Editor Setup

Slipshow should be integrated into your editor for a better experience when preparing your presentation.

This integration helps in several ways:

• It helps you write a valid input file, by:

  • displaying errors directly in your editor,

  • offering autocompletion when applicable,

  • showing documentation for actions on hover,

  • jumping to identifier definitions

• Ctrl + Click or Cmd + Click on the preview will jump to the corresponding source in the editor.

• It unlocks GUI mode.

• It also allows you to see a preview of your presentation, updated in real time as you type.

• It compiles your presentation on save.

Emacs

Slipshow’s emacs has few dependencies:

• Emacs needs to be at least of version 29.1.

• markdown-mode, a major mode for editing markdown document with syntax highlighting, and other facilities. You should have it already if you edit markdown files, otherwise install it, for instance with M-x package-install <ret> markdown-mode <ret>.

• eglot, a generic LSP client (part of emacs, so nothing to install) for the rest of the integration.

You can install it by adding these lines to your .emacs file:

(use-package slipshow-mode
  :vc (:url "https://github.com/panglesd/slipshow-emacs-mode" :rev :newest))

Slipshow’s mode is a major mode automatically activated on .slp files. Whenever it is activated, it will start a preview server for the project the file is in (you need slipshow to be installed of course). The server’s address is communicated through the minibuffer, but it usually is http://localhost:8080.

The slipshow major mode also sets up editor features such as errors, documentation on hover, etc. It currently features two commands: slipshow-preview-go-next and slipshow-preview-go-previous, to control the presentation’s step from the editor.

Moreover, you can configure whether you want the preview to be updated on save, or on each key stroke, using the slipshow-refresh-on variable (that you can customize through the customize interface).

Note

If your presentation is split into multiple folders that are not recognized by emacs as the same project, two preview servers might be started, and things will break. Emacs finds a project by looking upward for a “root” file or folder. A predefined root is a .git folder, so adding a git repository to your root presentation folder is enough (and probably good practice!). Another option is to customize “Project Vc Extra Root Markers” to add for instance .slipshow and create a .slipshow file at the root.

VSCode

Slipshow currently has an official VSCode plugin, available in several plugin stores: in the “Visual Studio Code Marketplace”, and in “Open VSX Registry”.

The plugin will be activated on .slp files. It will start a preview server, whose address is communicated through a notification, but which is often http://localhost:8080 if the port is available.

It additionally provides editor features such as errors, documentation on hover, etc. Two commands are provided to go forward and backward in the preview, from the editor (open the command palette and start typing Slipshow to see them listed).

A setting is available to configure if you want to set up the preview to be updated on save, or on each file change, available through the settings.

Other editors

As long as your editor supports editing Markdown files, and the LSP protocol, you are good to go. Just start your LSP server with the command slipshow lsp!

And please contribute to the docs if you can improve them!