musmem-toc

Extract TOC data and trace article page ranges from magazine PDFs into .dat files.

Updated Mar 1, 2026

Search Tags:#ocr #pdf #python #toc #data-pipeline #dat #magazines

Ready to run

npx skills add https://github.com/timfogarty1549/musmemSkills --skill musmem-toc

💬 Prompt for ChatGPT / Claude Chat▼

Please help me install this Agent Skill.
Skill: musmem-toc
Source: https://github.com/timfogarty1549/musmemSkills/tree/main/musmem-toc
Command: npx skills add https://github.com/timfogarty1549/musmemSkills --skill musmem-toc

SYSTEM DOCUMENTATION & REQUIREMENTS

💡 This Skill requires pdfplumber.

What problem does it solve?

This Skill automates extracting table-of-contents data from scanned bodybuilding magazine PDFs and writing per-issue .dat entries, enabling efficient TOC management and article range tracing.

Core Features & Use Cases

Phase 1 TOC extraction from magazines to populate per-issue .dat entries.
Phase 2 page-range tracing to derive PDF page ranges for each article.
Use Case: After scanning a magazine, run Phase 1 to build the TOC, then Phase 2 to generate precise PDF page ranges for all articles, ready for online serving.

Quick Start

Run Phase 1 to extract TOC from a magazine PDF, then run Phase 2 to trace article page ranges and update per-issue .dat files.

Frequently Asked Questions about musmem-toc

High-intent search queries and answers about installing and using this skill.

FAQPage Schema

How do I extract table of contents data from scanned magazine PDFs?▼

You can trace article page ranges by running Phase 2 after TOC extraction, which uses pdfplumber to map each article to its precise PDF page range and updates the per-issue .dat files for online serving.

Does this PDF TOC extraction tool require Python and pdfplumber?▼

Yes, extracting PDF TOC data and tracing page ranges with this Skill requires a Python environment with the pdfplumber library installed to parse PDF structures and a local musmem workspace to store results.

What is the best way to convert scanned magazines into indexed, searchable data?▼

The best way to convert scanned magazines into searchable data is a two-phase pipeline: extract TOC entries into .dat files, then trace precise PDF page ranges for each article to create per-article PDFs ready for indexing.

Can I generate per-article PDFs from a magazine table of contents automatically?▼

Generating per-article PDFs starts with extracting the TOC and tracing page ranges to populate .dat files, which provides the precise boundaries needed to split the full magazine PDF into individual searchable articles.

Why does my PDF page range tracing return incorrect article boundaries?▼

Incorrect page range tracing during PDF extraction often occurs when the source magazine scans have inconsistent formatting or missing TOC entries, so ensure Phase 1 accurately captures the table of contents before running Phase 2.