Docx

Create, read, edit, and template Word .docx files.

Skill metadata

Reference: full SKILL.md

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Docx Skill

Create, read, edit, and template Microsoft Word .docx files with python-docx via four small CLIs. It handles text, styles, lists, tables, images, headers/footers, and {{token}} templating. It does not render documents to PDF, edit legacy .doc binaries, or accept/reject tracked changes (it only detects them — see Pitfalls).

When to Use

• The user asks to generate a Word document (report, letter, contract).
• You need the text, outline, styles, or embedded images of a .docx.
• You must change an existing .docx: replace text, edit table cells, insert/delete paragraphs, apply styles.
• You have a .docx template with {{placeholders}} to fill from data.
• Not for: .doc (legacy), .odt, PDF conversion, or WYSIWYG layout work.

Prerequisites

• Python 3.10+ with python-docx installed: pip install python-docx (import name is docx).
• For image blocks: the image files must exist locally (PNG/JPEG).

How to Run

All helpers live in scripts/ next to this file. Run them with the terminal tool; each supports --help and prints JSON to stdout.

python scripts/docx_create.py spec.json out.docx
python scripts/docx_read.py out.docx --text
python scripts/docx_edit.py replace out.docx --find old --replace new
python scripts/docx_template.py tpl.docx values.json filled.docx

Quick Reference

Procedure

1. Create. Write a JSON spec with write_file, then run scripts/docx_create.py. The spec supports: page (size + margins in mm), header/footer strings, styles (custom paragraph styles with font, size, bold/italic, hex color), and blocks — heading (level 1-9), paragraph (either text or a runs list where each run may set bold/italic/underline), bullet_list, numbered_list, table (header row rendered bold, rows, optional built-in table style such as Table Grid), image (path, optional width_mm), and page_break. The full spec format is documented at the top of scripts/docx_create.py — read it with read_file when composing.
2. Read. Use scripts/docx_read.py with exactly one mode flag. --text returns body paragraphs, all table cell text, and header/footer text as JSON. --structure returns the heading outline plus paragraph/table/section counts. --images DIR copies every file under word/media/ out of the package.
3. Edit. Use scripts/docx_edit.py. replace walks body, tables (nested included), headers and footers, and preserves run formatting; add --body-only to skip headers/footers. Pass -o out.docx to keep the original; omit it to edit in place. Paragraph indices for insert/delete/style refer to --structure/--text body order.
4. Template. Put {{name}}-style tokens in the document (letters, digits, _, ., -; optional inner spaces like {{ name }} are accepted). Run scripts/docx_template.py with a JSON object of values. Use --strict to fail when tokens remain unfilled; the JSON output lists filled counts and unfilled_tokens either way.
5. Verify (always): re-read the output with --text or --structure and confirm the expected content is present.

Pitfalls

• Tokens split across runs. Word often fragments {{name}} into several runs. The replace helpers handle this by collapsing the runs; the replacement inherits the formatting of the run where the match starts. Mid-token formatting changes are therefore flattened.
• Tracked changes. --revisions only detects insertions, deletions, format changes, and comments. Text extraction returns the as-is body (insertions included, deletions omitted, i.e. roughly the accepted view), but this skill cannot accept/reject revisions or read comment text. Say so to the user rather than guessing.
• Style names must exist. Applying a style that isn't defined in the document raises KeyError. Built-ins like Heading 1, List Bullet, List Number, Table Grid exist in the default template; custom styles must be declared in the create spec first.
• Numbered lists restart. List Number relies on Word's default numbering; separate lists in one document may continue numbering instead of restarting. Acceptable for simple docs; warn users needing precise multi-list numbering.
• Cell writes replace formatting. set-cell uses cell.text = ..., which resets runs in that cell to plain formatting.
• Encoding. All JSON specs/values files are read as UTF-8 explicitly; never rely on locale defaults when writing your own glue code.
• Don't unzip-and-sed the XML. Edit through the scripts (or python-docx); raw text substitution in document.xml corrupts files easily. Use patch/write_file only for the JSON inputs, never on the .docx itself.

Verification

• After create/edit/template, run docx_read.py out.docx --text and check the expected strings appear (and old strings are gone).
• For templates run with --strict, or check unfilled_tokens == [].
• Structure checks: --structure should show the expected heading outline and table shapes; --styles confirms custom styles applied.
• A valid .docx opens with Document(path) without exception — the read script exiting 0 is itself a sanity check.