For best results: this site requires that cookies be enabled for proper operation - see Legal Page for more info

Starting December 1, 2006 Techsinfo.be will no longer be available please update your links to http://techinfo.e2uhosting.net Thank you

Select Any of These

Presentations

LOAD CUSTOM LIBRARIES

You can have Painter automatically load your own custom libraries instead of the default libraries. To change default libraries, choose Edit, Preferences, General Preferences.

In the Libraries section of the General Preferences dialog box, enter the names of the libraries that you want Painter to load at start-up.

-- Adele Droblas Greenberg and Seth Greenberg, Painter 5 Studio Secrets, Copyright (c) 1999 IDG Books Worldwide, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

SOME GOOD ARTWORK

Reader Vernon F. asks if we will discuss how to use symbols as artwork in PowerPoint slides.

Yes, we can do that--and it can be done exactly the same way in Freelance Graphics and Corel Presentations slide shows, too.

There are a number of TrueType symbols available for use. Since you can easily size TrueType fonts (a symbol is just a character from a set of fonts), these symbols work quite well as PowerPoint pictures.

To get a look at the way we prefer to work with symbols in PowerPoint slides, run PowerPoint and open a blank slide. Now, click Start, Programs, Accessories, Character Map (in Windows 98, click Start, Programs, Accessories, System Tools, Character Map). When Character Map opens, click the arrow at the right side of the Font list box and select the font you want (we recommend Symbol or Wingdings). In Character Map, double-click the symbol you want on your slide, then click Copy. Next move to your PowerPoint slide and press Ctrl-V to paste the symbol onto your slide.

To set the symbol's size now that it's on your slide, select it and click the Increase Font Size button in the PowerPoint toolbar (its icon is a large A). To decrease the symbol size, you can click the Decrease Font Size button. This button is located to the right of the Increase Font Size button. After you finish with Character Map, click Close.

ALLOW SOME TIME

Although you don't necessarily want long periods of silence during a presentation, it's a good idea to allow your audience some time. For example, when you switch from one slide to the next, you could pause a few seconds to allow your audience some time to absorb what they have just seen and heard. If you begin speaking as soon as the new slide appears, you can almost bet a large part of your audience will still be mulling over the last slide.

HYPERLINKS AND PICTURES

Reader Clara N. asks if it's practical to add a hyperlink to a clip art picture in a PowerPoint slide so you can click the picture and go to an Internet site.

Yes, you can add a hyperlink to a clip art picture. Let's look at an example. Run PowerPoint and open a blank slide. Now choose Insert, Picture, ClipArt. Click a picture to select it and then click Insert.

With your clip art in place, choose File, Save As. When the Save As dialog box opens, type a name for your new presentation and click Save.

Now click the picture and choose Insert, Hyperlink. When the Insert Hyperlink dialog box opens, type the URL in the Link To File Or URL entry box. You must type the complete URL--for example,

http://www.pcworld.com

then click OK. The entire clip art picture is now the hyperlink, so clicking anywhere inside the picture sends you to the URL.

A GOOD PRESENTATION

As reader Shankar G. points out, the worst presentation of all is one that wanders all over the place. You can avoid this if you follow the basic rules for writing--you need an introduction, the body of the work, and a conclusion. Since the rules for writing a good presentation are the same as for writing anything, do an introduction, then get to the primary focus of your presentation. Finally, you should present a short conclusion.

Follow these rules and avoid the dreaded wandering presentation.

INSERTING PICTURES

Here's a PowerPoint question from reader Charlie D.:

"I have an overhead transparency that I can scan to make slides for a presentation. How do I get that scanned overhead to a slide in PowerPoint?"

You insert a scanned picture in the same way you would any other picture. Once the scanned picture is on your hard disk in the form of a file, run PowerPoint and open a blank slide. Choose Insert, Picture, From File. When the Insert Picture dialog box opens, locate your scanned picture and double-click to insert it. If necessary, use the mouse to size the picture so it fits on the slide.

SLIDES ON PAPER

Here's the lowdown on PowerPoint slide printing, in response to a request from reader Norman H.:

Let's start from scratch and create a slide show with two slides as our example. Run PowerPoint and open a blank slide. Choose Insert, Picture, ClipArt. When the Gallery opens, select a picture and click Insert to insert the picture and close the dialog box. Now size the picture to suit yourself and press Ctrl-M to insert a new slide. When the New Slide dialog box opens, press Enter. Insert a ClipArt picture on this slide (choose Insert, Picture, ClipArt, select a picture, and click Insert).

With two slides in your new show, let's look at how to print them. First of all, if you have a color printer, you may not need to do very much but start printing. Let's suppose you want to print only the first slide. Go to the first slide (you can use the scrollbar to get there) and choose File, Print. When the Print dialog box opens, select the Current Slide radio button and click OK to close the Print dialog box and start printing.

If you prefer to print all the slides in the show, choose File, Print. When the Print dialog box opens, select the All radio button and click OK to continue printing and close the dialog box.

If you use a black-and-white printer, you should choose View, Black And White. Since you won't usually want a lot of heavy blacks, right-click your ClipArt picture and choose Black And White, Light Grayscale to lighten up the picture. Follow the printing procedures described above to print your gray-scale slides.

SHAPE CHANGING

Subscriber Celia C. sent in this PowerPoint drawing question:

"I like to use the drawing tools to place objects in my PowerPoint slides. One problem I have is that I sometimes make a bad choice when it comes to selecting a shape. Then I have to delete the shape and draw a new one. Recently, a friend told me that you could change a shape instead of having to redraw it. Could you explain how to do this?"

Your friend is correct--you can easily change an existing shape. Let's say you draw a rectangle and then decide an ellipse would work better. All you have to do is click the shape to select it, then choose Draw, Change AutoShape. Choose (in this case) Basic Shapes. Now select the ellipse from the displayed shapes.

Many users ignore this command because they believe it won't work unless you used AutoShapes to insert the original shape. This is not the case. As far as PowerPoint is concerned, ellipses and rectangles drawn using the Drawing tools are AutoShapes.

DRAW IT AND FORMAT IT

Here's a PowerPoint tip submitted by reader Mark S.:

"I recently ran across a PowerPoint feature I had never noticed before--if you click one of the Drawing tools (rectangle, ellipse), you can insert the object and open the Format AutoShape dialog box at the same time. All you have to do is click the tool you want to use, then double-click the slide. The object appears in the slide and the Format AutoShape dialog box opens. You can now select the line size, colors, and so forth, then click OK to close the dialog box and save your settings."

Thanks for the tip, Mark. Note that you can open the Format AutoShape dialog box for any shape by double-clicking that shape.

NO FILL?

Reader Joe G. needs some information on the default fill color of AutoShapes in PowerPoint slides:

"When I select one of the Drawing tools in PowerPoint and then draw an object, that object is always green. Most of the time, I don't want any fill color at all. Why did Microsoft make green the default? Why not default to no fill color?"

You can set the fill color to whatever you want for a particular PowerPoint session. To do this, double-click an AutoShape to open the Format AutoShapes dialog box. When the dialog box opens, click the Colors And Lines tab (if necessary). Now click the arrow at the right side of the Fill Color list box. When the list opens, select No Fill. Next, select the check box labeled "Default for new objects" and click OK to save your choices and close the dialog box. From this point on, all your objects draw with no fill.

When you close PowerPoint and restart it, the default fill color returns. And we have no idea why Microsoft chose green.

ON THE DESKTOP

Here's a PowerPoint tip from subscriber Walt D.:

"I present PowerPoint slide shows using a laptop computer attached to a large screen monitor. I usually separate my presentation into two or three sets of slides. To start each one at the proper time, I like to place shortcuts to each of the shows on the desktop.

"If you'd like to do this for your own slide shows, run Windows Explorer and locate your slide show data file. Use the right mouse button to drag the file's icon to the desktop. Release the mouse button and choose Create Shortcut(s) Here.

"To begin a slide show, just right-click the shortcut icon and choose Show. PowerPoint opens, displays your show, and then closes."

Thanks for the tip, Walt.

STANDARD FONTS

Here's a PowerPoint tip submitted by reader Harry F.:

"When you design a PowerPoint (or any other) slide show for use on your customers' computers, you should stick to the standard Windows 95 and 98 fonts. This way, you won't run into font substitutions that could detract from your slide show's appearance."

Thanks for the tip, Harry. However, we need to mention that you CAN embed those fonts in your PowerPoint slide shows. Let's say you use a font that probably doesn't exist on most computers. As long as you choose a TrueType font, you can embed that font into your slide show. To do this, choose File, Save As. When the File Save dialog box opens, select the Embed TrueType check box. Enter the file name and click Save.

ADD SOME BOUNCE TO YOUR SLIDES

Reader Fran S. comments that many Corel Presentations users may not have tried the Fly In And Bounce animation.

If you haven't tried Corel Presentations' Fly In And Bounce animation, you need to take a little time to see how you can use it to enhance your Corel Presentations slide shows. To check it out, run Corel Presentations and create a blank slide. Choose Insert, Graphics, ClipArt. Select a picture and drag it onto your slide. Now right-click the picture and choose Object Animation. When the dialog box opens, select Fly In And Bounce. Click OK, then choose View, Play Slide Show. Click Play to start the show. When the slide opens, press the spacebar. The animated object begins at the top of the slide and moves downward. When it reaches the bottom point of its travel, it bounces.

CUSTOM BULLETS

Reader Gail F. sent in this PowerPoint question:

"I would like to be able to use some special symbols as bullets in PowerPoint slides. Can I do this?"

Yes, you can use symbols as bullets. Let's use Wingdings for our example.

First select all the bulleted text you'd like to change, then choose Format, Bullet. When the Bullet dialog box opens, click the arrow at the right side of the Bullets From list box to expand the list. Scroll through the list and locate Symbols, or Wingdings. Select Wingdings, then click the symbol you would like to use as a bullet. Finally, click OK to add the symbol to your slide and to close the dialog box.

I NEED ANOTHER SLIDE NOW

Reader Elliot F. asked about using shortcuts to insert new slides into a slide show. Since Elliot didn't specify a program, let's take a look at shortcuts for all of them: Corel Presentations, PowerPoint, and Freelance Graphics.

To insert a new slide just like the current one in PowerPoint, press Ctrl-M and press Enter.

To insert a new slide in Corel Presentations, press Ctrl-Enter.

When you need a new slide in Freelance Graphics, press F7.

IS IT TOO CROWDED?

Reader Joan B. submitted an interesting PowerPoint tip:

"If you ever wonder whether a slide is too crowded, PowerPoint has a command that can help. The command is called Expand Slide. When you have a slide that looks a bit too crowded with text, choose View, Slide Sorter. Now choose Tools, Expand Slide. PowerPoint splits the text on your crowded slide across a group of new slides."

Thanks for the tip, Joan.

If you'd like to try this tip, run PowerPoint and open a blank slide. Now add some text until the slide looks definitely overcrowded. Choose View, Slide Sorter as Joan suggested, then choose Tools, Expand Slide to see how PowerPoint deals with your overcrowding.

You won't necessarily want to stick with the PowerPoint expansion, so you can move portions of the slides to other slides until you reach a pleasing arrangement.

REVERSE THIS

Les S. submitted the following tip:

"Some time back, you published a tip on how to reverse the colors of an object in a Corel Presentations slide. I decided to use this as an animation effect and have been very pleased with the results.

"To create the effect, run Corel Presentations and open a blank slide. Choose Insert, Graphics, ClipArt. Select one of the pictures and drag it to your slide. Click the picture to select it, then click the Reverse Colors button in the toolbar (the icon shows a small blue rectangle beside a gray rectangle).

