, and the page-count recommendation). Confirming anchors first, then re-deriving, means Tier 2's candidates fit the user's real anchors instead of your originals.
Steps:
- Present Tier 1 in chat via
reply_to_user: anchors with recommended values plus ≥3-style visual_style_spectrum where applicable (safe / shifted / bold — same hard rule as h.5). audience and content_divergence are free text. Stop and wait for the user's explicit reply.
- Re-derive Tier 2 from the confirmed anchors using the user's actual Tier 1 choices (not your originals): page count (content volume ×
delivery_purpose); color, typography, and generated-image style as generative ≥3-candidate fields; enumerable icons / formula_policy / generation_mode; image_usage as one or more source ids. Present Tier 2 via reply_to_user and wait for final confirmation.
- Take the user's final chat reply as authoritative before writing
design_spec.md / spec_lock.md. Optionally mirror confirmations to <project_path>/confirm_ui/result.json for audit — not required in WriterAgent.
Honoring the confirmation (user chat reply is authoritative — Mandatory): the confirmed values override your own recommendations when you write design_spec.md / spec_lock.md. A user who changed any field changed it on purpose. In particular, map image_usage to §VIII Acquire Via (its value names differ from §h options — translate). image_usage may be either a legacy single string or a multi-select array; for arrays, apply every selected source. image_notes, when present, is a user-authored image intent note that Strategist must honor while assigning per-page §VIII rows:
result.json.image_usage | §VIII Acquire Via | h.5 + Step 5 generation |
|---|
ai | ai rows | Run h.5 (lock rendering + palette); Step 5 generates |
web | web rows | None |
provided | user rows | None — never generate |
placeholder | placeholder rows | None |
none | no image rows (§h option A) | None |
| Legacy custom prose | Infer the intended rows from the prose | Run h.5 only if the prose includes AI |
When the confirmed image_usage does not include ai (and no legacy custom prose includes AI), do NOT run h.5, do NOT write ai rows, and do NOT generate images in Step 5 — regardless of what you recommended. none is exclusive: if confirmed, write no §VIII image rows. The same "confirmed value wins" rule applies to every field (color → §III, typography → §IV, etc.).
Small spot illustrations are a Strategist judgment, not a confirmation field. The user chooses image source through image_usage; whether the deck leans into decorative illustrations is anchored by the locked visual_style's illustration propensity (core / supportive / sparse), expressed only in the image_notes rationale — never a new confirmation control. An explicit user request to use or skip illustrations overrides that default either way; image_usage: none still wins (write no illustration rows); and source still comes from image_usage — a core style does not silently generate AI spots when the user did not pick AI. They are ordinary §VIII image rows (Type: Illustration / Illustration Sheet) using normal Acquire Via values. If the plan needs ≥3 same-family AI spot illustrations, use the ai Illustration Sheet + slice workflow by default; do not generate one AI image per spot. Full rule + precedence: references/strategist.md §h. Use them on suitable pages and omit them where they would weaken clarity.
Upstream override → re-derive untouched downstream (Mandatory). When anchors and realization are confirmed together in a single chat bundle, "confirmed value wins" governs each field's own value — never recompute a value the user set. When the user changed an anchor in Tier 1, re-derive downstream Tier 2 fields they did not themselves edit so they realize the new anchor; fields the user pinned stay as confirmed.
| Anchor the user changed | Re-derive (only the downstream fields the user left at your recommendation) |
|---|
visual_style (§d Layer 2 — anchors e–h) | color neutral tiers (§e), icon library / stroke (§f), typography character (§g), image rendering (§h.5) |
mode (§d Layer 1) | outline structure + register (§IX) |
delivery_purpose (§g) | body baseline + per-page density / rhythm (§6.1) |
audience / core message (§c) | tone across e–h, outline emphasis (§IX) |
color HEX (§e) | h.5 palette (re-filter for the new HEX) |
Reconcile without a new blocking wait — fold the coherent values into design_spec.md / spec_lock.md and state the adjustment in the §8 next-step handoff (e.g. "you switched to dark-tech; the light palette you had left no longer fit, so background / accent were re-derived — tell me if you wanted the original"). Canvas is the explicit exception: font sizes are deliberately not rescaled on a canvas change (see strategist §g).
Strategist still authors every recommendation; chat is the confirmation surface only.
