keynote-creator

# Keynote Creator Skill This skill guides you on how to create and manipulate Keynote presentations on macOS using AppleScript. ## When to Use Create a Keynote presentation when the user asks to: - Create a presentation/slideshow/PPT - Generate slides from documents, reports, or data - Make a pitch deck, proposal, or summary presentation - Convert content into visual presentation format ## Workflow 1. **Open Keynote** (for visual demo): Use `macos_show(app: "keynote")` if visual mode is enabled 2. **Create presentation**: Use bash with AppleScript 3. **Add slides**: Use AppleScript to add and configure slides 4. **Set content**: Add titles, body text, and images 5. **Export**: Save as .key or export to PDF ## CRITICAL: Stability Best Practices **ALWAYS use a SINGLE AppleScript to create the entire presentation.** Do NOT run multiple separate scripts. Why this matters: - Each `osascript` invocation may restart Keynote's scripting bridge - Multiple rapid scripts cause Keynote to crash or become unresponsive - A single comprehensive script is much more stable **Bad approach** (causes crashes): ```bash # Script 1: Create document osascript -e 'tell application "Keynote" to make new document' # Script 2: Add slide 1 osascript -e 'tell application "Keynote" to tell front document to make new slide' # Script 3: Set title osascript -e 'tell application "Keynote" to tell front document to ...' # This will likely crash! ``` **Good approach** (stable): ```bash osascript << 'EOF' tell application "Keynote" activate delay 1 -- Wait for Keynote to fully launch -- Do ALL operations in ONE script set newDoc to make new document with properties {document theme:theme "White"} delay 0.5 -- Brief pause after creating document tell newDoc -- All slides and content in one block ... end tell end tell EOF ``` **Required delays:** - After `activate`: `delay 1` (let app fully launch) - After `make new document`: `delay 0.5` - After adding each slide: `delay 0.3` (optional but recommended for many slides) ## AppleScript Patterns ### Create New Presentation ```bash osascript << 'EOF' tell application "Keynote" activate set newDoc to make new document with properties {document theme:theme "White"} return name of newDoc end tell EOF ``` **Available themes**: "White", "Black", "Gradient", "Classic", "Modern Type", "Showcase", "Photo Essay", "Bold", "Industrial", "Blueprint" ### Add a Slide ```bash osascript << 'EOF' tell application "Keynote" tell front document -- Add slide with specific layout set newSlide to make new slide with properties {base slide:master slide "Title - Center"} end tell end tell EOF ``` **Common master slides (layouts)**: - `"Title - Center"` - Title and subtitle centered - `"Title - Top"` - Title at top with content area - `"Title & Subtitle"` - Classic title slide - `"Title & Bullets"` - Title with bullet points - `"Title, Bullets & Photo"` - Title, bullets, and image - `"Bullets"` - Full slide bullet points - `"Photo"` - Full slide image - `"Photo - Horizontal"` - Landscape photo layout - `"Quote"` - Quote layout - `"Blank"` - Empty slide ### Set Slide Title and Body ```bash osascript << 'EOF' tell application "Keynote" tell front document tell current slide -- Set title set object text of default title item to "Your Title Here" -- Set body text (for slides with body placeholder) set object text of default body item to "• Point 1 • Point 2 • Point 3" end tell end tell end tell EOF ``` ### Add Text Box with Custom Position ```bash osascript << 'EOF' tell application "Keynote" tell front document tell current slide set newText to make new text item with properties {object text:"Custom text here"} set position of newText to {100, 200} set width of newText to 400 set height of newText to 100 end tell end tell end tell EOF ``` ### Add Image to Slide ```bash osascript << 'EOF' tell application "Keynote" tell front document tell current slide set imgFile to POSIX file "/path/to/image.jpg" set newImage to make new image with properties {file:imgFile} set position of newImage to {300, 200} set width of newImage to 400 end tell end tell end tell EOF ``` ### Navigate to Specific Slide ```bash osascript << 'EOF' tell application "Keynote" tell front document set current slide to slide 3 end tell end tell EOF ``` ### Get Slide Count ```bash osascript -e 'tell application "Keynote" to count slides of front document' ``` ### Export to PDF ```bash osascript << 'EOF' tell application "Keynote" tell front document set exportPath to POSIX file "/Users/username/Desktop/presentation.pdf" export to exportPath as PDF end tell end tell EOF ``` ### Save Presentation ```bash osascript << 'EOF' tell application "Keynote" tell front document set savePath to POSIX file "/Users/username/Desktop/my_presentation.key" save