MasterView International Creating and Managing Effective PowerPoint Presentations for International Audiences ______________________________________________________________ MasterView International by IKONOS New Media March 15th, 2002 Issue #10 Executive Editor: Simone Luchini Editor-in-Chief: Luigi Canali De Rossi _______________________________________________________________ Table of Contents
Add questions and answers ============================================================== MasterView is sponsored by MOTO, The Expert Authority on How to Market your Training Institution Online. MOTO is a memorable, easy-to-use, step-by-step approach to successfully enter the online marketing arena for training institutions. At MOTO you can learn how to make your training institution more visible online and discover how to market and effectively promote your educational services on the Web. Visit MOTO at: http://www.marketing-of-training.com/ MOTO Beta Testing has started! If you want to join to the Beta Tester Team, send an e-mail to moto-beta#ikonosnewmedia.com ============================================================== Dear MasteView readers, I have decided to write an issue completely dedicated to tips and tricks. This issue does not have a theme, nor do - the articles - have any strict relationship to one another. I think you will find great value in them nonetheless. I always love to discover new techniques, shortcuts, secret features. And when I discover such treasures, it is my pleasure to share them with you. I think this new issue is going to be a great help in improving your use of PowerPoint (so you can get the best out of it) and consequently save you some time (that's probably the best part of it). I would like to see also some of your contributions and invite you to send me some nice tricks you have discovered while working with PowerPoint Simone Luchini MasterView Executive Editor ============================================================== 1) *The [Ctrl] key from A to Z - PowerPoint Shortcuts* ============================================================== Did you know that the [Ctrl] key is often associated to the letter keys of your keyboard to perform the most common actions you can regularly find under the menu toolbar? In addition, the [Ctrl] key has several other functions, especially when associated with the dragging feature or with other keys such as the [Enter] key, the [Tab] key, the arrow keys, the [End] and [Home] keys and so on. In this article, I will tell you all the shortcuts that you can use in PowerPoint when pressing a letter key, from the A to the Z, while holding down the [Ctrl] key. Ctrl + A = Select All Ctrl + B = Bold Ctrl + C = Copy Ctrl + D = Duplicate Ctrl + E = Center Text Ctrl + F = Find Ctrl + G = Show Guides Ctrl + H = Replace Text Ctrl + I = Italicize Text Ctrl + J = Justify Text Ctrl + K = Insert Hyperlink Ctrl + L = Left Align Text Ctrl + M = New slide Ctrl + N = New Presentation Ctrl + O = Open Ctrl + P = Print Ctrl + Q = Close PowerPoint Ctrl + R = Right Align Text Ctrl + S = Save Ctrl + T = Format Fonts Ctrl + U = Underline Text Ctrl + V = Paste Ctrl + W = Close Document Ctrl + X = Cut Ctrl + Y = Redo Last Action Ctrl + Z = Undo Last Action * Please be aware that these keyboard shortcuts (at least some of them) may not work with a non-English version of PowerPoint or Windows. ============================================================== 2) *The secrets of the [Shift] key - PowerPoint Secrets of the Shift Key* ============================================================== In PowerPoint, the [Shift] key is used not only to make any letter a capital letter, but also for other different purposes, most of which will help you when drawing or dealing with graphics. 1. [Shift]+[Enter] - How to create a new line without creating a new paragraph Let's see the first use, valid also in MS Word. When you are typing text using either the Outline View, the Slide View or the Normal View modes (in PPT 97 you do not have the Normal View mode), at any time you can press [Enter] and get a new paragraph. In the Outline View you can even get a new slide or a new bullet just by pressing the [Enter] key. Let's imagine you are typing your bulleted list, and you already have 3 bullets. Any time you press [Enter] when you have finished typing your text, you obtain a new bullet. How can you avoid it? How can you just wrap the line without getting a new bullet? You can do this by simply pressing [Shift]+[Enter]. This keyboard combination works with Word as well. Any time you want to break the line and wrap your text WITHOUT getting a new bullet (that is, without getting a new paragraph, but keeping the text at the same level of importance), you need to hold down the [Shift] key while pressing the [Enter] key. Try this out in MS Word turning on the "Show formatting" feature and you will see that even the symbol between [Enter] and [Shift]+[Enter] is different! 