Automated summary

This skill recovers PDF outline bookmarks by analyzing font sizes using heuristics, when no bookmarks exist and no reference PDF is available.

Strengths

Uses font-size heuristics to detect headings even without a table of contents
Offers several adjustable parameters (min-font-ratio, depth, TOC pages) to fine-tune detection
Includes a dry-run mode to preview results before writing the final file
Verifies injected bookmarks with a separate analysis step

Limitations

Does not work on scanned (image) PDFs
Can be sensitive to the font ratio choice, requiring manual adjustments
Running headers or footers with the same size as body text may cause false positives

When to use it

Use this skill when you have a digitally-typeset PDF with no bookmarks and want to automatically add clickable outlines based on font sizes.

When not to use it

Avoid this skill if the PDF is scanned, if bookmarks already exist, or if you have a reference PDF or Arcane-PP server for more reliable recovery.

Security analysis

Safe

Quality score90/100

The skill only uses local PDF processing utilities (arcane) for analysis and bookmark recovery. No network, destructive, or obfuscated commands are involved.

No concerns found

How this analysis is made

Examples

Basic recovery with dry-run

I have a PDF with no bookmarks. Can you recover the outline using font-size heuristics? First do a dry-run to show me what it would find.

Adjusted detection parameters

The dry run detected too many headings. Try increasing the minimum font ratio to 1.3 and show the result again.

Skill: recover-outline-heuristic

Name: Recover PDF Outline Bookmarks Heuristic
Author: Skills Guide Bot

Recover PDF outline bookmarks using font-size heuristics when no bookmarks exist and no reference PDF or TOC seed is available.

When to use

The user has a PDF with no bookmarks and wants to recover them using font analysis. Use when they say "recover outline", "add bookmarks", "fix chapters" — and no reference PDF or Arcane-PP server is mentioned. Prefer this over the bridge workflow for digitally-typeset PDFs with consistent font sizes.

Steps Claude must follow

Probe the PDF:
```
arcane analyze probe "<pdf>" --json
```
Abort if document_kind == "Scanned". Warn if has_outlines == true (already has bookmarks).
Inspect font clusters and body size:
```
arcane analyze layout "<pdf>" --json
```
Note body_font_size and the cluster sizes. Choose --min-font-ratio so that headings (typically 1.2–1.5× body) are captured but running headers (often same size as body) are not.
Detect page offset (if applicable):
```
arcane analyze offset "<pdf>" --json
```
If offset is found, note the offset value. Will be passed as --page-one below.
Dry-run — preview detected headings:
```
arcane recover-outline "<pdf>" --dry-run --depth 2 --min-font-ratio 1.2
```
Show the heading table to the user. If results look wrong, adjust --min-font-ratio and repeat. Also try --toc-pages "N-M" if the user can identify the TOC pages.

Write the recovered PDF (only after user confirms):

arcane recover-outline "<pdf>" --output "<fixed.pdf>" --depth 2 --min-font-ratio 1.2

Verify injected bookmarks:

arcane analyze outline "<fixed.pdf>" --depth 2

Fill in template.md and present the summary.

Parameter selection guide

| Observation | Recommendation | |-------------|----------------| | Too many headings detected | Increase --min-font-ratio (try 1.3) | | Too few headings | Decrease --min-font-ratio (try 1.1) or add --toc-pages | | Wrong page numbers | Pass --page-one N with the offset value from step 3 | | Section headings missing | Use --depth 2 | | Confident results needed fast | Add --toc-pages "N-M" for fuzzy-match boost (+0.20 confidence) |

From the file to a first result

The download contains exactly the content displayed on this page. This copy may differ from the latest version in the source repository.

View the source and supporting files

This download contains SKILL.md only. Any scripts, references, templates and dependencies are not included. Get the required files from the source, preserving their directory structure, before continuing.

1. Download the file

Download SKILL.md

From the root of a test project, save the file as .skill-downloads/recover-pdf-outline-bookmarks-heuristic-mrwakehi/SKILL.md, or use the command below. This folder is for inspecting the skill before installation.

Command for macOS/Linux or WSL: requires a POSIX shell and curl. On Windows without WSL, use the download button and create the folder manually.

mkdir -p '.skill-downloads/recover-pdf-outline-bookmarks-heuristic-mrwakehi' && curl --fail --show-error --location 'https://skills-guides.com/api/skills/recover-pdf-outline-bookmarks-heuristic-mrwakehi/download' --output '.skill-downloads/recover-pdf-outline-bookmarks-heuristic-mrwakehi/SKILL.md.part' && mv '.skill-downloads/recover-pdf-outline-bookmarks-heuristic-mrwakehi/SKILL.md.part' '.skill-downloads/recover-pdf-outline-bookmarks-heuristic-mrwakehi/SKILL.md'

2. Check prerequisites

Read SKILL.md before using it. If it references scripts or external services, inspect them and prepare the required access in your test environment.

No recognized prerequisites section in this file. This does not mean it is self-contained: libraries, tools and access requirements may be mentioned elsewhere in the content or source repository.

The platforms on this page are catalog indications. The paths below follow tool documentation; they do not prove this skill has been run in those tools. No minimum tool version is confirmed for this listing.

3. Load the skill

This file does not provide a usable name/description header for this native procedure. It remains available to download and inspect; use the manual method below.

Manual method or another tool: attach SKILL.md to a conversation, or open it in an agent that can read files. Include any required supporting resources. No universal folder is recognized by every tool.

4. Try a first task

Use a short, synthetic input: an API endpoint, a small document or an interface brief. In a new conversation, attach the file or give the agent its path, then adapt this request:

Read .skill-downloads/recover-pdf-outline-bookmarks-heuristic-mrwakehi/SKILL.md and apply its instructions to this example: [describe a test input]. Identify any missing files, dependencies or access. Produce the result requested by the skill without inventing data or running unreviewed scripts.

Expected result: output matching the skill instructions, or a precise list of missing prerequisites. A read confirmation alone does not validate a first use. If an external resource is unavailable, that path remains untested.

Related skills

PDF Reader

Productivity

Read and extract text from PDF files, including documents, reports, contracts, and spreadsheets. Works with local files, URLs, and WhatsApp attachments. Use whenever PDF content is needed, even if not explicitly requested.

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Skills Guide Bot