Mandatory — split-mode note (not a ninth confirmation): after listing the eight confirmation details, you MUST append exactly one short line (rendered in the user's language, prefixed with 💡) about generation mode. Pick the variant by qualitative read of Phase A signals — recommended page count, source-material bulk, whether topic-research ran with substantial web-fetch accumulation:
| Signal read | Line content |
|---|
| Heavy (long page count / bulky sources / heavy web-fetch accumulation) | State estimated page count and large source size; recommend switching to split mode after Step 5 — stop this chat, open a fresh window and input 继续生成 projects/<project_name> to enter Phase B (SVG generation + export); no response or "continue" = default continuous mode. |
| Normal (default) | State scale is moderate, default continuous mode generates in one go; if mid-way window switch is desired, input 继续生成 projects/<project_name> after Step 5 to switch to split mode. |
This line is required output every run — the user must always see the mode choice exists. Whether to act on it is the user's call. Capture generation_mode: "split" only when the user explicitly chooses split mode in chat.
Mandatory — spec-refinement note (not a ninth confirmation): after the split-mode line, you MUST append one short opt-in line (rendered in the user's language, prefixed with 💡) telling the user they may refine the spec first — Strategist will produce the full design spec, then stop for review/revision of any part of it before any generation, via the refine-spec workflow. Default is OFF: no request → the spec is written in one go and the pipeline auto-proceeds as usual. Only when the user explicitly asks in chat (e.g. "refine the spec first") or confirms refine_spec: true does the refine-spec workflow take over after the Eight Confirmations.
Formula rendering policy lives inside item 7 (Typography plan):
| Policy | Behavior |
|---|
mixed (default) | Strategist renders complex formula-worthy expressions as PNG assets; simple inline expressions remain editable text / Unicode |
render-all | Strategist renders every formula-worthy expression as PNG assets |
text-only | No formula rendering; formulas remain editable text / Unicode |
After the Eight Confirmations are approved and before outputting design_spec.md / spec_lock.md, if the confirmed formula policy is mixed or render-all and the content contains formula-worthy expressions, Strategist MUST:
- Identify explicit LaTeX and any source expressions that should be faithfully structured as formulas.
- Write
<project_path>/images/formula_manifest.json with only the formulas selected for rendering.
- Run:
python3 ${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/latex_render.py <project_path>
- Include the rendered formula PNGs as
Acquire Via: formula, Status: Rendered, Type: Latex Formula rows in design_spec.md §VIII Image Resource List; also list them in spec_lock.md images with | no-crop.
The formula renderer uses a provider fallback chain by default: codecogs,quicklatex,mathpad,wikimedia. The first three are color-aware; Wikimedia is an availability fallback. Formula PNGs are transparent by default: manifest background is the temporary render matte and transparency-removal reference, not a retained final background unless transparent: false is set for that item. Do not scan spec_lock.md for $...$ or $$...$$. Dollar-delimited math in source material is only a signal for Strategist; the renderer consumes the explicit manifest.
If the user provided images or formula PNGs were rendered, run analysis before outputting the design spec. It writes analysis/image_analysis.csv — the authoritative regenerated image-fact view in the analysis/ folder, which MUST be read before authoring §VIII:
python3 ${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/analyze_images.py <project_path>/images
🔁 Image facts are regenerated on demand, never a durable store. images/ is a live working folder — pictures are extracted from the source at import, the user may drop or replace files at any time, and Step 5 writes web/AI images into it. The single source of truth is therefore the current contents of images/, and analysis/image_analysis.csv is a regenerated view of it, not a fact to keep in sync. Re-run analyze_images.py <project_path>/images immediately before any step that reads image facts so the view reflects the live folder: before the §h image-usage recommendation (see strategist.md §h), here before authoring §VIII, after Step 5 acquisition (so web/AI files join the view), and again any time the user says they added or replaced images. This is the staleness strategy — re-derive on use, no cache to invalidate.
⚠️ Image handling: NEVER directly read / open / view image files (.jpg, .png, etc.). All image info comes from analyze_images.py output (analysis/image_analysis.csv) or the Design Spec's Image Resource List.
Output:
<project_path>/design_spec.md — human-readable design narrative<project_path>/spec_lock.md — machine-readable execution contract (skeleton: templates/spec_lock_reference.md); Executor re-reads before every page
✅ Checkpoint — Phase deliverables complete, auto-proceed to next step:
## ✅ Strategist Phase Complete
- [x] Read the auto-extracted facts already in `analysis/` (e.g. `source_profile.json`) before the Eight Confirmations
- [x] Eight Confirmations completed (user confirmed via sidebar chat)
- [x] Split-mode note appended below the eight items (heavy or normal variant)
- [x] Spec-refinement opt-in line appended (default OFF; only the user's explicit request enters the refine-spec workflow)
- [x] Design Specification & Content Outline generated
- [x] Execution lock (spec_lock.md) generated
- [ ] **Next**: Auto-proceed to [Image_Generator / Executor] phase
Step 5: Image Acquisition Phase (Conditional)
🚧 GATE: Step 4 complete; Design Specification & Content Outline generated and user confirmed. Any formula rows already have Acquire Via: formula and Status: Rendered.
