Making the most of (Presenter) PowerPoint

© 2014 Darren Ingram. All links are correct at the time of publication. No endorsement or specific recommendation is made unless clearly stated. DarrenIngram.com About.me/DarrenPIngram

Making The Most Of Presenter PowerPoint

Darren Ingram September 2014

http://DarrenIngram.com

http://about.me/DarrenPIngram


Introducing PowerPointSoon to celebrate its 25th birthday - bringing misery,

magic and misunderstanding to the world.

Image: FPPT.com




A New Solution To An “Old Problem”?

• Old-style presentations were harder to produce, especially for a larger audience.

• Today anyone can have a go. Sadly, it shows.

• Not all presentations need presentations.

Image: Google




It Used To Be The Joke

• I have got my slides back from our family holiday - would you like to come and see them tomorrow?

• No, there’s not that many, a few (hundred) boxes.

• Yesterday’s “Slide Sadist” is today’s “PowerPoint Pest”.

Image: EHOW




Who Is Your Audience?

• Why are you presenting?

• Who will be watching and listening?

• Why will they be watching and listening?

• Is it in your interests to INFORM or IRRITATE?




• 09.00 - a random, anonymous “look-a-like” hotel meeting room.

• You might have travelled for a couple of hours to get there, or stayed overnight working late, possibly working late in the hotel bar.

• The room is hot, you are possibly cramped together like battery hens.

• Do you really, truly want to be here? Who says “conference life” is glamorous?




• The lecturer or speaker is talking about a highly technical, possibly esoteric subject such as economic theory or the market share of integrated circuits for use within sub-USD100 electronic assemblies in ASEAN countries.

• They are talking in a monotone voice, possibly to their shoes or through a rusty tin can that is barely amplified.

• They are also inflicting on you “Death by PowerPoint”.



© 2014 Darren Ingram. All links are correct at the time of publication. No endorsement or specific recommendation is made unless clearly stated. DarrenIngram.com About.me/DarrenPIngramImage: Altmetric




Use Your Tools Wisely

• The skill is how you use your tool, rather than necessarily the tool itself.

• PowerPoint should be a support for you, not your support.




I HATE PowerPoint*

This “build in” was deliberate and does not reflect the usual presentational style of the speaker. *Other presentation programs are available. PowerPoint is just especially annoying.




• It is not the fault of the tool itself, it or any other slide show presentation program can be technically brilliant at what they do.

• It is invariably the fault of the person wielding the presentation.

• Of course, the software developers of the various programs do deserve a bit of a kicking for changing things, adding fluff and generally making it more and more difficult to achieve the basic stuff at times.




Death By PowerPoint

• Can everybody read and understand your slides?

• Are they even trying?

• What is the point of your slides?




Don’t Believe Me?

Following images are taken at random from a recent Google search - this is preceded by another “ironic” use of “build in” - it gets irritating doesn’t it!













Incompatibility!• Here follows a great example of incompatibility. You

can embed a video, it plays back on one client but not on others and neither via a “shared” web view.

• The video is worth watching and the address can be found in the very small text underneath IF it doesn’t play.

• How many people would test their “magical creations” between versions, platforms and systems?




The full c 6 min video can be downloaded from http://youtu.be/tTLu4YM0c0A



http://youtu.be/tTLu4YM0c0A


Good Editing Tip!

If possible check your presentation afterwards (but before you deliver it) on a different device, i.e. iPad. You WILL probably see errors that you did not notice on your big screen.




Save The Day!

• Adopt “KISS” principles. • Resist playing with every

effect, transition, font and colour.

• PowerPoint can be dual-use, you can skip slides and let people refer to them offline.




Image: Google

Image: PraxisNow

Image: Wikipedia




I Am Not A Lone Wolf• Some rules might need to be

broken.

• Some are fairly common sense.

• Some come with experience (or enduring presentations).

• Some might just be eye-openers.

• Some may have you scratching your head (ignore “stock fonts”).

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2007/01/really_bad_powe.html



http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2007/01/really_bad_powe.html


There is no one, true PowerPoint




Here I break my own rules?




Sometimes it is better to go to a lowest common denominator

- another reason for “KISS”




PowerPoint - The new “Hoover”?

• Many people already talk about a “PowerPoint Presentation” when they are not using PowerPoint. It is becoming generic.

• Even if PowerPoint is used to present, it might not be originated within PowerPoint.




Chained To The Desk

• PowerPoint & equivalents are no longer chained to the desktop or laptop. Edit on your tablet & phone.

• Browser-based presentation programs (Google Docs/Slides, Emaze, Prezi, Slide Rocket, etc.)

• Hybrid solutions: PowerPoint/Keynote “in the cloud”.




Reasons to “KISS” #34• Version incompatibility, possibly even within the

same company. Recipients might not have the same version or wish to download viewer apps.

• Learning curve between different versions.

• Do you really need that embedded 500mb video file at 1080p or that 20mb high-res image that could print a house-sized poster?




There ARE people still running old

versions perfectly happily!*

Is your whizzy, animated presentation really adding

something to them?

What is more important? Your service or product or concept or your ability to

play about with PowerPoint?Text from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_PowerPoint (partially obscured)

*The use of the word “happily” can be very subjective for Microsoft Office users. See “Stockholm Syndrome” in the dictionary.



