Document Skills

/pdf

Source: ~/.claude/skills/pdf/SKILL.md

name: pdf description: Use this skill whenever the user wants to do anything with PDF files. This includes reading or extracting text/tables from PDFs, combining or merging multiple PDFs into one, splitting PDFs apart, rotating pages, adding watermarks, creating new PDFs, filling PDF forms, encrypting/decrypting PDFs, extracting images, and OCR on scanned PDFs to make them searchable. If the user mentions a .pdf file or asks to produce one, use this skill. license: Proprietary. LICENSE.txt has complete terms

PDF Processing Guide

Overview

This guide covers essential PDF processing operations using Python libraries and command-line tools. For advanced features, JavaScript libraries, and detailed examples, see REFERENCE.md. If you need to fill out a PDF form, read FORMS.md and follow its instructions.

Quick Start

from pypdf import PdfReader, PdfWriter

# Read a PDF
reader = PdfReader("document.pdf")
print(f"Pages: {len(reader.pages)}")

# Extract text
text = ""
for page in reader.pages:
    text += page.extract_text()

Python Libraries

pypdf - Basic Operations

Merge PDFs

from pypdf import PdfWriter, PdfReader

writer = PdfWriter()
for pdf_file in ["doc1.pdf", "doc2.pdf", "doc3.pdf"]:
    reader = PdfReader(pdf_file)
    for page in reader.pages:
        writer.add_page(page)

with open("merged.pdf", "wb") as output:
    writer.write(output)

Split PDF

reader = PdfReader("input.pdf")
for i, page in enumerate(reader.pages):
    writer = PdfWriter()
    writer.add_page(page)
    with open(f"page_{i+1}.pdf", "wb") as output:
        writer.write(output)

Extract Metadata

reader = PdfReader("document.pdf")
meta = reader.metadata
print(f"Title: {meta.title}")
print(f"Author: {meta.author}")
print(f"Subject: {meta.subject}")
print(f"Creator: {meta.creator}")

Rotate Pages

reader = PdfReader("input.pdf")
writer = PdfWriter()

page = reader.pages[0]
page.rotate(90)  # Rotate 90 degrees clockwise
writer.add_page(page)

with open("rotated.pdf", "wb") as output:
    writer.write(output)

pdfplumber - Text and Table Extraction

Extract Text with Layout

import pdfplumber

with pdfplumber.open("document.pdf") as pdf:
    for page in pdf.pages:
        text = page.extract_text()
        print(text)

Extract Tables

with pdfplumber.open("document.pdf") as pdf:
    for i, page in enumerate(pdf.pages):
        tables = page.extract_tables()
        for j, table in enumerate(tables):
            print(f"Table {j+1} on page {i+1}:")
            for row in table:
                print(row)

Advanced Table Extraction

import pandas as pd

with pdfplumber.open("document.pdf") as pdf:
    all_tables = []
    for page in pdf.pages:
        tables = page.extract_tables()
        for table in tables:
            if table:  # Check if table is not empty
                df = pd.DataFrame(table[1:], columns=table[0])
                all_tables.append(df)

# Combine all tables
if all_tables:
    combined_df = pd.concat(all_tables, ignore_index=True)
    combined_df.to_excel("extracted_tables.xlsx", index=False)

reportlab - Create PDFs

Basic PDF Creation

from reportlab.lib.pagesizes import letter
from reportlab.pdfgen import canvas

c = canvas.Canvas("hello.pdf", pagesize=letter)
width, height = letter

# Add text
c.drawString(100, height - 100, "Hello World!")
c.drawString(100, height - 120, "This is a PDF created with reportlab")

# Add a line
c.line(100, height - 140, 400, height - 140)

# Save
c.save()

Create PDF with Multiple Pages

from reportlab.lib.pagesizes import letter
from reportlab.platypus import SimpleDocTemplate, Paragraph, Spacer, PageBreak
from reportlab.lib.styles import getSampleStyleSheet

doc = SimpleDocTemplate("report.pdf", pagesize=letter)
styles = getSampleStyleSheet()
story = []

# Add content
title = Paragraph("Report Title", styles['Title'])
story.append(title)
story.append(Spacer(1, 12))

body = Paragraph("This is the body of the report. " * 20, styles['Normal'])
story.append(body)
story.append(PageBreak())

# Page 2
story.append(Paragraph("Page 2", styles['Heading1']))
story.append(Paragraph("Content for page 2", styles['Normal']))

# Build PDF
doc.build(story)

Subscripts and Superscripts

IMPORTANT: Never use Unicode subscript/superscript characters (₀₁₂₃₄₅₆₇₈₉, ⁰¹²³⁴⁵⁶⁷⁸⁹) in ReportLab PDFs. The built-in fonts do not include these glyphs, causing them to render as solid black boxes.

Instead, use ReportLab's XML markup tags in Paragraph objects:

from reportlab.platypus import Paragraph
from reportlab.lib.styles import getSampleStyleSheet

styles = getSampleStyleSheet()

# Subscripts: use <sub> tag
chemical = Paragraph("H<sub>2</sub>O", styles['Normal'])

# Superscripts: use <super> tag
squared = Paragraph("x<super>2</super> + y<super>2</super>", styles['Normal'])

For canvas-drawn text (not Paragraph objects), manually adjust font the size and position rather than using Unicode subscripts/superscripts.

