Working with PowerPoint

Just some basics

What is PowerPoint

• A flexible visual environment for presenting information visually

• You can present slides in linear fashion or non-linear through links

• Slides can contain text, images, sounds, and video

• PowerPoint features some limited animation and effects

When you open up PowerPoint, it automatically gives you a new blank powerpoint document to work with.

There will be just one slide with the generic white background.

From here you could start adding content to your slide show or change the design of the slides.

To change the design to one of the built in themes, go to the design tab and look at the various themes available.

You can also download themes from other places or design your own.

When working with text in PowerPoint, just click in the text box and type. The place holder text will go away.

You can move these text boxes around by clicking on the edge. It can be a pain to target the edge exactly.

You can also resize the boxes by dragging any of the resize handles in the corners or on the sides.

You can easily add more slides by clicking the New Slide button from the home tab.

The sidebar will stack up with slides. The one at the top is the first in the show, and they each come sequentially after that. You can change side order by just dragging them up and down in the list.

You can set the background of the slide to be a different picture by going to the Design tab and click on background styles.

Tell it to be a picture and click the file button to select the picture file.

You can set all the slides to that same background image by clicking apply to all.

You can set an animated transition between slides by placing different animations on each slide, or you can set them all to be the same by selecting all the slides in the sorter on the left.

Then you can go to the animation tab and pick the type of transition you want between slides..

You can see on the slide sorter, that the transition has been applied to each slide.

The insert tab allows you to insert all types of media into your slides. You can add images, charts, text, movies and sound.

Mess around with it and see what you can do. It is Microsoft’s most flexible environment for media.

Technical Considerations

• Powerpoint can behave unpredictably• There are many different versions of

Powerpoint• Keep your file sizes as small as possible• Test your presentation on the presentation

computer if possible• Have a backup plan in case it does not work

Learning Powerpoint is the Easy Part

• Becoming a good presenter is tougher• Great presentation is a performance– Its about you and the audience– Its not about the technology – EVER!

• Keep the following graph in mind…

Important Presentation Components

Skills to develop• You may be surprised to note that knowledge is only 20% of

the presentation equation• Confidence is the toughest part, but comes with time and

practice– Be yourself. Nervous is normal and your audience can empathize.

• Restraint is tough too, and comes in many forms…– Keep info on slides to a bare minimum– Avoid unnecessary details– Avoid stupid presentation tricks

• Until you get a good sense of timing, practice your presentations– You will be surprised at how little in-depth information you can fit in

them