tui-page-composer
Generate and render a pixel-precise ASCII TUI Page Composer component with complete output blocks (TUI_RENDER, COMPONENT_SPEC, PENCIL_SPEC, PENCIL_BATCH_DESIGN) for Pencil MCP drawing workflows. Use when the user asks to create a page composer in a terminal UI, text-based interface, or Pencil MCP project.
Installation
Claude Code / Cursor / Codex
Manual Installation
- Download SKILL.md from GitHub
- Place it in
.claude/skills/tui-page-composer/SKILL.mdinside your project - Restart your AI agent — it will auto-discover the skill
How tui-page-composer Compares
| Feature / Agent | tui-page-composer | Standard Approach |
|---|---|---|
| Platform Support | multi | Limited / Varies |
| Context Awareness | High | Baseline |
| Installation Complexity | Unknown | N/A |
Frequently Asked Questions
What does this skill do?
Generate and render a pixel-precise ASCII TUI Page Composer component with complete output blocks (TUI_RENDER, COMPONENT_SPEC, PENCIL_SPEC, PENCIL_BATCH_DESIGN) for Pencil MCP drawing workflows. Use when the user asks to create a page composer in a terminal UI, text-based interface, or Pencil MCP project.
Which AI agents support this skill?
This skill is compatible with multi.
Where can I find the source code?
You can find the source code on GitHub using the link provided at the top of the page.
SKILL.md Source
## Purpose
Turn product design descriptions into a full-page text UI (TUI) that is also machine-readable and drawable:
- Output a combined `TUI_RENDER` for the entire page.
- Output a per-component summary table.
- Output a consolidated `PENCIL_SPEC` and `PENCIL_BATCH_DESIGN` plan (≤25 ops per call).
This skill assumes you follow the shared contract and grid→pixel mapping from `tui-front-ui`.
## Workflow
1. **Parse input** — Read the input model JSON (widthCols, grid, props, state, style, typography, layout, hotkeys).
2. **Calculate layout** — Convert column/row positions to pixel coordinates using the grid (cellWidthPx=8, cellHeightPx=16).
3. **Render TUI_RENDER** — Build the monospace ASCII art with box-drawing characters, respecting widthCols.
4. **Build COMPONENT_SPEC** — Emit the JSON spec with bbox, style, typography, state, and hotkeys.
5. **Build PENCIL_SPEC** — Emit the canvas and component list for Pencil MCP.
6. **Plan PENCIL_BATCH_DESIGN** — Emit batch_design calls (max 25 ops per call) to create the design in Pencil.
7. **Validate** — Verify bbox dimensions in COMPONENT_SPEC match the TUI_RENDER grid; confirm batch ops stay within the 25-op limit.
## Inputs (Recommended)
Provide a page request and a component list:
```json
{
"page": {
"name": "Settings",
"widthCols": 70,
"canvas": { "widthPx": 390, "heightPx": 844 },
"grid": { "cellWidthPx": 8, "cellHeightPx": 16 },
"paddingPx": 24,
"gapPx": 16,
"backgroundColor": "#ffffff"
},
"components": [
{
"id": "cmp_nav",
"type": "tui-navbar",
"preferredSizePx": { "widthPx": 342, "heightPx": 56 },
"zIndex": 10
}
]
}
```
## Output Contract (Mandatory)
### OUTPUT: TUI_RENDER
```text
...monospace-only text...
```
### OUTPUT: PAGE_SUMMARY
```text
| id | type | top | left | width | height | z | keyProps | state | hotkeys |
|------------|-------------|-----|------|-------|--------|---|----------|-------|---------|
| cmp_nav | tui-navbar | 24 | 24 | 342 | 56 |10 | ... | ... | ... |
```
### OUTPUT: PENCIL_SPEC
```json
{
"canvas": { "widthPx": 390, "heightPx": 844, "backgroundColor": "#ffffff" },
"grid": { "cellWidthPx": 8, "cellHeightPx": 16 },
"nodes": [],
"components": []
}
```
### OUTPUT: PENCIL_BATCH_DESIGN
```text
CALL 1:
root=G()
screen=I(root,{type:"frame",name:"Settings"})
U(screen,{width:390,height:844,x:0,y:0})
CALL 2:
...up to 25 ops...
```
## Composition Rules (Strict)
### 1) Layout model
- Use a single page frame as root.
- Default layout: vertical stacking within page padding.
- Place components by ascending `topPx`; break ties using `zIndex`.
- Preserve requested `zIndex` in both `COMPONENT_SPEC` and drawing order:
- Background blocks first
- Content blocks next
- Overlays (modal/toast) last
### 2) Geometry calculation
Given:
- `paddingPx`
- `gapPx`
- each component `preferredSizePx` or computed size from its `TUI_RENDER` grid bbox
Compute:
- `leftPx = paddingPx`
- `topPx = paddingPx + sum(prev.heightPx + gapPx)`
- `widthPx = canvas.widthPx - paddingPx * 2` unless a component requests a smaller width
### 3) ASCII rendering layout
- Use one outer page frame.
- Render each component as a framed block and separate blocks with a single blank line.
- Ensure the entire page does not exceed `page.widthCols`.
### 4) Interactions
- Combine hotkeys and de-duplicate:
- Page-level default: `<tab> next`, `<esc> back`
- Component-level only if meaningful
- Do not show hotkeys for disabled components.