Command-Line Tools

pdftotext (poppler-utils)

# Extract text
pdftotext input.pdf output.txt

# Extract text preserving layout
pdftotext -layout input.pdf output.txt

# Extract specific pages
pdftotext -f 1 -l 5 input.pdf output.txt  # Pages 1-5

qpdf

# Merge PDFs
qpdf --empty --pages file1.pdf file2.pdf -- merged.pdf

# Split pages
qpdf input.pdf --pages . 1-5 -- pages1-5.pdf
qpdf input.pdf --pages . 6-10 -- pages6-10.pdf

# Rotate pages
qpdf input.pdf output.pdf --rotate=+90:1  # Rotate page 1 by 90 degrees

# Remove password
qpdf --password=mypassword --decrypt encrypted.pdf decrypted.pdf

pdftk (if available)

# Merge
pdftk file1.pdf file2.pdf cat output merged.pdf

# Split
pdftk input.pdf burst

# Rotate
pdftk input.pdf rotate 1east output rotated.pdf

Common Tasks

Extract Text from Scanned PDFs

# Requires: pip install pytesseract pdf2image
import pytesseract
from pdf2image import convert_from_path

# Convert PDF to images
images = convert_from_path('scanned.pdf')

# OCR each page
text = ""
for i, image in enumerate(images):
    text += f"Page {i+1}:\n"
    text += pytesseract.image_to_string(image)
    text += "\n\n"

print(text)

Add Watermark

from pypdf import PdfReader, PdfWriter

# Create watermark (or load existing)
watermark = PdfReader("watermark.pdf").pages[0]

# Apply to all pages
reader = PdfReader("document.pdf")
writer = PdfWriter()

for page in reader.pages:
    page.merge_page(watermark)
    writer.add_page(page)

with open("watermarked.pdf", "wb") as output:
    writer.write(output)

Extract Images

# Using pdfimages (poppler-utils)
pdfimages -j input.pdf output_prefix

# This extracts all images as output_prefix-000.jpg, output_prefix-001.jpg, etc.

Password Protection

from pypdf import PdfReader, PdfWriter

reader = PdfReader("input.pdf")
writer = PdfWriter()

for page in reader.pages:
    writer.add_page(page)

# Add password
writer.encrypt("userpassword", "ownerpassword")

with open("encrypted.pdf", "wb") as output:
    writer.write(output)

Quick Reference

Task Best Tool Command/Code
Merge PDFs pypdf writer.add_page(page)
Split PDFs pypdf One page per file
Extract text pdfplumber page.extract_text()
Extract tables pdfplumber page.extract_tables()
Create PDFs reportlab Canvas or Platypus
Command line merge qpdf qpdf --empty --pages ...
OCR scanned PDFs pytesseract Convert to image first
Fill PDF forms pdf-lib or pypdf (see FORMS.md) See FORMS.md

Next Steps

/docx

Source: ~/.claude/skills/docx/SKILL.md

name: docx description: "Use this skill whenever the user wants to create, read, edit, or manipulate Word documents (.docx files). Triggers include: any mention of "Word doc", "word document", ".docx", or requests to produce professional documents with formatting like tables of contents, headings, page numbers, or letterheads. Also use when extracting or reorganizing content from .docx files, inserting or replacing images in documents, performing find-and-replace in Word files, working with tracked changes or comments, or converting content into a polished Word document. If the user asks for a "report", "memo", "letter", "template", or similar deliverable as a Word or .docx file, use this skill. Do NOT use for PDFs, spreadsheets, Google Docs, or general coding tasks unrelated to document generation." license: Proprietary. LICENSE.txt has complete terms

DOCX creation, editing, and analysis

Overview

A .docx file is a ZIP archive containing XML files.

Quick Reference

Task Approach
Read/analyze content pandoc or unpack for raw XML
Create new document Use docx-js - see Creating New Documents below
Edit existing document Unpack → edit XML → repack - see Editing Existing Documents below

Converting .doc to .docx

Legacy .doc files must be converted before editing:

python scripts/office/soffice.py --headless --convert-to docx document.doc

Reading Content

# Text extraction with tracked changes
pandoc --track-changes=all document.docx -o output.md

# Raw XML access
python scripts/office/unpack.py document.docx unpacked/

Converting to Images

python scripts/office/soffice.py --headless --convert-to pdf document.docx
pdftoppm -jpeg -r 150 document.pdf page

Accepting Tracked Changes

To produce a clean document with all tracked changes accepted (requires LibreOffice):

python scripts/accept_changes.py input.docx output.docx

Creating New Documents

Generate .docx files with JavaScript, then validate. Install: npm install -g docx

Setup

const { Document, Packer, Paragraph, TextRun, Table, TableRow, TableCell, ImageRun,
        Header, Footer, AlignmentType, PageOrientation, LevelFormat, ExternalHyperlink,
        TableOfContents, HeadingLevel, BorderStyle, WidthType, ShadingType,
        VerticalAlign, PageNumber, PageBreak } = require('docx');

const doc = new Document({ sections: [{ children: [/* content */] }] });
Packer.toBuffer(doc).then(buffer => fs.writeFileSync("doc.docx", buffer));

Validation

After creating the file, validate it. If validation fails, unpack, fix the XML, and repack.

python scripts/office/validate.py doc.docx

Page Size

// CRITICAL: docx-js defaults to A4, not US Letter
// Always set page size explicitly for consistent results
sections: [{
  properties: {
    page: {
      size: {
        width: 12240,   // 8.5 inches in DXA
        height: 15840   // 11 inches in DXA
      },
      margin: { top: 1440, right: 1440, bottom: 1440, left: 1440 } // 1 inch margins
    }
  },
  children: [/* content */]
}]