"After you reverse the colors, press Ctrl-C to copy the reversed picture. Next click the Reverse button again to set the colors back to normal. Press Ctrl-Enter to insert a new slide. When the slide opens, press Ctrl-V to paste the reversed picture onto the new slide.

"To make the picture flash between normal and reverse colors, choose View, Slide Sorter. Right-click the first slide and choose Transition. When the Slide Properties dialog box opens, click Immediate in the Effects list. Now select the check box labeled 'Apply to all slides in slide show' and click the Display Sequence tab. Select the radio button labeled 'After a delay of' and enter 1 second. Select the 'Immediately after the slide transition' radio button. Next select the 'Apply to all slides in the slide show' check box. Finally, click OK to close the dialog box and save your selections.

"To see the slide show, choose View, Play Slide Show. When the Play Slide Show dialog box opens, select the check box labeled 'Repeat slide show until you press Esc' and then click Play.

"The picture now flashes between normal and reverse colors once every second until you press Esc."

Thanks for the tip, Les. Note that some pictures look better than others when you apply this effect. If your first attempt isn't very satisfying, try a new picture.

START WITH A BLANK SLIDE

Here is a Freelance Graphics question from reader Zhi T.:

"When you start Freelance Graphics, you always end up with some slide template. I sometimes would like to start with a completely blank white slide. Is this possible?"

Although Freelance Graphics offers a large number of templates, it is certainly possible to start with a completely blank slide. To do this, run Freelance Graphics. When the Welcome To Lotus Freelance Graphics dialog box opens, under 1. Select A Content Topic select No Content Topic. Now, under 2. Select A Look, click Blank and then click OK to close the dialog box. Freelance Graphics will now open the New Page dialog box. In this dialog box, select (Blank Page) and click OK to close the dialog box and apply your selection. Freelance Graphics now opens a completely blank white slide.

GO TO MY DATA SLIDE

Here is a PowerPoint tip reader Rene P. submitted:

"People usually ask technical questions during a slide show. To get to the pages that cover 99 percent of the likely questions, I use hyperlinks on each page. For the hyperlinks, I put small icons on each slide in the presentation. The icons are not all that noticeable to the audience, but I can quickly identify and click them to get to the slides that show all the numbers."

Let's take a look at what Rene is doing.

Run PowerPoint and open a blank slide show. Press Ctrl-M and then press Enter several times to create a few slides. Finally, put something on each slide to help you identify them all. Now go to the first slide, choose Insert, Pictures, ClipArt, and double-click a picture you think will make a good icon.

Select the icon and press Ctrl-K. When the Edit Hyperlink dialog box opens, click in the Named Location In File entry box and click Browse. Select the slide that will contain your data (in this case, let's just use slide 3). Click OK to apply the hyperlink and close the dialog box. Back in Edit Hyperlink, click OK to close the dialog box. Now select the icon and press Ctrl-C. Next, move to the second slide and press Ctrl-V to paste the icon and the hyperlink.

Now move to the last slide (number 3), choose Slide Show, Action Buttons, and select the Return button (its icon is a curved arrow). When you draw the button on your slide, PowerPoint opens the Action Settings dialog box. Select the Hyperlink To radio button, then click the arrow at the right side of the list box. When the list expands, select Last Slide Viewed and click OK to close the dialog box and save your selections.

To put it all together, choose View, Slide Sorter. Right-click the slide that is to hold your explanatory data and choose Hide Slide.

When you run the slide show, all you need to do to get to your explanatory data slide is click the hyperlink (which appears on every slide that may require it). After you finish with your data slide, click the Return button to continue your slide show.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

DO A VIGNETTE

Here is a Corel Presentations tip from subscriber Karen M.:

"We recently purchased a digital camera to photograph people and equipment for our presentations. Initially, I found the photos too busy for use in a slide show. The camera doesn't allow good close-up pictures, and as a result the backgrounds were too busy.

While looking for a way to solve the problem, I decided to try Corel Photo House (it comes with Corel WordPerfect Suite 8). In Photo House, I found I could make a vignette that would highlight a person or object and make the picture much more attractive for use in a slide."

Check your installation CD. If you have Corel Photo House, you will want to take a look at all the special effects you can add to your photographs, whether scanned or taken with a digital camera--the vignette is only one option.

Most photographs aren't perfect. Frequently they are too dark, too light, too red, too green, or have too many dust spots. You can use Photo House to enhance their appearance before importing them into a Corel Presentations slide.

DON'T SNIFF

Reader George L. asks us to mention that a presenter needs to watch out for annoying personal habits such as sniffing, clearing the throat, rubbing the nose, and so on.

George is correct, and the only way to control this type of thing is to practice before a live audience. The problem is that most people don't realize that they habitually sniff, clear the throat, cough, rub the nose, rub the eyes, or scratch the head. All these can prove distracting to an audience. During one of our presentations, several audience members calculated the average number of times per minute that one presenter sniffed (three).

NOTE THIS

Reader Sherry W. who recently began using Freelance Graphics to produce her presentations, had this question:

"I like to practice my presentations before a small, friendly audience, and I always take notes of audience comments during the practice sessions. Is it possible to write my notes using the Freelance Graphics software?"

There is an option in Freelance Graphics called Speaker Notes. To use this option during one of your practice sessions, right-click your current slide and choose Speaker Notes. When the Speaker Note dialog box opens, simply type your notes, then click OK to close the dialog box and save them.

When you want to view your notes, choose Page, Open Speaker Note. When the Speaker Note dialog box opens, you'll see the note for the current slide. To view the other notes (and slides), click the forward or back arrow in the Speaker Note dialog box. Clicking the forward arrow navigates to the next slide in the sequence, and Freelance Graphics displays both the slide and the note for that slide. To move to a previous slide, click the back arrow.

When you're finished with the Speaker Note dialog box, click OK to close it.

HYPHENATION AND SLIDE SHOWS

We have questions from two anonymous readers asking how to insert hyphens automatically into PowerPoint and Corel Presentations slides.

Please don't use hyphens in a presentation. This is a sure way to tell your audience that you've never produced a slide show before. Although hyphens can enhance a written document, hyphenated words on a slide will cause audience confusion.

When you run across a word you think needs hyphenation, try starting a new line for that word--even if it is the only word on the new line.

ANIMATED CHARTS

Reader Harold R. asks this PowerPoint animation question:

"Is it possible to animate the individual components of a chart in PowerPoint? I imported an Excel chart into a PowerPoint slide and would like to animate each bar in the chart. I have been trying to do this, and all I can animate is the entire chart."

To do this, you must first ungroup the chart.

Select the chart and choose Draw, Ungroup. Now press Ctrl-A to select all the components. Right-click one of the bars and choose Custom Animation. Click the Timing tab and select Animate. Select the components to animate and then click the Effects tab. Now select the animation effect you want for each component. After you make all your selections, click OK to close the dialog box and apply your settings.

The Ungroup step is necessary because you imported the chart. If you generate a chart in PowerPoint, you can simply right-click the chart, then click the Chart Effects tab. Now click the arrow at the right side of the Introduce Chart Elements list box and select from All At Once, By Series, By Category, By Element In Series, or By Element In Category. Select the one that best suits what you need in the way of animation and then proceed as described above.

To run the slide show, choose Slide Show, View Show.

ADD WORDS NOW

Reader and Freelance Graphics user Freddie K. sent in this spelling question:

"I use a lot of technical jargon in my presentations. I was wondering if there is any way to add a list of these words to the dictionary all at once instead of having to add words as the spelling checker tags them."

Yes, you can. Run Freelance Graphics and choose Edit, Check Spelling. When the Spell Check dialog box opens, click Edit Dictionary. Click the New Word entry box and enter your new word. Click Add to place the word into the user dictionary. If you attempt to add a word that already exists in the main dictionary, Spell Check lets you know by opening a dialog box.

Repeat the process until you run out of words or get tired. When you finish adding words, click OK to get back to the Spell Check dialog box. Click OK again to close Spell Check.

STARS ON YOUR SLIDES

Here is a request from reader Nan L.:

"Some time back, you ran a tip on how to start a Freelance Graphics slide show with blinking stars. Could you cover this again?"

The original tip discussed how to put several slides in a loop to keep the stars blinking. But if you want just a single slide of blinking stars to start off your show, you don't have to bother with the loop.

Run Freelance Graphics and open a completely blank slide. Right-click the slide and choose Page Properties. When the Properties dialog box opens, click the Color, Pattern, And Line Style tab. Now click the arrow at the right side of the Pattern list box to expand the list, and choose the Solid pattern. Expand the Pattern Color list box and choose Black. Close the Properties dialog box (click the X in the upper right corner).

Now you can get those stars going. First bring up the floating toolbar by clicking the Drawing And Text box on the left of the screen. Click the oval tool and draw a small oval or circle on the slide. With the oval still selected, right-click one of the corner boxes and choose Circle/Ellipse Properties. When the dialog box opens, click the arrow at the right side of the Pattern box and make it black.

Now click the arrow at the right side of the Pattern Color list box and select White. Close the dialog box (click the Close box) and right-click the circle again. This time, you need to choose Change Default Properties. When the dialog box appears, informing you this will now become the default for this figure, click OK to continue.

Continue adding stars. Since you set the default to white ovals, all the ovals you draw from this point on are white. Right-click the star you just drew and choose Copy. Next press Ctrl-V to paste the copied star. The pasted star appears over the original star. Use the mouse to drag it to a new location. Continue pasting stars and dragging them to random positions on your slide.

After you finish drawing stars, press Ctrl-A to select all the stars. Right-click a star and choose Circle/Ellipse Properties. When the dialog box opens, click the Screen Show tab (the icon is a small movie projector). Select the radio button labeled Display Page First, Then Display Object. Select the After radio button and enter 0 seconds. Click the arrow at the right side of the Transition list box and select Dissolve. Close the dialog box (click Close).

To see how your blinking stars look, press Alt-F10 to run the slide show. If all is well, the stars start blinking on as soon as the show starts. The more random your stars, the better the slide looks. You may also like to place some unanimated stars on the slide. This way, an entire field of stars appears as soon as you run the slide, and then the animated stars begin blinking on.

CLIPART CROPPING

Here's a tip submitted by reader Steve M.:

"Although you have reported correctly that you can't recolor an ungrouped ClipArt picture in a PowerPoint slide, you never mentioned the fact that you can't crop an ungrouped picture either. I think people would like to know this."

Yes, we agree. What Steve says is true.

To see what happens when you ungroup a picture, run PowerPoint and open a blank slide. Choose Insert, Picture, ClipArt and double-click a picture to insert it into the slide. With the picture still selected, click the Crop button in the floating Picture toolbar (it's the seventh button from the left). Use the mouse to crop the picture.

Next choose Draw, Ungroup and click Yes when you get the dialog box asking if you're sure. You'll notice that your cropping disappears and you have the whole picture again. The Picture toolbar also disappears, taking the Crop option with it.

SIZE THEM ALL

Here is a Freelance Graphics tip submitted by Gary L.:

"I often place a small group of objects on a slide and then size them and set their locations with respect to each other. Once I have done all this work, I don't want to redo everything just because I decide all the objects in the group need a size change. So after I get all the placement done, I press Ctrl-A to select all the objects. Then I use the mouse to size all the objects at once.

"In case you have added some objects you don't want included in the sizing, click one of the objects to size, then hold down Shift while you click the other objects you want."

