Skills
skills/aws-samples/sample-strands-agent-with-agentcore/powerpoint-presentations

powerpoint-presentations

SKILL.md

PowerPoint Presentations

Quick Reference

Task How
Create from scratch get_slide_design_reference → create_presentation (PptxGenJS). Read pptxgenjs.md.
Create from template get_presentation_layouts → delete_slides (strip content) → add_slide → update_slide_content. Do NOT use create_presentation.
Edit existing analyze_presentation → update_slide_content. Read editing-guide.md.
Verify preview_presentation_slides after every change

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.

Theme Primary Secondary Accent
Midnight Executive 1E2761 (navy) CADCFC (ice blue) FFFFFF (white)
Teal Trust 028090 (teal) 00A896 (seafoam) 02C39A (mint)
Forest & Moss 2C5F2D (forest) 97BC62 (moss) F5F5F5 (cream)
Berry & Cream 6D2E46 (berry) A26769 (dusty rose) ECE2D0 (cream)
Coral Energy F96167 (coral) F9E795 (gold) 2F3C7E (navy)
Ocean Gradient 065A82 (ocean) 1C7293 (teal) 21295C (midnight)
Charcoal Minimal 36454F (charcoal) F2F2F2 (off-white) 212121 (black)
Cherry Bold 990011 (cherry) FCF6F5 (off-white) 2F3C7E (navy)
Sage Calm 84B59F (sage) 69A297 (eucalyptus) 50808E (slate)
Warm Terracotta B85042 (terracotta) E7E8D1 (sand) A7BEAE (sage)

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

Header Font Body Font
Georgia Calibri
Arial Black Arial
Calibri Bold Calibri Light
Cambria Calibri
Trebuchet MS Calibri
Element Size
Slide title 36-44pt bold
Section header 20-24pt bold
Body text 14-16pt
Captions 10-12pt muted

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).

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.

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.

Tool Reference

get_slide_design_reference

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

Parameter Type Required Description
topic str No (default "all") "colors", "typography", "layouts", "pitfalls", "all"

create_presentation

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

Parameter Type Required Description
presentation_name str Yes Filename without extension (letters, numbers, hyphens only)
slides list or null Yes List of {"custom_code": "..."} dicts, or null for blank

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.

Parameter Type Required Description
presentation_name str Yes Presentation to analyze
slide_index int No Analyze a specific slide only
include_notes bool No (default false) Include speaker notes

update_slide_content

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

Parameter Type Required Description
presentation_name str Yes Source file
slide_updates list Yes List of update operations
output_name str Yes Output filename (MUST differ from source)

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.

Parameter Type Required Description
presentation_name str Yes Source presentation
layout_name str Yes Layout name from get_presentation_layouts
position int Yes 0-based index (-1 to append at end)
output_name str Yes Output filename

After adding, populate content with update_slide_content.

delete_slides

Parameter Type Required
presentation_name str Yes
slide_indices list[int] Yes (0-based)
output_name str Yes

move_slide

Parameter Type Required
presentation_name str Yes
from_index int Yes (0-based)
to_index int Yes (0-based)
output_name str Yes

duplicate_slide

Parameter Type Required Description
presentation_name str Yes
source_index int Yes (0-based) Slide to duplicate
output_name str Yes
insert_position int No (default -1) Where to insert copy; -1 appends after source

update_slide_notes

Parameter Type Required
presentation_name str Yes
slide_index int Yes (0-based)
notes_text str Yes
output_name str Yes

list_my_powerpoint_presentations

List all presentations in workspace. No parameters needed.

get_presentation_layouts

Get available slide layouts from a presentation.

Parameter Type Required
presentation_name str Yes

preview_presentation_slides

Get slide screenshots for visual inspection.

Parameter Type Required Description
presentation_name str Yes Presentation to preview
slide_numbers list[int] Yes 1-based slide numbers (not 0-based)
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