Common page sizes (DXA units, 1440 DXA = 1 inch):

Paper Width Height Content Width (1" margins)
US Letter 12,240 15,840 9,360
A4 (default) 11,906 16,838 9,026

Landscape orientation: docx-js swaps width/height internally, so pass portrait dimensions and let it handle the swap:

size: {
  width: 12240,   // Pass SHORT edge as width
  height: 15840,  // Pass LONG edge as height
  orientation: PageOrientation.LANDSCAPE  // docx-js swaps them in the XML
},
// Content width = 15840 - left margin - right margin (uses the long edge)

Styles (Override Built-in Headings)

Use Arial as the default font (universally supported). Keep titles black for readability.

const doc = new Document({
  styles: {
    default: { document: { run: { font: "Arial", size: 24 } } }, // 12pt default
    paragraphStyles: [
      // IMPORTANT: Use exact IDs to override built-in styles
      { id: "Heading1", name: "Heading 1", basedOn: "Normal", next: "Normal", quickFormat: true,
        run: { size: 32, bold: true, font: "Arial" },
        paragraph: { spacing: { before: 240, after: 240 }, outlineLevel: 0 } }, // outlineLevel required for TOC
      { id: "Heading2", name: "Heading 2", basedOn: "Normal", next: "Normal", quickFormat: true,
        run: { size: 28, bold: true, font: "Arial" },
        paragraph: { spacing: { before: 180, after: 180 }, outlineLevel: 1 } },
    ]
  },
  sections: [{
    children: [
      new Paragraph({ heading: HeadingLevel.HEADING_1, children: [new TextRun("Title")] }),
    ]
  }]
});

Lists (NEVER use unicode bullets)

// ❌ WRONG - never manually insert bullet characters
new Paragraph({ children: [new TextRun("• Item")] })  // BAD
new Paragraph({ children: [new TextRun("\u2022 Item")] })  // BAD

// ✅ CORRECT - use numbering config with LevelFormat.BULLET
const doc = new Document({
  numbering: {
    config: [
      { reference: "bullets",
        levels: [{ level: 0, format: LevelFormat.BULLET, text: "•", alignment: AlignmentType.LEFT,
          style: { paragraph: { indent: { left: 720, hanging: 360 } } } }] },
      { reference: "numbers",
        levels: [{ level: 0, format: LevelFormat.DECIMAL, text: "%1.", alignment: AlignmentType.LEFT,
          style: { paragraph: { indent: { left: 720, hanging: 360 } } } }] },
    ]
  },
  sections: [{
    children: [
      new Paragraph({ numbering: { reference: "bullets", level: 0 },
        children: [new TextRun("Bullet item")] }),
      new Paragraph({ numbering: { reference: "numbers", level: 0 },
        children: [new TextRun("Numbered item")] }),
    ]
  }]
});

// ⚠️ Each reference creates INDEPENDENT numbering
// Same reference = continues (1,2,3 then 4,5,6)
// Different reference = restarts (1,2,3 then 1,2,3)

Tables

CRITICAL: Tables need dual widths - set both columnWidths on the table AND width on each cell. Without both, tables render incorrectly on some platforms.

// CRITICAL: Always set table width for consistent rendering
// CRITICAL: Use ShadingType.CLEAR (not SOLID) to prevent black backgrounds
const border = { style: BorderStyle.SINGLE, size: 1, color: "CCCCCC" };
const borders = { top: border, bottom: border, left: border, right: border };

new Table({
  width: { size: 9360, type: WidthType.DXA }, // Always use DXA (percentages break in Google Docs)
  columnWidths: [4680, 4680], // Must sum to table width (DXA: 1440 = 1 inch)
  rows: [
    new TableRow({
      children: [
        new TableCell({
          borders,
          width: { size: 4680, type: WidthType.DXA }, // Also set on each cell
          shading: { fill: "D5E8F0", type: ShadingType.CLEAR }, // CLEAR not SOLID
          margins: { top: 80, bottom: 80, left: 120, right: 120 }, // Cell padding (internal, not added to width)
          children: [new Paragraph({ children: [new TextRun("Cell")] })]
        })
      ]
    })
  ]
})

Table width calculation:

Always use WidthType.DXA — WidthType.PERCENTAGE breaks in Google Docs.

// Table width = sum of columnWidths = content width
// US Letter with 1" margins: 12240 - 2880 = 9360 DXA
width: { size: 9360, type: WidthType.DXA },
columnWidths: [7000, 2360]  // Must sum to table width

Width rules:

Images

// CRITICAL: type parameter is REQUIRED
new Paragraph({
  children: [new ImageRun({
    type: "png", // Required: png, jpg, jpeg, gif, bmp, svg
    data: fs.readFileSync("image.png"),
    transformation: { width: 200, height: 150 },
    altText: { title: "Title", description: "Desc", name: "Name" } // All three required
  })]
})

Page Breaks

// CRITICAL: PageBreak must be inside a Paragraph
new Paragraph({ children: [new PageBreak()] })

// Or use pageBreakBefore
new Paragraph({ pageBreakBefore: true, children: [new TextRun("New page")] })

Table of Contents

// CRITICAL: Headings must use HeadingLevel ONLY - no custom styles
new TableOfContents("Table of Contents", { hyperlink: true, headingStyleRange: "1-3" })

Headers/Footers

sections: [{
  properties: {
    page: { margin: { top: 1440, right: 1440, bottom: 1440, left: 1440 } } // 1440 = 1 inch
  },
  headers: {
    default: new Header({ children: [new Paragraph({ children: [new TextRun("Header")] })] })
  },
  footers: {
    default: new Footer({ children: [new Paragraph({
      children: [new TextRun("Page "), new TextRun({ children: [PageNumber.CURRENT] })]
    })] })
  },
  children: [/* content */]
}]

Critical Rules for docx-js

Editing Existing Documents

Follow all 3 steps in order.