"You can also select all the objects you want to include in the group and then choose Drawing (or Collection), Group."

Thanks for the tip, Gary.

A NEW SET OF COLORS

Here is a PowerPoint question from reader Bev D.:

"I often use charts in my PowerPoint presentations. I usually have to take the time to set the chart colors to something more reasonable than the PowerPoint defaults. Is there some way to change the default chart colors?"

Yes, there is. To change the default slide colors (not just the chart colors), run PowerPoint and choose Format, Slide Color Scheme. When the Color Scheme dialog box opens, click the Standard tab, where you'll find seven predefined schemes. These schemes determine the colors that apply to charts and so forth. You can choose from one of the seven, then click Apply to use it on the current slide or Apply To All to use it throughout the slide show.

If you don't care for any of the standard color schemes, click the Custom tab. On the Custom page, you can design your own color scheme. All you have to do is click on each element and choose a color. When you're finished, click Add As Standard Scheme if you want to keep your new design. In any case, you can click Apply or Apply To All to accept the scheme.

A RED SHADOW?

Here is a Corel Presentations question from reader Winnie L.:

"I have some photographs in a Corel Presentations slide show. I decided to add shadows to them and clicked the Shadow button in the Graphics toolbar. When the dialog box opened, I selected a shadow type. This worked just fine, except that there doesn't appear to be any way to change the shadow color. Have I missed something? Surely Corel Presentations will let you use something other than dull gray for shadows."

Yes, you did miss something--you missed just one little button click. When you click the Shadow button, a dialog box opens to let you pick the type of shadow you want to use. Instead of picking a shadow right now, click More. This opens the Object Properties dialog box. Select your shadow type and click Shadow Color. Now select your new color, then click OK to apply your selections and close the dialog box.

ADD A SHADOW

Here is a question from reader James G.:

"Could you explain how to add a shadow to text in PowerPoint slides?"

We sure can. While we're at it, we'll also explain how to add shadows to text in Corel Presentations and Freelance Graphics.

First, PowerPoint: Select the text and choose Format, Font. When the Font dialog box opens, select the Shadow check box and click OK to apply your selection and close the dialog box.

In Corel Presentations, select the text box that contains the text. Choose Format, Object Properties, Shadow. When the dialog box opens, choose the type of shadow you want to use and click OK to save your selections and close the dialog box.

In Freelance Graphics, select the text and choose Text, Text Properties. When the dialog box opens, click the Font, Attribute, And Color tab (its icon is AZ), then click the arrow at the right side of the Text Shadow list box to expand the list. Choose the type of shadow you want and click the Close box at the upper right corner of the dialog box to get rid of the dialog box.

KEEPING YOUR NUMBERS IN LINE

by Mark Scapicchio

Subscriber Bruce McColl writes: "I read your recent tip, 'I No Breaka You Space,' 1/8/99, for keeping words together on the same line of text. I can't seem to make it work for numbers, such as phone numbers. Am I doing something wrong?"

Sort of. The text tip helps you keep words separated by SPACES on the same line; for a phone number, you need to keep numbers separated by HYPHENS on the same line. To do this, replace your hyphens with nonbreaking hyphens--instead of just pressing a hyphen (-), press Ctrl-Shift-hyphen.

A NEW HYPERTEXT COLOR

Here is a question from subscriber Ashley T.:

"I was wondering if anyone knows how to change the color of hypertext in PowerPoint 97. Currently the unvisited links are pale blue and visited ones are light gray. This does not always work with the color scheme of some of my presentations. I know of a workaround, but I wonder if there is a more obvious way to customize the color of hypertext directly."

To set the hyperlink colors, run PowerPoint and choose Format, Slide Color Scheme. When the Color Scheme dialog box opens, click the Custom tab. Now double-click the color box to the left of Accent And Hyperlink. This opens the Color dialog box, in which you should double-click the new color you want to apply and close the dialog box. Repeat the operation on Accent And Followed Hyperlink, then click Apply To All to apply your new selections and close the Color Scheme dialog box.

AN ANIMATION TOOLBAR

Subscriber Tom S. sent in this PowerPoint question:

"I use animation very frequently in my PowerPoint slide shows. Since animation is such a valuable tool, why didn't Microsoft provide an Animation toolbar? This would be much more convenient than selecting an object, choosing Slide Show, Preset Animation, and choosing the animation effect to apply."

Microsoft did, in fact, provide an Animation toolbar, although it's often overlooked. Run PowerPoint and choose View, Toolbars, Animation Effects. Animation Effects opens as a floating toolbar. You can double-click its title bar to anchor it, if you wish.

Note that the buttons in the Animation Effects toolbar are available only when you select an animatable object.

The button on the right side of the Animation Effects toolbar opens the Custom Animation dialog box to allow you a wider choice of effects.

CHANGING A SINGLE SLIDE

Here is a question from reader Elliot P.:

"Is it possible to change the background of a single slide using Corel Presentations? It seems that every time I try this, all the slide backgrounds get changed."

Yes, you can change a single slide's background in Corel Presentations. Just go to the slide you want to change and choose Format, Background Gallery. Select your new background and make sure you deselect the check box labeled "Apply selected Background to all slides in slide show." Click OK to close the dialog box and save your selection.

Just in case some PowerPoint users have the same problem, all you have to do is navigate to the slide you want to change and choose Format, Background. When the Background dialog box opens, click the arrow at the right side of the Background Fill list box. When the list expands, select from More Colors or Fill Effects. After you make your selections, click OK to close the dialog box. Back in Background, click Apply to apply the choices only to the current slide and close the dialog box.

Freelance Graphics handles the background in a different way. Let's say you'd like to change the layout of one of your slides. Navigate to that slide and right-click a blank spot. When the menu opens, choose Page Properties. After the Properties dialog box appears, click the arrow at the right side of the Layout list box and select a new layout. To change the color, choose Presentation, Edit Backdrop. In the Editing view, right-click a blank spot and choose Backdrop Properties. When the Properties dialog box opens, select your new pattern, color, and background color.

After you make all your selections, you can click the X in the upper right corner to dismiss the Properties dialog box.

SIZING PHOTOGRAPHS

Here is a PowerPoint question from reader Casey P.:

"Is there a way to import a scanned image into a PowerPoint slide and make the picture the entire slide? "

If you want the picture to take up the entire slide, you can change the picture size or you can change the slide size. If you will only use the slide show on a computer, you can make the slide any size you want--all you have to do is make it match the picture. Note that you can't change the size of a single slide, though--all the slides change when you choose a new layout.

To set the slide layout, choose File, Page Setup. When the Page Setup dialog box opens, choose from one of the standard sizes, or choose your own by modifying the width and height.

If your PowerPoint slide show is set up to produce 35MM slide proportions (11.2 by 7.5 inches), then a picture that uses the standard 35MM slide aspect ratio will fit the PowerPoint slide perfectly. And if you need to insert an 8 by 10 scanned photo, you can set the slide size to 8 by 10.

If you're stuck with a specific slide size, you can crop a picture to make it fit. However, you should be very careful if you decide to resize a scanned photograph, because you can easily spoil the picture by distorting its aspect ratio.

REUSING YOUR SLIDES

You can very easily copy slides from one presentation to another. If you have a slide show that contains a slide you could use, why not use it? There is no point in spending time re-creating a slide you already have.

If you use Freelance Graphics, run the program and open your new slide show. Choose File, Copy Pages From Other Files. When the Select Presentation dialog box opens, click the file from which you want to copy, then click Open. The Copy Pages From Other Files dialog box will open and display slides from the other presentation. Click the slide (or slides) you want to use and click Add. When the Add Pages dialog box opens, click the appropriate radio button to place your copied slide in the new show and click OK. Don't worry too much about selecting the location at this point--you can always rearrange your slides later.

Back in the Copy Pages From Other Files dialog box, you can select more slides and repeat the described procedure, or click Close if you're finished.

In PowerPoint, open your new slide show and choose Insert, Slides From Files. When the Slide Finder dialog box opens, click Browse. Locate the file from which you want to copy slides and click to select it. Next click Open to open the file and close the dialog box.

In Slide Finder, click Display. Now click a slide you want to add to your new show, then click Insert. Repeat for as many slides as you need to copy, then click Close.

A GOOD BLEND

Here is a Corel Presentations tip from reader Ellen D.:

"If you have never tried blending objects in Corel Presentations, you should take a look at how this works. Blend will add as many objects as you want between two objects on your slide. You can get some great effects using Blend."

Thanks for the tip, Ellen.

Let's take a look at how to use Corel Presentations' Blend command.

Run Corel Presentations and open a blank slide. Choose Insert, Graphics, ClipArt. When the Scrapbook opens, drag a picture onto the slide. Place the picture in the upper left corner of the slide. Hold Ctrl while you drag a copy of the picture to the lower right corner of the slide. Now press and hold Alt while you use the mouse to reduce the size of the copy.

Once you're satisfied with the size and location of both pictures, click one of the pictures to select it, and then press and hold Shift while you click the other picture.

Finally, with both pictures selected, choose Tools, Blend. When the Blend dialog box opens, enter the number of pictures you want to appear between your two selected pictures. For the purpose of this example, just click OK to accept the default and close the dialog box. Corel Presentations inserts the requested number of pictures between your two selections.

KEEP BALANCED

Here is a suggestion from reader Gena H.:

"Many presenters seem to be unaware how easy it is to create an unbalanced slide inadvertently. For example, suppose you create a slide with two equal-size objects--a white rectangle on the left and a black rectangle on the right. Since both objects are the same size, you may think the slide is balanced. But the dark rectangle looks heavier than the white, so the slide is unbalanced.

"When this sort of thing happens, an audience may feel that something is not quite right, without being able to point out exactly what it is. I suggest that all presenters rehearse before a small audience, and always pay attention to anyone who tells you that something is not quite right. When this happens, look for those subtly unbalanced slides."

Thanks for the tip, Gena.

MAKE IT PERMANENT

We recently published a tip on how to change the default fill color in your current PowerPoint session. In our tip, we reported that the change would apply only to the current session. Reader Jan A. responded with the following tip:

"There is a way to change the default fill color permanently. Here's the way I did it: I created an AutoShape with the default green fill and changed the fill color to blue. I then right-clicked the shape and selected Set AutoShape Defaults. As you know, this causes all the new shapes for this session to appear in blue. I then deleted the shape, leaving a blank slide. Next, I chose File, Save As and selected the type Presentation Template. Making sure I was in the Office Templates directory (it should have jumped there automatically), I clicked Blank Presentation.pot and pressed Enter to save the file."

Thanks for the tip, Jan.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

USE THE RIGHT COLOR

Reader Alison N. comments that many new presenters tend to make poor color choices when designing slides. Alison's point is that you need to choose your colors to match the objects.

An extreme example of poor color choice might be a pink anvil, or a dark brown feather. Although feathers can certainly come in dark brown, the dark color better fits a massive object. And although you may find pink anvils somewhere, don't use them in your slides.

Note that there are always exceptions to any rule. You may need to use a pink anvil in your slide show to make a point. And you may use a dark brown feather if your slide show concerns dark brown birds.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

COMPLETE CONTROL

Many people find controlling a slide show with keystrokes easier than dealing with the mouse during a presentation.

