Tips and Tricks
Animations
The Animations tab selects how selected text behaves on the slide: Select the text > choose the animation you want to apply.
Animations can be used to:
- Show one point at a time
- To reveal an answer
- For emphasis
- They can also be a distraction
Notes
Presenter View allows you to add notes to your slides that you can view on a laptop while your audience sees only your slides.
To enable, from the Slide Show tab > check the box labeled Use Presenter View. This view includes notes, upcoming slides, time elapsed, and other open programs on the computer.
Audio and Video
To insert an audio or video file into your presentation, select Insert > Video or Audio > then browse for the file in the pop-up > select the item and click Insert.
If you click on the video or audio file in PowerPoint, an extra tool bar will show up at the top of PowerPoint with a variety of options for editing the format and playback of your video.
To embed a video from YouTube or Vimeo into PowerPoint:
Select Insert > Video (little down arrow) > Video from Web Site…> paste “old embed code” into the Insert Video from Web Site pop-up > select Insert > resize as desired.
PowerPoint only handles the “old embed code” from YouTube and Vimeo, so make sure you use that embed option when visiting those sites.
You may test your work by either right clicking the video in PowerPoint edit mode and selecting Preview, or you may start the PowerPoint show on that slide.
Font Size
Choosing the size of your font will depend on the size of your projector or screen and the size of the room. If you are unsure, aim for the person in the back and make formatting choices that will enable that person to see your slides clearly.
Color and Contrast
Watch your color and contrast. Choose combinations of text and background that are easy to read and will project on all types of screens. Doesn’t show as projected, but on an LCD TV the top two color combinations are very hard to read.
Content
1) Repetition, Repetition, Repetition. Steve Jobs was famous for this. This is especially important when teaching.
2) Use big text, bold colors, few words.
3) A picture is worth a thousand words. Can your points be encapsulated in a chart, graph, or image rather than text?