Step 1: Unpack

python scripts/office/unpack.py document.docx unpacked/

Extracts XML, pretty-prints, merges adjacent runs, and converts smart quotes to XML entities (&#x201C; etc.) so they survive editing. Use --merge-runs false to skip run merging.

Step 2: Edit XML

Edit files in unpacked/word/. See XML Reference below for patterns.

Use "Claude" as the author for tracked changes and comments, unless the user explicitly requests use of a different name.

Use the Edit tool directly for string replacement. Do not write Python scripts. Scripts introduce unnecessary complexity. The Edit tool shows exactly what is being replaced.

CRITICAL: Use smart quotes for new content. When adding text with apostrophes or quotes, use XML entities to produce smart quotes:

<!-- Use these entities for professional typography -->
<w:t>Here&#x2019;s a quote: &#x201C;Hello&#x201D;</w:t>
Entity Character
&#x2018; ‘ (left single)
&#x2019; ’ (right single / apostrophe)
&#x201C; “ (left double)
&#x201D; ” (right double)

Adding comments: Use comment.py to handle boilerplate across multiple XML files (text must be pre-escaped XML):

python scripts/comment.py unpacked/ 0 "Comment text with &amp; and &#x2019;"
python scripts/comment.py unpacked/ 1 "Reply text" --parent 0  # reply to comment 0
python scripts/comment.py unpacked/ 0 "Text" --author "Custom Author"  # custom author name

Then add markers to document.xml (see Comments in XML Reference).

Step 3: Pack

python scripts/office/pack.py unpacked/ output.docx --original document.docx

Validates with auto-repair, condenses XML, and creates DOCX. Use --validate false to skip.

Auto-repair will fix:

Auto-repair won't fix:

Common Pitfalls

XML Reference

Schema Compliance

Tracked Changes

Insertion:

<w:ins w:id="1" w:author="Claude" w:date="2025-01-01T00:00:00Z">
  <w:r><w:t>inserted text</w:t></w:r>
</w:ins>

Deletion:

<w:del w:id="2" w:author="Claude" w:date="2025-01-01T00:00:00Z">
  <w:r><w:delText>deleted text</w:delText></w:r>
</w:del>

Inside <w:del>: Use <w:delText> instead of <w:t>, and <w:delInstrText> instead of <w:instrText>.

Minimal edits - only mark what changes:

<!-- Change "30 days" to "60 days" -->
<w:r><w:t>The term is </w:t></w:r>
<w:del w:id="1" w:author="Claude" w:date="...">
  <w:r><w:delText>30</w:delText></w:r>
</w:del>
<w:ins w:id="2" w:author="Claude" w:date="...">
  <w:r><w:t>60</w:t></w:r>
</w:ins>
<w:r><w:t> days.</w:t></w:r>

Deleting entire paragraphs/list items - when removing ALL content from a paragraph, also mark the paragraph mark as deleted so it merges with the next paragraph. Add <w:del/> inside <w:pPr><w:rPr>:

<w:p>
  <w:pPr>
    <w:numPr>...</w:numPr>  <!-- list numbering if present -->
    <w:rPr>
      <w:del w:id="1" w:author="Claude" w:date="2025-01-01T00:00:00Z"/>
    </w:rPr>
  </w:pPr>
  <w:del w:id="2" w:author="Claude" w:date="2025-01-01T00:00:00Z">
    <w:r><w:delText>Entire paragraph content being deleted...</w:delText></w:r>
  </w:del>
</w:p>

Without the <w:del/> in <w:pPr><w:rPr>, accepting changes leaves an empty paragraph/list item.

Rejecting another author's insertion - nest deletion inside their insertion:

<w:ins w:author="Jane" w:id="5">
  <w:del w:author="Claude" w:id="10">
    <w:r><w:delText>their inserted text</w:delText></w:r>
  </w:del>
</w:ins>

Restoring another author's deletion - add insertion after (don't modify their deletion):

<w:del w:author="Jane" w:id="5">
  <w:r><w:delText>deleted text</w:delText></w:r>
</w:del>
<w:ins w:author="Claude" w:id="10">
  <w:r><w:t>deleted text</w:t></w:r>
</w:ins>

Comments

After running comment.py (see Step 2), add markers to document.xml. For replies, use --parent flag and nest markers inside the parent's.

CRITICAL: <w:commentRangeStart> and <w:commentRangeEnd> are siblings of <w:r>, never inside <w:r>.

