Remember all the hassle it was to make a file Read-only in MS Office Word, Excel and PowerPoint versions prior to 2007?
You had to save and close the file, locate it through Windows, right-click on it and then you could finally select the Read-only checkbox.
Whew! That’s a lot of steps and a bit of a pain.
Well, if you’re using a 2007 version then today you’re in luck.… Continue reading
Do you use MS PowerPoint’s Slide Sorter view to rearrange your presentations?
Ever find yourself wishing that you didn’t have to switch from the Normal view to accomplish this task?
Do you have PowerPoint XP, 2003 or 2007?
If you answered yes to all three questions, then I have some good news for you. In the newer versions of PowerPoint, you can rearrange slides while still in the Normal view!… Continue reading
When you use MS PowerPoint do you use animations for the entrance and exit of specific items on your slides?
Do you use a lot of them?
I know that sometimes I’m left with a list of 20 or 30 different animations. It can get rather confusing and there’s nothing more aggravating than previewing my work only to find that things are making their entrances and exits all out of… Continue reading
Getting the “Right Order”
When you use MS PowerPoint do you use animations for the entrance and exit of specific items on your slides?
Do you use a lot of them?
I know that sometimes I’m left with a list of 20 or 30 different animations. It can get rather confusing and there’s nothing more aggravating than previewing my work only to find that things are making their entrances and… Continue reading
Start From Here
Here’s a really quick tip for my MS PowerPoint users…
Did you know that you can start your slideshow from the beginning with a single key?
Yep, that’s right, it can be done.
A simple jab at the F5 key and your presentation starts at the first slide.
And, I have one more extra tidbit for my PowerPoint 2007 users… you can use Shift + F5 to… Continue reading
You’ve just got to give these a try! I’ve been doing a tremendous amount of work in PowerPoint lately and these have truly helped to make my presentations smooth as silk! Continue reading
The “Smooth” Presentation Quick Move
If you use MS PowerPoint presentations as frequently as I do, you probably find it best to know as many little tricks as possible to make each presentation go smoothly. Am I right?
I’m sure most of you have discovered the tools in the bottom left hand corner of your presentation. You know, the ones you use with the mouse to navigate, draw, etc.… Continue reading
On the Side
Do you use the miniature slides in MS PowerPoint for navigation purposes?
I don’t know about you, but I love them! I can quickly scroll through a long presentation, locate the slide I need to edit, select its miniature version and zoom! I’m there in an instant.
There’s no scrolling slide by slide to find what I need
Object Selection Made Easy in PowerPoint 2007
If you’re anything like me, your MS PowerPoint slides are sometimes loaded with different items, especially when you start layering objects.
That can make for some very “slick” presentations, but it can also cause some major headaches when it comes time to do your editing.
There’s always one thing in front of another and you’re constantly trying to select one thing, but getting… Continue reading
It Always Matches in Office 2007
Were you a fan of the custom clipart colors in the older versions of MS PowerPoint?
You were able to create exactly what you needed and you could always choose to copy and paste it into one of the other Office programs. It could be a bit of a pain though, since only PowerPoint could do the recolor work on the clipart.
I really… Continue reading
I Could Read It on the Screen
Ever find yourself thinking that exact thing as you give an MS PowerPoint presentation?
I mean, you created the presentation and everything looked great on your computer monitor. Yes, legible, clear and basically, you thought you had a masterpiece. Since you didn’t have a projector handy, you saved your file, packed up your computer and headed off to your meeting.
Now, you’re standing… Continue reading
Give It a Quick “Face Lift”
Are you getting tired of the same old look when you browse through your MS PowerPoint 2007 themes?
I don’t know about you, but I have certain themes I just love, yet I also tend to get bored with the same look over and over again. So, of course, I had to wonder if there was a way to keep my favorite themes, while… Continue reading
Get to the Point
Do you find yourself inserting a lot of shapes in MS PowerPoint 2007?
Are you happy with the choices the Shapes button under the Insert tab on the ribbon has to offer?
I’m sure you’re pleased most of the time, but what about the rest of the time?
If you’re like me, I’m sure you’ve had occasions where you wished the shape was slightly different. And… Continue reading
Quickly “Flipping” Through Your Presentation
I’ve noticed that many MS PowerPoint users always seem to use the scroll bar to move from slide to slide while editing in the Normal view.