2. [Shift]+Drag - How to move items while keeping them aligned Do you know how to re-position any drawing you have created (e.g. a square or a circle) in your slide? You click on it and drag it (that is, you move your mouse holding down the left button) and release it anywhere you like on the slide. Well, this method is good when you have to move an object and you do not need to be precise, since it is not easy to release the mouse button exactly where you want. The [Shift] key can be used to help you keep the object on the same line while you drag it. Try to drag the object holding down the [Shift] key, and you will see that you can only move it either horizontally or vertically. However, either method will not be able to change the line from its original position. This trick is great when you want to position one object on the opposite side of slide while making sure that it is on the same exact line as it was before you moved it. 3. [Shift]+Drag - How to resize proportionally If you draw an object (any object, a circle, a square, a triangle), you can eventually resize it by selecting it and then clicking on one of the control points that surround it. What is the difference between using the control points on the 4 sides or the ones on the 4 corners? If you use the control points on the corners, you are able to modify the two dimensions at the same time, thus saving time. Imagine you have created a drawing that needs to be resized. You should be aware that if you want to modify its size by dragging its corner control points, you may take the risk of also modifying the proportion between the two dimensions. What you will get at the end of this action will probably be a different object than the original one: an object with a different shape (e.g. a rectangle instead of a square!) How can you resize an object with certainty that you will not modify its proportions (in other words, locking the ratio between its dimensions)? You can easily do it by holding down the [Shift] key while dragging your shape to resize it. Just keep in mind that this technique works if you use one of the four control points in the corners, not the ones found on the sides. 4. [Shift]+Drag - How to draw perfectly symmetrical shapes I have shown you how to resize an object without distorting its proportions. You should also know how to create a perfect object, like a perfect square or a perfect circle. It is suggested that you get in the good habit of resizing objects by dragging them from their bottom right control points. By clicking on the "rectangle" or the "oval" tools on the Drawing toolbar, you can draw your objects. However it is difficult to be sure that the rectangle you have just created is really a perfect square or that the oval you have drawn is the circle you wanted. Now that you know some tricks about the [Shift] key, you can easily guess that it is going to be used here as well. As a matter of fact, holding down the [Shift] key while dragging with your mouse to create a rectangle or an oval will help you obtain a perfect square or a perfect circle. Just remember to release the mouse button before the [Shift] key. Does it work with other AutoShapes? Yes, indeed. Try it with the triangle, the star, the hexagon and so on, and you will be surprised by the results. What else can I add? Well, what about the line tool? Do you want to try to hold down the [Shift] key while you draw a line or a connector? What happens? Is it keeping your line straight? Certainly! Now you also know how to create perfect lines which will be straightly aligned, parallel or perpendicular. 5. [Shift]+Click - How to select multiple objects Imagine you have designed three rectangles and two circles. Imagine you want to fill them all with the same red color and you want to modify their line color and style. Do you have to apply these colors one by one for each of the 5 objects you have? Have you ever wanted to know how to select multiple objects? Well, it's easy! All you need to do is hold down the [Shift] key while clicking on the objects! By doing so, you can select as many objects as you like, and then, once they are all selected, you can decide what to do with them (you can delete them in one click, you can format them, you can move them and so on), thus saving you precious time. What if you click on one object you did not want to select? Do you have to start again deselecting them and then selecting them all again? Try to [Shift] click on an object that is already selected, and see what happens... Does it get deselected? Yes. That is the way to do it. By [Shift] clicking on a selected object, you just deselect it. This feature is very useful when you want to select the majority of your objects and just leave a few of them unselected. In this case, the fastest way is to press [Ctrl]+A to select all the objects, and then to [Shift] click only on the ones you want to deselect. Isn't it easy? 6. [Shift] + click - Shortcut access to the Master Slide Text boxes and text placeholders (the ones that say: "Click to add title", "Click to add text") have two different ways of being selected. You may have realized that when you click on them, they become surrounded by a thick border. You will also see a blinking cursor in the middle of the text. That type of selection is the "editing mode", and it will let you modify (change, add or delete) the text. You cannot format your text or move the text box when you are in that editing mode. To format your text, you need to click on the border once again. You will see the thickness of the border change and the