Guide · Agent skill
How to use the Notebook-Style Capstone Defense Deck agent skill
Updated · written with AI from the project's own documentation and checked against our catalogue data
The Notebook-Style Capstone Defense Deck is an agent skill that turns your project content into a single self-contained HTML slide file styled like a cream paper notebook with coloured index tabs. It is aimed at computer-science students preparing a capstone or thesis defense for a professor or committee. After this guide you will know what the skill changes about your agent's behaviour, how to install it, how to phrase a request that triggers it, and what to check before you present.
Notebook-Style Capstone Defense Decknexu-io/open-design · Apache-2.0 Download the skill Quick start
- 1Download the ZIP. Get the fs-notebook-tabs ZIP from this page. It contains example.html, open-design.json and SKILL.md.
- 2Unzip into a skills folder. Extract the folder into ~/.claude/skills/ for all projects, or into a project's .claude/skills/ folder for one project.
- 3Or upload in the Claude apps. If you use the Claude apps, go to Settings → Capabilities → Skills and upload the skill there.
- 4Write your project content. Gather the problem, method, evaluation, limitations and likely defense questions, plus the key numbers you must show.
- 5Send a natural request. Ask for a single-file HTML defense deck, name the audience and point the agent at your material.
- 6Answer the missing-essentials questions. The agent asks for audience, decision target, deadline and must-keep numbers before drafting the slide plan.
- 7Review and open the HTML file. Check every number and claim, step through the slides in a browser, and then present from the HTML file.
What the skill makes the agent do
An agent skill is a folder of instructions that an AI agent loads when your request matches it. This skill tells the agent to build a presentation from a fixed design template rather than inventing a new look. The template is the file example.html in the plugin folder, and the skill's SKILL.md describes the rules the agent must follow.
You supply the substance: the problem, method, evaluation, limitations and the questions you expect at the defense. The agent fills the template's slides with that content while keeping the fixed fonts, colours and layout. Before producing a slide plan and critique, it asks for anything missing, such as the audience, the decision you want the committee to make, the deadline and the key numbers that must appear.
- Output is one HTML file, not a PowerPoint file.
- Each slide is a cream paper page on a dark background, with five coloured index tabs on the right edge and binder holes on the left.
- Fonts are Bodoni Moda for headings and DM Sans for body text.
- The skill forbids other fonts and colours and says not to redesign the template.
Install the skill (ZIP or Claude apps)
Download the ZIP of the fs-notebook-tabs skill from this page. The package contains example.html, open-design.json and SKILL.md.
For Claude Code, unzip the folder into ~/.claude/skills/ to make it available in all your projects. To limit it to one project, unzip it into that project's .claude/skills/ folder instead.
In the Claude apps, you can upload the skill under Settings → Capabilities → Skills instead of placing files on disk.
- Personal (all projects): ~/.claude/skills/
- Single project: the project's .claude/skills/ folder
- Claude apps: Settings → Capabilities → Skills
Trigger the skill with a natural request
The skill's metadata lists trigger words such as coursework, defense, academic, html deck and html slides. Your request does not need to use exact keywords, but naming the output and the audience makes it more likely the agent picks this skill.
Give the agent your subject, your audience and what you want the committee to decide or understand. Then point it at your source material.
- Make a single-file HTML defense deck for my capstone on an on-device keyboard that predicts next words. The audience is my professor and the defense committee.
- Turn my project notes into an HTML slide deck in the notebook style. Cover problem, method, evaluation, limitations and likely defense questions.
- Before writing slides, ask me for anything missing: audience, deadline and must-keep numbers.
What the deck looks like and how it works
The deck is authored on a fixed 1920×1080 canvas and scaled to fit the window, so the layout does not reflow between screens. Slides change with the arrow keys, Space, PageUp and PageDown, Home and End, mouse wheel, or a touch swipe. Each slide has a deep link in the form #/ followed by its index number.
The skill's rubric asks whether a reviewer can find the contribution, the evidence and the limitation in under 90 seconds. Use that as your check when you review the generated slides.
- Keep the number of points per slide low; the template's bullet layout allows at most three.
- Check every number against your own results, because the skill does not verify facts.
What the skill needs and safety notes
The agent must be able to read and edit files, because the skill works from example.html. The deck loads Bodoni Moda and DM Sans from Google Fonts through an @import, so the page needs internet access when it is viewed. The skill does not run scripts, but it does use the network for fonts.
The skill is licensed under Apache-2.0. Its design derives from an MIT-licensed style preset, which the skill credits in its description.
- Runs scripts: no
- Uses network: yes, to load Google Fonts
- Licence: Apache-2.0
Tips for a better defense deck
Give the agent your real source material first: results tables, the evaluation setup and your list of limitations. The skill fills slides from what you provide, so thin input produces thin slides.
Ask for the critic pass explicitly. It is the part of the workflow that checks whether the contribution, evidence and limitation are easy to find.
Open the HTML file in a browser and step through every slide before the defense, and test it offline if you cannot rely on the font link.
- Supply the key numbers in your message so the agent does not have to guess them.
- Rename the tab labels to match your real sections; the template's colour order can stay the same.
- Do not ask for other fonts or colours; the skill will not use them.
What people use it for
- A computer-science student preparing a capstone defense for a professor and committee on a machine-learning project.
- A thesis student who wants a visually consistent HTML slide file rather than a PowerPoint deck.
- A student who has project notes and needs them organised into problem, method, evaluation, limitations and defense answers.
- A student preparing a rehearsal deck with a critic pass that checks whether the contribution and evidence are easy to find.
Frequently asked questions
Is the fs-notebook-tabs skill free to use?
The skill is licensed under Apache-2.0, which is stated on its page. Check the licence file in the downloaded package for the full terms before reusing or redistributing it.
What do I need to install the notebook-style capstone defense skill?
You need an AI agent that can read and edit files, since the skill works from example.html, and internet access so the deck can load Google Fonts. Install by unzipping the folder into ~/.claude/skills/ or a project's .claude/skills/ folder, or upload it under Settings → Capabilities → Skills in the Claude apps.
Where do I put the fs-notebook-tabs skill folder?
Put it in ~/.claude/skills/ to make it available across your projects, or in the .claude/skills/ folder inside one project to limit it to that project. In the Claude apps you can upload it under Settings → Capabilities → Skills instead.
Does the skill run scripts on my computer?
No, the skill is listed as not running scripts. It does use the network, because the deck loads Bodoni Moda and DM Sans from Google Fonts.
Can I change the colours or fonts in the deck?
Not within this skill. It forbids other fonts and colours and says not to redesign the template, so it is only suitable if you want this specific notebook look.
Will the skill check that my results are correct?
No. The skill is a layout template, so the accuracy of the slides depends on your own material. Check every number and claim against your results before the defense.
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Our verdict
Use this skill if you are a computer-science student who wants a consistent, self-contained HTML defense deck in a distinctive notebook style, and you can supply your own verified numbers. Pick a different tool if you need your own visual identity, PowerPoint-style editing, or an agent that checks facts for you.
Download the skill