Trigger: At least one row in the resource list has Acquire Via: ai, web, and/or slice. If every row is user, formula, or placeholder, skip to Step 6.
Failure recovery: stop/continue behavior for AI/web/slice/image-readiness failures is defined in workflows/failure-recovery.md. This Step keeps the acquisition procedure.
Always load the common framework:
Read references/image-base.md
Then lazy-load the path-specific reference for each row that actually needs it:
| Acquire Via | Load reference (only if any such row exists) | Run |
|---|
ai | references/image-generator.md | write <project_path>/images/image_prompts.json, then follow image-generator.md §7 Path Selection (image_gen.py --manifest is Path A only) |
web | references/image-searcher.md | python3 ${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/image_search.py ... (≥2 web rows → --batch images/image_queries.json) |
slice | references/image-generator.md §4.3 | derived — after the parent ai sheet row is Generated, run python3 ${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/slice_images.py <project_path>/images/<sheet>.png --grid RxC --names ... --trim --alpha (see workflow step 2.5) |
user / formula / placeholder | (skip) | (skip) |
A deck with only ai rows never loads image-searcher.md; a deck with only web rows never loads image-generator.md. A mixed deck loads both, processes each row through its own path, and writes both image_prompts.json and image_sources.json.
⚠️ In-pipeline ai rows MUST use the manifest contract — even when only 1 ai row exists. Always write images/image_prompts.json first and render image_prompts.md with image_gen.py --render-md. Then execute the confirmed path from image-generator.md §7: image_gen.py --manifest is Path A only; host-native is Path B and MUST skip --manifest; manual writes the prompts and stops for external generation. The positional form (image_gen.py "prompt" ...) is reserved for out-of-pipeline one-off testing / single-image fixups — it skips manifest + sidecar, leaving no audit trail.
⚠️ web path — batch multiple rows: when ≥2 rows are Acquire Via: web, write all queries into images/image_queries.json and run image_search.py --batch once (concurrent acquisition, status written back), instead of one CLI call per row. A single web row may use the positional single-query form. See image-searcher.md §5.
💡 ai path — spot illustrations as one sheet: when the §VIII image resource plan needs ≥3 same-family spot illustrations as decorative accessories, generate one grid sheet (a single ai sheet row) instead of one row per element, then slice it (workflow step 2.5 below). Choose sheet geometry from intended placement: 1xN / Nx1 are useful for extreme portrait / landscape cells, and a designed MxN grid is valid when its cell ratio fits the planned elements. The sheet row is generated but not placed; each cut element row (Acquire Via: slice) is placed and must appear in spec_lock.md images. One generation = one coherent style across all pieces. Resource contract + the geometry rules: image-generator.md §4.3.
⚠️ Honor the confirmed image source before running any generation command: the ai generation path (Path A = image_gen.py API / Path B = host-native tool / Offline Manual) is not auto-only — a confirmed choice other than auto wins, whether it came from chat (canonical) or, when the page was used, result.json.image_ai_path. host-native forces Path B even when IMAGE_BACKEND is configured; api forces Path A; manual forces offline. Never run image_gen.py --manifest when the confirmed value is host-native or manual. Full selection rule: image-generator.md §7 Path Selection.
Workflow:
- Extract all resource rows from the design spec and group them by
Acquire Via; rows with Status: Pending or Status: Failed and Acquire Via ∈ {ai, web, slice} must all reach a terminal state before Executor starts
- Generate prompts (ai rows) and/or run search (web rows) per image-base.md §3 dispatch table
2.5. Slice any spot-illustration sheets (only if
slice rows exist). For each generated ai sheet row, run slice_images.py (grid + the element --names matching the slice rows, --trim --alpha) so every element file lands in images/; mark each slice row Generated. A sheet still in Needs-Manual cannot be sliced — leave its slice rows Needs-Manual and surface them at the Step 7 readiness gate. Contract: image-generator.md §4.3.