<!-- Comment markers are direct children of w:p, never inside w:r -->
<w:commentRangeStart w:id="0"/>
<w:del w:id="1" w:author="Claude" w:date="2025-01-01T00:00:00Z">
  <w:r><w:delText>deleted</w:delText></w:r>
</w:del>
<w:r><w:t> more text</w:t></w:r>
<w:commentRangeEnd w:id="0"/>
<w:r><w:rPr><w:rStyle w:val="CommentReference"/></w:rPr><w:commentReference w:id="0"/></w:r>

<!-- Comment 0 with reply 1 nested inside -->
<w:commentRangeStart w:id="0"/>
  <w:commentRangeStart w:id="1"/>
  <w:r><w:t>text</w:t></w:r>
  <w:commentRangeEnd w:id="1"/>
<w:commentRangeEnd w:id="0"/>
<w:r><w:rPr><w:rStyle w:val="CommentReference"/></w:rPr><w:commentReference w:id="0"/></w:r>
<w:r><w:rPr><w:rStyle w:val="CommentReference"/></w:rPr><w:commentReference w:id="1"/></w:r>

Images

  1. Add image file to word/media/
  2. Add relationship to word/_rels/document.xml.rels:
<Relationship Id="rId5" Type=".../image" Target="media/image1.png"/>
  1. Add content type to [Content_Types].xml:
<Default Extension="png" ContentType="image/png"/>
  1. Reference in document.xml:
<w:drawing>
  <wp:inline>
    <wp:extent cx="914400" cy="914400"/>  <!-- EMUs: 914400 = 1 inch -->
    <a:graphic>
      <a:graphicData uri=".../picture">
        <pic:pic>
          <pic:blipFill><a:blip r:embed="rId5"/></pic:blipFill>
        </pic:pic>
      </a:graphicData>
    </a:graphic>
  </wp:inline>
</w:drawing>

Dependencies

/pptx

Source: ~/.claude/skills/pptx/SKILL.md

name: pptx description: "Use this skill any time a .pptx file is involved in any way — as input, output, or both. This includes: creating slide decks, pitch decks, or presentations; reading, parsing, or extracting text from any .pptx file (even if the extracted content will be used elsewhere, like in an email or summary); editing, modifying, or updating existing presentations; combining or splitting slide files; working with templates, layouts, speaker notes, or comments. Trigger whenever the user mentions "deck," "slides," "presentation," or references a .pptx filename, regardless of what they plan to do with the content afterward. If a .pptx file needs to be opened, created, or touched, use this skill." license: Proprietary. LICENSE.txt has complete terms

PPTX Skill

Quick Reference

Task Guide
Read/analyze content python -m markitdown presentation.pptx
Edit or create from template Read editing.md
Create from scratch Read pptxgenjs.md

Reading Content

# Text extraction
python -m markitdown presentation.pptx

# Visual overview
python scripts/thumbnail.py presentation.pptx

# Raw XML
python scripts/office/unpack.py presentation.pptx unpacked/

Editing Workflow

Read editing.md for full details.

  1. Analyze template with thumbnail.py
  2. Unpack → manipulate slides → edit content → clean → pack

Creating from Scratch

Read pptxgenjs.md for full details.

Use when no template or reference presentation is available.

Design Ideas

Don't create boring slides. Plain bullets on a white background won't impress anyone. Consider ideas from this list for each slide.

Before Starting

Color Palettes

Choose colors that match your topic — don't default to generic blue. Use these palettes as inspiration:

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

For Each Slide

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

Layout options:

Data display:

Visual polish:

Typography

Choose an interesting font pairing — don't default to Arial. Pick a header font with personality and pair it with a clean body font.

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

Spacing

Avoid (Common Mistakes)

QA (Required)

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

Your first render is almost never correct. Approach QA as a bug hunt, not a confirmation step. If you found zero issues on first inspection, you weren't looking hard enough.

Content QA

python -m markitdown output.pptx

Check for missing content, typos, wrong order.

When using templates, check for leftover placeholder text:

python -m markitdown output.pptx | grep -iE "xxxx|lorem|ipsum|this.*(page|slide).*layout"

If grep returns results, fix them before declaring success.

Visual QA

⚠️ USE SUBAGENTS — even for 2-3 slides. You've been staring at the code and will see what you expect, not what's there. Subagents have fresh eyes.

Convert slides to images (see Converting to Images), then use this prompt:

Visually inspect these slides. Assume there are issues — find them.

Look for:
- Overlapping elements (text through shapes, lines through words, stacked elements)
- Text overflow or cut off at edges/box boundaries
- Decorative lines positioned for single-line text but title wrapped to two lines
- Source citations or footers colliding with content above
- Elements too close (< 0.3" gaps) or cards/sections 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 (e.g., light gray text on cream-colored background)
- Low-contrast icons (e.g., dark icons on dark backgrounds without a contrasting circle)
- Text boxes too narrow causing excessive wrapping
- Leftover placeholder content

For each slide, list issues or areas of concern, even if minor.

Read and analyze these images:
1. /path/to/slide-01.jpg (Expected: [brief description])
2. /path/to/slide-02.jpg (Expected: [brief description])

Report ALL issues found, including minor ones.

Verification Loop

  1. Generate slides → Convert to images → Inspect
  2. List issues found (if none found, look again more critically)
  3. Fix issues
  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.

Converting to Images

Convert presentations to individual slide images for visual inspection:

python scripts/office/soffice.py --headless --convert-to pdf output.pptx
pdftoppm -jpeg -r 150 output.pdf slide

This creates slide-01.jpg, slide-02.jpg, etc.

