The .pres file — Structure and commands

A .pres file is a plain-text source describing a whole presentation. It has two parts: settings (global parameters) and content (the slides). Revealer accepts raw HTML anywhere, just like reveal.js, but adds a set of shortcuts so you can focus on the content.

Structure

# --- SETTINGS --------------------------------------------------------------

> author: First author
> author: Second author
> event: Seminar place, 01/01/2026

> logo: Media/Images/Logos/Logo1.png
> logo: Media/Images/Logos/Logo2.png

> slideNumber: c/t

# --- CONTENT ---------------------------------------------------------------

>>> first: Title
> subtitle: Subtitle

=== Title of slide 1

This slide is <i>very</i> informative.

=== Title of slide 2

This slide is <b>extremely</b> informative.

Main commands

Command	Description
#	Comment. Any line starting with # is skipped.
>>> first: title	First slide. Its content is generated automatically (title, subtitle, authors, logos, event).
=== title	Horizontal slide.
--- title	Vertical slide.
%%% title	Section slide. Marks the start of a section; the header is removed. Add > relief: none to drop the text stroke.
>>> biblio	Bibliography slide(s). Adds formatted bibliography slides from the references cited with > cite:. The title can be set with > title:.

Presentation settings

These must appear before the first slide.

Any other global reveal.js options may also be specified here using > option: value (for example > controls: false). Boolean and numeric values are recognised; strings are quoted.

Command	Description
> author: name	Author name. Repeat to add contributors. Add an indented > photo: line below an author to show a photo grid on the first slide.
> rounded_photos: *true	false*
> photo: path	Author photo. Used in the settings block, either below an author or followed by an indented author. See Author photos.
> event: text	Event. Typically the location and date.
> logo: path	Institutional logo on the first slide. Repeatable.
> theme: name	Theme. revealer (default, neutral), ljp, or any reveal.js theme. See Themes.
> codeTheme: name	Code highlighting theme. See the highlight.js demo. Default: zenburn.
> slideNumber: option	Slide numbers. Disabled by default. Any reveal.js value.
> controls: *true	false*
> progress: *true	false*
> backgroundTransition: transition	Background transition. Any reveal.js background transition. false is accepted as an alias for none.
> notesSize: size	Speaker-notes font size. Default: 1em. Overridable per slide.
> svgDuration: time	Default SVG animation duration. Default: 0.5s. See SVG animation.
> bibtex: path	Bibtex file used for the bibliography.

Slide commands

Command	Description
> visibility: hidden	Hide slide.
> style: dark	Dark style for the current slide.
> theme: name	Theme for the current slide. Temporarily switches the reveal.js theme while this slide is active.
> subtitle: text	Subtitle (first slide only).
> header: none	Remove the fixed header.
> background: path/color	Background image or colour.
> color: color	Text colour for the current slide.

See Layout parameters for header-margin, column-spacing, column-width, paragraph-spacing, and the contextual size / align directives.

Content-level helpers such as citations, speaker notes, raw reveal.js attributes, inline SVGs, and SVG animation steps are documented in Content shortcuts.

Parameter scopes

Every > key: value directive applies to a scope, which determines how far its effect reaches:

Scope	Where it is written	Applies to
Presentation	in the settings block, before the first slide	the whole presentation
Slide	inside a slide, outside any column block	the current slide
Block	at the top of a column block (|| / |)	that column only
Paragraph	directly attached to a paragraph (no blank line before its content)	that paragraph only

Most directives have a fixed scope (see the tables above). Two of them — size and align — are contextual: their scope is deduced from where they appear (see Content shortcuts › Paragraphs).

Layout parameters

A slide is organised as a central area (the space left free by the optional header and footer) filled with one or more blocks (columns). Each block holds a stack of paragraphs and shrinks its own font until it fits. The geometry is controllable:

Command	Scope	Default	Description
> header-height: fraction	presentation	current look	Header band height, as a fraction of the slide height.
> footer-height: fraction	presentation	current look	Footer band height, as a fraction of the slide height.
> header-margin: fraction	slide	0.05	Vertical breathing margin between the header/footer and the central area, as a fraction of the slide height.
> column-spacing: fraction	slide	0.05	Horizontal spacing used at the edges and between blocks, as a fraction of the slide width.
> column-width: equal|auto	slide	equal	Block widths. equal splits the width evenly; auto rebalances widths so the per-block font scales are as even as possible.
> paragraph-spacing: number	slide → block	0.5	Spacing between paragraphs, in line-heights (interligne). Defined inside a column block, it applies to that block only.
> size: factor	contextual	1	Relative font size multiplier (e.g. 0.8, 120%). Cascades multiplicatively across scopes.
> align: left|center|right|justify	contextual	inherited	Text alignment.

Author photos

Author photos are declared in the settings block, before the first slide. If at least one author has a photo, the generated first slide switches automatically from a comma-separated author line to a photo table: one row of photos, with each name below its image.

Indented properties attach to the author/photo block just above them:

> author: First author
  > photo: Media/Images/Photos/first.jpg
> author: Second author
  > photo: Media/Images/Photos/second.jpg

The inverse order is also accepted when the image is the natural starting point:

> photo: Media/Images/Photos/third.jpg
  > author: Third author

The path is written like other media paths: relative to the presentation folder. For example, in a presentation with media/images/photos/, use:

> author: Esther Zamora Sanchez
  > photo: media/images/photos/esther.jpg

Authors without a photo are still included in the table when photo mode is active; Revealer shows their initials in a neutral placeholder. The author name may contain inline HTML, for instance <i>Raphael Candelier</i>; the raw text is used for image alt text and initials.

Only the author/photo properties are nested today. Other presentation settings remain top-level settings.