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_PowerPoint


Opinions Differ, Possibly?




Look At the Emperor’s New

Clothes? Many people are waking up to

the fact that “Death by PowerPoint” (and others) is not

pleasant. !

http://orbitingfrog.com/2013/08/21/on-the-awfulness-of-powerpoint-keynote-prezi-

and-everything-else/



http://orbitingfrog.com/2013/08/21/on-the-awfulness-of-powerpoint-keynote-prezi-and-everything-else/


PowerPoint History • The development and change can be interesting

for some. Not all development and change is necessarily positive and necessary. http://www.robertgaskins.com/powerpoint-history/ http://www.free-power-point-templates.com/articles/history-of-powerpoint-the-amazing-facts-you-did-not-know/



http://www.robertgaskins.com/powerpoint-history/

http://www.free-power-point-templates.com/articles/history-of-powerpoint-the-amazing-facts-you-did-not-know/


Best PowerPoint* Tip?

*Other presentation software is available







Advanced Tips?

Some of the “advanced tips” being promoted online fill me with fear. Please, just because you can do something, it doesn’t mean you must.




Transition Speed Change

• In PowerPoint 2013 click on “transitions” in the menu bar.

• Here are some very customisable options.

• Better still, maybe you should be in control of your presentation and advance your slides yourself?




Add & Edit A Graph• Hardly rocket science but

easier than ever with PowerPoint 2013.

• “Insert” / “Chart” / Select Chart Type / Modify Data.

• Old school linked files still supported but most people don’t need “instantly updated” slides.

• KISS again. Review needs.




• Create Custom Animations?http://blog.laptopmag.com/powerpoint-2013-custom-animations

• Merge Shapes to create “logos”? http://blog.laptopmag.com/powerpoint-2013-tips-tricks?slide=5

• Slide Zoom (limited use, but design better?) http://blog.laptopmag.com/how-to-use-powerpoint-2013s-slide-zoom-feature



http://blog.laptopmag.com/powerpoint-2013-custom-animations

http://blog.laptopmag.com/powerpoint-2013-tips-tricks?slide=5

http://blog.laptopmag.com/how-to-use-powerpoint-2013s-slide-zoom-feature


Excel Integration• For those times when you

REALLY need to link Excel and PowerPoint, there are resources such as this: http://blogs.office.com/2012/08/21/tips-for-turning-your-excel-data-into-powerpoint-charts/

• Remember you might not want to share that Excel file with everybody. Another plus for “KISS”.



http://blogs.office.com/2012/08/21/tips-for-turning-your-excel-data-into-powerpoint-charts/


You can spend weeks on a presentation.

Not all presentations need “Apple-esque” levels of detail.




CONTENT IS KING STYLE IS QUEEN




PRESENTATION IS EVERYTHING




Advanced Colour

Matching• If you really need this and

cannot deal with it in another program…http://blogs.office.com/2012/10/18/powerpoint-2013-eyedropper/



http://blogs.office.com/2012/10/18/powerpoint-2013-eyedropper/


You Can Play All Day• Add Youtube Videos

http://www2.palomar.edu/pages/atrc/2013/09/17/how-to-embed-youtube-video-in-powerpoint-2013/

• Add Twitter Feedhttp://lizgross.wordpress.com/2013/06/05/how-to-add-a-live-twitter-feed-to-your-powerpoint-presentation/

• Add Weather Updateshttp://smallbusiness.chron.com/add-weather-updates-powerpoint-43868.html

Image: Pixabay



http://www2.palomar.edu/pages/atrc/2013/09/17/how-to-embed-youtube-video-in-powerpoint-2013/

http://lizgross.wordpress.com/2013/06/05/how-to-add-a-live-twitter-feed-to-your-powerpoint-presentation/

http://smallbusiness.chron.com/add-weather-updates-powerpoint-43868.html


But… • If your CONTENT is poor

• If your PRESENTATION is uninspiring

• If you overuse EFFECTS

• If u make sloppy ERORS and don’t try and check it

• If you add stupid CLIP ART…




People might: “switch off” “go away”

“ignore the message”




Or think you work for the NSA!







Are you still awake?




Plan For The Unexpected• Your computer might die on you!

• Stick a copy on a USB key.

• Stick a further copy “in the cloud" if you can (Dropbox, OneDrive, Google Drive).

• Make a “plan D” version as PDF and keep in your email (if not too big).

• You can save the day with a bit of planning.




Ssshhh… a little secret!










Of course if you want to be difficult…




There's more than one way to skin a cat.

(Idiom) !

There is more than one way of achieving an aim




Linux users can often use virtualisation if they really MUST and other tools are not available.

Image: https://www.eng.iastate.edu/docs/cluerh/office.png




Google Docs iCloud/Keynote

PowerPoint Online/Microsoft OneDrive







This Man Can Be/Is

Inconsequent • Sometimes you must “mix

styles” and break rules. • Audiences can vary. • There can be “Great Tools”

to help (Presenter Notes, Timers, Laser Pointers)

• Presenting Is An Art: We Are ALWAYS learning.




Questions?Disagreements?

Darren Ingram [email protected] linkedin.com/in/DarrenPIngram about.me/DarrenPIngram



mailto:[email protected]

http://linkedin.com/in/DarrenPIngram


Making the most of (Presenter) PowerPoint

Presentations & Public Speaking