Here is a list of the keys you would use during a Freelance Graphics presentation:

To start the slide show at the first slide, press Alt-F10. To go to the next slide, press Page Down. To go to the previous slide, press Page Up. To pause, press the Spacebar. To resume a paused show, press the Spacebar again. To terminate the show, press Esc. When the Screen Show Pages dialog box opens, click Quit Screen Show. If you use PowerPoint, use the following keystrokes:

To go to the next slide, press Page Down, or the right arrow key. To go to the previous slide, press Page Up, or the left arrow key. Press S to stop the show temporarily and press S again to restart it. Press Esc to terminate the slide show. During a Corel Presentations slide show, you can use the keystrokes shown here:

Press Page Down, or the right arrow to move to the next slide. Press Page Up, or the left arrow to go to the previous slide. Press Esc to terminate the show.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

MAKE YOUR OWN DRAWINGS

Here is a tip from subscriber Tom C.:

"As much as presentation software has helped us, it has also hurt to some degree. Years ago, we used flip charts and made most of our own drawings. In many presentations, we still find this the best approach. When you don't need to present a slide show to a very formal audience, try making your own drawings. The audience will love it.

"Even if you aren't an artist, you can draw trucks, cars, stick people, and so forth. In fact, drawing simple figures is much easier when you use one of the modern presentation programs. Give this a try--you'll have fun, and so will your audiences."

Thanks for the tip, Tom.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

MAKE A WEB PAGE

If you use Freelance Graphics, PowerPoint, or Corel Presentations for your presentations, you might like to know that you can also use those programs to create a Web page. You don't need to buy any special software in order to experiment with this.

In Freelance Graphics, create a slide (or slides) and choose File, Save As. When the Save As dialog box opens, type a name and then click the arrow at the right side of the Save As Type list box to expand the list. Select World Wide Web Presentation (HTM) and click Save to save your new file and close the Save As dialog box.

In PowerPoint, create a few slides and choose File, Save As HTML. When the Save As HTML wizard opens, click Finish. In the next dialog box, click Don't Save (this is for our example only--you may later find that you do want to save a conversion setting).

To save a slide show as a Web page in Corel Presentations, choose File, Save As and save your file. Next choose Internet Publisher. When the Internet Publisher dialog box opens, click Publish To HTML. When the Publish To HTML wizard opens, click Finish. Type a name when prompted. After your page is saved, you can view it now, or click OK to close the wizard.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ALTERNATE COLORS

Here is a suggestion from longtime presenter Marla C.:

"In the old days, when we made our presentations on flip charts, we would often alternate text colors. For example, we would use blue for the first bullet, and dark red for the second bullet. Then we would alternate these two colors throughout the entire presentation.

"Although the temptation is great to get much more elaborate when using PowerPoint or one of the other presentation packages, I have found this simple, old-fashioned approach still seems to work."

Thanks, Marla.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

MAKE A COPY

Here is a PowerPoint 97 tip from subscriber Steve N.:

"I have seen tips suggesting that you place multiple copies of an object on a PowerPoint slide by pressing Ctrl-C to make the copy, and then Ctrl-V to paste the copy. This is unnecessary work. All you have to do is hold down the Ctrl key while you drag away as many copies of an object as you need."

To see how this works, run PowerPoint and open a blank slide. Now choose Insert, Picture, ClipArt. Select a picture and click Insert. Press and hold Ctrl while you drag a copy of the object to a new location. You can repeat this as often as needed--just keep holding down Ctrl and dragging away copies.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

CHART WITH CARE

Here is a tip from reader Bill T.:

"I recently encountered a problem others might like to avoid. We made a chart showing our projected and actual sales. We then placed the chart on a slide and used it in a presentation.

"The problem was that the way the chart was designed, it appeared that we were way off our projected sales when we were really not. This initiated an unwarranted concern on the part of some of our managers.

"My point is this: Go ahead and make those charts if they help you, but don't put them on a slide unless you're sure they convey the correct impression when people who don't have access to all the details view them."

Thanks for the tip, Bill.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

CUSTOM SHOWS

Reader Larry K. submitted this tip:

"There are times when I need to use the same basic presentation for different audiences. In the past, I simply hid all the slides I didn't need for a given audience. Now I create a custom show. All you have to do is select the custom show when you start your slide show and proceed as usual. The great part is that you never have to worry about forgetting to hide or unhide slides."

Let's run through an example of how to use Larry's technique.

Run PowerPoint and open an existing slide show, or create a new show with three or four slides. You can choose Insert, Picture, ClipArt and place a ClipArt picture on each of the new slides so you can see what is happening.

In slide view, choose Slide Show, Custom Shows. When the Custom Shows dialog box opens, click New. Now type an appropriate name for your new custom show (Show 1 is OK for now).

You'll see the slides in your new show listed under Slides In Presentation. Let's say you're creating a new show using only three of your four original slides. Click Slide 1 and then hold down Shift while you click Slides 2 and 3. After you have selected the slides you want in your custom show, click Add. Now click OK to close the dialog box and apply your selections. Back in Custom Shows, click Close to close the dialog box.

Finally, let's suppose you're ready to start your custom presentation. Choose Slide Show, Custom Shows. When the Custom Shows dialog box opens, select the custom show you just created and click Show. PowerPoint now runs the slide show using only the slides you added to the custom show. When you choose Slide Show, View Show, PowerPoint displays all the slides in your original show.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

SHOWING MOVIES

Here is a question from subscriber Oren W.:

"I recently inserted one of the movies from the ClipArt Gallery into a PowerPoint slide. The only problem is that the movie doesn't start as soon as the slide opens. Is there some way to force the movie to start automatically?"

Let's set up a slide using a movie so everyone can see what Oren is trying to do.

Run PowerPoint and open a blank slide. Now choose Insert, Picture, ClipArt. When the Clip Gallery opens, click the Videos tab. Select a video and click Insert.

Now let's get the movie to start as soon as the slide opens. Right-click the video picture and choose Custom Animation. When the Custom Animation dialog box opens, click the Timing tab. Now select the Animate and Automatically radio buttons. Set the time to zero seconds (the default) and click OK to close the dialog box and record your selection.

To view the show, choose Slide Show, View Show. As soon as the slide opens, the video begins to play.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

MAKE IT PERFECT

Here is a tip from reader Diane W.:

"Some time back, you ran a tip on how to make a perfect circle or square in PowerPoint slides. I wonder if most of your readers know that you can also make an existing imperfect circle or square into a perfect one using the Format AutoShape dialog box. Would you address this in one of your tips?"

The original tip to which Diane refers is that if you hold down the Shift key while you use the mouse to draw a circle or square, you produce a perfect shape.

If you have an oval or rectangle on one of your slides and decide you need to make it a perfect circle or square, right-click the object and choose Format AutoShape. When the AutoShape dialog box opens, click the Size tab.

Let's say you have an oval with a height of 3.5 inches and a width of three inches. You would like instead to have a perfect circle with a diameter of 3 inches. Just delete the current contents of the Height spin box and type 3. Click OK to close the dialog box and apply your changes. Now you have a perfect circle.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

SLIDE SHOWS AND PRESENTATIONS

Reader Nora B. sent in the following comments:

"You seem to concentrate mostly on slide shows. If designed correctly, the slide show is only part of a presentation--and in many cases, the slide show is a very small part of a presentation. For the best possible presentation, don't spend all your time worrying about a ten-minute slide show, if your total presentation lasts an hour.

"Another mistake that many new presenters make is to put almost everything they intend to say on the slides. This is a terrible mistake. Always use the slides to provide a GUIDE. Don't try to crowd in too much text. You should provide most of the material yourself. A slide show without a significant verbal presentation seems cold and mechanical."

Thanks for your suggestions, Nora.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

TURNING ON THE SOUND FOR YOUR SLIDE SHOWS

This question from PowerPoint user Sarah B. is applicable to Freelance Graphics and Corel Presentations as well:

"I recently decided to add a MIDI sound to one of my slides. As far as I can see, I did everything right, but I don't get any sound. I discovered that if I insert a WAV file the sound will work, but still I get nothing when I try to use a MIDI sound. Do you have any suggestions?"

You may not have MIDI sounds turned on in Windows 95/98. Double-click the Volume control icon at the right side of the Windows taskbar. When the Master Volume dialog box opens, see if you have a volume control for MIDI sounds. If you do, make sure the Mute check box is deselected.

If you don't have a MIDI volume control, choose Options, Properties in the Volume Control dialog box. When the Properties dialog box opens, look for MIDI in the list, select its check box, and click OK to close the dialog box and apply your selection. The MIDI volume control will now appear. Make sure the Mute check box is deselected and close the dialog box by choosing Options, Exit.

Your MIDI sounds should work now.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

USING TWO SLIDE SHOW PRESENTERS?

We recently observed a presentation given by two people. This presentation did not work well, primarily because the two presenters apparently decided to put on a comedy act. In almost all cases, a presentation is serious business. You are asking a group of people to buy your product, approve your project, or simply see what you have accomplished. A little humor is good, but don't overdo it.

Also, if you must do a two-person presentation, make sure you both address the audience. Don't fall into the trap of presenting to your fellow presenter. Watch your local television news anchors for an illustration of how two-person teams should work together to present information. They may now and then address each other but for the most part, they look into the camera and address the audience.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ANIMATING CLIPART ON A FREELANCE GRAPHICS SLIDE

Here is a tip suggested by a reader:

If you would like to spruce up one or two of your Freelance Graphics slides, you can make the ClipArt look as if it's being drawn as the slide opens. To do this, run Freelance Graphics and open a blank slide. Click ClipArt and select one that you like. Now, choose Group, Ungroup.

After you ungroup the ClipArt picture, don't click anywhere else on the slide--this would deselect the picture elements. With all the picture elements still selected, choose Collection, Collection Properties (or Drawing, Drawing Properties--whichever is available on the menu). When the dialog box opens, click the Screen Show tab (its icon is a tiny movie projector). Next, select the Display Page First, Then Display Object and the After options. Leave the time box set to zero seconds (the default). The default transition is Appear. For now, leave the default selection and dismiss the dialog box by clicking the close box in the upper-right corner.

Press Alt-F10 to view the slide. As you open the slide, the ClipArt will begin to construct itself. If your ClipArt is large and contains many components (and you use a fast computer), the Appear selection may create just the effect you need. However, if the animation is too fast, you can press Ctrl-A to select all the picture elements and choose Collection, Collection Properties again. Now, click the arrow beside the Transition list box and select a new effect. It's best to look at several effects to see which is best for your slide show.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ANIMATED CLIPART IN COREL PRESENTATIONS AND POWERPOINT

In our previous tip, we described how to animate ClipArt in Freelance Graphics slides. This time, let's look at how to do the same in Corel Presentations and PowerPoint.

In PowerPoint, choose Insert, Picture, ClipArt; select a picture; and click Insert to place it on your slide. Size the picture to suit your needs, and while the picture is still selected, choose Draw, Ungroup. When the dialog box opens asking if you are sure, click Yes. At this point, don't click anywhere because you'll deselect all the individual pieces if you do. Choose Slide Show, Custom Animation. When the Custom Animation dialog box opens, click the Entry Animation drop-down arrow and select Appear from the list.

Now, click the Timing tab and select the Animate and Automatically options. Set the spin box to zero seconds (the default) and click OK.

You can run the slide show now to see how your new animation looks. Simply choose Slide Show, View Show.

Note: If your object's animation is too slow, go back to the Custom Animation dialog box and select another type of animation. Peek From Bottom is a good one for small pictures with few pieces. Appear is best for large pictures with many pieces. Try some other types of animation to see which offers the best effect for your slide.

