Honour cardOptions.dimensions at generation time via MCP/API
A
Alice
When generating documents or presentations via the MCP/API, the cardOptions.dimensions parameter (e.g. a4, 16x9) is currently treated as a layout hint rather than enforced. The output defaults to Gamma's fluid/responsive layout regardless of the dimension passed, which means every generated file needs to be opened in the editor and manually set to the requested page/slide size before it can be used. Please make cardOptions.dimensions a hard constraint at generation time for both document and presentation formats, so that API/MCP users can generate print- or projection-ready files in a single step.
Nik Payne (Gamma design)
Hey Alice, thanks for the super clear writeup. Totally get the pain here, having to open every generated deck/doc just to re-set dimensions defeats the point of automating it. I’ll pass this to the team.
Quick couple questions so we scope it right:
1) Which dimensions are must-have for you (A4/Letter, 16:9, 4:3, anything custom), and do you need exact print-safe margins/bleed too?
2) What’s your end output most of the time (PDF export, PPTX, print, projector), and is the issue that the generated layout ignores the aspect ratio entirely or that it applies only after you manually toggle it in the editor?
A
Alice
Nik Payne (Gamma design) Here's a clear, scoped reply you can send back:
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Hi Nik
Thanks — appreciated, and happy to scope this.
- Must-have dimensions
For me, the two critical ones are:
- A4 portrait — for documents (handbooks, guides, briefs)
- 16:9 — for slide decks (lectures, seminars, conference talks)
Letter and 4:3 aren't essential for my use case, but I'd imagine they'd matter to US and education customers respectively. Custom dimensions aren't a priority for me.
Print-safe margins and bleed would be a bonus, but not a blocker. What I really need first is for the page size itself to be honoured at generation time so content fits within it. Margins can be handled manually if needed.
- End output and the nature of the issue
My end outputs are split roughly:
- PDF export for documents (course handbooks shared with students, client deliverables)
- PPTX export for slide decks (so I can edit in PowerPoint afterwards if needed, or present directly)
On the issue itself — it's the second of your two framings, but with an important twist. The generated layout ignores the aspect ratio entirely at generation time, regardless of what's passed in
cardOptions.dimensions
. Gamma generates content as if it were fluid/pageless, and then when I manually toggle to A4 or 16:9 in the editor, the content overflows the page boundaries because it was never sized for a fixed canvas in the first place.So the fix isn't about the editor toggle behaving differently — the toggle works fine. The fix is about the generation step respecting the declared dimensions so that content is sized to fit a fixed canvas from the outset, rather than being generated fluid and then retroactively squeezed.
Concretely, if I pass
cardOptions.dimensions: "a4"
via the MCP (or select A4 in the UI before generating), I'd expect Gamma to:- Know the available space on an A4 page
- Generate content sized to fit that space (e.g. cap bullets, tables, image sizes)
- Split content across multiple cards when it exceeds one page
Right now, none of that happens —
dimensions
is treated as a visual hint applied post-generation rather than a generation-time constraint.Thanks,
Alice
Nik Payne (Gamma design)
Alice: Thanks. Forwarded to our technical support lead Max