To re-render specific slides after fixes:

pdftoppm -jpeg -r 150 -f N -l N output.pdf slide-fixed

Dependencies

/xlsx

Source: ~/.claude/skills/xlsx/SKILL.md

name: xlsx description: "Use this skill any time a spreadsheet file is the primary input or output. This means any task where the user wants to: open, read, edit, or fix an existing .xlsx, .xlsm, .csv, or .tsv file (e.g., adding columns, computing formulas, formatting, charting, cleaning messy data); create a new spreadsheet from scratch or from other data sources; or convert between tabular file formats. Trigger especially when the user references a spreadsheet file by name or path — even casually (like "the xlsx in my downloads") — and wants something done to it or produced from it. Also trigger for cleaning or restructuring messy tabular data files (malformed rows, misplaced headers, junk data) into proper spreadsheets. The deliverable must be a spreadsheet file. Do NOT trigger when the primary deliverable is a Word document, HTML report, standalone Python script, database pipeline, or Google Sheets API integration, even if tabular data is involved." license: Proprietary. LICENSE.txt has complete terms

Requirements for Outputs

All Excel files

Professional Font

Zero Formula Errors

Preserve Existing Templates (when updating templates)

Financial models

Color Coding Standards

Unless otherwise stated by the user or existing template

Industry-Standard Color Conventions

Number Formatting Standards

Required Format Rules

Formula Construction Rules

Assumptions Placement

Formula Error Prevention

Documentation Requirements for Hardcodes

XLSX creation, editing, and analysis

Overview

A user may ask you to create, edit, or analyze the contents of an .xlsx file. You have different tools and workflows available for different tasks.

Important Requirements

LibreOffice Required for Formula Recalculation: You can assume LibreOffice is installed for recalculating formula values using the scripts/recalc.py script. The script automatically configures LibreOffice on first run, including in sandboxed environments where Unix sockets are restricted (handled by scripts/office/soffice.py)

Reading and analyzing data

Data analysis with pandas

For data analysis, visualization, and basic operations, use pandas which provides powerful data manipulation capabilities:

import pandas as pd

# Read Excel
df = pd.read_excel('file.xlsx')  # Default: first sheet
all_sheets = pd.read_excel('file.xlsx', sheet_name=None)  # All sheets as dict

# Analyze
df.head()      # Preview data
df.info()      # Column info
df.describe()  # Statistics

# Write Excel
df.to_excel('output.xlsx', index=False)

Excel File Workflows

CRITICAL: Use Formulas, Not Hardcoded Values

Always use Excel formulas instead of calculating values in Python and hardcoding them. This ensures the spreadsheet remains dynamic and updateable.

❌ WRONG - Hardcoding Calculated Values

# Bad: Calculating in Python and hardcoding result
total = df['Sales'].sum()
sheet['B10'] = total  # Hardcodes 5000

# Bad: Computing growth rate in Python
growth = (df.iloc[-1]['Revenue'] - df.iloc[0]['Revenue']) / df.iloc[0]['Revenue']
sheet['C5'] = growth  # Hardcodes 0.15

# Bad: Python calculation for average
avg = sum(values) / len(values)
sheet['D20'] = avg  # Hardcodes 42.5

✅ CORRECT - Using Excel Formulas

# Good: Let Excel calculate the sum
sheet['B10'] = '=SUM(B2:B9)'

# Good: Growth rate as Excel formula
sheet['C5'] = '=(C4-C2)/C2'

# Good: Average using Excel function
sheet['D20'] = '=AVERAGE(D2:D19)'

This applies to ALL calculations - totals, percentages, ratios, differences, etc. The spreadsheet should be able to recalculate when source data changes.

Common Workflow

  1. Choose tool: pandas for data, openpyxl for formulas/formatting
  2. Create/Load: Create new workbook or load existing file
  3. Modify: Add/edit data, formulas, and formatting
  4. Save: Write to file
  5. Recalculate formulas (MANDATORY IF USING FORMULAS): Use the scripts/recalc.py script 
    python scripts/recalc.py output.xlsx
  6. Verify and fix any errors:
    • The script returns JSON with error details
    • If status is errors_found, check error_summary for specific error types and locations
    • Fix the identified errors and recalculate again
    • Common errors to fix:
      • #REF!: Invalid cell references
      • #DIV/0!: Division by zero
      • #VALUE!: Wrong data type in formula
      • #NAME?: Unrecognized formula name

Creating new Excel files

# Using openpyxl for formulas and formatting
from openpyxl import Workbook
from openpyxl.styles import Font, PatternFill, Alignment

wb = Workbook()
sheet = wb.active

# Add data
sheet['A1'] = 'Hello'
sheet['B1'] = 'World'
sheet.append(['Row', 'of', 'data'])

# Add formula
sheet['B2'] = '=SUM(A1:A10)'

# Formatting
sheet['A1'].font = Font(bold=True, color='FF0000')
sheet['A1'].fill = PatternFill('solid', start_color='FFFF00')
sheet['A1'].alignment = Alignment(horizontal='center')

# Column width
sheet.column_dimensions['A'].width = 20

wb.save('output.xlsx')

Editing existing Excel files

# Using openpyxl to preserve formulas and formatting
from openpyxl import load_workbook

# Load existing file
wb = load_workbook('existing.xlsx')
sheet = wb.active  # or wb['SheetName'] for specific sheet

# Working with multiple sheets
for sheet_name in wb.sheetnames:
    sheet = wb[sheet_name]
    print(f"Sheet: {sheet_name}")