In Corel Presentations, choose Insert, Graphics, ClipArt. Drag a picture onto your slide and then close the Scrapbook. Drag the picture into position on the slide and right-click it. Choose Separate from the resulting menu. Next, with all the picture components still selected, choose Format, Object Properties, Object Animation. In the Object Properties dialog box, select the Animate Object In Place option and then select Fade from the Effects list. Now, select the Fast option and click OK to close the dialog box and save your selections. Finally, choose Format, Slide Properties, Display Sequence. In the Slide Properties dialog box, select the After A Delay Of option and keep the default zero (0) seconds. Retain the default on all the other options and click OK to close the dialog box and save your new settings.

To view the show, choose View, Play Slide Show.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

IMPORTING BMP PICTURES INTO FREELANCE GRAPHICS SLIDES

Here is a Freelance Graphics tip from reader Lawrence W.:

"I recently needed to place several BMP photographs into a Freelance Graphics presentation. I found that most of the photos looked rather distorted after I placed them in the slide, but they did not appear distorted when I viewed them in my photo graphics program. I told a friend who has used Freelance Graphics for some time about this problem. He said that the pictures were probably too large for the slide and that Freelance Graphics may have automatically reduced the pictures to make them fit. He said that this will cause the distortion.

"I then used the photo graphics software to reduce the picture size and re-imported them into Freelance Graphics. This time, they looked fine.

"I thought some of your readers might like to know about this solution to a distorted graphics problem."

When you import a BMP file that is much too large for the slide, Freelance Graphics will repeatedly reduce its size by 50 percent until it fits on the slide.

Thanks for the tip, Lawrence.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

BECOME FAMILIAR WITH YOUR PRESENTATION PROGRAM

Reader Julie S. asks us to point out that sometimes the presenter isn't the person who develops the slide show. In many companies, the slide show producers are specialists (artists, etc.) who develop a slide show based on information given them by the presenter. This isn't as awkward as it sounds, because the presenters usually work closely with the developers to create the show.

The potential problem, Julie says, occurs when the presenter doesn't take the time to become fully familiar with the operation of the program used to present the slides.

If you work for a company that uses a development team to get your slide shows together, make sure you run through the slide show thoroughly before you take it on the road. You must be familiar enough with the program's operation to solve any problems that arise while you are presenting at a remote site.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

BRANCHING TO MULTIPLE PRESENTATIONS IN POWERPOINT SLIDE SHOWS

If you often use relatively long slide shows and find yourself copying slides from past shows into your new shows, you might want to consider simply branching to other slide shows instead. If you use this technique, you can assemble a set of slide shows to incorporate into each of your presentations.

Let's look at a sample presentation that uses two slide shows. Run PowerPoint and open a blank slide. Choose Insert, Picture, ClipArt and double-click a picture to insert it. Now, press Ctrl-M and press Enter to insert a new blank slide. Insert a ClipArt picture and press Ctrl-M, then Enter again, and insert a picture on this third slide.

Save the current slide show (choose File, Save As, name the file Two, and click Save). Next, close the file by choosing File, Close. Then, click the New button in the PowerPoint toolbar to start a new slide show. Repeat the procedure described above to place some ClipArt on three slides in the new show. Go to the second slide in the new show and choose Insert, Object. When the Insert Object dialog box opens, select the Create From File option and then select the Link check box. Now, click Browse, locate the file you named Two.ppt, and double-click its icon to insert it into your slide. Click OK to close the Insert Object dialog box.

With the link in place on your slide, use the mouse to size it so it appears as a thumbnail. Move it to the bottom of the slide and then right-click it. When the menu opens, choose Action Settings to open the Action Settings dialog box. In this dialog box, select the Object Action option. If Show isn't displayed in the Object Action list box, click the arrow beside the list box and select Show. Click OK to close the dialog box and save your selection. Choose File, Save As and name this file One. Click Save to close the Save As dialog box and save the file.

To see how your branching works, choose Slide Show, View Show. Navigate to the second slide and then click the thumbnail. PowerPoint will navigate to the second show and run through all the slides in that show. When the branched show is finished, PowerPoint will return to your original show.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ATTACHING SOUND TO A CLIPART PICTURE IN FREELANCE GRAPHICS

This Freelance Graphics question is from reader Morris L.:

"I would like to attach a sound to a ClipArt picture in a Freelance Graphics slide so that the sound will play when I click the picture. Is this possible in Freelance Graphics?"

Yes, it is possible, but the method isn't especially obvious. Run Freelance Graphics and open a blank slide. Now, click ClipArt and select a picture. With the ClipArt in place, double-click the picture to open the Group Properties dialog box. Click the Screen Show tab (its icon is a movie projector). Select the Display Page First, Then Display Object option and leave the time set to the default of zero.

In the dialog box, click the Action When Object Is Clicked drop-down arrow and select Play Sound from the list. When the Play Sound dialog box opens, locate the sound you want to use and double-click its icon.

Now, you can close the dialog box (click the X in the upper-right corner) and then press Alt-F10 to view your slide. Click the ClipArt to play your sound selection.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

SOME PRESENTER TIPS FROM AN EXPERT

Here are some tips from reader and longtime presenter, Nancy R.:

"I was doing presentations long before there were any presentation programs. I have a few presenter tips for those readers who may have only recently begun giving presentations.

"The laser pointer is a fairly recent presentation tool, and it's a good tool. However, you should practice with it before you use it in front of an audience. Make sure you can hold the point on the screen steadily--it looks bad when the point shakes all over the screen. If you can't master this, don't use the laser pointer.

"Decide what you will wear for your presentation and practice making your presentation while wearing them. If you find that an article of clothing hinders your movements, switch to something else. Whatever you do, keep your choice of clothing conservative and don't wear anything gaudy, even if it is the latest style, because you are not the main attraction--the presentation is.

"One final remark: Do not wear noisy jewelry. A bracelet that rattles whenever you move your arm is a distraction. Ask your practice audience to comment on anything at all that they find distracting."

Thanks for the tips, Nancy.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

USING PICTURES AS BULLETS IN FREELANCE GRAPHICS SLIDES

Here is a tip submitted by reader Susan W.:

"A short time back, you ran a tip on how to use ClipArt pictures as bullets in Freelance Graphics slides. Although you mentioned that it is best to avoid very busy pictures, in fact it is best to avoid using color pictures at all. Very simple black and white pictures look best. You can do OK with single color pictures. For example, blue on white looks OK in a bullet. Multiple colors almost never look good as bullets."

To fill you in on what Susan is talking about, you can choose your own custom bullets in Freelance Graphics. To see how this works, run Freelance Graphics and open a blank slide. Now, add some bulleted text. Select the text and choose Text, Bullets & Numbers. When the dialog box opens, click the arrow at the right of the Style list box and then choose ClipArt from the list. When the ClipArt dialog box opens, double-click the picture you want to use to make it your new bullet.

As Susan points out, a single color is probably the best choice. In any case, a multicolored, busy picture is a poor choice.

You may also want to increase the size of your new bullet to make it more legible. To do this, click the up arrow in the Size spin box. You can view the bullet as you increase the size, so you can tell when it reaches an acceptable size.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

MAKE SURE EVERYONE CAN HEAR YOU

Here is something that we really hadn't thought about. Reader Aaron G. asks us to offer this tip:

"When you make a presentation before an audience, it is important to find out if everyone in the audience can hear you. In my experience, if you ask, 'Can everyone hear me?' you will get no response--because most people are either too polite to respond or don't want to call attention to themselves in what they may consider a negative manner. I find that I do much better if I ask, 'Should I speak a bit louder?' When I ask this question, I frequently see a few people at the back of the audience nod their heads."

Thanks for the tip, Aaron.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

HOW TO GET RID OF THE OFFICE ASSISTANT

One of our readers asks about how to eliminate the Office Assistant. Many PowerPoint users often ask this question, so here is an easy way to take care of the job.

Close any Office 97 program that is currently running. Now, run Windows Explorer and go to your Office folder. This is usually C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office. In the right pane, you'll see a folder named Actors. Use the right mouse button to drag this folder to another location--almost any location will do. When you release the mouse button, a menu will open. From this menu, choose Move.

With the Actors folder where PowerPoint (along with all of the other Office 97 programs) can't find it, you won't be bothered by Office Assistant. But you know where it is if you need it again, and all you have to do is move (or copy) it back to C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

IS CLIPART APPROPRIATE FOR YOUR PRESENTATION?

All three of the presentation programs that we deal with have a nice supply of ClipArt. But although the ClipArt has a lot of variety and is very convenient to use, you should always ask yourself if ClipArt is appropriate for your intended audience. Consider this: ClipArt is, for the most part, a collection of cartoons, which may not always be appropriate for your presentation. If you have any doubts, try to get some objective opinions before you add the ClipArt. If you decide you need something more sophisticated for your presentation, consider inserting photographs instead.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ADDING A CONTROL PANEL TO FREELANCE GRAPHICS SLIDES

Here is a Freelance Graphics tip from reader Isaac M.:

"I have regularly added the control panel to the slides in my slide shows, but sometimes, when I found that I didn't care for the control panel in a particular slide show, I would always remove it from that show.

"I've recently discovered that I can leave the control panel off when I create the show and add one at show time, if needed. To do this, you right-click a slide (after the show has started) and choose Control Panel, then select the location where you want it to appear. If you reach a point in the show where you no longer need the control panel, right-click the slide and choose Control Panel, Hide to get rid of it."

Thanks for the tip, Isaac.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

AVOID USING "CANNED" PRESENTATIONS

Here is a tip from reader Lou A.:

"In the old days, most audiences were accustomed to slide show presentations that looked 'canned.' And that is exactly what they were. A company would have a slide show made up, and then those slides were reused as often as possible, because it was too expensive to generate a completely new slide show for each presentation.

"I have noticed that many experienced presenters still fall into the trap of adapting their old slide shows to new circumstances ('We'll just change the charts'). When you do this, you give the appearance of using the 'canned' slide shows that are now so unnecessary. Don't try to reuse your slides--you have a computer program that will let you easily make a completely new slide show."

We agree--to an extent. We see nothing wrong with reusing old slides when they fit into a new show perfectly. However, we do agree that you shouldn't make a stretch to make those old slides fit. As Lou says, you can use that program to make some new slides with much less work than was required before computer programs like Freelance Graphics, Corel Presentations, and PowerPoint were around.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

CHANGING CLIPART COLORS IN COREL PRESENTATIONS SLIDES

Here is a tip that was submitted by reader Jack D.:

"I found a ClipArt picture that would fit into my current presentation quite well. The only problem was that the background color just wasn't right. I discovered that changing colors in ClipArt is very simple.

"To change a picture's colors, all you have to do is select the picture and choose Tools, Convert To Bitmap. When the Convert To Bitmap dialog box opens, click Convert to continue.

"With the ClipArt picture converted to a bitmap, double-click the picture to open it in Edit view. Use the drawing/painting tools to modify the picture and, when finished, choose File, Close Bitmap Editor, and your newly colored picture will appear on the slide."

To see how Jack's technique works, run Corel Presentations and open a blank slide. Choose Insert, Graphics, ClipArt and drag one of the pictures to your slide. You can now close the Scrapbook (click the X in the upper-right corner).

Click the picture and choose Tools, Convert To Bitmap. Click Convert to continue with the conversion. Now, as Jack described, double-click the picture.

When the picture opens in the Edit Bitmap window, select one of the coloring tools. The Foreground Fill Color tool shows a bucket in the process of pouring paint into the foreground. Click it to open a color selection dialog box and select a new color. Now, click the Flood Fill tool (its icon resembles a paint roller). Click an area that you would like to fill with the new color.