blinking cursor disappear. Now the text box or the placeholder is completely selected. You can now move them (either by dragging them or by using the arrow keys) and format them. However, you cannot add or remove text. To edit your text you need to click again inside the box. Keep in mind the two different ways of selecting a text box. To save time and completely select a text box so that you can format and move it, you can [Shift] click on it. By doing so, you will have selected it directly in the "formatting" mode, avoiding to have to click again on the border. This also works with the shapes you draw, like rectangles and circles. Any of these shapes can be typed on. When you have typed on a drawing, and you click on it, you enter the "editing" mode. In this mode, you cannot format or modify it. You need to click again on the border. If you want to avoid this "editing" mode, just hold down the [Shift] key while clicking on top of the object. 7. [Shift] click on "Slide View" mode Any advanced user or PowerPoint should be familiar with the use of the "Slide Master" and all its features. If you use the Slide Master for your presentation, any time you want to modify something, you need to display again the Slide Master: "View" >> "Master" >> "Slide Master". It is not the fastest way of getting into the Slide Master. Let me share a trick with you that can save you time. When you want to access the Slide Master from any other view mode (except the Slide Show mode), click on the Slide View mode icon while pressing the [Shift] key. [Shift] clicking on the Slide View mode icon will bring you directly into the Slide Master. ============================================================== 3) *Two tricks about drawing tools* ============================================================== When you want to draw a circle or a rectangle, you click on the relevant icon on the Drawing toolbar, move the mouse cursor on the slide, and start drawing your object by dragging the mouse around. Normally, if you have to draw a second circle, you have to go back to the Drawing toolbar, click again into the "oval" tool, go back into your slide and draw the second circle. For the third one, you need to re-do this procedure once again. There is a faster way of getting around this. If you have to draw more than one object with the same shape (e.g. three rectangles or four circles) this is what you can do: when you move into the Drawing toolbar to activate the button (e.g. the "rectangle" tool), double-click on it. Now you will be able to draw as many rectangles as you want into your slide without having to click on the specific drawing tool each time. When you don't want to draw any further, turn off the "rectangle" button by clicking on it once. On this note about drawing shapes, I'd like to ask if you have noticed how many menus and sub-menus we have when searching for AutoShapes such as basic shapes, flowcharts, stars and so on? Any time you need one of those shapes, you need to press the AutoShapes button again, then select the type you want and click on the shape you want to insert. This is often a time-consuming set of actions. You can drag the single menus you use the most directly inside the slide. By doing so, they will become floating toolbars. To do this, move your mouse on top of the thin gray border that appears on top of those little menus. The gray line will become blue. Now, click on it and drag it around your slide. It will become a floating toolbar you can easily position anywhere you like. This feature can be applied to many menus and sub-menus, such as all those that are under "Draw", such as "Order", "Rotate or flip", "Align or distribute" and so on. And this is not only in PowerPoint! ============================================================== 4) *How to type on top of the pictures* ============================================================== I have explained to you in MasterView #3, art. 3 how to set any picture as a watermark in order to create a better contrast with the text we would eventually type on it. That trick is still valid, especially if you want to use a picture as a background for all your slides and insert it on the Slide Master. There is something else you can do to your pictures when you want the text that lies on top of it to be more readable. The text you have on top a picture is either a text box or a text placeholder that comes from the standard layouts. In both cases, these objects (both text boxes and placeholders) can be filled with color. To apply a fill to them, click on them once and then click on their border (or [Shift] click on them - see previous article #2). Following that, move into the Drawing toolbar and choose your color by clicking on the bucket icon (Fill Color). Once you have chosen the desired color from the hexagonal color palette, put a tick mark in the bottom where it says "Semitransparent". This way, the fill color of your text box will not completely cover the shape of the picture that is behind. Nevertheless, your text will definitely be more readable and contrasting with the background. Another nice use of the semi transparency of color boxes is to display pictures that cannot set as watermarks because you would like them to be clearly seen by your audience. In this case, you can do the following: 1. Insert a picture on a slide and make it as big as the slide or something smaller. 