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Powerpoint templates
By now, you've been working with Microsoft PowerPoint long enough to create presentations, organize them effectively, and even help others who aren't as savvy. But you may not know that PowerPoint has features—many of which aren't well documented—that can help you work faster and make cooler presentations. Here are 15 insider tips that can help you use PowerPoint like a pro.
6 Handy Keyboard Shortcuts
Sure, you can click the View buttons on the bottom left of each screen to switch quickly among Normal, Slide Sorter, and Slide Show views. But did you know that you can also pair the View buttons with keystrokes to get a totally different effect?
For example, press Shift while clicking on the Normal View button to switch to Slide Master view; click on the Normal View button (without Shift) to switch back. Press Shift while clicking on the Slide Sorter View button to display the Handout Master.
You can also see a mini slide show in the upper-left-hand corner of the PowerPoint screen, so you can edit the presentation and preview the results simultaneously (Figure 1). To do this, display the presentation in Normal view and select the first slide you want to see in a slide show. Press Ctrl while clicking on the Slide Show button. Click on the miniature slide show to advance through it, just as you would if you were viewing the presentation full-screen.
For more options, try pressing Ctrl-Shift and then clicking on the various View buttons: Ctrl–Shift–Normal View closes the tabbed area and the notes pane, expanding the Slide pane to fill the available space. Ctrl–Shift–Slide Sorter View changes the presentation to an outline; Ctrl–Shift–Slide Show opens the Set Up Show dialog box.
Get Animated
Add pizzazz to your presentation, control the flow of information, and emphasize the most critical data by animating slide objects. Animation involves displaying objects in a particular sequence or using the appearance of motion. You can animate whole slides, shows, or virtually any slide object, including placeholders (text boxes), charts, clip art, and drawings. Keep in mind, however, that animations are best used subtlely; too much flash and motion can distract and annoy viewers.
To animate a slide or slides, click on Slide Show | Animation Schemes. You can see the way each animation will act on your slide by checking the AutoPreview box and then watching the preview as you click on each effect.
To animate a slide object, select it and choose Slide Show | Custom Animation. In the Custom Animation task pane, click on the Add Effect button, then point to Entrance to display a submenu of effects. For more choices, click on More Effects in the submenu, which opens the Add Entrance Effect dialog box. Check the Preview Effect box and then click on various effects to see how they behave. When you find one you want, click on OK to close the dialog.
Repeat these steps until all the slide objects you want are animated. As you do, you'll notice that numbered tags appear next to the objects, indicating the animation order. In addition, the objects appear on an animation list in the Custom Animation task pane. You can change the animation order by selecting an animation and then clicking on the Re-Order arrows; you can delete an animation by selecting it on the list and clicking on Remove.
Check out "Bring Your Charts to Life" (www.pcmag.com/article2/0,4149,562438,00.asp) to learn how to animate Excel charts in PowerPoint.
Chart a Path
PowerPoint includes a snazzy animation feature that lets you specify a route on a slide for an object to travel, called a motion path. Using a motion path can add an interesting element to a presentation. For example, you can specify a motion path to make an object bounce across the slide or lead readers' eyes to critical ideas.
To get you started, PowerPoint includes a number of configured motion paths. To specify a motion path, select the object and then choose Slide Show | Custom Animation. In the Custom Animation task pane, click on the Add Effect button. Point to Motion Paths on the list, and then choose a preset motion path, such as Diagonal Down Right or Up. If you don't like the six motion paths listed on the submenu, choose More Motions Paths to open the Add Motion Path dialog box. Make sure the Preview Effect box is checked, and then click on various effects to preview them on your slide. When you find one you like, select it and click on OK.
PowerPoint also lets you design motion paths yourself. To do this, select an object and then choose an option (such as Scribble) from the Add Effect | Motion Paths | Draw Custom Path submenu. Drag to draw the exact path on the slide.
After you add a motion path, a numbered tag appears next to the object to show its animation order on the slide (Figure 2). A motion-path arrow indicates the starting and ending points (in green and red, respectively). You can further modify the effect by selecting the object on the animation list and choosing options on the Start, Path, or Speed submenu (in the Custom Animation task pane).
Assorted Tips
Add more undos. Every Office user knows that the Edit | Undo command (Ctrl-Z) reverses the last action. In addition, clicking on the down arrow next to the Undo icon often enables you to reverse several actions and go back to an earlier point in your work. PowerPoint lets you undo up to 20 actions by default, but you can increase the number of reversible actions all the way up to 150. Choose Tools | Options, and then click on the Edit tab. In the Undo field, type in or click up to the number of actions (from 3 to 150) that you want PowerPoint to track, then click on OK. Note that increasing the number of actions to track may also increase the amount of PC memory the program uses.
Recycle your best work. Don't create slides from scratch if the ones you need (or ones that are very similar) are already in another presentation. Instead, insert slides from a previous presentation into your current one. First, display the presentation into which you want to insert the slides in Slide Sorter view. Click to set the insertion point where you want the slides to appear. Choose Insert | Slides from Files to open the Slide Finder dialog (Figure 3). On the Find Presentation page, type the filename (or browse to it) and then press Enter. Click on the slides you want, then click on the Insert button. You can also click on Insert All to place all the slides into the recipient presentation at once.
Shuffle your templates. The days when presentations were limited to one design template are long gone; you can apply as many templates to a presentation as you like. You may want to apply a second template to introduce a new topic or to grab the audience's attention. To do this, display the presentation in Normal view, with the tabbed area visible. On the Slides tab, click on the icon of the slide or slides on which you want to apply the template. Choose Format | Slide Design (or click on the Design button) to display the Slide Design task pane. Click on a template icon's drop-down list arrow and then choose Apply to Selected Slides.
Import documents. If the text you want to use for a presentation already exists in Word, don't retype it. Instead, simply open the Word document within PowerPoint. You may have to tweak the formatting of the imported document, but this beats starting from scratch. One caveat: This method works best if the original Word document uses outline headings.
Begin by choosing File | Open in PowerPoint. In the Open dialog box, click on the Files of type drop-down arrow, and then choose All Files on the list. Double-click on the Word document to open it within PowerPoint. It will open as a new presentation.
Use the AutoFit button. If too much text appears on one slide, you can use the AutoFit feature to split it between two slides. Click within the placeholder to display the AutoFit Options button (its symbol is two horizontal lines with arrows above and below), then click on the button and choose Split Text Between Two Slides from the submenu.
Export data to Word. You may want to distribute a text-only copy of your presentation to coworkers or develop audience handouts that include slide miniatures. Sending a presentation to Word is the best way to do this.
In PowerPoint, choose File | Send To | Microsoft Word. In the Send To Microsoft Word dialog box, choose the Word document layout you want to use. For example, you can choose Outline only to create a text-only document; selecting the Blank lines next to slides option creates a series of slide miniatures with lines for notes. After you select the layout, click on OK to send the presentation to Word.
Take a few minutes to practice these tips and you can make PowerPoint perform more powerfully than ever.
Copyright © 2004 Ziff Davis Media Inc. All Rights Reserved. Originally appearing in PC Magazine.
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