PPDX Reader

A fast, free, and lightweight offline document viewer for PDF, DOCX, PPTX, XLSX, and text files.

PPDX Reader is a desktop app built with PySide6 for quickly opening and navigating documents without cloud dependency. It supports first-run data root setup, multi-window document workflows, tabbed viewing, and automated Windows installer releases.

Features

• Offline-first document viewing
• Support for PDF, DOCX, PPTX, XLSX, and text files
• Manual open support for common code files
• Folder-based scanning with tabs: Recent, PDF, Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Folders
• Standalone viewer navigation with Left and Right keys
• Multi-tab document window for handling many files in one place
• PPTX-to-PDF conversion queue for safer rapid navigation
• Theme support: system, light, and dark
• First-run storage location setup for local data control

Supported File Types

Scanned and categorized:

• .pdf
• .docx
• .pptx
• .xlsx

Openable manually:

• Text: .txt, .md, .log
• Code: .py, .java, .c, .cpp, .js, .ts, .h, .cs, .go, .rs

Tech Stack

• Python
• PySide6
• PyMuPDF
• python-pptx
• python-docx
• openpyxl
• Pillow
• pptxtopdf
• pywin32

Run Locally (Development)

Prerequisites

• Windows
• Python 3.11 recommended
• Microsoft PowerPoint installed (for COM-based PPTX conversion path)

Setup

1. Create and activate a virtual environment.
2. Install dependencies:

   pip install -r requirements.txt

3. Run the app:

   python main.py

First-Run Data Location

On first launch, the app asks where app data should be stored. It creates an AshPPDX folder with:

• Config
• Logs
• Cache
• Runtime

A small pointer file is stored in Roaming AppData so the app can always find the selected data root.

Windows Build and Installer

PyInstaller Build Mode

This project uses --onedir (not --onefile).

Local Build

1. Build app bundle:

   pyinstaller --noconfirm --clean --windowed --onedir --name "PPDX Reader" --icon "icon.ico" --add-data "icons;icons" main.py

2. Build installer with Inno Setup:

   ISCC installer.iss

Expected installer output:

• dist/AshPPDX_setup.exe

Installer Naming Rules

• App name shown to users: PPDX Reader
• Setup file name: AshPPDX_setup.exe
• Installed folder under Programs: AshPPDX
• Desktop shortcut name: PPDX Reader

GitHub Release Flow

Tag-driven release is configured using GitHub Actions.

1. Commit and push your changes.
2. Create and push a tag such as:

   git tag v1.1.3
   git push origin v1.1.3

3. The workflow will:
   • Build Windows app with PyInstaller (--onedir)
   • Build AshPPDX_setup.exe with Inno Setup
   • Upload the installer to the GitHub Release for that tag

Workflow file:

• .github/workflows/build-and-release.yml

License

This project is licensed under the Apache License 2.0.

• See LICENSE for full legal terms.
• See NOTICE for attribution and redistribution notice text.

Author

• Ashmith
• Repository: https://github.com/ashser004/PPDX-Reader.git