2. Make a copy of this slide. 3. In the copy, draw a rectangle on top of the picture that is a bit smaller than the picture. 4. Remove the border line ("Line Color" >> "No Line") and choose a dark color for the fill. 5. Set this color as "Semitransparent". 6. Now insert a normal text box and type your text there, using a light text color such as white, yellow or gray. 7. If you want a better effect, apply a transition between the two slides, like "Wipe right". Rehearse your show and see the effect. Your audience will first see the picture clearly, without anything on top and with no watermark effect. Then a colored but semitransparent box with some text on it will appear partially covering the picture, displaying your content and allowing the audience to continue to see the picture in the background. This is definitely a great effect when you don't want to watermark a picture, but you still want your text to be perfectly readable. Instead of a rectangle with a dark background, why not try to apply a semitransparent white or light gray color instead? It will look kind of "watermarked"... ============================================================== 5) *Character Map* ============================================================== When you are typing the text into your presentation and you need special symbols or foreign letters that you do not have in your keyboard, what can you do? One method is to click on "Insert" >> "Symbol" and browse for the symbol you want to insert, exactly as you do in MS Word. This is valid for both PPT 97 and PPT 2000. If you want to have an icon on your toolbars that gives you the "Symbols" dialog box, do the following: - Right-click anywhere on the PowerPoint toolbars - Choose the last choice: "Customize..." - Click on the "Commands" tab - On the left side click on "Insert" - On the right pane search for an "Omega" icon, that is the icon for the function "Insert" >> "Symbol" - Once you have found it, just drag it and drop it where you like in one of your toolbars. From now on, you will have a new icon which will give you quick access to the symbols. Another good way of dealing with symbols and foreign characters is to use the "Character Map". At any time, you can open the Character Map, select the letter or symbol (or both) you want to copy, and copy it in the clipboard. This way it is ready to be pasted at the exact place you want on your slide. The Character Map is a Windows tool. Let's see where it is located: In Windows 95 it is under "Start" >> "Programs" >> "Accessories" >> "Character Map" In Windows 98 and Millennium you can find it under "Start" >> "Programs" >> "Accessories" >> "System Tools" >> "Character Map" If you don't have it listed in the menu, it means that you have not had it installed during the Windows installation. In this case, you can still add it. Click on "Start" >> "Settings" >> "Control Panel" and click on the "Add/remove Programs" icon. Now, in the "Windows Setup" tab, click on "Accessories" for Win 95 or "System Tools" for Win 98/ME and put a tick mark besides "Character Map". As soon as you click "Apply" and then "OK" Windows will install it for you. Once you have displayed the Character Map, to use it is simple: Choose the font style (like you do with the symbols or when you select a bullet) and click any symbol or character you want to insert in the presentation. Then press "Select", and it will be listed under "Characters to copy". You can copy more than one character at the same time. Once you click on "Copy", the characters or symbols chosen will be copied into the clipboard, and they will be ready to be pasted in your slide. Close the Character map (or minimize it in case you want to reuse it) and press Ctrl+V in the slide to paste the characters you have just copied. Last additional trick: in the lower bar of the Character Map dialog box, you will see also the keystroke necessary to obtain the character you have selected. Thus, for the future, you can alternatively use that one instead. The Character Map works fine with all the other applications, not only with PowerPoint. ============================================================== 6) *PowerPoint Viewer* ============================================================== In one of our past issues (MasterView Issue #1, art. 3) we discussed how to use the "Pack And Go" feature in PowerPoint 97 and 2000. The Pack And Go basically packs your presentation files along with a "virtual" projector, called the PowerPoint Viewer, which allows you to run a presentation on a computer without having PowerPoint installed. This feature is both practical and safe for people who travel since they may not be sure that the computer where they will run the presentation has PowerPoint installed. The only disadvantage of the Pack And Go feature is that it creates a very large sized file because it includes the viewer. Another trick is to bring with you only the PowerPoint Viewer instead of using the complete Pack And Go feature. All the necessary files are stored in this directory: C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office\Xlators This folder contains