Image to Editable PPT

Overview

This skill rebuilds visual slide inputs into object-level editable PowerPoint .pptx files.

Inputs can be a single image, multiple images, a PDF, or an image-based PPT/PPTX. The output is always .pptx. The goal is not to wrap a full-slide screenshot inside PowerPoint; the goal is to use the editppt runtime and page-level prompts to decompose, reconstruct, validate, and assemble editable slides.

References

Each rule in this skill has exactly one authoritative home; the other files point to it instead of restating it.

• prompts/page-worker.md: execution template for page workers — ownership boundary, execution order, required outputs, and return format. The parent agent uses it when generating page-worker prompts.
• scripts/build-page-worker-prompt.py: skill-local prompt builder. It reads prompts/page-worker.md, fills run/page paths, writes worker-prompt.md, and prints the dispatch command template.
• references/cli-helper.md: CLI install check (Pre-Run Check), command tree, and command syntax examples. Read it when deciding which editppt command to call.
• references/manifest-schema.md: the single home for JSON field contracts of deck/page/image artifacts — required manifest fields, positioned-object coordinates, validation.json, and page_result.json shapes. Read it when writing or validating any run/page file.
• references/page-decision-tree.md: the single source of truth for page object decisions — background handling, foreground asset separation, native shapes, formulas, text-hints usage, the final self-check, and the fix-versus-warning split. Read it before reconstructing any page.

Entry Contract

These parent-level rules are stated once here; page-level rules live in the references above and are not restated in this file.

• The editppt CLI is a required runtime surface. If editppt --help fails, install it first by following the Pre-Run Check in references/cli-helper.md before doing anything else.
• First run editppt prepare <input...> to create a run directory. After that, all key state transitions are advanced only through editppt commands; never hand-write run/page state JSON. This keeps run state deterministic and resumable.
• Multi-page inputs are rebuilt by dispatched page workers. A run with exactly one page is rebuilt by the parent agent in local page-reconstructor mode after editppt run dispatch --local claims that page. If no subagent capability is available for a multi-page run, stop and report this to the user; do not degrade into parent-agent reconstruction for multi-page input.
• The parent agent must not write any page reconstruction artifact — manifest.json, page.pptx, preview.png, split_assets_contact.png, validation.json, or page_result.json — except in single-page local page-reconstructor mode after editppt run dispatch --local has recorded the claim. Local mode follows the same page prompt, references, output files, and run record validation path as a page worker.
• All image generation, image editing, background repair, transparent bitmap assets, and asset sheets go through serial editppt image generate/edit calls.
• A user request to convert visual slides into editable PPT authorizes the required OCR and image-backend calls for that conversion, unless the user explicitly requests local-only processing or marks the input as confidential/no-external-processing. Do not refuse solely because the workflow calls PaddleOCR, Codex OAuth/ChatGPT image endpoints, or a user-configured OpenAI-compatible API; those calls are necessary to the skill.
• Only send task-local page images, prompts, masks, and reference images required for the current conversion. Never send unrelated local files, API keys, auth tokens, credentials, or generated artifacts that are not needed by the current OCR/image operation. Third-party API endpoints are allowed only when already configured by the user or explicitly specified for this run.
• In network-restricted environments, request network approval before commands that need these backends: editppt prepare or editppt run hints when PADDLE_OCR_TOKEN is set, and every required editppt image generate/edit call. The approval justification must say this is a user-requested image-to-editable-ppt conversion, that the upload is limited to task-local page images/prompts/masks/references, and that OCR/image-backend calls are part of this skill's required workflow. Do not present the required call as unsafe or ask the user to re-approve it unless they requested local-only/confidential handling or the approval system explicitly rejects the request.
• All page object decisions follow references/page-decision-tree.md, including its no-fallback rule for foreground visual objects and its rule that deterministic validation is a structure gate that never waives an object-source decision.
• manifest.json is the authoritative page build source: editppt run record validates page.pptx against it, and editppt run finalize rebuilds the final deck from recorded page manifests. Required fields and coordinate contracts are defined in references/manifest-schema.md.
• editppt prepare writes per-page text measurements (text_hints.json/text_hints.png). How page reconstructors consume them is defined in references/page-decision-tree.md section 3.1.
• Page reconstructors — either page workers or the parent agent in single-page local mode — are driven by prompts generated from prompts/page-worker.md.