# Modify cells
sheet['A1'] = 'New Value'
sheet.insert_rows(2)  # Insert row at position 2
sheet.delete_cols(3)  # Delete column 3

# Add new sheet
new_sheet = wb.create_sheet('NewSheet')
new_sheet['A1'] = 'Data'

wb.save('modified.xlsx')

Recalculating formulas

Excel files created or modified by openpyxl contain formulas as strings but not calculated values. Use the provided scripts/recalc.py script to recalculate formulas:

python scripts/recalc.py <excel_file> [timeout_seconds]

Example:

python scripts/recalc.py output.xlsx 30

The script:

Formula Verification Checklist

Quick checks to ensure formulas work correctly:

Essential Verification

Common Pitfalls

Formula Testing Strategy

Interpreting scripts/recalc.py Output

The script returns JSON with error details:

{
  "status": "success",           // or "errors_found"
  "total_errors": 0,              // Total error count
  "total_formulas": 42,           // Number of formulas in file
  "error_summary": {              // Only present if errors found
    "#REF!": {
      "count": 2,
      "locations": ["Sheet1!B5", "Sheet1!C10"]
    }
  }
}

Best Practices

Library Selection

Working with openpyxl

Working with pandas

Code Style Guidelines

IMPORTANT: When generating Python code for Excel operations:

For Excel files themselves:

/doc-coauthoring

Source: ~/.claude/skills/doc-coauthoring/SKILL.md

name: doc-coauthoring description: Guide users through a structured workflow for co-authoring documentation. Use when user wants to write documentation, proposals, technical specs, decision docs, or similar structured content. This workflow helps users efficiently transfer context, refine content through iteration, and verify the doc works for readers. Trigger when user mentions writing docs, creating proposals, drafting specs, or similar documentation tasks.

Doc Co-Authoring Workflow

This skill provides a structured workflow for guiding users through collaborative document creation. Act as an active guide, walking users through three stages: Context Gathering, Refinement & Structure, and Reader Testing.

When to Offer This Workflow

Trigger conditions:

Initial offer: Offer the user a structured workflow for co-authoring the document. Explain the three stages:

  1. Context Gathering: User provides all relevant context while Claude asks clarifying questions
  2. Refinement & Structure: Iteratively build each section through brainstorming and editing
  3. Reader Testing: Test the doc with a fresh Claude (no context) to catch blind spots before others read it

Explain that this approach helps ensure the doc works well when others read it (including when they paste it into Claude). Ask if they want to try this workflow or prefer to work freeform.

If user declines, work freeform. If user accepts, proceed to Stage 1.

Stage 1: Context Gathering

Goal: Close the gap between what the user knows and what Claude knows, enabling smart guidance later.

Initial Questions

Start by asking the user for meta-context about the document:

  1. What type of document is this? (e.g., technical spec, decision doc, proposal)
  2. Who's the primary audience?
  3. What's the desired impact when someone reads this?
  4. Is there a template or specific format to follow?
  5. Any other constraints or context to know?

Inform them they can answer in shorthand or dump information however works best for them.

If user provides a template or mentions a doc type:

If user mentions editing an existing shared document:

Info Dumping

Once initial questions are answered, encourage the user to dump all the context they have. Request information such as:

Advise them not to worry about organizing it - just get it all out. Offer multiple ways to provide context:

If integrations are available (e.g., Slack, Teams, Google Drive, SharePoint, or other MCP servers), mention that these can be used to pull in context directly.

If no integrations are detected and in Claude.ai or Claude app: Suggest they can enable connectors in their Claude settings to allow pulling context from messaging apps and document storage directly.

Inform them clarifying questions will be asked once they've done their initial dump.

During context gathering:

Asking clarifying questions:

When user signals they've done their initial dump (or after substantial context provided), ask clarifying questions to ensure understanding:

Generate 5-10 numbered questions based on gaps in the context.

Inform them they can use shorthand to answer (e.g., "1: yes, 2: see #channel, 3: no because backwards compat"), link to more docs, point to channels to read, or just keep info-dumping. Whatever's most efficient for them.

Exit condition: Sufficient context has been gathered when questions show understanding - when edge cases and trade-offs can be asked about without needing basics explained.

Transition: Ask if there's any more context they want to provide at this stage, or if it's time to move on to drafting the document.

If user wants to add more, let them. When ready, proceed to Stage 2.

Stage 2: Refinement & Structure

Goal: Build the document section by section through brainstorming, curation, and iterative refinement.

Instructions to user: Explain that the document will be built section by section. For each section:

  1. Clarifying questions will be asked about what to include
  2. 5-20 options will be brainstormed
  3. User will indicate what to keep/remove/combine
  4. The section will be drafted
  5. It will be refined through surgical edits

Start with whichever section has the most unknowns (usually the core decision/proposal), then work through the rest.

Section ordering:

If the document structure is clear: Ask which section they'd like to start with.

Suggest starting with whichever section has the most unknowns. For decision docs, that's usually the core proposal. For specs, it's typically the technical approach. Summary sections are best left for last.

If user doesn't know what sections they need: Based on the type of document and template, suggest 3-5 sections appropriate for the doc type.

Ask if this structure works, or if they want to adjust it.

Once structure is agreed:

Create the initial document structure with placeholder text for all sections.

If access to artifacts is available: Use create_file to create an artifact. This gives both Claude and the user a scaffold to work from.

Inform them that the initial structure with placeholders for all sections will be created.