- Verify every row reaches a terminal status:
Generated (ai success / sliced element), Sourced (web success), or Needs-Manual. Failed is not a terminal status: it means the current run did not generate that item, but the item remains retryable. The agent must resolve every residual Failed item by rerunning the confirmed path or marking it Needs-Manual before Executor starts
- Re-derive image facts now that web / AI / sliced files are in the folder —
python3 ${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/analyze_images.py <project_path>/images — so analysis/image_analysis.csv reflects every acquired image including the sliced elements (real measured sizes) before the Executor lays them out. Image facts are regenerated on use, never a stale store (see Step 4's image-facts note).
✅ Checkpoint — Confirm acquisition attempted for every row:
## ✅ Image Acquisition Phase Complete
- [x] image_prompts.json created (when any ai rows processed)
- [x] image_prompts.md sidecar rendered (when any ai rows processed)
- [x] image_sources.json created (when any web rows processed)
- [x] Spot-illustration sheets sliced (when any `slice` rows exist); every element file present in `images/` and listed in `spec_lock.md images`
- [x] Each row: status is `Generated` / `Sourced` / `Needs-Manual` (no `Pending` or `Failed` remaining)
- [x] analyze_images.py re-run so image_analysis.csv covers the acquired web / AI / sliced images
Default — auto-proceed to Step 6. Only when the user's Step 4 chat response explicitly opted into split mode (generation_mode: "split"), output the Phase A hand-off below and stop this conversation:
## ✅ Phase A Complete
- [x] Spec: `design_spec.md`, `spec_lock.md`
- [x] Resources: `sources/`, `images/`, `templates/`
- [ ] **Next**: open a fresh chat window and input `继续生成 projects/<project_name>` to enter Phase B via the [`resume-execute`](workflows/resume-execute.md) workflow.
On acquisition failure, do NOT halt — follow the Failure Handling rule in image-base.md §5: retry once, then mark the row Needs-Manual, report to user, and continue to the checkpoint above.
Step 6: Executor Phase
🚧 GATE: Step 4 (and Step 5 if triggered) complete; all prerequisite deliverables are ready.
Artifact ownership: svg_output/ is the author source, svg_final/ is derived, and image facts come from the regenerated analysis/image_analysis.csv; see references/artifact-ownership.md.
Read the execution references for this deck's locked mode + visual_style (from spec_lock.md):
Read references/executor-base.md # REQUIRED: common guidelines
Read references/shared-standards.md # REQUIRED: SVG/PPT technical constraints
Read references/modes/<locked-mode>.md # narrative skeleton (spec_lock.md `mode`)
Read references/visual-styles/<locked-style>.md # aesthetic (spec_lock.md `visual_style`)
Read executor-base + shared-standards + the one locked mode file + the one locked visual-style file. For mode: custom or visual_style: custom, skip that preset file and follow mode_behavior / visual_style_behavior from spec_lock.md instead. Never glob modes/ or visual-styles/.
Design Parameter Confirmation (Mandatory): before the first SVG, output key design parameters from the spec (canvas dimensions, color scheme, font plan, body font size). See executor-base.md §2.
Review during generation (WriterAgent): there is no browser live preview. Use read_project_file to inspect svg_output/ as pages are written; when ready, call export_presentation_project to import into the active Impress/Draw document for visual review.
Pre-generation Batch Read (Mandatory): before the first SVG, batch-read every distinct layout SVG referenced in spec_lock.page_layouts and every distinct chart SVG referenced in spec_lock.page_charts (plus any §VII backup charts). One read per file, up front — do not re-read these during page generation. See executor-base.md §1.0.
Image facts: trust the analysis/image_analysis.csv regenerated at the end of Step 5. If images/ changed since (the user swapped or added files), re-run python3 ${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/analyze_images.py <project_path>/images before laying images out — facts are re-derived on use, never a stale store (Step 4 image-facts note).
Per-page spec_lock re-read (Mandatory): before each SVG page, read_file <project_path>/spec_lock.md and use only its colors / fonts / icons / images, plus the per-page page_rhythm / page_layouts / page_charts lookups (resolves to template SVGs already loaded in the batch read above). Resists context-compression drift on long decks. See executor-base.md §2.1.
⚠️ Main-agent only: SVG generation MUST stay in the current main agent — page design depends on full upstream context. Do NOT delegate to sub-agents.
⚠️ Generation rhythm: generate pages sequentially, one at a time, in the same continuous context. Do NOT batch (e.g., 5 per group).
