11 KiB
Make Research Presentation Slides
You are orchestrating a comprehensive workflow to create a professional research presentation. This command guides the user through information gathering, outline creation, refinement, review, and final slide generation.
PHASE 1: Information Gathering & Setup
Step 1.1: Check for Existing Presentations
First, check if any presentations already exist in research-os/presentations/:
ls -la research-os/presentations/ 2>/dev/null || echo "No presentations directory exists yet"
If presentations exist:
- List them clearly to the user
- Use the AskUserQuestion tool to ask: "I found existing presentations. Would you like to:"
- Option 1: "Edit an existing presentation" (user will then specify which one)
- Option 2: "Copy an existing presentation as starting point" (user will then specify which one)
- Option 3: "Start from scratch"
If the user chooses Option 1 or 2, they should provide the folder name in their "Other" response.
Step 1.2: Gather Presentation Parameters
Use the AskUserQuestion tool to collect essential information. Ask ALL of these questions unless the user has already provided this information in their initial argument ($ARGUMENTS). Do not ask these questions all at once, but go through each question one-by-one and use the AskUserQuestion tool to collect the answer.
Question 1 - Audience Background:
- Header: "Audience"
- Question: "Who will be attending this presentation?"
- Options:
- "General public" → "Non-experts with no domain knowledge; focus on impact and intuition"
- "Domain researchers" → "Conference or workshop attendees from diverse backgrounds within the field"
- "Specialists" → "Experts already proficient in this specific research area"
- "Mixed audience" → "Combination of experts and non-experts"
- multiSelect: false
Question 2 - Talk Length:
- Header: "Duration"
- Question: "How long is the presentation (in minutes)?"
- Options:
- "4-5 minutes" → "Lightning talk"
- "5-10 minutes" → "Pitch talk or brief update"
- "15-20 minutes" → "Standard conference talk"
- "30-45 minutes" → "Invited talk or detailed seminar"
- "60+ minutes" → "Lecture, tutorial, or thesis defense"
- multiSelect: false
Question 3 - Talk Format:
- Header: "Format"
- Question: "What is the main format / direction of the talk?"
- Options:
- "Informal talk" → "More informal talks in research labs"
- "Conference talk" → "Standard conference talk"
- "Pitch" → "Short pitch event for scientific audiences"
- "Science Slam" → "Science slam talk for general audiences"
- "Public Lecture" → "Longer public presentations for general audiences"
- "Children's Lecture" → "A presentation for younger children"
- "60+ minutes" → "Lecture or tutorial"
- multiSelect: false
Question 4 - Presentation Focus:
- Header: "Focus"
- Question: "What should the presentation emphasize?"
- Options:
- "Wider impact" → "Emphasize motivation, applications, and real-world significance"
- "Technical details" → "Focus on methodology, implementation, and technical contributions"
- "Overall results" → "Highlight findings, experiments, and quantitative outcomes"
- "Vision and motivation" → "Stress the big picture, problem importance, and future potential"
- multiSelect: true
Question 5 - Presentation Name (optional):
- Header: "Name"
- Question: "What should we name this presentation folder? (Leave blank to auto-generate from project name)"
- Options:
- "Auto-generate" → "Use general format (pitch, keynote, conference oral, informal talk)"
- "Custom name" → "User will provide name in Other field"
- multiSelect: false
Step 1.3: Create Presentation Directory
Based on the user's responses:
-
Determine the presentation folder name:
- If user provided a custom name: use it (sanitize: lowercase, replace spaces with hyphens)
- If user chose "Edit existing": use the existing folder path they provided
- If user chose "Copy existing": create new folder with today's date + name variant
- If auto-generate: use the general format (pitch, keynote, conference oral, informal talk) for naming the folder
-
Create the directory structure:
research-os/presentations/{YYYYMMDD}_{presentation_name}/
Where {YYYYMMDD} is today's date and {presentation_name} is the determined name.
-
If the user chose "Copy existing", copy the contents of the existing presentation folder into the new folder.
-
Confirm to the user:
Created presentation folder: research-os/presentations/{YYYYMMDD}_{presentation_name}/
Proceeding with:
- Audience: {audience}
- Duration: {length} minutes
- Focus: {focus_areas}
PHASE 2: Generate Initial Outline
Use the Task tool to launch the presentation-outline-architect agent with the following prompt:
Create a comprehensive presentation outline for research-os/presentations/{YYYYMMDD}_{presentation_name}/outline.md.
Context:
- Goal: {infer from focus areas, e.g., "conference talk emphasizing technical details"}
- Audience: {audience from Phase 1}
- Length: {length from Phase 1} minutes
Please analyze the entire research-os/project/ directory (idea.md, mission.md, roadmap.md, related_work.md) and any available artifacts in research-os/artifacts/ to understand the project stage and available results.
Create a slide-by-slide outline that:
1. Matches the audience sophistication level
2. Fits within the time constraint
3. Emphasizes: {focus_areas from Phase 1}
4. Automatically detects project maturity (early/mid/late stage) and adapts the narrative accordingly
Save the output to research-os/presentations/{YYYYMMDD}_{presentation_name}/outline.md.