Create artifact with all section headers and brief placeholder text like "[To be written]" or "[Content here]".

Provide the scaffold link and indicate it's time to fill in each section.

If no access to artifacts: Create a markdown file in the working directory. Name it appropriately (e.g., decision-doc.md, technical-spec.md).

Inform them that the initial structure with placeholders for all sections will be created.

Create file with all section headers and placeholder text.

Confirm the filename has been created and indicate it's time to fill in each section.

For each section:

Step 1: Clarifying Questions

Announce work will begin on the [SECTION NAME] section. Ask 5-10 clarifying questions about what should be included:

Generate 5-10 specific questions based on context and section purpose.

Inform them they can answer in shorthand or just indicate what's important to cover.

Step 2: Brainstorming

For the [SECTION NAME] section, brainstorm [5-20] things that might be included, depending on the section's complexity. Look for:

Generate 5-20 numbered options based on section complexity. At the end, offer to brainstorm more if they want additional options.

Step 3: Curation

Ask which points should be kept, removed, or combined. Request brief justifications to help learn priorities for the next sections.

Provide examples:

If user gives freeform feedback (e.g., "looks good" or "I like most of it but...") instead of numbered selections, extract their preferences and proceed. Parse what they want kept/removed/changed and apply it.

Step 4: Gap Check

Based on what they've selected, ask if there's anything important missing for the [SECTION NAME] section.

Step 5: Drafting

Use str_replace to replace the placeholder text for this section with the actual drafted content.

Announce the [SECTION NAME] section will be drafted now based on what they've selected.

If using artifacts: After drafting, provide a link to the artifact.

Ask them to read through it and indicate what to change. Note that being specific helps learning for the next sections.

If using a file (no artifacts): After drafting, confirm completion.

Inform them the [SECTION NAME] section has been drafted in [filename]. Ask them to read through it and indicate what to change. Note that being specific helps learning for the next sections.

Key instruction for user (include when drafting the first section): Provide a note: Instead of editing the doc directly, ask them to indicate what to change. This helps learning of their style for future sections. For example: "Remove the X bullet - already covered by Y" or "Make the third paragraph more concise".

Step 6: Iterative Refinement

As user provides feedback:

Continue iterating until user is satisfied with the section.

Quality Checking

After 3 consecutive iterations with no substantial changes, ask if anything can be removed without losing important information.

When section is done, confirm [SECTION NAME] is complete. Ask if ready to move to the next section.

Repeat for all sections.

Near Completion

As approaching completion (80%+ of sections done), announce intention to re-read the entire document and check for:

Read entire document and provide feedback.

When all sections are drafted and refined: Announce all sections are drafted. Indicate intention to review the complete document one more time.

Review for overall coherence, flow, completeness.

Provide any final suggestions.

Ask if ready to move to Reader Testing, or if they want to refine anything else.

Stage 3: Reader Testing

Goal: Test the document with a fresh Claude (no context bleed) to verify it works for readers.

Instructions to user: Explain that testing will now occur to see if the document actually works for readers. This catches blind spots - things that make sense to the authors but might confuse others.

Testing Approach

If access to sub-agents is available (e.g., in Claude Code):

Perform the testing directly without user involvement.

Step 1: Predict Reader Questions

Announce intention to predict what questions readers might ask when trying to discover this document.

Generate 5-10 questions that readers would realistically ask.

Step 2: Test with Sub-Agent

Announce that these questions will be tested with a fresh Claude instance (no context from this conversation).

For each question, invoke a sub-agent with just the document content and the question.

Summarize what Reader Claude got right/wrong for each question.

Step 3: Run Additional Checks

Announce additional checks will be performed.

Invoke sub-agent to check for ambiguity, false assumptions, contradictions.

Summarize any issues found.

Step 4: Report and Fix

If issues found: Report that Reader Claude struggled with specific issues.

List the specific issues.

Indicate intention to fix these gaps.

Loop back to refinement for problematic sections.

If no access to sub-agents (e.g., claude.ai web interface):

The user will need to do the testing manually.

Step 1: Predict Reader Questions

Ask what questions people might ask when trying to discover this document. What would they type into Claude.ai?

Generate 5-10 questions that readers would realistically ask.

Step 2: Setup Testing

Provide testing instructions:

  1. Open a fresh Claude conversation: https://claude.ai
  2. Paste or share the document content (if using a shared doc platform with connectors enabled, provide the link)
  3. Ask Reader Claude the generated questions

For each question, instruct Reader Claude to provide:

Check if Reader Claude gives correct answers or misinterprets anything.

Step 3: Additional Checks

Also ask Reader Claude:

Step 4: Iterate Based on Results

Ask what Reader Claude got wrong or struggled with. Indicate intention to fix those gaps.

Loop back to refinement for any problematic sections.

Exit Condition (Both Approaches)

When Reader Claude consistently answers questions correctly and doesn't surface new gaps or ambiguities, the doc is ready.

Final Review

When Reader Testing passes: Announce the doc has passed Reader Claude testing. Before completion:

  1. Recommend they do a final read-through themselves - they own this document and are responsible for its quality
  2. Suggest double-checking any facts, links, or technical details
  3. Ask them to verify it achieves the impact they wanted

Ask if they want one more review, or if the work is done.

If user wants final review, provide it. Otherwise: Announce document completion. Provide a few final tips:

Tips for Effective Guidance

Tone:

Handling Deviations:

Context Management:

Artifact Management:

Quality over Speed: