powerpoint-presentations

PowerPoint Presentations

Quick Reference

Design Ideas

Don't create boring slides. Plain bullets on a white background won't impress anyone.

Before Starting

• Pick a bold, content-informed color palette: The palette should feel designed for THIS topic.
• Dominance over equality: One color dominates (60-70% visual weight), with 1-2 supporting tones and one sharp accent. Never give all colors equal weight.
• Dark/light contrast: Dark backgrounds for title + conclusion slides, lighter tints for content slides. Or commit to dark throughout for a premium feel.
• Commit to a visual motif: Pick ONE distinctive element and repeat it — rounded image frames, icons in colored circles, thick single-side borders.

Color Palettes

Choose colors that match your topic — don't default to generic blue.

For Each Slide

Every slide needs a visual element — image, chart, icon, or shape. Text-only slides are forgettable.

Layout options:

• Two-column (text left, illustration right)
• Icon + text rows (icon in colored circle, bold header, description below)
• 2x2 or 2x3 grid (image one side, content blocks the other)
• Half-bleed image (full left or right) with content overlay

Data display:

• Large stat callouts (big numbers 60-72pt with small labels below)
• Comparison columns (before/after, pros/cons, side-by-side options)
• Timeline or process flow (numbered steps, arrows)

Visual polish:

• Icons in small colored circles next to section headers
• Italic accent text for key stats or taglines

Typography

Font pairings: Georgia + Calibri (classic), Arial Black + Arial (modern), Calibri Bold + Calibri Light (corporate). Left-align body text; center only titles and stats.

Spacing

• 0.5" minimum margins from edges
• 0.3-0.5" between content blocks
• 0.5"+ breathing room below titles

Avoid (Common Mistakes)

• Plain bullets on white background — always fill slides with a palette color
• Default PowerPoint blue (#4472C4) — signals "auto-generated"
• Don't repeat the same layout — vary columns, cards, and callouts across slides
• Don't center body text — left-align paragraphs; center only titles and stats
• Don't skimp on size contrast — titles need 36pt+ to stand out from 14-16pt body
• Don't mix spacing randomly — choose 0.3" or 0.5" gaps and use consistently
• Don't style one slide and leave the rest plain — commit fully or keep it simple throughout
• Don't create text-only slides — add shapes, icons, charts, or accent elements
• Don't forget text box padding — set margin: 0 when aligning text with shapes at same x-position
• Don't use low-contrast elements — text AND icons need strong contrast against background
• NEVER use accent lines under titles — use whitespace or background color instead
• Don't overcrowd slides — max 4 bullets; split to multiple slides or use 2x2/3-column grid

See design-guide.md for visual element code patterns (accent bars, icon circles, side stripes, cards).

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Workflow

A. Create from scratch (no template)

1. Call get_slide_design_reference for palette and layout ideas
2. Call create_presentation with slides parameter (PptxGenJS). Read pptxgenjs.md for the full API.

B. Create from a template (user uploaded a .pptx template)

Do NOT use create_presentation — that ignores the template entirely and recreates from scratch.

Instead, use the template file as the base:

1. get_presentation_layouts("template-name") — see available layout names
2. preview_presentation_slides — inspect visual style (colors, logo, footer, chrome elements)
3. delete_slides("template-name", [indices of all content slides], "working-name") — strip example content, keep masters/layouts
4. add_slide("working-name", layout_name, position, "working-name-v2") — add slides using the template's own layouts (inherits background, logo, footer automatically)
5. update_slide_content(...) — fill in text and images

This preserves the template's slide master, theme, logo, footer, and background — things create_presentation cannot replicate.

C. Edit existing presentation

Read editing-guide.md for detailed workflows. Then: analyze_presentation → identify element IDs → update_slide_content.

Verify

Call preview_presentation_slides after any modification. Assume there are problems — inspect carefully.

When continuing a deck across conversation turns: Do NOT re-preview existing slides just to check the design system. The palette, fonts, and layout decisions from the previous turn are already in the conversation history — use that. Only re-preview if you need to verify the visual state after a modification.

Rules

• Batch all edits in ONE update_slide_content call. Parallel calls cause data loss.
• output_name must differ from presentation_name.
• All slide indices are 0-based EXCEPT preview_presentation_slides which uses 1-based slide_numbers.
• Filenames: letters, numbers, hyphens only.

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QA (Required)

Assume there are problems. Your job is to find them.

Your first render is almost never perfect. Approach QA as a bug hunt, not a confirmation step.