in savePath end tell end tell EOF ``` ## Complete Example: Multi-Slide Presentation **This is the recommended pattern - ALL operations in ONE script with proper delays:** ```bash osascript << 'EOF' tell application "Keynote" activate delay 1 -- IMPORTANT: Wait for Keynote to fully launch -- Create new document set newDoc to make new document with properties {document theme:theme "White"} delay 0.5 -- Wait for document to initialize tell newDoc -- First slide is created automatically, set it as title slide tell slide 1 set base slide to master slide "Title - Center" set object text of default title item to "Q1 2026 Business Review" set object text of default body item to "Financial Services Division" end tell delay 0.3 -- Add Overview slide set slide2 to make new slide with properties {base slide:master slide "Title & Bullets"} delay 0.3 tell slide2 set object text of default title item to "Executive Summary" set object text of default body item to "• Revenue increased 15% YoY • New client acquisition: $15M AUM • Client satisfaction: 4.8/5.0 • All portfolios outperforming benchmarks" end tell -- Add Performance slide set slide3 to make new slide with properties {base slide:master slide "Title & Bullets"} delay 0.3 tell slide3 set object text of default title item to "Investment Performance" set object text of default body item to "• Growth Portfolio: +3.2% (Benchmark +2.8%) • Balanced Portfolio: +2.1% (Benchmark +1.9%) • Income Portfolio: +0.9% (Benchmark +0.7%) • Average Alpha: +0.3%" end tell -- Add Next Steps slide set slide4 to make new slide with properties {base slide:master slide "Title & Bullets"} delay 0.3 tell slide4 set object text of default title item to "Q2 Priorities" set object text of default body item to "• Complete endowment fund implementation • Expand alternative investment offerings • Launch client education seminar series • Target: $25M total new AUM" end tell delay 0.5 -- Wait before saving -- Save the presentation set savePath to POSIX file "~/Desktop/Q1_Review.key" save in savePath end tell return "Presentation created with 4 slides" end tell EOF ``` **Key points about this example:** 1. Single `osascript` command containing everything 2. `delay 1` after activate to let Keynote fully launch 3. `delay 0.5` after creating document 4. `delay 0.3` after each `make new slide` 5. `delay 0.5` before save operation ## Tips for Better Presentations 1. **Structure**: Always start with a title slide, then overview, details, and conclusion 2. **Bullet Points**: Keep to 4-6 points per slide for readability 3. **Titles**: Use clear, action-oriented titles 4. **Consistency**: Use the same master slide for similar content types 5. **Images**: Position images consistently across slides ## Error Handling When Keynote operations fail, common issues are: - **Crashes/Freezes**: Almost always caused by running multiple separate scripts. Solution: Combine into ONE script. - **App not running**: Use `macos_show(app: "keynote")` first, then wait 1-2 seconds before running the creation script. - **Invalid master slide name**: Check available layouts with document's master slides - **File path issues**: Always use POSIX file syntax and expand ~ to full path (e.g., `/Users/username/Desktop/`) - **"Keynote got an error"**: Add more `delay` statements, especially after `make new slide` **If the script times out or crashes:** 1. First, check if Keynote is still open - it may have created partial content 2. Try adding longer delays (e.g., `delay 1` instead of `delay 0.3`) 3. For very long presentations (10+ slides), consider splitting into two separate runs ## Recommended Workflow for Generating from Reports 1. **Read the source** (reports, documents) 2. **Plan slide structure** (identify key sections) 3. **Create presentation** with appropriate theme 4. **Add slides iteratively** - one at a time with content 5. **Save and Export** - save as .key AND export to PDF 6. **Close Keynote** - always close the app after finishing (see below) 7. **Send BOTH files** to user via messaging platform (.key for editing, PDF for viewing) ## Closing Keynote After Creation **IMPORTANT**: Always close Keynote after you finish creating and saving the presentation. If you have `macos_close` tool available (Visual Demo Mode), use: ``` macos_close(target: "keynote", delay_ms: 500) ``` Alternatively, use AppleScript: ```bash osascript -e 'tell application "Keynote" to quit' ``` This keeps the user's desktop clean and shows a complete workflow. ## File Handling - Save .key files to `~/Desktop/` or user's preferred location - Export PDF to the same location with same base name - Use descriptive filenames with dates (e.g., `Q1_2026_Review.key` and `Q1_2026_Review.pdf`) - **IMPORTANT**: Always send both .key and .pdf files to the user