Pmax Design

PMAX Design — branded composer (template + photo)

STRICT PROTOCOL — READ BEFORE ANY TOOL CALL

1. ONLY call scripts/design_tool.py. Do NOT invent curl commands; the script handles auth, the brief shape, and the task lifecycle correctly.
2. NEVER cat ~/.hermes/secrets/.task_token — the wrapper reads the token from $TASK_TOKEN_FILE without echoing it.
3. NEVER claim a template was rendered unless the wrapper printed ✓ completed — file://.... Then verify with ls -la <path> before telling the user the file exists.
4. If the wrapper exits non-zero, tell the user the real error. Do not fall back to pmax-image — they are different skills with different voice+brand intent.

When to use this skill

• Brand-template posts with a consistent visual identity (logo, colors, typography)
• GMB posts where the headline IS the post
• Announcements / promos where a designer-made PNG template already exists
• When you want deterministic output (same headline → same pixels)

When NOT to use this skill

• Fresh AI-generated imagery → pmax-image (FAL)
• Video / reels → pmax-video (FAL)
• When no template PNG exists for the client → onboard one first, or use pmax-image

Backend

• Same task_server + worker as pmax-image / pmax-video. One queue, one lifecycle.
• Render path: render_mode="template_compose" + render_model="template/v1" → the worker dispatches to TemplateComposeBackend (local Pillow) instead of FAL.
• Asset output: ~/mem0-server/assets/templates/YYYY-MM/task_<id>_<hash>.png
• Cost: $0 per render (ledgered at 0.0 for volume tracking).

How to invoke

1) Template compose (no --image) — headline on a fixed branded template

python3 ~/Projects/performancemax/hermes-skills/pmax-design/scripts/design_tool.py generate \
  --client "mock" \
  --headline "Spring special — 20% off" \
  --subtitle "Book before April 30"

Uses ~/Projects/design-agent/templates/<client>.png as the background and draws text in the configured boxes. render_mode=template_compose.

2) Photo compose (--image) — headline + logo + CTA on top of a client photo

design_tool.py generate \
  --client lux-barbershop \
  --headline "Sharp cuts, honest prices" \
  --subtitle "Walk-ins welcome in Alpharetta" \
  --image /path/to/client/haircut.jpg

The moment --image is present, the wrapper flips to render_mode=photo_compose. The photo becomes the base layer, and the client-card brand_kit drives the overlay stack:

• Contrast overlay (darken text zone for legibility) — optional per brand_kit
• Logo (transparent PNG at configured corner) — optional per brand_kit
• CTA pill (text + color + position) — optional per brand_kit

Rules:

• Local path only in v1. URLs rejected.
• --image path is canonicalized via ~/mem0-server/asset_intake.py to ~/mem0-server/assets/uploads/YYYY-MM/<client>/<hash>.<ext> before submission — deterministic dedupe.
• Text-box coords scale from a 1080 reference canvas to the actual photo dimensions, so any aspect ratio works.

3) Override the template / template_id

design_tool.py generate --client mock --template-id lux-barbershop --headline "X"

Rare — prefer one template per client. Useful for A/B tests.

brand_kit schema (client card)

Add to ~/.hermes/profiles/pmax-dareen/clients/<slug>.yaml (or the equivalent for Tarek / Mousa when they wire client-specific brand data):

brand_kit:
  contrast_overlay:
    enabled: true
    zone: bottom         # top | bottom | left | right | full
    strength: 0.55       # 0.0-1.0 opacity of the dark rectangle
  logo:
    path: /Users/majana-agent/mem0-server/assets/logos/<client>.png
    position: top-right  # corners + top-center/bottom-center/center
    scale: 0.14          # fraction of canvas width
  cta:
    text: "Book Now"
    color: "#D4A85C"
    text_color: "#111111"
    position: bottom-right
    font_size: 28

All three sub-blocks are optional. Missing block → overlay skipped silently. Missing logo file → skipped. Invalid position → defaults to top-left.

3) Fire and return (don't block on render)

design_tool.py generate --client mock --headline "X" --no-wait
# returns immediately with task_id; poll with `status`

4) List templates (honest view of what's actually wired)

design_tool.py list-templates

Output shows ✓ for templates with real PNGs installed, ⚠ PNG missing for configs pointing at TODO placeholder names. Do not try to render against a ⚠ template — the worker will fail with FileNotFoundError.

5) Status / list

design_tool.py status 42
design_tool.py list --client mock --limit 5

Template onboarding (adding a new client)

1. Designer delivers 1080×1080 PNG (or any square; the compositor respects it).
2. Drop at ~/Projects/design-agent/templates/<client-slug>.png.
3. Copy ~/Projects/design-agent/configs/EXAMPLE.yaml → configs/<client-slug>.yaml.
4. Fill in text-box pixel coordinates (x, y, width, height, font, font_size, color, align, rtl).
5. Update template_file: in the yaml to point at the new PNG (drop the TODO- prefix).
6. Test: design_tool.py generate --client <slug> --headline "test".
7. Verify with design_tool.py list-templates that the new client shows ✓.

Aspect ratio note

--aspect is NOT a template-compose option. Templates already have fixed dimensions (the PNG defines them). Aspect-ratio routing is for FAL-based image/video jobs. If you need a different aspect ratio, onboard a separate template PNG at those dimensions.

Under the hood

• design_tool.py is a thin wrapper — it calls task_server directly.
• image_worker.py has a TemplateComposeBackend class that dynamically loads ~/Projects/design-agent/design_agent.py::compose_brief().
• compose_brief() is a pure function: (brief: dict, asset_path: Path) -> str.
• RTL/Arabic is supported if arabic_reshaper + python-bidi are installed.
• COMPOSITOR_VERSION in design_agent.py bumps when text-rendering behavior changes.

Current live-template inventory (2026-04-18)

Only mock has a real PNG. The other 3 configs (kiddos-urgent-care, lux-barbershop, nail-box) have pending-designer placeholder paths.

Honest status: template_compose plumbing is done; product-done is pending real client templates being delivered by the designer.