## Pencil MCP Execution Playbook
1. `get_editor_state(include_schema=false)`
2. `open_document("new")` (or an existing `.pen` file path)
3. Apply `PENCIL_BATCH_DESIGN` in multiple calls (≤25 ops/call).
4. `snapshot_layout(filePath, maxDepth=2, problemsOnly=true)`
5. `get_screenshot(filePath, nodeId)` for the page frame node
If any layout problems are returned, create a follow-up `batch_design` patch block.
## Example — Settings page with 4 components
### OUTPUT: TUI_RENDER
```text
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ [Settings] │
├──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ ┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ [Navbar] Settings [Back] │ │
│ └──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │
│ │
│ ┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ [Form] │ │
│ │ Username: [ ada_lovelace________________________ ] │ │
│ │ Email: [ ada@example.com______________________ ] │ │
│ └──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │
│ │
│ ┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ [Rate] * * * * . (4/5) │ │
│ └──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │
│ │
│ ┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ [Button] Save changes │ │
│ └──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │
├──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Keys: <tab> next <enter> action <esc> back │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
```
### OUTPUT: PAGE_SUMMARY
```text
| id | type | top | left | width | height | z | keyProps | state | hotkeys |
|---------------|-------------|-----|------|-------|--------|----|------------------------|--------------------|-------------------------|
| cmp_nav | tui-navbar | 24 | 24 | 342 | 56 | 10 | title=Settings | focused=false | <esc> |
| cmp_form | tui-form | 96 | 24 | 342 | 128 | 1 | fields=2 | focused=true | <tab> |
| cmp_rate | tui-rate | 240 | 24 | 342 | 64 | 1 | value=4,count=5 | disabled=false | <left>/<right>,<enter> |
| cmp_save | tui-button | 320 | 24 | 342 | 56 | 2 | variant=primary | disabled=false | <enter> |
```
### OUTPUT: PENCIL_SPEC
```json
{
"canvas": { "widthPx": 390, "heightPx": 844, "backgroundColor": "#ffffff" },
"grid": { "cellWidthPx": 8, "cellHeightPx": 16 },
"nodes": [],
"components": [
{ "id": "cmp_nav", "name": "Navbar", "bbox": { "topPx": 24, "leftPx": 24, "widthPx": 342, "heightPx": 56 }, "zIndex": 10 },
{ "id": "cmp_form", "name": "Form", "bbox": { "topPx": 96, "leftPx": 24, "widthPx": 342, "heightPx": 128 }, "zIndex": 1 },
{ "id": "cmp_rate", "name": "Rate", "bbox": { "topPx": 240, "leftPx": 24, "widthPx": 342, "heightPx": 64 }, "zIndex": 1 },
{ "id": "cmp_save", "name": "Button", "bbox": { "topPx": 320, "leftPx": 24, "widthPx": 342, "heightPx": 56 }, "zIndex": 2 }
]
}
```
### OUTPUT: PENCIL_BATCH_DESIGN
```text
CALL 1:
root=G()
screen=I(root,{type:"frame",name:"Settings"})
U(screen,{width:390,height:844,x:0,y:0})
CALL 2:
navBg=I(screen,{type:"rect",name:"Navbar/Background"})
U(navBg,{x:24,y:24,width:342,height:56,fillColor:"#ffffff",strokeColor:"#e5e7eb",strokeThickness:1,cornerRadius:12})
navTitle=I(screen,{type:"text",name:"Navbar/Title",content:"Settings"})
U(navTitle,{x:40,y:40,width:310,height:20,textColor:"#111111",fontFamily:"Inter",fontSize:16,fontWeight:600})
formBg=I(screen,{type:"rect",name:"Form/Background"})
U(formBg,{x:24,y:96,width:342,height:128,fillColor:"#ffffff",strokeColor:"#e5e7eb",strokeThickness:1,cornerRadius:12})
uLabel=I(screen,{type:"text",name:"Form/UsernameLabel",content:"Username"})
U(uLabel,{x:40,y:112,width:90,height:20,textColor:"#111111",fontFamily:"Inter",fontSize:14,fontWeight:600})
uValue=I(screen,{type:"text",name:"Form/UsernameValue",content:"ada_lovelace"})
U(uValue,{x:140,y:112,width:210,height:20,textColor:"#111111",fontFamily:"Inter",fontSize:14,fontWeight:400})
eLabel=I(screen,{type:"text",name:"Form/EmailLabel",content:"Email"})
U(eLabel,{x:40,y:140,width:90,height:20,textColor:"#111111",fontFamily:"Inter",fontSize:14,fontWeight:600})
eValue=I(screen,{type:"text",name:"Form/EmailValue",content:"ada@example.com"})
U(eValue,{x:140,y:140,width:210,height:20,textColor:"#111111",fontFamily:"Inter",fontSize:14,fontWeight:400})
CALL 3:
rateBg=I(screen,{type:"rect",name:"Rate/Background"})
U(rateBg,{x:24,y:240,width:342,height:64,fillColor:"#ffffff",strokeColor:"#e5e7eb",strokeThickness:1,cornerRadius:12})
rateText=I(screen,{type:"text",name:"Rate/Text",content:"* * * * . (4/5)"})
U(rateText,{x:40,y:264,width:310,height:20,textColor:"#111111",fontFamily:"Inter",fontSize:14,fontWeight:400})
saveBg=I(screen,{type:"rect",name:"Button/Background"})
U(saveBg,{x:24,y:320,width:342,height:56,fillColor:"#111111",strokeColor:"#111111",strokeThickness:1,cornerRadius:12})
saveText=I(screen,{type:"text",name:"Button/Text",content:"Save changes"})
U(saveText,{x:40,y:338,width:310,height:20,textColor:"#ffffff",fontFamily:"Inter",fontSize:14,fontWeight:600})
```