Visual QA

Call preview_presentation_slides and visually inspect the screenshots. Look for:

• Overlapping elements (text through shapes, lines through words)
• Text overflow or cut off at edges
• Elements too close (< 0.3" gaps) or cards nearly touching
• Uneven gaps (large empty area in one place, cramped in another)
• Insufficient margin from slide edges (< 0.5")
• Columns or similar elements not aligned consistently
• Low-contrast text (light text on light background, dark text on dark background)
• Low-contrast icons without a contrasting background circle
• Text boxes too narrow causing excessive wrapping
• Inconsistent font sizes or styles across similar elements

Verification Loop

1. Generate → preview_presentation_slides → inspect screenshots
2. List issues found (if none found, look again more critically)
3. Fix with update_slide_content
4. Re-verify affected slides — one fix often creates another problem
5. Repeat until a full pass reveals no new issues

Do not declare success until you've completed at least one fix-and-verify cycle.

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Tool Reference

get_slide_design_reference

Get design guidelines, color palettes, typography rules, and layout patterns.

create_presentation

Create a new presentation with custom-designed slides (16:9 widescreen).

Example tool_input:

{
  "presentation_name": "my-deck",
  "slides": [
    {"custom_code": "let slide = pres.addSlide();\nslide.background = { color: '1E2761' };\nslide.addText('Welcome', { x: 0.6, y: 2.5, w: 10, h: 1.5, fontSize: 44, bold: true, color: 'FFFFFF', align: 'center' });"}
  ]
}

IMPORTANT: custom_code uses pres in scope. Create slides with pres.addSlide(). Colors are 6-digit hex WITHOUT '#'. Do NOT reuse option objects across multiple addText/addShape calls. See pptxgenjs.md for full API.

analyze_presentation

Analyze structure with element IDs and positions for editing.

update_slide_content

Update one or more slides with operations in a single call.

Supported actions per operation: set_text, replace_text, replace_image. See editing-guide.md for details.

add_slide

Add a new blank slide at a specific position.

After adding, populate content with update_slide_content.

delete_slides

move_slide

duplicate_slide

update_slide_notes

list_my_powerpoint_presentations

List all presentations in workspace. No parameters needed.

get_presentation_layouts

Get available slide layouts from a presentation.

preview_presentation_slides

Get slide screenshots for visual inspection.

UI Guidance (from tools-config)

Creating New Presentations:

• Use get_slide_design_reference() first to get design guidelines and color palettes
• create_presentation slides format: [{"custom_code": "let slide = pres.addSlide(); slide.addText(...)"}]
• Each custom_code snippet has pres in scope; create slides with pres.addSlide()
• Color format: 6-digit hex WITHOUT '#' (e.g. '1E2761', not '#1E2761')

Editing Existing Presentations:

• Operations: set_text, replace_text, replace_image
• Batch all edits in 1 call (parallel calls = data loss)
• Output name must differ from source
• preview_presentation_slides first to check layout

Design Philosophy (MANDATORY for new presentations):

• CRITICAL: Choose ONE palette for the ENTIRE presentation. All slides must use the same primary and accent colors. Do NOT mix palettes across slides.
• Bold dominant background colors (60-70% slide coverage). NEVER use plain white backgrounds.
• Available palettes: Midnight Executive (#1E2761/#408EC6), Teal Trust (#0A1A2A/#028090), Forest & Moss (#2C5F2D/#97BC62), Berry & Cream (#ECE2D0/#6D2E46), Coral Energy (#1A1A2E/#FF6F61), Ocean Gradient (#065A82/#1B9AAA), Charcoal Minimal (#1C1C1E/#E8E8E8), Cherry Bold (#150E11/#990011), Sage Calm (#2D3A2D/#8FB96A)
• Dark slides for emphasis, lighter tints of the SAME palette for data slides.
• Every slide must have visual elements (shapes, accent bars, icon circles) — no text-only slides.

Typography:

• Titles: 36-44pt bold (Georgia or Arial Black). Body: 14-16pt (Calibri). Stats: 48-120pt bold.
• Font pairings: Georgia+Calibri (classic), Arial Black+Arial (modern), Calibri Bold+Calibri Light (corporate)
• Left-align body text. Center only titles and stats.

Spacing:

• 0.5"+ margins from edges. 0.3-0.5" gaps between elements. 0.5"+ breathing room below titles.

Anti-Patterns (AVOID):

• Plain bullets on white background
• Default PowerPoint blue (#4472C4)
• Accent lines directly under titles
• Text-only slides without visual elements
• More than 4 bullet points per slide

QA: Always use preview_presentation_slides after creation to verify appearance.

Rules:

• Names: letters, numbers, hyphens only
• Indices: 0-based