Powerpoint Basics

1. Powerpoint Basics Sci. Info Skills

2. it is a simple program to use simply • you know Word so you know the basics– they are the same in PPt • fonts, copy/paste, editing, inserting images, graphs • the lines above were in the default font which is too large – this is 18pt • the basic view shows you • the current slide as the main part of the screen • mini-versions of the slides on the left • these can be used for quickly moving from one slide to another • PageUp/PageDown also work

3. Some terminology : Slide • the equivalent of a page in Word • each screen is one slide • if you fill up a slide, it doesn’t run onto the next page • it just makes the font smaller to fit • to add a new slide, use Insert tab/New Slide or Ctrl-M • when you create a new slide, it will offer different content options, e.g. table, chart, pictures • or you can simply start typing text • the Table function is quite good (in 2013) • it is recommended that any graphs are created in Excel and copied over

4. Layout • the normal slide will contain a heading space at the top • a large box for text underneath • there are other options • see Layout – in Office 2013, it is on the Home tab • you can change the size of the main text box • e.g. to accommodate a picture as here • simply click on the outside of the box and drag

5. Design • this gives you something other than a plain white slide • see the Design tab for options called Themes • (in my opinion) the Themes in 2013 are not as good as those in 2010 • each theme allows changes to the basic colour scheme • choosing a different theme will apply this to all slides

6. Transition • this is how you get from one slide to the next when actually running the presentation as a Slide Show • the default transition is a mouse click • the alternative is based on timing • this is controlled from the Transitions tab • the other part of the Transition is how the slide changes over • the default is a simply swap • you can get fancy, e.g.

7. Transitions • rather confusingly, to set a transition from one slide to the next, it is set from the second slide • it is recommended that you think very carefully

8. Transitions • before using fancy transitions

9. Transitions • they can be become distracting or annoying very quickly

10. Animations • this is how different “elements” of a single slide can be displayed separately, rather than all together • for example • they are accessed from the Animations page • it is a good idea to have the Animations Pane visible so you can adjust the order • again simpler (Appear/Disappear) is better than • fancy effects that become irritating very quickly

11. The slide show • this is the actual running of the slides without the Office menu & sidebars • set up options • depend on how it is intended to be used • support for a talk • display on a computer screen – no human interaction required