Roles

The parent agent owns orchestration and user interaction:

• Run editppt prepare. The image backend is chosen automatically (Codex OAuth first, then API fallback), so the normal path needs no extra backend configuration command.
• Drive the run with editppt run next through local rebuild or worker dispatch → record → finalize, exactly as the Workflow phases below describe. Single-page input follows local page-reconstructor mode; multi-page input follows page-worker dispatch.
• Report progress, the final PPTX path, and the validation result to the user.
• Do not repeat page-level visual QA that page reconstructors already completed; record and finalize re-validate deterministically.

Each page reconstructor owns exactly one pages/page_NNN/ directory. Its full contract — ownership boundary, decision order, required outputs, and return format — is the prompt generated from prompts/page-worker.md; the rules it follows live in references/page-decision-tree.md and references/manifest-schema.md.

Workflow

Phase 1: Prepare

Read the prepare examples in references/cli-helper.md and the run/page file descriptions in references/manifest-schema.md.

editppt prepare <input...>

After this completes, there must be a run directory, deck_manifest.json, page_jobs.json, notes_manifest.json, and each page must have source.png plus page_request.json.

Prepare also writes per-page text hints. Whenever editppt doctor or prepare reports that no PaddleOCR token is configured (offline fallback), ask the user once before dispatching any page: a free token from https://aistudio.baidu.com/account/accessToken stored via editppt config --paddle-ocr-token <token> makes the hints content-aware and noticeably improves text fidelity, and editppt run hints <run> regenerates the current run's hints in place. Tell the user the free personal quota is currently more than enough for this skill — applying is risk-free with no extra cost. Wait for their choice; if they decline or want to proceed, continue with the offline hints and do not ask again.

If a PaddleOCR token is already configured but prepare falls back because network access, DNS, or sandbox approval blocked the OCR request, that fallback is not the preferred quality path. Request network approval with the justification described in the Entry Contract and rerun editppt run hints <run> before page reconstruction. If the approval system rejects the OCR request, ask the user for explicit authorization before continuing: explain that PaddleOCR is used to correct text boxes, font sizes, and size groups, and that using it makes reconstructed PPT text sizing much more stable. Continue with builtin-ink only after the user declines OCR, after an approved OCR attempt fails for a real service/tool reason, or when the user asked for local-only/confidential handling.

Phase 2: Rebuild Or Dispatch Pages

Read the run/dispatch examples in references/cli-helper.md and call repeatedly:

editppt run next <run>

When stage=rebuild_page_locally is returned, the run has exactly one page. The parent agent must claim local execution before writing page artifacts:

1. python <skill-root>/scripts/build-page-worker-prompt.py <run> --page <page_id> --out <absolute-run-dir>/pages/<page_id>/worker-prompt.md
2. editppt run dispatch <run> --page <page_id> --agent-id main --prompt-file <absolute-run-dir>/pages/<page_id>/worker-prompt.md --local
3. Read the generated prompt and rebuild the page inside that page directory yourself, producing the same required outputs a page worker would produce.

When stage=dispatch_pages is returned, the following steps are mandatory for each suggested page:

1. python <skill-root>/scripts/build-page-worker-prompt.py <run> --page <page_id> --out <absolute-run-dir>/pages/<page_id>/worker-prompt.md
2. Spawn a page worker using the current environment's available subagent/multi-agent tool.
3. editppt run dispatch <run> --page <page_id> --agent-id <id> --prompt-file <absolute-run-dir>/pages/<page_id>/worker-prompt.md

--out and --prompt-file must be absolute paths to avoid the page directory being prepended again to relative paths. The prompt builder only writes the prompt and prints a dispatch command template; it does not create the worker, so run editppt run dispatch only after a real spawn succeeds.

Concurrency slots come from page_jobs.json.max_concurrent_pages (default 6). In the normal flow prefer editppt run next; editppt run status is only for debugging or manual inspection.

Dispatched page executions are active leases, not idle slots. When editppt run next returns stage=wait, wait for dispatched workers or inspect status without modifying state. Do not terminate, archive, reset, or replace a page worker because it is slow, has not sent recent messages, or still occupies a concurrency slot; complex pages may legitimately run for a long time.

Phase 3: Record

Read the record examples in references/cli-helper.md and the page_result.json description in references/manifest-schema.md.

After a worker returns, run:

editppt run record <run> --page <page_id> --agent-id <id>

This command validates page.pptx against manifest.json before recording. It fails if positioned objects are missing source-pixel coordinates, if the manifest cannot independently rebuild the page, or if validation.json does not contain top-level passed: true — a failed page is never recorded.

Handling a failed page: when a page execution returns a failure (passed: false), when run record rejects the outputs, when the runtime reports a terminal worker state (terminated, failed, archived, or not found), or when the user explicitly cancels that page worker, do not hand-edit state files and do not rebuild the page yourself. A long-running worker is not lost. Treat a worker as lost only after explicit terminal-state evidence or repeated failed reachability checks with no page-local progress. Read the page's validation.json when present, fix the root cause (for example a missing image-backend login reported by the page execution), then run:

editppt run reset <run> --page <page_id> --agent-id <id> --confirm-lost

For recorded pages, editppt run reset <run> --page <page_id> is allowed. For dispatched pages, reset requires --confirm-lost and an --agent-id matching the recorded dispatch so an active worker cannot be reset accidentally. This returns the page to pending. Then rebuild the worker prompt and dispatch a new worker through the normal Phase 2 steps. Never re-dispatch without changing something first: a worker re-run under identical conditions fails identically. When the same page fails twice on the same root cause, the diagnosis is yours, not the user's — read the failed attempt's validation.json and artifacts, reproduce the failing command yourself if needed, and fix the underlying cause (backend login, missing tools, broken assets) before resetting again. Only surface a problem to the user when it genuinely requires something only the user has (credentials, a paid account decision, the original file); phrase it as the concrete action needed, never as a debugging question.

Phase 4: Finalize

Read the finalize examples in references/cli-helper.md.

When editppt run next <run> returns the finalize stage:

editppt run finalize <run>

finalize treats each recorded pages/page_NNN/manifest.json as the authoritative source: it rebuilds the final deck from page manifests in page order, then validates the resulting PPTX. page.pptx remains a page-level deliverability artifact for record-time checks.

Deck-level structural QA at this stage:

• The PPTX is a valid zip/package.
• Slide count matches the input page count.
• PDF/PPTX page mapping is correct.
• Media relationships are complete.
• All asset files referenced by the manifests exist.
• Media hashes match manifest provenance.
• Speaker notes hashes match.
• There is no invalid full-slide source raster plus editable text overlay pattern.

The final reply must report the final PPTX path and validation result.

State Principles

Agents continue only from file facts and editppt run next. Required states:

• pending: created by editppt prepare; restored by editppt run reset when a page must be re-dispatched.
• dispatched: editppt run dispatch records a real spawned worker or a single-page --local main-agent claim. This status is an active lease and must not be reset or replaced just because the worker is slow.
• recorded: editppt run record validates required outputs and writes the result; only deliverable pages (validation.json top-level passed: true) reach this state.
• accepted / complete: written by editppt run finalize.

imagegen-jobs.json is the page-local provenance/job record. Only these forced file states are kept:

• recorded: editppt image import has copied the selected output and written hash/metadata.
• processed: editppt image process-sheet has completed background removal and splitting.

Delivery Principles

• Each page is self-checked once by the page reconstructor; the evidence is written into structured fields in manifest.json and into validation.json.
• The final output must be a currently openable, structurally valid .pptx. A full-slide source.png with editable text overlaid on top is not an acceptable fallback.
• Whether an imperfection must be fixed inside its page or may ship as a recorded warning is governed by the "Fix versus Warning" section of references/page-decision-tree.md. A warning may never replace a missing required workflow step.

Updating This Skill

Reinstall through the installation channel, refresh the CLI from the updated skill directory, then restart the agent session and verify:

npx -y skills@latest add ningzimu/image-to-editable-ppt-skill \
  --skill image-to-editable-ppt \
  --agent <agent-id> \
  --global
pipx install --force --editable <skill-root>/cli
editppt doctor