pptx

name	pptx
description	Use when the user brings a presentation (.pptx) into their BRICKS project — company decks, menus designed as slides, event programs — and wants it on screen. Extracts per-slide text, titles, speaker notes, and embedded images on the design machine with a bundled zero-dependency script; then builds or updates the app — a Slideshow brick playlist, re-authored native layouts, or media-box assets. Covers slide-to-signage conversion (aspect ratio and safe areas, per-slide duration, loop behavior) and re-import when the deck changes. Triggers on "turn this deck into signage", "import these slides", "use this presentation", or a .pptx path in the prompt. Do NOT use to author new .pptx files as the deliverable, and not for PDFs, Word docs, or spreadsheets (use the pdf / docx / xlsx skills).
license	MIT
metadata	{"version":"0.1.0","author":"BRICKS"}

Presentation Import

Turn a slide deck into a screen app: a media slideshow, re-authored native layouts, or extracted content for other bricks.

Announce at start: "I'm using the pptx skill to import this deck."

Step 1: Extract

Run the bundled script. Resolve the path against this skill directory (the directory containing this SKILL.md) and pass the absolute script path to bun as a single command — no pipes or chaining. Zero dependencies, fully offline.

bun /absolute/path/to/pptx/scripts/pptx_extract.ts deck.pptx --out output/import/deck.json --extract-media output/import/deck-media

The JSON contains, per slide: index, title, text blocks, speaker notes, and extracted media file paths. Legacy .ppt is unsupported — ask the user for a .pptx export.

Step 2: Choose the representation

Representation	Fidelity	Editable in app	When
Slide images → Slideshow brick	pixel-perfect	no (replace images to update)	designed decks where layout is the point
Re-authored native bricks (Text/RichText/Image per slide)	rebuilt	yes — becomes real app content	content-driven decks; when the user wants to keep editing in BRICKS
Hybrid	mixed	partly	image slides for designed pages + native for text-heavy ones

The script does not render slides to images (no local renderer can match PowerPoint). For the image path, ask the user to export slides as PNG/JPEG (PowerPoint: File → Export; Keynote: File → Export To → Images) at the target screen resolution.

Recommend based on what the user wants to do after import; ask only if ambiguous.

Step 3a: Build a Slideshow (image path)

1. Upload the exported slide images with media_upload_files (if the media tools are unavailable, ask the user to upload via the Controller UI).
2. Add a Slideshow brick and set its media path list in slide order; set the per-slide interval (default 8–10 s for signage), loop on, shuffle off.
3. Match the canvas: if the deck is 16:9 and the screen is portrait, don't letterbox the full canvas — pair the slideshow with a header/footer or re-export portrait slides instead.

Step 3b: Re-author natively (content path)

1. Use the extracted title / blocks / media per slide as the content source; embedded images from --extract-media go through media_upload_files.
2. Rebuild each slide as bricks (Text/RichText/Image), one canvas or one Slideshow child per slide. Respect the deck's visual hierarchy: title → large, blocks → body size; keep colors from the deck's look if the user has no brand palette in the app.
3. Speaker notes often contain timing or context — surface anything that looks like display instructions ("show 10s", "skip internally") to the user instead of silently dropping it.

Step 4: Verify

Preview in the simulator at the target aspect ratio. Check: slide order, text overflow on the smallest target screen, image sharpness (exported resolution ≥ screen resolution), and loop/interval behavior.

Re-import (the deck changed)

Re-run Step 1, diff the new JSON against the previous one (slide count, titles, block text), report changes, and update only the affected slides/media. Keep output/import/deck.json as the record of the last import.

When Not To Use

• The deliverable is a .pptx file (creating/editing presentations) — out of scope.
• The file is a PDF, Word document, or spreadsheet — use the pdf / docx / xlsx skills.
• The user wants a data-driven display that happens to look like slides — build it natively from the start (Items/Slideshow with app data), no import needed.