Getting Started

What this page is about

The path from a new Java project to a first saved presentation with Aspose.Slides: check the requirements, add the library from Aspose’s Maven repository, run a first program, and continue with common tasks.

Overview

Work through the four steps below in order. Each step names what to do and links the article with the details. Evaluation, licensing, and support are covered after the steps.

Step 1: Check the System Requirements

Aspose.Slides for Java is a single JAR file with no native code, so it runs on any operating system that has a supported Java runtime. System Requirements lists the supported operating systems and Java versions. The project and commands in the next steps need JDK 11 or later and, for the Maven route, Apache Maven.

Step 2: Add the Library to Your Project

Aspose.Slides for Java is published in Aspose’s own Maven repository, not in Maven Central. Choose one of these routes:

• With Maven: declare the repository https://releases.aspose.com/java/repo/ in your pom.xml and add the dependency com.aspose:aspose-slides with the jdk16 classifier.
• Without Maven: download the JAR file whose name ends in -jdk16.jar from the repository and put it on the class path.

On Linux, also install the fontconfig library and at least one font. Without them, saving a presentation fails with the error “Fontconfig head is null, check your fonts or fonts configuration”.

Installation gives the pom.xml entries, the JAR download, and the Linux command.

Step 3: Create Your First Presentation

The quick start on the Aspose.Slides for Java home page is a complete Maven project: a pom.xml file and a program that adds a cloud shape with text to a slide and saves the presentation as a PPTX file. You run it with mvn compile exec:java. Create Presentations explains the same program step by step. To open an existing presentation and save it in another format, see Open Presentations and Save Presentations.

Step 4: Continue with Common Tasks

• Open a presentation
• Save a presentation
• Convert a presentation to PDF
• Render slides as images
• Edit presentation text
• Examples by slide element

Evaluate and License

Without a license, Aspose.Slides runs in evaluation mode: it adds a watermark to every slide it saves and truncates text that your code reads from presentations.

• Evaluate Aspose.Slides describes the evaluation limitations and how to request a temporary license.
• Licensing shows how to apply a license from a file or a stream.
• Metered Licensing covers licensing that is billed by usage.
• Supported File Formats lists the formats that Aspose.Slides can load and save.

Get Help

Technical Support explains how to ask a question on the free support forum and what to include when you report a problem.

FAQ

Do I need Microsoft PowerPoint installed?

No. Aspose.Slides reads and writes presentation files itself and does not use PowerPoint, so it also runs on servers and on Linux.

Why does Maven not find Aspose.Slides for Java?

The library is not in Maven Central. Declare Aspose’s repository in your pom.xml, as shown in Installation, and Maven downloads the library from there.

Does the jdk16 classifier mean that the library needs Java 16?

No. The classifier selects the Java SE build of the library; the other build is for Android. The same build runs on current JDKs, such as JDK 21.