Important: Pass the gathered parameters (goal, audience, length) clearly to the agent.
Wait for the agent to complete before proceeding.
PHASE 3: Refine the Outline
Use the Task tool to launch the presentation-outline-reviewer agent with the following prompt:
Review and improve the presentation outline at research-os/presentations/{YYYYMMDD}_{presentation_name}/outline.md.
Please:
1. Analyze the outline for clarity, storyline, and climax positioning
2. Review the project context in research-os/project/ to ensure accurate representation
3. Enhance visual elements and narrative flow
4. Maximize the presentation's impact for a {audience} audience with focus on {focus_areas}
Rewrite research-os/presentations/{YYYYMMDD}_{presentation_name}/outline.md with your improvements.
Focus on:
- Strong opening hook
- Clear narrative arc with strategic climax
- Specific visual recommendations (diagrams, charts, images)
- Smooth transitions between sections
- Memorable conclusion
Wait for the agent to complete before proceeding.
PHASE 4: User Review Checkpoint
After the outline has been refined, present a summary to the user:
## Presentation Outline Complete
I've created and refined a presentation outline for you:
**Location**: `research-os/presentations/{YYYYMMDD}_{presentation_name}/outline.md`
**Summary**:
- Total slides: {estimated_slide_count}
- Structure: {brief_narrative_description}
- Visual elements: {count_of_diagrams/charts/images}
- Key climax: {main_result_or_insight_highlighted}
**Next Step**:
Please review the outline at the path above. Once you're satisfied with the structure and content, I'll generate the actual presentation slides using the pptx skill.
Would you like to:
1. Review the outline and let me know if any changes are needed
2. Proceed directly to slide generation
3. Make specific edits before generation
Use the AskUserQuestion tool:
- Header: "Next Step"
- Question: "How would you like to proceed?"
- Options:
- "Generate slides now" → "Proceed to Phase 5 immediately"
- "I need to review first" → "Wait for user to review and provide feedback"
- "Make specific changes" → "User will describe changes in Other field"
- multiSelect: false
If user requests changes:
- Make the requested edits to
outline.md - Ask again if they're ready to generate slides
If user chooses "Generate slides now":
- Proceed to Phase 5
PHASE 5: Generate Presentation Slides
Once the user approves the outline, use the Skill tool to invoke the pptx skill and ULTRATHINK:
Use the pptx skill to generate a professional presentation from research-os/presentations/{YYYYMMDD}_{presentation_name}/outline.md.
Instructions for the pptx skill:
1. Read the outline.md file carefully
2. Create slides following the structure exactly
3. For each slide:
- Pull referenced images from artifacts/ directories
- Generate charts and diagrams as specified
- Create graphics for visual elements (no placeholders!)
4. Apply professional formatting appropriate for research presentations
5. Save the final presentation as research-os/presentations/{YYYYMMDD}_{presentation_name}/presentation.pptx
Context: This is a {length}-minute {audience} presentation focusing on {focus_areas}.
Important:
- NO PLACEHOLDERS for visuals - all diagrams and charts must be generated
- Pull all images directly from artifact paths specified in outline.md
- Ensure visual quality is publication-ready
PHASE 6: Completion Message
Once slides are generated, display:
## Presentation Complete!
Your research presentation has been created:
**Files created**:
✓ research-os/presentations/{YYYYMMDD}_{presentation_name}/outline.md
✓ research-os/presentations/{YYYYMMDD}_{presentation_name}/presentation.pptx
**Presentation details**:
- Duration: {length} minutes
- Audience: {audience}
- Focus: {focus_areas}
- Total slides: {count}
**Next steps**:
1. Open the .pptx file and review the slides
2. Practice your delivery timing
3. Customize any visuals or animations as needed
4. Run /make-slides again if you want to create a variant (e.g., shorter version, different audience)
The presentation is ready for your review!
Important Notes
Directory Checking
Before any phase that references research-os/project/, verify these files exist:
- If
research-os/project/idea.mdorresearch-os/project/mission.mddon't exist, inform the user:No research project found. Please run /plan-research first to establish your project, or create research-os/project/idea.md with your research concept.
Error Handling
- If agents fail, provide clear error messages and suggest troubleshooting steps
- If the pptx skill encounters missing assets, list them and ask user how to proceed
- If existing presentation folders are corrupted or incomplete, offer to start fresh
Flexibility
- Users can exit at any phase and resume later
- The outline.md file can be manually edited between Phase 3 and Phase 5
- Multiple presentations can be created from the same project
Design Philosophy
This command follows a human-in-the-loop approach:
- Gather requirements explicitly (no defaults)
- Let specialized agents do deep work autonomously
- Provide a review checkpoint before expensive operations
- Deliver production-ready output
The workflow balances automation with user control, ensuring the final presentation aligns with the researcher's vision while leveraging AI for structure, refinement, and generation.