That’s not a bad way to work and PowerPoint will even update you as to which slide you’re on while you scroll through the presentation.
But what if you’re not
Use Slides From Other Files: PowerPoint 2007
Today, we’ll work with PowerPoint 2007′s ability to reuse slides from another presentation, saving you time and energy. Let’s get right down to business!
First, in order to bring slides from another presentation into the presentation currently open, you need the bottom half of the New Slide button on the Home ribbon.
At the
Giving the Slide Theme a New Look
Do you have a favorite design theme in MS PowerPoint 2007?
Perhaps you even have a couple of favorites. Even so, are you starting to feel like they’ve been overused?
Looking for an easy way to give them a quick “face lift” without losing all the cool elements and formatting that made you love them in the first place?
No problem! I recently… Continue reading
Numbered My Way
Ever give a presentation that involved a couple of different PowerPoint files? Was it confusing to have the slide numbers of all the different files start over at 1? Looking for a quick fix to avoid duplicates? No, I’m not proposing something so drastic as to merge the two presentations together; it’s just a quick adjustment to the slide numbering!
To alter the number of the first… Continue reading
No Accidental Replacement Saves
Do you have an MS Word, Excel or PowerPoint file you frequently open, make changes to and then save under a new name? Is it important for you not to lose the original information? How many times have you accidentally overwritten the original information with the new file?
I bet the answer to that is something along the lines of, “Way too many to remember!” I’d… Continue reading
Select Them All
Did you know that in MS PowerPoint, you can select several objects with just one click and drag of your mouse?
By replacing the old “Shift + mouse click (repeated over and over on each individual object) routine,” we have the lovely and wonderful one click and drag option instead!
Most people are aware of this neat little trick on the desktop. You know, where you click… Continue reading
The Case of the Mysterious Changing Fonts
Have you ever given a presentation on a computer different from the one you used to create it?
When you opened the file, did you face the basic nightmare of all your fonts being different and just a huge mess on each slide?
Text that used to fit perfectly on the slides is now spaced all wrong and nothing seems to fit in… Continue reading
Give Me a Break!
Have you ever had a bulleted or numbered list in either MS Word or MS PowerPoint that really needed a blank line half way through it? You know, maybe for a visual break.
Maybe your list contains subsets and it would just make more sense if there was a break in the flow.
Maybe something like this:
Two Places At Once
Have a large MS PowerPoint presentation?
Do you find yourself trying to work in two places at once? For example, maybe you’re trying to copy/paste items from several slides onto another.
How does that routine go?
You work on slide A and then move to slide B (either scrolling, using the slide sorter or the Page Up/Down keys). You then work on slide B and then… Continue reading
Zooming in PowerPoint
A quick way to use the zoom feature in MS PowerPoint can be found right within your mouse.
If you have a mouse with a scroll wheel, you’re in luck! Just hold down the Ctrl key and spin the wheel.
You’ll find yourself zooming in and out with just the flip of a finger.
The good part is this will work on your slides in the Normal… Continue reading
I Didn’t Know It Would Look Like That!
Ever print out your MS PowerPoint presentation handouts with a black and white printer?
If so, did you find yourself standing at the printer, completely disappointed with the way the beautiful color slides you’ve created turned out, when converted to the printer’s grayscale capabilities?
So, how are we supposed to know what it will look like before we print? You know, maybe… Continue reading
First, Last, First, Last
There are many ways to navigate through an MS PowerPoint presentation, but here are a few quick key strokes that can save you some wasted mouse to keyboard time.
In the Normal View:
See Them Clearly
How often do you find yourself squinting while using MS PowerPoint’s slide sorter view?
Those slides can be pretty tiny and if they resemble each other too much, it gets even harder to distinguish one from the other.
Looking for an easy way to make the thumbnails in the slide sorter a little larger? Or maybe a lot larger!
Well, today, I’ve got a couple of suggestions… Continue reading
Promotion / Demotion
Do you use a lot of bulleted lists in MS PowerPoint? I bet if you’re a big PowerPoint user, they are a part of your daily life, right?
I’d even bet that somewhere along the way, you’ve had a list where individual items had sub-points below them.
For those sub-points, we need to indent them further than the main list and usually, the bullet style changes as… Continue reading