Visual Construction Phase: generate SVG pages sequentially, one at a time, in one continuous pass → <project_path>/svg_output/
Quality Check Gate (Mandatory) — after all SVGs, BEFORE annotation handling and speaker notes:
python3 ${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/svg_quality_checker.py <project_path>
- Any
error (banned SVG features, viewBox mismatch, spec_lock drift, etc.) MUST be fixed before proceeding — return to Visual Construction, regenerate that page, re-run check.
warning entries (low-res image, non-PPT-safe font tail, etc.): fix when straightforward, otherwise acknowledge and release.- Run against
svg_output/ (not after finalize_svg.py — finalize rewrites SVG and masks violations).
Logic Construction Phase: generate speaker notes → <project_path>/notes/total.md
✅ Checkpoint — Confirm all SVGs and notes are fully generated and quality-checked. Proceed directly to Step 7 post-processing:
## ✅ Executor Phase Complete
- [x] All SVGs generated to svg_output/
- [x] svg_quality_checker.py passed (0 errors)
- [x] Speaker notes generated at notes/total.md
Chart pages? If this deck contains data charts (bar / line / pie / radar / etc.), run the standalone verify-charts workflow before Step 7 to calibrate coordinates. AI models routinely introduce 10–50 px errors when mapping data to pixel positions; verify-charts eliminates that class of error. Skip if no chart pages.
Visual self-check (opt-in)? If the user explicitly asked for a per-page visual re-pass on the SVGs ("跑一下视觉自检 / 视觉回看", "visual review", "check pages visually", etc.), run the standalone visual-review workflow before Step 7. Do NOT run it by default and do NOT recommend it based on inferred model capability or deck size — trigger is user request only.
Step 7: Post-processing & Export
🚧 GATE: Step 6 complete; all SVGs generated to svg_output/; speaker notes notes/total.md generated.
🚧 Image readiness GATE (when Step 5 left ai rows in Needs-Manual): every expected file must exist at project/images/<filename> before running 7.1.
Failure recovery: if a Step 7 command fails, fix the owning source artifact and resume from the failed sub-step per workflows/failure-recovery.md. Do not restart Phase A unless the owning source changed.
If files are missing: PAUSE, list the missing filenames, point the user to images/image_prompts.md (each ### Image N: block is paste-ready for ChatGPT / Gemini / Midjourney; auto-generated from image_prompts.json) and the required placement project/images/<filename>. Resume Step 7.1 only after all expected files are in place. finalize_svg.py and svg_to_pptx.py do not detect missing files at this layer — proceeding with gaps produces a deck with broken image references.
Spot-illustration sheets at this gate: slice element files are derived, not placed by the user. If a sheet was Needs-Manual (offline), the element files do not exist yet — list the sheet filename (images/<sheet>.png) plus its element target names, and instruct: place the sheet, then run the Step 5 slice_images.py command for it, then re-run analyze_images.py, before resuming 7.1. Never tell the user to hand-place the individual element files — they only come from slicing the sheet.
⚠️ Run the three sub-steps one at a time — each must complete successfully before the next.
❌ NEVER combine them into a single code block or shell invocation.
Canonical three-command pipeline (mirrors references/shared-standards.md §5):
Step 7.1 — Split speaker notes:
python3 ${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/total_md_split.py <project_path>
Step 7.2 — SVG post-processing (icon embedding / image crop & embed / raster image optimization / text flattening / rounded rect to path):
python3 ${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/finalize_svg.py <project_path>
Default raster handling for svg_final/: images are embedded at the rendered SVG size budget (--image-scale 2, --max-dimension 2560), opaque PNG photos may be written as JPEG, and transparent assets remain PNG. Use --no-compress or a higher --max-dimension only for diagnostic / high-fidelity SVG snapshots.
Step 7.3 — Export PPTX (embeds speaker notes by default):
python3 ${SKILL_DIR}/scripts/svg_to_pptx.py <project_path>
The native pptx consumes svg_output/ directly so the converter can preserve
high-fidelity primitives (icon <use> placeholders, image preserveAspectRatio
→ native picture crop metadata, rounded rect rx/ry → prstGeom roundRect).
Native raster images are optimized by default before writing ppt/media
(--image-sizing cap, --image-max-dimension 2560, --image-quality 85).
This optimization downscales only oversized full source images; it does not
crop pixels out of embedded PPTX media, and it does not reduce a small
placement image merely because it is currently displayed small. Display
cropping remains editable PPT picture-crop metadata. Add --no-image-optimize
only when the deck must retain original image bytes. Use
--image-sizing display --image-scale 2 only for aggressive size reduction.
The svg_output/
snapshot in backup/<timestamp>/ is always written so the project can be
re-exported from frozen SVG sources without re-running the LLM. The SVG-rendered
preview pptx is opt-in via --svg-snapshot when you need a self-contained file
to share. Pass -s output or -s final to force a single source if you need it.
Paragraph editability vs line fidelity — by default, mergeable dy-stacked
paragraph blocks collapse into one editable PowerPoint text frame with multiple
<a:p>, improving body-text editing and resize/reflow behavior. Add --no-merge
only when the user explicitly asks for strict line-layout fidelity or when a
layout-tight page must keep every dy-stacked line as its own text frame. The
merge detector is conservative; mixed-layout text falls back to per-line frames.
Optional animation flags (page transitions are on by default; per-element entrance is off by default — turn it on only when the user asks for it):
-t <effect> — page transition. Default fade. Options: fade / push / wipe / split / strips / cover / random / none.-a <effect> — per-element entrance animation. Default none — pages appear as a whole, no auto-firing element builds (the unsolicited cascade reads as the "AI deck" tell). Opt in with auto (map effect from group id: chart→wipe, card-/step-/pillar-→fly, title/takeaway→fade; image-like ids hero / figure- / image / img- / kpi cycle a richer pool — zoom / dissolve / circle / box / diamond / wheel — so multiple images vary across the deck), a specific effect like fade, or mixed for the legacy 16-effect cycle. Requires top-level <g id="..."> groups (already required by Executor).--animation-trigger {on-click,with-previous,after-previous} — Start mode (matches PowerPoint's animation-pane Start dropdown). Default after-previous (click-free cascade; pace via --animation-stagger). Use on-click for presenter-paced reveals, or with-previous for all-at-once.--animation-config <path> — optional object-level sidecar. Default: <project_path>/animations.json when present.--auto-advance <seconds> — kiosk-style auto-play.
Optional custom animations (only when the user asks to tune animation order/effects/timing for specific objects):
Run the standalone customize-animations workflow. Default export applies page transitions but no per-element entrance animation; create animations.json (or pass -a auto) only when the user asks for element animation or object-level customization.
Optional recorded narration (only when the user asks for narrated/video export):
Run the standalone generate-audio workflow. The AI picks a narration backend (edge by default, or a configured cloud provider such as ElevenLabs / MiniMax / Qwen / CosyVoice for high-quality or cloned voices), asks the user once (backend + voice + rate/settings + embed-or-not, all with recommended values), then executes notes_to_audio.py and (if chosen) re-exports the PPTX with --recorded-narration audio.
Do NOT call notes_to_audio.py directly without going through the workflow — --voice / --voice-id is required and the workflow produces the locale/provider-aware recommendation that makes the choice meaningful.
Full effect list, anchor logic, and limits: references/animations.md.
❌ NEVER substitute cp for finalize_svg.py — finalize performs multiple critical processing steps
❌ NEVER force -s output for the legacy/preview pptx (PowerPoint's internal SVG parser drops icons and rounded corners). The default auto-split already gives native the high-fidelity source it needs without touching legacy.
❌ NEVER use --only (it suppresses one of the two output files)
Post-export review (WriterAgent): after Step 7.3, call export_presentation_project to load the deck into Impress. If the user asks to revise SVG, edit files under svg_output/ and re-run Step 7.2–7.3 (finalize + export), then export again.
Role Switching Protocol
Before switching roles, MUST first read the corresponding reference file. Output marker:
## [Role Switch: <Role Name>]
📖 Reading role definition: references/<filename>.md
📋 Current task: <brief description>
Reference Resources
| Resource | Path |
|---|
| Shared technical constraints | references/shared-standards.md |
| Canvas format specification | references/canvas-formats.md |
| Image-text layout patterns (Primary structures + Modifier layers — combine freely) | references/image-layout-patterns.md |
| Image layout sizing (math for side-by-side container dimensions) | references/image-layout-spec.md |
| SVG image embedding | references/svg-image-embedding.md |
| Icon library | templates/icons/README.md |
Notes
- WriterAgent visual review:
export_presentation_project → active Impress/Draw document (preferred over browser preview).
- Optional static file browse:
python3 -m http.server -d <project_path>/svg_final 8000 (external browser only; not used by the sidebar agent).
- Troubleshooting: on generation issues (layout overflow, export errors, blank images, etc.), check
docs/faq.md for known solutions
