# Doc Reader

> Extracts plain text from office and web documents with zero dependencies — docx, pptx, xlsx, html, markdown, and plain text, using only Python's stdlib (zipfile + xml.etree). No LibreOffice, no python-docx, no network. PDF delegates to pdftotext when installed, reporting honestly when it is not. Use when an agent needs to read, summarize, or compare documents without installing document tooling.

- Skill: `trac3r00/doc-reader` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 2 files)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add trac3r00/doc-reader`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/trac3r00/doc-reader/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Web & Frontend
- License: MIT
- Author: trac3r00 (https://skillmd.com/u/trac3r00)
- Updated: 2026-09-17
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/trac3r00/doc-reader

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# Doc Reader

Office files are ZIPs of XML. This reads them with the stdlib, so an agent
can work with documents on any machine with zero installs.

## Commands

```bash
python3 scripts/doc_reader.py report.docx
python3 scripts/doc_reader.py slides.pptx --json
python3 scripts/doc_reader.py data.xlsx | head -50
python3 scripts/doc_reader.py page.html notes.md book.pdf
```

## Supported formats

| Format | How | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| `.docx` | ZIP + word/document.xml paragraphs | headings preserved as paragraphs |
| `.pptx` | ZIP + ppt/slides/slideN.xml | per-slide text, slide count |
| `.xlsx` | ZIP + shared strings + sheet rows | tab-separated rows |
| `.html`/`.htm` | html.parser, scripts/styles stripped | clean readable text |
| `.md`/`.txt` | raw text | passthrough |
| `.pdf` | delegates to `pdftotext` | honest error if not installed |

## Exit codes

0 = all files read, 1 = some failed, 2 = all failed or unsupported format.
Corrupt files (bad ZIP, malformed XML) are reported as corrupt, not silently
skipped.

## Pairs with

`resume-audit` (convert a PDF resume with doc-reader first, then audit),
`seo-audit` (read the HTML doc-reader extracts, then score it).