compile-deck

name	compile-deck
description	Use when compiling or verifying any Beamer/LaTeX deck (.tex) in this repo - after editing a deck, before committing one, or when a PDF looks wrong (blank Outline frame, stale page counts like 8/7, clipped or missing content). Runs the full compile -> verify -> clean -> review loop.
allowed-tools	["Bash","Read","Edit","Grep","Glob"]
user-invocable	true

Compile and verify a Beamer deck

A deck is not done when pdflatex exits 0. Beamer clips overflow silently, and a single pass leaves a stale TOC and page counters. Follow every step, in order.

The loop

1. Pre-compile grep - catches a recurring Write-tool typo (> instead of }):

   grep -nE "end\{(center|frame)>" FILE.tex
   

   Success = no output (grep will exit 1 in that case - that is the GOOD outcome, not a failed command). Any printed line is a typo to fix.

2. Compile twice, from inside the deck's own directory - decks load the shared preamble with \input{../preamble}, which pdflatex resolves relative to the CWD, so compiling from the repo root fails with "file not found":

   cd path/to/deck_dir
   pdflatex -interaction=nonstopmode -halt-on-error FILE.tex
   pdflatex -interaction=nonstopmode -halt-on-error FILE.tex
   

3. Check the log, not the exit code:

   grep -cE "^!" FILE.log
   

   The printed count must be 0. (grep itself exits nonzero when the count is 0 - that is the success case; judge by the printed number.)

   Package pgfkeys Error: The key '/tikz/NAME' requires a value means a TikZ style used a reserved name (step, grid, line, ...). Rename it with a purpose prefix (lrtstep, cibox).

4. Visual overflow check - required for new frames or edited TikZ: run the beamer-overflow-check skill. A clean log does NOT prove the layout fits.

5. Clean build junk (always before a commit):

   ./ma/Scripts/python.exe clean_latex.py PATH_TO_DIR_OR_TEX
   

6. Open for instructor review - PowerShell, one file at a time, ~0.5 s apart (rapid cmd /c start loops drop windows):

   Start-Process "msedge.exe" -ArgumentList '"C:\full\path\deck.pdf"'
   

Red flags - the deck is NOT done if you are thinking:

Thought	Reality
"pdflatex exited 0, so the deck is done"	With -halt-on-error that does mean no ! errors, but the log grep is cheap insurance (and catches runs where the flag was dropped). Compiled is still not the same as laid out correctly.
"Page count looks right"	Beamer clips silently. Render pages and look.
"Nothing structural changed, one pass is fine"	Counters and TOC go stale. Always two passes.
"I'll clean aux files later"	Later means they get committed. Clean now.