You can continue this process until you have colored any parts of the picture that you want to change. After you finish changing the colors, choose File, File, Close Bitmap Editor to return to the slide.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

TELL YOUR AUDIENCE ABOUT THE PICTURES

Here is a tip from reader Susan W.:

"I have been to many presentations where the presenter used excellent photographs as part of the slide show. Very often, when the picture flashed on the screen, the presenter would simply say, 'This is a picture taken in Hawaii' or something to that effect. Don't do this; always give your audience some detail about the picture. Why is that picture from Hawaii important to your presentation? Surely you didn't put it in just to show that Hawaii is a lovely place.

"A picture may be worth a thousand words, but if you don't explain how that picture fits into your presentation, it isn't worth anything."

Thanks for the tip, Susan.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

LOOPING SOUNDS IN POWERPOINT SLIDE SHOWS

Here is a PowerPoint question from reader Jane M.:

"I use PowerPoint for my presentations. For the slide show I'm currently working on, I could use a MIDI sound that continues throughout the entire slide show. Is this practical?"

Yes, it is practical to loop sound through an entire slide show in PowerPoint. To try this, run PowerPoint and open a blank slide. Insert some text or ClipArt, just so you will have something to look at, and then press Ctrl-M and press Enter to insert a new slide. Insert some ClipArt on the new slide and press Ctrl-M-Enter again. Repeat until you have four or five slides in the slide show.

Now, go to your first slide and choose Insert, Movies And Sounds, Sound From File. When the Insert Sound dialog box opens, locate your sound and double-click its icon to insert it onto the slide.

Next, right-click the speaker icon that represents your sound and choose Custom Animation. The Custom Animation dialog box will open to the Play Settings page. Select the Continue Slide Show and After options. Use the spin box to enter the number of slides in your show. Next, click More Options and then select the Loop Until Stopped check box and click OK. Back in Custom Animation, click the Timing tab. Now, select the Animate and Automatically options. Click OK to close the Custom Animation dialog box and save your selections.

Now, you can choose Slide Show, View Show to see if all is working well. The sound should loop as long as the slide show runs. When the slide show ends, so will the sound.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

USING AN LCD PROJECTION PANEL FOR YOUR PRESENTATION

The following comments were sent in by reader Dan M.:

"I am sending this to you in hopes of helping someone else avoid the problems I recently ran into when using an LCD projection panel on the road.

"When I started my slide show testing (only a half-hour before presentation time), I discovered that the projector wasn't bright enough to allow me any significant room lighting. Since it is very difficult to present in a totally dark room, I felt that I was at a definite disadvantage.

"I don't know whether other LCD panels suffer from this problem. I assume that the biggest problem is the brightness of the projector. In most cases, a projector is too big an item to take along, so you must work with the one that is onsite.

"I have no particular alternative to recommend; I just wanted to warn people that they may experience a similar problem if they must use an LCD panel."

Thanks for the information, Dan.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

MAPPING A PICTURE WITH COREL PRESENTATIONS

The following tip was submitted by reader Phillip B.:

"Although I always use Corel Presentations for my slide shows, I recently ran across another use for Corel Presentations--you can use it to map images for your Web pages.

"When I was fooling around with Corel Presentations, I decided to see what some of the macros do. I tried the one named Imgemap.wcm and discovered that it would map an image. I thought others might like to give this a try."

To see how Imgemap.wcm works, run Corel Presentations and open a blank slide. Now, choose Tools, Macro, Play. When the Play Macro dialog box opens, double-click Imgemap.wcm. This opens the Create HTML Image Map Code dialog box. You can type the location and name of the picture file you want to use, or you can click the button at the right side of the Enter Bitmap text box to display the Open File dialog box. Locate the picture you want to use and double-click its icon to insert the picture and close the dialog box.

When the Image Map Macro dialog box opens, read the instructions and then click OK. Now, use the mouse to outline the area you want to map. Next, click Set Map, then type the URL you want to apply to the selected area and click OK. You can now use the mouse to map another area and then click Set Map and type another URL. After you have mapped all the areas you need, click Done. Corel Presentations will save your new HTML file in the folder in the last dialog box (Create Image Map Is Finished). After you see where your file is going to be stored, click OK to close this dialog box.

The HTML file will contain the coding that maps your picture. You can use this file as part of your Web page, or you can copy the code (and the picture information) to an existing Web page.

Thanks for the tip, Phillip.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ORGANIZING A SLIDE SHOW PRESENTATION

As reader Gerri C. mentioned in a recent message, too many new presenters are overwhelmed by their presentation program's power and become so involved with adding pictures, sounds, and animations that they often lose sight of the point of the presentation.

Before you start creating slides, it is a very good idea to sit down with the people involved and make sure that you all agree about what you want your presentation to accomplish. What is its point? What do you need to do to make the point?

Once you start designing slides, you should not overdo them. Don't add so many pictures, sounds, and animations that you take a chance on losing your audience to a confusing flurry of sight and sound. Only use visuals that support your point. Never use visuals just because they look good.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

WORKING WITH CHARTS IN YOUR PRESENTATIONS

Here is a presentation tip from reader Dale J.:

"I have often seen presentations that used backward charts. By this, I mean the emphasis was placed on the wrong elements. One recent example of this was a chart that showed corporate earnings since 1990. Unfortunately, the first bar was 1998, the next was 1997, etc. This is a very poor practice, since one's first impression is that earnings are steadily dropping.

In another example, a computer manufacturer showed comparison timing charts. The fastest computer had the shortest line. This is valid and may be fine for an audience of engineers, but the first impression of a non-technical audience is that the longest line represents the best computer. New presenters should be very careful not to fall into any of these chart traps."

Thanks for the comments, Dale.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ADDING PICTURES TO THE POWERPOINT CLIP GALLERY

In the last tip, we discussed how to add your own pictures to the Freelance Graphics ClipArt library. This time, let's take a look at how to add your own pictures to the PowerPoint Clip Gallery.

Run PowerPoint and open a blank slide. Now, choose Insert, Picture, ClipArt. When the Microsoft Clip Gallery opens, click Import Clips. This will open the Add Clip Art To Clip Gallery dialog box. Locate the file that you would like to import and double-click it.

After the importation process finishes, the Clip Properties dialog box opens. Select the category that you want your new picture to appear in and then click OK to close the dialog box and accept the addition. To view your new addition, click the Pictures tab.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

USING THE POWERPOINT SLIDE MASTER

Here is a PowerPoint question from reader Mark F.:

"I'm a new PowerPoint user, and I would like to ask how you use the Slide Master. I've opened the Slide Master, and it just looks like any other slide to me."

The Slide Master is another slide, Mark, but it's a special slide. Anything you place on the Slide Master will appear on all the slides in a slide show. Suppose, for example, that you would like to place some action buttons in every slide for navigation. Let's say you would use a button for Next Slide and one for Previous Slide.

Since you want these buttons to appear on all your slides, choose View, Master, Slide Master. When the Slide Master opens, choose Slide Show, Action Buttons and select the Next button. Use the mouse to draw, place, and size your new button. When the Actions Settings dialog box opens, just click OK to close it and use the default settings. Repeat this procedure to place the Previous action button. You'll see a floating toolbar labeled Master on your screen. Click Close to return to your slide show. The two buttons you placed in the Slide Master will appear on each slide in the show, as well as any new slides that you create.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

GOO PROJECTOR SECRETS

You can have Goo randomize your keyframes for playback by Control-clicking on the Projector button.

-- Ted Alspach and Steven Frank, Official Kai's Power Tools Studio Secrets, Copyright (c) 1996 IDG Books Worldwide, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

USING TRANSITIONS IN YOUR PRESENTATIONS

Reader Bob D. sent in this advice on how to use transitions:

"Many new presenters fail to pay enough attention to their slide transitions. With the presentation programs that are available now, people tend to use eye-catching transitions. In most cases, you want to use subtle transitions. You don't want to have the audience pay more attention to your transitions than to your presentation. I suggest using a wipe effect for most transitions, although I often use a fade to black to indicate a passage of time or to better separate two thoughts."

Good advice, Bob. Thanks for the tip.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ADDING SPECIAL EFFECTS TO PHOTOGRAPHS IN COREL PRESENTATIONS

Here is a Corel Presentations tip submitted by reader Chester M.:

"Although you can use third-party software to manipulate photographs and other bitmapped pictures, many people aren't aware of the fact that you can do this in Corel Presentations. After you import a picture, double-click it and then choose Tools, Special Effects. Select one of the effects and then click OK to apply the effect and close the dialog box. Now, press Ctrl-F4 to return to your slide show."

Note that you can apply special effects to only a portion of the picture, if you wish. Insert the picture (choose Insert, Graphics, From File and double-click the picture you want to use). With the picture inserted, double-click it and then click the Select Area button in the toolbar (its icon is a dotted line square). Now, use the mouse to outline the area you want to work with and then choose Tools, Special Effects. Select the effect you want, and click OK to close the dialog box and apply the effect. Now, press Ctrl-F4 to return to your slide.

Thanks for the tip, Chester.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

PLACING A LOGO ON EVERY FREELANCE GRAPHICS SLIDE

Several readers have commented that they've tried unsuccessfully to place a logo on every slide in a show. The most likely reasons for the confusion are that the best way to place a logo on all slides is to put it in the background, and you can't place a logo in the background of a blank slide.

To place a logo in the background, run Freelance Graphics and select one of the slide layouts (anything but blank). Now, choose Presentation, Add A Logo To Every Page. You can add the logo, ClipArt, Bitmap, whatever you want. Size the logo, and place it out of the way. Don't place the logo inside the rectangle outline on the slide.

When you finish with your logo, click Done to continue. The logo will not appear on the title slide, but it will appear on all the others.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

PLACING A LOGO ON EVERY FREELANCE GRAPHICS SLIDE

Several readers have commented that they've tried unsuccessfully to place a logo on every slide in a show. The most likely reasons for the confusion are that the best way to place a logo on all slides is to put it in the background, and you can't place a logo in the background of a blank slide.

To place a logo in the background, run Freelance Graphics and select one of the slide layouts (anything but blank). Now, choose Presentation, Add A Logo To Every Page. You can add the logo, ClipArt, Bitmap, whatever you want. Size the logo, and place it out of the way. Don't place the logo inside the rectangle outline on the slide.

When you finish with your logo, click Done to continue. The logo will not appear on the title slide, but it will appear on all the others.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

REMEMBER THAT YOU ARE THE PRESENTER

Here is a tip from subscriber Dragan S.:

"I have been doing presentations for a long time, and I have begun to notice a bad trend since everyone started using computers. In the old days, you used a slide projector or an overhead projector as a tool to help with your presentation. The point is you were making the presentation, aided by slides or charts.

With the advent of computers and presentation programs, many presenters seem to think the computer is the presenter. If you let this happen to you, you have lost the focus of your presentation. You have to remember that the computer is a tool, just like the projector was before computers came along."

Thanks for the tip, Dragan. It is very easy to fall into this trap. The computers can do so much that we tend to lose focus.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

USING A VISUAL TIME CLUE IN POWERPOINT

Here is a PowerPoint question from reader Theresa B.:

"I am looking for a way to keep track of time during a PowerPoint slide show. I would like to talk for no more than 30 seconds during a specific slide. I have tried a timer and find it distracting. Do you have any ideas?"

You could use a variation of the technique that movies have used for years. If you watch closely the next time you go to a movie, you will see a dot flash onto the screen. A short time later, another dot flashes onto the screen. These dots are there to indicate to the projectionist that it's time to switch to a new reel.

To do this in a PowerPoint slide show, open your slide show and navigate to the slide you want to work with. Now, click the Oval button in the Drawing toolbar and draw a small circle. Color and size it as you wish and move it to the lower-right corner of the slide.

Right-click the new circle and choose Custom Animation. When the Custom Animation dialog box opens, click the Effects tab. Now, under Entry Animation And Sound, click the arrow at the right side of the first list box and select Flash Once, Fast from the list.

Click the Timing tab now, select the radio buttons labeled Animate and Automatically. Enter the time interval you want (30 seconds) and then click OK to close the dialog box and save your settings. Now, the circle will flash when the 30 seconds has elapsed.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

CHANGING THE ANIMATION SEQUENCE OF FREELANCE GRAPHICS OBJECTS

The following Freelance Graphics question was sent in by reader Hugh H.:

"I recently designed a slide that uses object animation. My problem is that I don't like the way Freelance Graphics decided to set the sequence of a group of ClipArt pictures. Is there a way to change the sequence, or do I have to start all over again?"

No need to start over. Since you already have the animation set up, open the slide in question and choose Presentation, Sequence Objects On Page. When the Screen Show Sequence Overview dialog box opens, use the mouse to drag object titles into the sequence you want to use. After you make all the necessary changes, click OK to close the dialog box and apply your new sequence selection.

If you don't have a slide available, but would like to see what Hugh is talking about, run Freelance Graphics and open a blank slide. Now, click ClipArt and place a few pictures onto the slide. Right-click a picture and choose Group Properties. When the Properties dialog box opens, select the radio buttons labeled Display Page First, Then Display Object and After. Leave the default setting of zero and click the arrow at the right side of the Transition list box. Select a transition and then leave the dialog box open and click another ClipArt picture. Now, repeat the above procedure and then click another picture. Continue until you have selected animation for all the ClipArt pictures.

Now, still in the Properties dialog box, click Sequence to open the Screen Show Sequence Overview dialog box. Now, you can modify the sequence as described earlier, by dragging objects into different positions on the sequence list. When finished, click OK to continue, and then click the Close box to dismiss the Properties dialog box. Next, run your screen show to check it out.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

WORKING WITH A WIRELESS MICROPHONE

Here is a note from reader Gina S.:

"A few weeks ago, I was in the audience for a really nice presentation. The only problem was that the presenter was wearing a wireless microphone and sniffed a lot. Every time he sniffed, the microphone picked up the sound and amplified it. People need to watch what they do when they wear those microphones. All that sniffing ruined what was otherwise an excellent presentation."

Of course, the sniffing would probably have been distracting even without the amplification. If you must present when you have a cold and are coughing, sneezing, or sniffing, a standard microphone would prove a better choice than a wireless. At least you can move away from the microphone, or cover it, when you have a problem.

Thanks for your note, Gina.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ASSIGNING QUICKKEYS IN COREL PRESENTATIONS SLIDE SHOWS

This Corel Presentations tip was submitted by reader Kayla J.:

"I have never seen any discussion of Corel Presentations' QuickKeys. I find this a very useful feature. For example, if you would like to use the N key to move to the next slide during a slide show, you can just make the assignment. You can then assign the P key to move back to the previous slide."

Kayla is correct; QuickKeys assignment is very easy and potentially very useful. Let's look at an example. Run Corel Presentations and open a blank slide. Choose Insert, Graphics, ClipArt and drag a picture to the slide. Now, choose Insert, New Slide and insert a ClipArt picture on this second slide.

Now, right-click the slide and choose QuickKeys. When the Slide Properties dialog box opens (it will open at the QuickKeys page), click N and then select the radio button labeled Go To. Click the arrow at the right side of the Go To list box and select Next Slide from the list. Select the check box labeled Apply To All Slides In Slide Show and click OK to close the dialog box and apply your new selection. Choose View, Play Slide Show. After the first slide opens, press N to move to the next slide.

Thanks for the tip, Kayla.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

HANDLING QUESTIONS DURING A PRESENTATION

Here is a presentation trap that we have seen many presenters fall into. You start your presentation, and someone asks a question. Although it is a valid question, your slide doesn't cover it. You may then decide that the person who asked the question is attempting to make you look bad, so you answer rather gruffly.

Not only is it a mistake to give a gruff answer in the first place, you are now in a bad mood and tend to answer all questions in a gruff manner. If you allow this to happen to you, you will ruin your presentation.

Even if you're absolutely sure that some of the questioners are out for blood, stay calm and answer the question factually and pleasantly.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

COLORING PICTURE BLOCKS IN POWERPOINT

Here is a PowerPoint question from reader Steven M.:

"I use PowerPoint and sometimes like to use a ClipArt picture inside a box that has a colored background. In some cases, I can place a colored rectangle behind the picture, but even this is not quite satisfactory. Do you have any suggestions?"

This is no problem at all with ClipArt. Run PowerPoint and open a blank slide. Choose Insert, Picture, ClipArt and double-click the picture you would like to use. Now, right-click the picture and choose Format Picture. When the Format Picture dialog box opens, click the Colors And Lines tab and then (under Fill) click the arrow at the right side of the Color list box. When the list opens, select the color you would like to use and then click OK to close the dialog box and apply your color selection.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

PASTING PICTURES (OR TEXT) INTO FREELANCE GRAPHICS CHARTS

Although we have previously discussed how to paste pictures into Freelance Graphics charts, here is a new idea from reader Larry G.:

"I had to create a slide presentation for a large audience of printers. I was looking for a way to paste some kind of impressive picture into the bars of one of my charts, when I happened to think of pasting in some text. I found that this worked quite well. To make the pasted text look better, I increased the font size of some text before copying it to the Clipboard."

As Larry points out, whatever is in the Clipboard when you do a paste is what you get. Let's look at an example. Run Freelance Graphics and open a blank slide. Now, choose Create, Chart. When the Create Chart dialog box opens, accept the default (bar) and click OK. Next, in Edit Data, enter a few numbers (1, 2, 3 will do) and click OK to close the dialog box and continue. Now, select the text you want to use in the chart bars and press Ctrl-C to copy it. You can copy the text from a Word Pro document, or from Notepad, or any text program that you want to use. You can even enter some text into a Freelance Graphics slide and copy it.

With the chart in place, right-click a bar and choose Series Properties. When the Series Properties dialog box opens, click the Pictures tab. Click Paste to paste the copied text into the bars. You can now close the Series Properties dialog box by pressing Alt-F4.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

USING WIZARDS AND TEMPLATES TO CREATE POWERPOINT SLIDE SHOWS

This PowerPoint question was sent in by reader Steve M.:

"When you create a new PowerPoint slide show, you can use a wizard or a template. Which approach is best?"

There isn't a definite answer to this question, but let's take a look at both methods.

A wizard consists of a series of dialog boxes that step you through a process by asking you what elements you want to use in your slide show. To use the wizard, run PowerPoint and select the radio button labeled AutoContent Wizard. Now, simply click Next and answer the question and then continue to click Next until you have answered all of the questions.

If PowerPoint is already running and you would like to use the wizard, choose File, New. When the New Presentation dialog box opens, click the Presentations tab. Now, double-click AutoContent Wizard to close the dialog box and start the wizard.

Templates are slide shows that have already been set up for you, but you can make whatever modifications you need to create your own show. To use a template, run PowerPoint and select the radio button labeled Template. Click OK and then choose the template that best suits your needs. If you don't see what you need in the Presentations Design area, click the Presentations tab and look through those templates too. If PowerPoint is already running, you can choose File, New. When the New Presentation dialog box opens, click the Presentation Design tab.

There is no reason to consider one method preferable to the other. Use the template when it suits you best, and the wizard when it seems to work best. Or, just start with a blank slide and develop your show from scratch.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

PRESENTING ON A LAPTOP COMPUTER

Here is a tip from reader Gerald R.:

"Although the laptop is an excellent tool for one-on-one presentations, you still need to prepare yourself before the presentation. I recently was called on by a manufacturer's rep who showed me a presentation on his laptop computer. The presentation was excellent. The problem was that he took too much time just getting started.

The rep entered my office carrying two large bags. He extracted the computer from one, then looked around for a power receptacle to plug into. He said that his batteries were probably low because he forgot to charge them the night before.

Once the computer was in place, he rummaged around in another bag looking for speakers. Then he had no place to plug in the speakers (low batteries there, too). The problem was that he had used the last open receptacle in my office for the computer. So, he asked if we could unplug my lamp.

As I said, the presentation was excellent, but his lack of preparation was distracting. If you are going to present with a laptop, you should have the batteries charged. You shouldn't have to look around for any of the components you expect to use. You should set up everything very quickly and get to the presentation."

Very good advice, Gerald.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

IMPORTING SLIDES IN POWERPOINT

Here is a comment from reader Pat R.:

"Recently you published a tip for PowerPoint whereby slides could be imported and not lose their original formatting. Every time I try to bring in someone else's slides, they take on the coloring and formatting of my master slide."

When you set the background on the Master slide, and then import a slide from another show, the imported slide takes on the new background. However, if you first open the source slide show and set the background on the slide you want to import, then it will retain its background.

To see how this works, run PowerPoint and open a blank slide. Now, choose Insert, Picture, ClipArt and insert a picture onto the slide. Next, choose Format, Background and select a background. Click Apply to close the dialog box and apply the background to the current slide. Choose File, Save As and name the file. Click Save to save the file and close the dialog box. Now, choose File, Close to close the new file.

Now, let's create another slide show--the one into which we will import the slide from the first show. Open a blank slide and repeat the procedure described above. Insert your new ClipArt picture and then choose View, Master, Slide Master. This time, select a background different from the one you chose for the other show and click Apply To All to close the dialog box and apply the background.

Let's create a second slide now. Press Ctrl-M and press Enter. The new slide will appear with the master background. Insert another ClipArt picture and save your file. Now, choose Insert, Slides From File. When the Slide Finder dialog box opens, click Browse. Locate the file you just created and double-click it to close the dialog box and select the file. Next, click Display to view the slide. Double-click the slide to insert it into your current slide show. Click Close to close the Slide Finder.

The slide will appear with its original background--not the one you assigned using the Slide Master.

PERSONALIZING YOUR PRESENTATIONS

Reader Warren C. sent in this tip:

"In my line of work, I usually use photographs of city streets. I recently decided to personalize these photos. For example, if I am presenting in Toronto, I use a photo of Toronto. If you are visiting large cities, you can usually find photos that are readily identifiable, at least by the residents of that city. When I am preparing to visit a particular city, I insert my photo of that city into the appropriate slide.

I have found this a very useful technique. The audience feels that I understand their specific needs when they are presented with photos of their own city."

This sounds like a good idea, Warren. The only potential problem we can see is that you need to make sure you don't illegally use copyrighted photographs.

----------------------------------------------

CHANGING FONT COLOR IN POWERPOINT SLIDES

Here is a PowerPoint question from reader Barry W.:

"I have created my own PowerPoint templates. One new template has a dark background that requires a white font. When I click the template to insert data, the background inside the title box turns white. With white on white, you cannot see the data. How can I control the color within the box that I am typing inside?"

You can set the color to one that you can read while you're typing, then set the color back to white when you finish the entry. To do this, right-click the title box and choose Font. When the Font dialog box opens, select a new color and click OK. Enter your data, then select it and right-click the selection. Choose Font again, and this time set the color to white. Click OK to close the Font dialog box and save your selections.

----------------------------------------------

AN ANIMATION EFFECT FOR POWERPOINT SLIDES

Here is a PowerPoint animation effect from reader Serge R.:

"Someone suggested using a PowerPoint animation that had a cloud move across the screen to humorously indicate problems. I decided to take this idea a step further and add thunder and lightning. Here is what I did.

Run PowerPoint and open a blank slide. Choose Insert, Picture, ClipArt. When the Clip Gallery opens, select Weather. You'll find a nice, gray cloud and a bolt of lightning here. Insert them both and size them properly. Move both slightly right of center and move the lightning so it appears to come from the cloud. You may need to click the cloud and then choose Draw, Order, Bring To Front to get the right effect. Also, the lightning bolt I used has a shadow. If you don't want the shadow, you can click the lightning and choose Draw, Ungroup. Now, click away from the picture and then click the shadow and press Delete.

Now, right-click the cloud and choose Custom Animation. When the Custom Animation dialog box opens, click the Effects tab and then click the arrow at the right side of the first list box under Entry Animation And sound. Select Crawl From Left and then click the Timing tab. Select the radio buttons labeled Animate and Automatically and click OK to close the dialog box and save your settings.

Now that you have animated the cloud, right-click the lightning and choose Custom Animation. When the Custom Animation dialog box opens, click the Effects tab and select from the animation list Flash Once, Fast. Next, click the arrow at the right side of the Sound list box (it's right below the animation list box under Entry Animation And Sound). When the list opens, select Explosion for the sound.

Click the timing tab now, and select the radio buttons labeled Animate and Automatically. Click OK to save your settings and dismiss the dialog box. Choose View, Slide Show to see how it all works together."

Thanks for the tip, Serge.

----------------------------------------------

SELECTING A BACKGROUND COLOR

We have often discussed background colors and suggested that you choose carefully. Reader Beth G. submitted the following comments on background selection:

"I have seen several presentations by newcomers who used green backgrounds. Green is a very poor choice of background color. In the first place, many colors don't look good on green. For example, red on green is terrible, and blue and yellow don't stand out well. On top of all these problems with green, we should remember that many people can't tell the difference between green and red."

Thanks for the observation, Beth. The thing to do is always present to a practice audience before your presentation. Not only do you get the needed practice, but your audience can give you some feedback concerning your slide colors and animations.

----------------------------------------------

MOVING TO A NEW WINDOW IN POWERPOINT

Here is a PowerPoint tip from reader Walter E.:

"I often have two or three different slide shows loaded in PowerPoint. To switch between them, I choose Windows and then select the file I want to use. But I just discovered that you can move to a new window in PowerPoint by simply pressing Ctrl-Tab. I consider this a great timesaver and thought you might like to pass it along."

Walter is certainly correct--when you have more than one slide show loaded in PowerPoint, you can switch to another file by pressing Ctrl-Tab.

Those of you who use Corel Presentations or Freelance Graphics can use the same technique to switch between loaded files.

Thanks for the tip, Walter.

----------------------------------------------

USING KEYSTROKES TO INSERT A NEW SLIDE IN COREL PRESENTATIONS

Here is a question from subscriber Ralph H.:

"I have seen a tip on how to insert a new slide in PowerPoint using keystrokes. Is there a set of keystrokes you can use to insert a new slide in Corel Presentations?"

Yes, there is. All you have to do is press Ctrl-Enter, and Corel Presentations inserts a new slide.

While we're on the subject, to insert a new slide in PowerPoint, press Ctrl-M, then press Enter to insert a slide just like the current one.

----------------------------------------------

RUNNING A SLIDE SHOW IN POWERPOINT AND FREELANCE WITHOUT OPENING PROGRAMS

Reader Thomas F. sent this PowerPoint question:

"I have several slide shows I would like to run without first opening PowerPoint. If I double-click the show's icon, PowerPoint opens and displays the first slide in development mode. I don't want my audience to see this. Can you suggest something?"

Try this: Run Windows Explorer and locate your slide show file. Right-click the icon and choose Show. PowerPoint opens and runs your slide show. When the show finishes, PowerPoint closes. Your audience never sees the PowerPoint working window at all.

If you don't want your audience to see Explorer running, place a shortcut to the file on your desktop. Then, when you're ready to start the show, right-click the shortcut and choose Show.

You can run a Freelance Graphics slide show in the same manner. Run Windows Explorer and go to \Lotus\Work\flg. To run your show, right-click its icon and choose Screen Show. Freelance Graphics opens and starts your slide show. After the last slide, the show closes, displaying the Freelance Graphics environment. If you don't want your audience to see this, you could add a simple slide saying "The End" and just leave it onscreen until the audience exits.

----------------------------------------------

HIDING OBJECTS IN POWERPOINT

When you have a number of animated objects in a single PowerPoint slide, you can improve the effect if you hide objects you no longer need.

Let's see how to do this. Run PowerPoint and open a blank slide. Now choose Insert, Picture ClipArt. When the Clip Gallery opens, double-click a picture to insert it and close the Gallery.

Now let's animate the picture. Right-click the picture and choose Custom Animation. When the Custom Animation dialog box opens, click the Effects tab. Next, click the arrow at the right side of the Entry Animation list box and select Fly From Left. Click the Timing tab and select the Animate and Automatically radio buttons. Click OK to close the dialog box and apply your selections.

When you run the show (choose Slide Show, View Show), your object flies onto the slide from the left. Now let's make the picture disappear with a single mouse click.

Click the Rectangle tool in the Drawing toolbar (its icon is a rectangle). Use the mouse to draw a rectangle over your animated picture. Now you need to set the rectangle color to match your background. For this example, the background is white. Click the arrow at the right side of the Fill Color button in the Drawing toolbar. When the Fill Color menu opens, select white.

Next you need to eliminate the lines that make up the rectangle. To do this, click the arrow at the right side of the Line Color button and select No Line from the menu.

Finally, right-click the rectangle and choose Custom Animation. When the Custom Animation dialog box opens, click the Effects tab. Click the arrow at the right side of the Entry Animation list box and then select Appear from the list. Click OK to close the dialog box and save your changes.

Now run the slide show by choosing Slide Show, View Show. The animated picture flies in from the left. When you are finished viewing the picture, simply click the mouse button. The figure disappears because the white rectangle you've created appears over it.

----------------------------------------------

HIDING FREELANCE GRAPHICS OBJECTS

In the last tip, we discussed a way to hide objects in a PowerPoint slide show. This time, let's look at how to do the same in Freelance Graphics presentations. Run Freelance Graphics and open a blank slide. Next click ClipArt and insert a picture.

Now let's animate the picture. Right-click the picture and choose Group Properties. When the Properties dialog box opens, click the Screen Show tab. Select the "Display page first, then display object" and After radio buttons. Click the arrow at the right side of the Transition list box and select one of the transitions. Click the X at the upper right corner of the Properties dialog box to close it.

Click Drawing & Text. Select the rectangle and use the mouse to draw your rectangle over the ClipArt picture. Right-click the rectangle's border and choose Rectangle Properties. When the Properties dialog box opens, click the Color, Pattern, And Line Style tab. Under Border, click the arrow at the right side of the Style list box. From the list, select None.

Under Interior, click the arrow at the right side of the Pattern list box. Select solid black. Next click the arrow at the right side of the Pattern color list box and select the current background color (for this example, select white).

Click the Screen Show tab now, and select the "Display page first, then display object" and After radio buttons. For the time delay, enter three seconds. Now, click the arrow at the right side of the Transition dialog box and select Appear from the list. To close the Properties dialog box, click the X in the upper right corner.

To view the slide show, press Alt-F11. Your ClipArt picture appears (using whatever animation effect you chose). Then, after three seconds, the white rectangle appears over the picture, hiding it from view.

----------------------------------------------

ANIMATING OBJECT COLOR IN COREL PRESENTATIONS

Here is a Corel Presentations tip from reader Betty C.:

"I ran across an animation effect in Corel Presentations that I would like to pass along.

"If you would like to have an object slowly change color, you can make as many copies of the object as necessary, and then use the Fade animation to create a gradual color change on a single slide."

Let's take a look at what Betty is talking about. Run Corel Presentations and open a blank slide. Now choose Insert, Shape, Rectangle. Size the rectangle and then click the Foreground Fill Color button in the Corel Presentations toolbar (the button's icon looks like a bucket of paint pouring into a container). Select a color and press Ctrl-C to copy the rectangle. Press Ctrl-V to paste the rectangle over the existing rectangle. Click the new rectangle to select it and then select a new color as described previously.

Now press Ctrl-A to select both rectangles. Right-click the visible rectangle and choose Object Animation. When the Object Properties dialog box opens, select the "Animate object in place" radio button. >From the Effects list, select Fade, then select the Slow radio button. Click OK to close the dialog box and apply your changes.

Finally, click QuickPlay (at the right side of the Corel Presentations window) to view your animation.

You can use as many colored rectangles as you wish to achieve the effect you need.

Thanks for the tip, Betty.

----------------------------------------------

USING CHARTS IN YOUR PRESENTATIONS

It is often very tempting to use fancy charts in a presentation. For example, you may decide to use a radar chart because you think it looks impressive. Or you might decide to create your own chart, using boxes to represent sales volume.

The entire purpose of a chart is to help the audience understand what you have to present. Before you use any chart, standard or nonstandard, make sure your chart is actually going to help the audience see your point.

If you use something like a radar chart for an audience of engineers, you may have no problems at all. Perhaps the radar chart is just what the engineers need. But if you expect to present the same slides to a management audience, you are probably better off using a simple column chart.

We attended a presentation a few years ago in which the presenter made heavy use of radar (and other) charts. You could see the audience pondering the charts, struggling to see the point.

----------------------------------------------

USING SPECIAL FILL EFFECTS IN POWERPOINT CHARTS

Here is a PowerPoint question from reader Del K.:

"I recently ran across an ideal chart type for a PowerPoint presentation. Under Custom Types in the Chart Type dialog box, I saw one named Outdoor Bars. I selected it, and my chart bars took on the appearance of wood. This is ideal for me, since I work for a lumber company. The only problem is that I really need a column chart rather than a horizontal bar chart. Is there any way to get this wood effect in a column chart?"

Yes, there is. In fact, you can use almost any fill effect you want in a column chart. Run PowerPoint and choose Insert, Chart. When the chart appears, right-click one of the columns and choose Format Data Series. When the Format Data Series dialog box opens, click the Patterns tab (if necessary) and then click Fill Effects.

When the Fill Effect dialog box appears, click the Texture button. Now scroll down to the bottom of the texture list and you'll see several textures that resemble wood. Select one of these, then click OK to accept your selection and close the dialog box. Back in Format Data Series, click OK again to close this dialog box and save your changes.

Repeat this procedure for each series in the chart. The default chart, which we used for this example, contains three series.

----------------------------------------------

PASSING OUT WRITTEN MATERIALS

We recently attended a presentation on how to deal with stress in the workplace. The presentation was excellent, but the presenter spoiled everything by passing out copies of the entire presentation before the slide show began. The audience began reading the handouts before the slide show even started and continued to read during the entire presentation. Nobody paid the slightest attention to the presenter.

Don't make this mistake. Whenever possible, don't pass out any written material until the end of your presentation.

----------------------------------------------

KEEP YOUR SLIDES IN PERSPECTIVE

Reader Hank V. submitted this presentation tip:

"It is very important to keep perspective in mind when creating a slide. Many new slide show designers seem to think that making figures smaller is enough to create the illusion of distance. This is not so. To create an appearance of distance, you must make a figure smaller and move it up as well.

"For exam