all the files you need to have with you if you want to be sure to run your presentations on any computer that may not have PowerPoint installed. This virtual projector should always be brought with you when you travel. It should be a part of any presenter's toolkit. The latest version of this program is Version 8.0, but it is still the same PowerPoint Viewer 97. Since the size of all the files you need to carry with you is potentially larger than a standard 1,44 Mb floppy disk, you can do one of the following things: 1) Use a CD-writer, create your own "presenter" toolkit and burn a CD-ROM where you include the whole content of the "Xlators" folder (5.84 Mb) 2) Use WinZip utility to compress the whole "Xlators" folder. You'll create a 2.74 Mb zip file which you can eventually split into two chunks using the "chainsaw" free software (see MasterView Issue #2, art. 3) 3) Use WinZip to compress the "Xlators" using the option to span the content between two different floppy disks (see MasterView Issue #2, art. 2) The advantage of using the Viewer instead of the "Pack And Go" is that you will only have to worry about creating this "toolkit" once. Once you have created a CD-ROM with the Viewer files, you do not need to do it again. However using Pack And Go may require you to use more than one standard floppy disk since it creates very big files. Once you have the floppy or CD-ROM with your PowerPoint Viewer files, you can install it on any machine just by copying the whole folder on any directory (even the desktop) and by double- clicking on the file ppview32.exe In case you cannot find that folder in your computer (maybe you did not install this feature when you installed MS Office), you can find it on the Web as follows: a. Windows version. b. Mac version. If you decide to download it from Microsoft Web site, you will find a smaller file (2.75 Mb) that will install itself as soon as you double-click on the file called "ppview97.exe" and follow the instructions. Once the Viewer is running, you can use it this way: You will see a dialog box, a small window that cannot be resized. Through this window, you can open any PowerPoint presentation file and it will be run as a slide show. You have to search for your presentation file where it says: "Look in:". The PowerPoint Viewer is going to look for the files of these types: .ppt (PowerPoint presentation); .pps (PowerPoint show); .pot (Presentation template). Once you have selected the file you want to run, you have some extra options: - "Advance slides": you can set it for "Manually" or "Using Timing if present". - "Print...": you can print your presentation in the standard layout (one slide per page) - "Options...": when you click "Options" you can: Under "Presentation settings", decide whether to use the settings that are stored in the file or override them. In this case, you can decide to have a presentation to "Loop continuously until Esc", to "Show without narration" or even to "Show without animation". Under "Viewer settings" hide or show the "Popup menu on right click of the mouse" or the "popup menu button" (see also MasterView Issue #4, art. 2) You can also decide to end with a black slide (see also MasterView Issue #4, art. 6). An interesting option is the possibility to organize a "Playlist"; a file which contains a list of presentations that you want to run one after the other. To create the playlist file, make a list of presentation files including pathname in Notepad, one file per line (no spaces) and then save it with extension .LST If you have a presentation that has an automatic timing (where the slides advance automatically and you do not need to click), you have another option. You can click in the checkbox that reads: "Password Locked Slide Show". You will be prompted to type a password. Following that, your show will start automatically and it will run until you press "Esc". At this point, you can only escape the program by entering the right password. Otherwise, the show will continue to run in a loop. This is a useful option if you want to set a computer to run in automatic and want no other person but yourself to manage and end the show. Once the show is running, you'll be able to use the same keyboard keys that you use when you use the normal PowerPoint program (see also MasterView Issue #4, art. 2) -------------------------------------------------------------- Send your presentation questions in: ask-masterview#yahoogroups.com -------------------------------------------------------------- MasterView is a free monthly newsletter focusing on designing and managing effective PowerPoint presentations for international audiences. Directed to communicators, managers, trainers, presenters and lecturers, it provides selected solutions, how-to techniques and resources on effective presentation-making. MasterView is an open discussion forum for many of you having specific questions about making presentations. These can be addressed to: ask-masterview@yahoogroups.com. I and everybody at IKONOS New Media will be happy to provide you with best advice, tools and resources. Who am I? I am the Executive Editor of this electronic publication, my name is Simone Luchini and I am a presentation specialist and trainer for IKONOS New Media (http://www.ikonosnewmedia.com) We specialize in empowering international organizations, grow and prosper online through the effective use of new media and ICT (Information & Communication Technologies). Founded in 1988, IKONOS New Media is an electronic publishing and distance learning company serving education, research and development organizations. If you would like to know something more about me, come and check out my page at: http://www.ikonosnewmedia.com/people/simone.htm Sincerely, Simone Luchini - Executive Editor Presentation Specialist, Trainer IKONOS New Media Rome | Washington (Simone.Luchini#ikonosnewmedia.com) _______________________________________________________________ In the last 5 issues we have looked at: Issue 5 - Oct. 2001 "SHARING YOUR PRESENTATION WITH COLLEAGUES FOR REVIEW AND FEEDBACK" 1) Learn how to use the PowerPoint Reviewing toolbar See how you can use Microsoft Word to track your changes in the PowerPoint Outline Become familiar with saving your files using progressive numbering 2) Take advantage of "Online Broadcasting" 3) Learn all of the different print options available for producing handouts and print materials 4) Discover what saving a presentation as a .pps file (PowerPoint Show) can do for you Learn how to set the presentation file properties as "Read-only" Save individual slides as .gif or .jpg files and re-assemble a new presentation Save the presentation as a Web page (HTML) 5) See how you can send a slide in the body of an email without sending the entire presentation 6) Take advantage of Yahoogroups and other online collaboration and exchange services http://masterview.ikonosnewmedia.com/masterview5.htm Issue 6 - Nov. 2001 "WHAT IS INFORMATION DESIGN - Part I" 1) Learn what Information Design really is and why it is useful when creating charts and diagrams 2) Learn five basic principles that can help you design more effective and readable tables 3) Understand the meaning and purpose of the most common chart types 4) Use the "Custom animation" feature to enhance the visual aspect of how you will display your charts 5) Learn the effectiveness and appropriateness of 2-D and 3-D charts 6) Discover the "Paste Special" option to keep your statistical charts linked to their original data http://masterview.ikonosnewmedia.com/masterview6.htm Issue 7 - Dec. 2001 "WHAT IS INFORMATION DESIGN - Part II" 1) Learn one of the basic principles of Information Design 2) See how to integrate legends into your statistical graphs 3) Discover how to move, format and position 3-D graphs 4) Learn how to save a custom chart template and reuse it 5) Step-by-step guide on how to add images to charts 6) Tips on the TAB key and chart color scheme http://masterview.ikonosnewmedia.com/masterview7.htm Issue 8 - Jan. 2002 "DESIGN AND READABILITY" 1) Learn what differences there are between these two classes of typefaces 2) See how to properly use the shadow effect to improve readability 3) Discover how to take control of the bullet symbols 4) Step-by-step guide on how to change fonts in a presentation 5) Tips to improve text readability and effectiveness 6) The effective use of colors in presentations http://masterview.ikonosnewmedia.com/masterview8.htm Issue 9 - Feb. 2002 "REVIEWS OF BEST POWERPOINT PRESENTATION RESOURCES ONLINE" 1) *Ellen Finkelstein's Web Site* 2) *R D P* 3) *PowerPoint Answers* 4) *Awesome PowerPoint Backgrounds* 5) *Indezine* 6) *Microsoft PowerPoint Newsgroup* http://masterview.ikonosnewmedia.com/masterview9.htm _____________________________________________________________ To read MasterView past issues, go to http://masterview.ikonosnewmedia.com ______________________________________________________________ * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Feedback Direct feedback: simone.luchini#ikonosnewmedia.com IKONOS New Media Via P. Giannone 10 - 00195 Rome, Italy .............................................................. MasterView Editorial Staff Luigi Canali De Rossi - Editor-in-Chief luigi.canali#ikonosnewmedia.com Simone Luchini - Executive Editor simone.luchini#ikonosnewmedia.com Mihai Alexandru Bocsaru - MasterView Webmaster mihai.bocsaru#ikonosnewmedia.com Jamie Kim - Online Editor jamie.kim#ikonosnewmedia.com .............................................................. Subscription Information To subscribe to request your free copy, simply go to the following URL: http://masterview.ikonosnewmedia.com, type your email in the box and click the "Subscribe" button .............................................................. (c) 2001-2002, Simone Luchini IKONOS New Media http://www.ikonosnewmedia.com Sponsored by: MasterMind Explorer Newsletter ______________________________________________________________ A new Robin Hood of new media technologies brings a free, 30- page plus monthly report to support communicators and trainers worldwide. He wants the common people like you to successfully leverage technology without succumbing to it. Find out first every month the alternative routes, tools and technologies that can help you collaborate, share and better communicate with new technologies. Read and subscribe to MasterMind Explorer - for communicators http://www.masternewmedia.org
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