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Building & Export ​

Build and export your presentations for deployment or offline sharing.

Building for Production ​

Use the tap build command to create a production-ready static version of your presentation:

bash
tap build slides.md

This generates optimized HTML, CSS, and JavaScript that can be deployed to any static hosting provider.

Build Output Structure ​

After building, your presentation is output to the dist/ directory:

dist/
├── index.html         # Main presentation entry point
├── assets/
│   ├── style.css      # Optimized presentation styles
│   └── main.js        # Bundled JavaScript
├── images/            # Copied image assets
└── fonts/             # Font files (if used)

Build Options ​

FlagDescription
--out <dir>Custom output directory (default: dist/)
--base <path>Base path for deployment (e.g., /slides/)
--minifyEnable additional minification

Example with custom output:

bash
tap build slides.md --out ./public --base /demo/

Previewing the Build ​

Use tap serve to preview your built presentation locally before deploying:

bash
tap serve dist

This starts a local HTTP server serving your built files, simulating a production environment.

Serve Options ​

FlagDescription
--port <number>Port to serve on (default: 8080)
--host <ip>Host to bind to (default: localhost)

Example:

bash
tap serve dist --port 3000

TIP

Use tap serve to verify your presentation works correctly before deploying to production. This catches issues like broken asset paths or base URL misconfiguration.

Deploying to Static Hosts ​

Tap presentations are static HTML files that work on any static hosting provider.

Netlify ​

  1. Build your presentation:

    bash
    tap build slides.md

  2. Deploy the dist/ directory:

    bash
    npx netlify deploy --dir=dist --prod

Or configure automatic deployments via netlify.toml:

toml
[build]
  command = "tap build slides.md"
  publish = "dist"

[[redirects]]
  from = "/*"
  to = "/index.html"
  status = 200

Vercel ​

bash
tap build slides.md
npx vercel dist

GitHub Pages ​

  1. Build with the correct base path:

    bash
    tap build slides.md --base /your-repo-name/

  2. Deploy the dist/ directory to the gh-pages branch

Any Static Host ​

Tap presentations work anywhere static files are served:

  • AWS S3 + CloudFront
  • Cloudflare Pages
  • Firebase Hosting
  • Your own nginx/Apache server

Simply upload the contents of the dist/ directory to your web root.

PDF Export ​

Export your presentation to PDF for offline sharing or printing:

bash
tap pdf slides.md

This generates a high-quality PDF with each slide as a page.

PDF Export Options ​

FlagDescription
--out <file>Output filename (default: slides.pdf)
--format <type>Page format: slides, notes, both
--paper <size>Paper size: letter, a4, 16:9, 4:3
--margin <px>Page margins in pixels

Export Formats ​

Slides only (default):

bash
tap pdf slides.md

Exports just the presentation slides, one per page.

Notes only:

bash
tap pdf slides.md --format notes

Exports speaker notes as a document, useful for printing a script.

Slides with notes:

bash
tap pdf slides.md --format both

Exports each slide with its corresponding speaker notes below, ideal for handouts or review materials.

PDF Examples ​

bash
# Basic PDF export
tap pdf presentation.md

# Custom output filename
tap pdf slides.md --out quarterly-review.pdf

# A4 paper with notes
tap pdf slides.md --format both --paper a4 --out handout.pdf

# Slides only, letter size
tap pdf slides.md --format slides --paper letter

TIP

PDF export captures your presentation at a specific moment. If you have live code execution enabled, the results shown in the PDF will be whatever was displayed at export time.

Best Practices ​

Pre-Deployment Checklist ​

  1. Test locally - Run tap serve dist and verify everything works
  2. Check all links - Ensure navigation and external links function
  3. Verify images - Confirm all images load correctly
  4. Test responsiveness - Check different screen sizes
  5. Review presenter mode - Make sure /presenter route works

Optimization Tips ​

  • Use optimized images (WebP, compressed PNG/JPG)
  • Keep presentations focused to reduce bundle size
  • Test on target deployment platform before the presentation day

Version Control ​

Consider committing your built files or using CI/CD:

bash
# Option 1: Commit dist/ to repo
tap build slides.md
git add dist/
git commit -m "Update built presentation"

# Option 2: Build in CI/CD pipeline
# Let your CI service build and deploy automatically

Quick Reference ​

CommandDescription
tap build slides.mdBuild for production
tap build slides.md --out ./publicBuild to custom directory
tap serve distPreview built presentation
tap pdf slides.mdExport to PDF (slides only)
tap pdf slides.md --format notesExport notes only
tap pdf slides.md --format bothExport slides with notes

Next Steps ​