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Create a deckio-starter template repo for one-click Dev Container / Codespaces onboarding #39

Description

@DevSecNinja

Summary

Create a dedicated deckio-starter template repository in the deckio-art organization so new users can spin up a working DECKIO presentation project in one click — via a local Dev Container or a GitHub Codespace — without manually scaffolding.

Motivation

Today the onboarding path for a new user is:

  1. Run npm create deckio my-talk
  2. cd my-talk && npm install
  3. npm run dev
  4. Drive the deck with GitHub Copilot in Agent mode

This works, but it assumes the user has a local Node toolchain and knows the CLI flow. A template repo (marked as a GitHub "template", so users click Use this template) would let someone go from zero to a live, hot-reloading deck with Copilot instructions/skills preloaded — entirely in the browser via Codespaces, or locally via the Dev Containers extension.

This mirrors the dev-container setup that already lives in this engine repo under .devcontainer/, but packaged for end users building their own decks rather than for engine contributors.

Proposed solution

A new repo deckio-art/deckio-starter containing:

  • .devcontainer/
    • devcontainer.json — Node image, forwards Vite port 5173, opens a preview on auto-forward, installs the recommended VS Code extensions (GitHub Copilot + Copilot Chat at minimum).
    • postCreateCommand that scaffolds the deck (e.g. npx create-deckio .) and runs npm install.
  • VS Code task Start DECKIO (the npm run dev task) so users can launch the dev server from the command palette.
  • A short README explaining the two entry points:
    • Use this templateCreate a codespace
    • Clone locally → Reopen in Container
  • Preloaded Copilot instructions + skills (inherited from @deckio/deck-engine via the scaffold).
  • Repo flagged as a template repository in settings.

Acceptance criteria

  • deckio-art/deckio-starter exists and is marked as a template repository.
  • Clicking Use this templateCreate a codespace on main yields a running deck at the forwarded port with no manual steps.
  • Reopen in Container works locally with the Dev Containers extension.
  • GitHub Copilot (Chat + Agent mode) is available and the DECKIO skills/instructions are present in the scaffolded project.
  • README documents both the Codespaces and local Dev Container flows.

Open questions

  • Should the starter pin a specific @deckio/deck-engine version, or always scaffold the latest?
  • Should we offer theme/design-system selection at scaffold time, or ship a sensible default (e.g. dark)?
  • Do we want a "Open in GitHub Codespaces" badge in the engine README pointing at the starter?

Notes

Related: the engine repo's own .devcontainer/ and the Start DECKIO task can serve as a reference implementation, but the starter should target end users building decks, not engine development.

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