Microsoft PowerPoint is a program used to aid in the development of presentations. It is included in the Microsoft Office suit and is compatible with Microsoft Windows and MAC Operating systems. It is generally employed by students, trainers, teachers, and business professionals. A PowerPoint presentation usually involves using slides to project images related to an oral presentation. It is a great complement to any presentation because it allows the speaker to illustrate the points being made. It is relatively easy to learn and can be a defining tool in the overall effectiveness of any presentation. It is also possible to create a photo album of a power point presentation along with narration and music that can be burned in CD or DVD format. This article will demonstrate the steps that should be taken to create a presentation using PowerPoint.
Things You Will Need
- Microsoft Office Suit
- Functional Computer
Instructions
- If you do not have Microsoft PowerPoint you may purchase the entire Office suite and install it using the Installation wizard. If you already have the program on the version of windows you are currently using then you can go ahead and open it by accessing [Start], the programs menu, the suite and then finally by selecting PowerPoint.
- Once the program has completed installation you can open Powerpoint as previously described. If you are going to use a regular blank document then you do not need to select anything else it opens with a blank document.
- If you prefer to try a template then click on the [File] tab and choose [New]and the prefered template.
- You can now add your text and graphics to the blank document or template. The graphic and text boxes will be empty if you are using a blank document. Templates will contain placeholder graphics and text. To insert the graphic, music or text in any of the boxes, click on the box and browse through the files to identify what items will be used, click on the chosen file to enter it into the presentation.
- You can change the formatting of the text using the Word Art tool and the text formatting menu. You will be afforded the option to change size, colour, style and shape.
- Additionally, you can create transitions between pages. To do this access the[Animations] tab where you will be able to input a wipe, checker and other transitions that will make the presentation that much more appealing.
- You can save the finished presentation on a compact disc, a flash drive or a memory card.
Do’s and Dont’s
- Familiarize yourself with the program by creating many practice presentations. This will help you to fully grasp some of the concepts that must be experienced not just explained.
- Always save the presentation in the Computer’s file system so that you will always have a backup of it. Save intermittently when doing longer presentations to avoid any loss of information.
- When you are creating a PowerPoint presentation be certain that you have a properly formulated idea, set of objectives and plan before initializing the project. It is best to have a pre-prepared structure of the content for better efficiency. Ensure that the information is accurate yet brief enough to produce short and descriptive statements. Having great graphics will not detract from a poorly planned presentation.
