# Deckbuilder Quick Start Guide
**Goal**: Create professional PowerPoint presentations in one shot from JSON or Markdown.
## What You Need to Know
Deckbuilder is designed for **one-shot presentation creation** - you provide your content, and it generates a complete PowerPoint file automatically. No complex setup required.
### Two Simple Ways to Create Presentations:
1. **JSON Format** - Precise control with structured data
2. **Markdown + YAML** - Natural writing with simple formatting
## Installation & Setup
```python
# Install Deckbuilder
pip install -r requirements.txt
# Import and create client
from deckbuilder import get_deckbuilder_client
deck = get_deckbuilder_client()
```
**Environment Setup** (optional - uses defaults if not set):
```bash
export DECK_TEMPLATE_FOLDER="/path/to/templates" # Default: built-in template
export DECK_OUTPUT_FOLDER="/path/to/output" # Default: current directory
```
## Method 1: JSON Format
Perfect for programmatic generation or when you have structured data.
### Simple Example
```python
from deckbuilder import get_deckbuilder_client
# Get the client
deck = get_deckbuilder_client()
# Your presentation data
presentation_data = {
"presentation": {
"slides": [
{
"type": "Title Slide",
"title": "**My Presentation**",
"subtitle": "Created with Deckbuilder"
},
{
"type": "Title and Content",
"title": "Key Points",
"content": [
"**First point** - Something important",
"*Second point* - Something interesting",
"***Third point*** - Something critical"
]
},
{
"type": "table",
"title": "Project Status",
"table": {
"header_style": "dark_blue_white_text",
"row_style": "alternating_light_gray",
"data": [
["**Task**", "*Status*", "___Owner___"],
["Design", "**Complete**", "Alice"],
["Development", "***In Progress***", "Bob"],
["Testing", "*Planned*", "Carol"]
]
}
}
]
}
}
# Create the presentation (one command does everything)
result = deck.create_presentation_from_json(
presentation_data,
fileName="MyPresentation",
templateName="default"
)
print(result) # "Successfully created presentation: MyPresentation.2025-01-26_1430.g.pptx"
```
### Supported Slide Types
```python
# Title slide
{
"type": "Title Slide",
"title": "Your Title Here",
"subtitle": "Your Subtitle"
}
# Content slide with bullets and paragraphs
{
"type": "Title and Content",
"title": "Slide Title",
"content": [
"Bullet point one",
"Bullet point two",
"Regular paragraph text"
]
}
# Table slide with styling
{
"type": "table",
"title": "Table Title",
"table": {
"header_style": "dark_blue_white_text", # or "light_blue_dark_text"
"row_style": "alternating_light_gray", # or "solid_white"
"data": [
["Header 1", "Header 2", "Header 3"],
["Row 1 Col 1", "Row 1 Col 2", "Row 1 Col 3"],
["Row 2 Col 1", "Row 2 Col 2", "Row 2 Col 3"]
]
}
}
# Section divider
{
"type": "Section Header",
"title": "Section Title",
"subtitle": "Section Description"
}
```
## Method 2: Markdown + YAML (Recommended)
Perfect for natural writing. Use YAML frontmatter to specify layouts, then write content in markdown.
### Simple Example
```python
markdown_content = """
---
layout: Title Slide
---
# **My Presentation**
## Created with *Deckbuilder*
---
layout: Title and Content
---
# Key Benefits
## Why Choose Our Solution
Our platform offers significant advantages over traditional approaches.
- **Performance** - 3x faster processing
- **Reliability** - 99.9% uptime guarantee
- **Security** - Enterprise-grade encryption
- **Support** - 24/7 expert assistance
Contact us today to learn more about implementation.
---
layout: table
style: dark_blue_white_text
row_style: alternating_light_gray
---
# Implementation Timeline
| **Phase** | *Duration* | ___Status___ |
| Planning | 2 weeks | **Complete** |
| Development | 6 weeks | ***In Progress*** |
| Testing | 2 weeks | *Scheduled* |
| Deployment | 1 week | ___Pending___ |
"""
# Create presentation from markdown
deck = get_deckbuilder_client()
result = deck.create_presentation_from_markdown(
markdown_content,
fileName="MyMarkdownPresentation",
templateName="default"
)
print(result)
```
### Content Formatting
**Inline Formatting** (works in both JSON and Markdown):
- `**bold text**` → **bold text**
- `*italic text*` → *italic text*
- `___underlined text___` → ___underlined text___
- `***bold italic***` → ***bold italic***
- `***___all three___***` → ***bold italic underlined***
**Content Types**:
- `# Heading` → Section heading (larger text)
- `## Subheading` → Subsection heading
- `Regular paragraph` → Normal paragraph text
- `- Bullet point` → Bullet list item
- Tables use standard markdown syntax
## Advanced Layouts (Structured Frontmatter)
For more complex layouts, use structured YAML:
```yaml
---
layout: Four Columns
title: Feature Comparison
columns:
- title: Performance
content: "**Lightning fast** processing with optimized algorithms"
- title: Security
content: "***Enterprise-grade*** encryption and compliance"
- title: Usability
content: "*Intuitive* interface with minimal learning curve"
- title: Value
content: "___Transparent___ pricing with proven ROI"
---
---
layout: Comparison
title: Solution Analysis
comparison:
left:
title: Current Approach
content: "**Legacy** system with *limited* scalability"
right:
title: Our Solution
content: "***Modern*** architecture with ___unlimited___ growth potential"
---
```
## Output Files
All presentations are saved with timestamps:
- **Format**: `{fileName}.{YYYY-MM-DD_HHMM}.g.pptx`
- **Example**: `MyPresentation.2025-01-26_1430.g.pptx`
- **Location**: `DECK_OUTPUT_FOLDER` or current directory
## Common Patterns
### Multi-slide JSON Presentation
```python
slides_data = {
"presentation": {
"slides": [
{"type": "Title Slide", "title": "**Quarterly Review**", "subtitle": "Q4 2024 Results"},
{"type": "Section Header", "title": "Executive Summary"},
{"type": "Title and Content", "title": "Key Metrics", "content": ["Revenue: **$2.1M**", "Growth: ***25%***"]},
{"type": "Section Header", "title": "Detailed Analysis"},
{"type": "table", "title": "Department Performance", "table": {...}}
]
}
}
deck.create_presentation_from_json(slides_data, "QuarterlyReview")
```
### Multi-slide Markdown Presentation
```markdown
---
layout: Title Slide
---
# **Quarterly Review**
## Q4 2024 Results
---
layout: Section Header
---
# Executive Summary
---
layout: Title and Content
---
# Key Metrics
- Revenue: **$2.1M**
- Growth: ***25%***
---
layout: Section Header
---
# Detailed Analysis
```
## That's It!
You now know everything needed for one-shot presentation creation. The system handles:
- ✅ Template loading and management
- ✅ Content formatting and styling
- ✅ Slide layout selection
- ✅ File output with timestamps
- ✅ Error handling and fallbacks
**Next Steps**:
- See [Core API Reference](Deckbuilder_Core_API.md) for all available functions
- See [Template Management](Deckbuilder_Template_Management.md) for custom templates
- See [Supported Templates](Supported_Templates.md) for complete layout library status
- See [Placeholder Matching](Placeholder_Matching.md) for template system architecture
