osaurus-pptx

name	osaurus-pptx
description	Create PowerPoint (.pptx) presentations from scratch using the PPTX plugin. Use when the user asks to build, generate, or create a PowerPoint presentation, slide deck, or .pptx file.
metadata	{"author":"osaurus","version":"0.1.0"}

PPTX

Create PowerPoint (.pptx) presentations from scratch. This plugin is creation-only — treat every presentation as a fresh build.

Workflow

Always follow this sequence:

1. Plan first. Decide the slide count, layout for each slide, and content before calling any tools. Elements cannot be modified after creation, so get it right on the first pass.
2. create_presentation — returns a presentation_id, slide dimensions, and theme info.
3. add_slide — add one slide at a time. Each returns a slide_number. Populate the slide with elements immediately before adding the next slide.
4. Add elements — use add_text, add_image, add_shape, add_table, add_chart, or set_slide_background to populate the current slide.
5. save_presentation — write the final .pptx file. Nothing is written to disk until this step.

Never skip steps. Never add elements before creating a slide. Always save at the end.

Coordinate System

All positions and sizes are in inches, measured from the top-left corner of the slide.

Aspect ratio	Width	Height
16:9 (default)	13.33"	7.5"
4:3	10.0"	7.5"

The create_presentation response includes width_inches and height_inches — always use these for positioning calculations rather than hardcoded values.

Safe margins: Leave at least 0.5" on all edges. Usable area for 16:9 is x: 0.5"–12.83", y: 0.5"–7.0".

Layout Recipes

Reference coordinates for common 16:9 slide layouts. Adjust proportionally for other aspect ratios.

Title Slide

Title:    x=1.0  y=2.0  w=11.33 h=1.5  font_size=40 bold=true  alignment=center
Subtitle: x=1.0  y=4.0  w=11.33 h=1.0  font_size=24            alignment=center

Section Header

Heading:  x=1.0  y=2.5  w=11.33 h=1.5  font_size=36 bold=true  alignment=center

Title + Body

Title:    x=0.75 y=0.5  w=11.83 h=1.0  font_size=32 bold=true
Body:     x=0.75 y=1.75 w=11.83 h=5.0  font_size=18 bullets=true

Title + Two Columns

Title:    x=0.75 y=0.5  w=11.83 h=1.0  font_size=32 bold=true
Left:     x=0.75 y=1.75 w=5.67  h=5.0  font_size=16
Right:    x=6.67 y=1.75 w=5.67  h=5.0  font_size=16

Title + Image

Title:    x=0.75 y=0.5  w=11.83 h=1.0  font_size=32 bold=true
Image:    x=2.5  y=1.75 w=8.33  h=5.0

Title + Image Left + Text Right

Title:    x=0.75 y=0.5  w=11.83 h=1.0  font_size=32 bold=true
Image:    x=0.75 y=1.75 w=5.67  h=5.0
Text:     x=6.67 y=1.75 w=5.67  h=5.0  font_size=16

Title + Table or Chart

Title:    x=0.75 y=0.5  w=11.83 h=1.0  font_size=32 bold=true
Table:    x=0.75 y=1.75 w=11.83 h=5.0
Chart:    x=1.5  y=1.75 w=10.33 h=5.0

Full-Bleed Image (no title)

Image:    x=0.0  y=0.0  w=13.33 h=7.5

Themes

Choose a theme at creation time with the theme parameter. Let the theme handle styling — avoid hardcoding colors.

Theme	Style	Best for
modern (default)	Blue/orange, Calibri	General purpose
corporate	Navy/steel blue, Georgia headings	Business, formal
creative	Pink/purple, Avenir Next	Marketing, design
minimal	Grayscale, Helvetica Neue	Clean, text-heavy
dark	Purple/teal on dark bg, SF Pro	Technical, modern

Dark theme warning: Background color is 121212. Avoid dark text colors. Set slide backgrounds explicitly if needed.

Choosing a theme: Default to modern unless the user specifies a preference or the content suggests otherwise (e.g., quarterly business reviews suit corporate; pitch decks suit creative; developer talks suit dark).

Design Best Practices

Follow these guidelines to produce professional-looking slides:

• Keep slides focused. One idea per slide. Aim for 5–7 bullet points max per slide.
• Use short text. Bullet points should be phrases, not sentences. Keep titles under 8 words.
• Vary layouts. Alternate between text-heavy, visual, and data slides to maintain visual interest.
• Use font hierarchy. Titles: 32–40pt bold. Body: 16–18pt. Captions: 12–14pt.
• Use charts over tables when showing trends, comparisons, or proportions. Reserve tables for precise reference data.
• End with a closing slide. Use a section header layout with "Thank You", "Questions?", or a call to action.

Tool Reference

create_presentation

• size controls aspect ratio, not layout. Default is "16:9". Also accepts "4:3" or custom "WxH" (e.g., "10x7.5").
• theme selects a built-in theme. See the Themes section above.

add_slide

• layout is metadata only. It does not auto-generate content. Every slide starts blank. You must add all elements manually.

add_text

• Use \n for line breaks and multi-paragraph text.
• Set bullets=true for bullet-pointed lists.
• Hex colors must omit the # prefix: use "FF0000", not "#FF0000".
• For centered titles, set alignment: "center" and bold: true.

add_image

• Paths can be relative to the workspace or absolute.
• Supported formats: PNG, JPG, GIF, SVG, BMP, TIFF.
• Requires user permission (ask policy).

add_shape

• Available types: rect, round_rect, ellipse, triangle, diamond, pentagon, hexagon, octagon, star4, star5, star6, right_arrow, left_arrow, up_arrow, down_arrow, heart, cloud, lightning, line, parallelogram, trapezoid.
• Shapes can contain text via the text parameter — useful for labeled diagrams and flowcharts.

add_table

• rows is a 2D array of strings. The first row is the header by default (has_header: true).
• Column widths auto-distribute evenly. Use column_widths for custom sizing (array length must match column count).

add_chart

• Types: bar, column, line, pie, doughnut.
• Each series needs a name and values array. Optionally set a color per series.
• categories are the x-axis labels.

set_slide_background

• Sets a solid color background for a slide. Useful with the dark theme or for accent slides.

delete_slide

• Removes a slide by slide_number. Use this to correct mistakes — delete the slide, re-add it, and rebuild its elements.

get_presentation_info

• Returns slide count and metadata. Pass include_details: true to see all elements on all slides. Use this to verify the presentation before saving.

read_presentation

• Reads an existing .pptx file. Only preserves text elements and slide backgrounds. Images, shapes, tables, and charts are not parsed. Use primarily for inspecting text content.

save_presentation

• Always call this when done. Nothing is persisted until you save.
• The .pptx extension is added automatically if missing.
• Requires user permission (ask policy).

Limitations and Corrections

Elements cannot be modified after creation. There are no tools to update text, reposition elements, or change properties on existing elements. Plan each slide fully before adding elements.

Slides cannot be reordered. Slides are ordered by insertion. Plan the sequence in advance. If order matters and it's wrong, rebuild the presentation.

To fix a slide: Call delete_slide to remove it, add_slide to re-add at the same position, rebuild all its elements, then save_presentation.

To inspect what was built: Call get_presentation_info with include_details: true to review all slides and elements before saving.

Example

Build a 3-slide corporate presentation:

1. create_presentation(title="Q4 Report", theme="corporate")
   → presentation_id, width=13.33, height=7.5

2. add_slide(presentation_id, layout="title")
   → slide 1
3. add_text(presentation_id, slide_number=1, text="Q4 2025 Report",
     x=1.0, y=2.0, width=11.33, height=1.5,
     font_size=40, bold=true, alignment="center")
4. add_text(presentation_id, slide_number=1, text="Annual Review",
     x=1.0, y=4.0, width=11.33, height=1.0,
     font_size=24, alignment="center")

5. add_slide(presentation_id, layout="title_content")
   → slide 2
6. add_text(presentation_id, slide_number=2, text="Key Metrics",
     x=0.75, y=0.5, width=11.83, height=1.0,
     font_size=32, bold=true)
7. add_chart(presentation_id, slide_number=2, chart_type="column",
     categories=["Oct", "Nov", "Dec"],
     series=[{name: "Revenue", values: [120, 135, 150]}],
     title="Monthly Revenue",
     x=1.5, y=1.75, width=10.33, height=5.0)

8. add_slide(presentation_id, layout="blank")
   → slide 3
9. add_text(presentation_id, slide_number=3, text="Thank You",
     x=1.0, y=2.5, width=11.33, height=1.5,
     font_size=36, bold=true, alignment="center")

10. save_presentation(presentation_id, path="Q4_Report.pptx")