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This page gives a range of tips and resources for using Powerpoint when giving speeches or presentations.

Powerpoint slide shows are used in business meetings, at conferences, and in training courses.

As Toastmasters clubs obtain datashow projectors and laptops, Powerpoint is increasingly being used at club meetings by speakers to enhance their presentations.

Learning how to use Powerpoint is not difficult, as it comes standard with Microsoft Office.

But learning how to create effective Powerpoint slides, and deliver a presentation using Powerpoint can be challenging.

The May 2009 Toastmasters Magazine has an article about Powerpoint entitled "Powerpoint Made Easy".  In this article, the writer Narges Nirumvala from Fyrebyrde Toastmasters in Vancouver gives 6 handy tips about creating slides for your speech content.

Here are links to a range of resources on the web about Powerpoint.

Professional Powerpoint Presentation Design
Garr Reynolds blog on issues related to professional presentation design.
This blog has some excellent examples and videos of speakers using PowerPoint.

Death by Powerpoint - Shalu Wasu
PowerPoint is not the presentation. You are.  This article starts out by saying there are two rules: (1) there are no rules; and (2) make your own rules.  He then goes on to outline 12 ideas about Powerpoint presentations, including the use of Powerpoint templates, getting to know the audience, and the value of handouts.

PPT – Powerful Presentation Techniques (pdf) - Paul J Gibler
A list of selected presentation and Powerpoint resources (in pdf format)

Make your Powerpoint presentation stand out - by Olivia Mitchell
In this article, Olivia lists five methods that will make the delivery of your Powerpoint presentation stand out, by using reinforcement, letting the slide speak for itself, using animation, use of signposting, how to set up the audience for the next point, and faking a touch screen. 

Articles on Powerpoint - by Olivia Mitchell
Olivia Mitchell has a number of useful interesting articles about the use of bullets, designing and presenting using Powerpoint, including how to avoid "death by bullet-point".

Using Black Slides - By Bert Decker
This blog explains the use of black slides in a presentation to clear the screen if you don’t want anything displayed, while you talk or explain a point in more depth.  It focuses the audience on YOU, the speaker, rather than the slide show.

Slide Deck Makeover
Mike Pulsifer explains a step-by-step slide makeover of US Coast Guard slides.
Quote from page: "[...] the federal government is a fertile breeding ground for poorly designed and down-right ineffective slides.  [...] the event organizers’ decision to make the slide decks available to participants a couple weeks ago gave me just what I needed to share with you a slide make-over."

Top PowerPoint keystrokes - from Powerpoint is my Slave
(1) During a slide show, hit the B key to make the screen go black, or W to make the screen go white.

(2) Sometimes it can be valuable to be able to draw on the screen during your presentation to illustrate a particular point or item. Press the Ctrl-P key together to display a pen on the screen. Then, using the mouse, draw on the slide as you wish. To erase what you have drawn, press the E key. To hide pen, press the Ctrl-H key combination. It is simple, is very effective and it usually leaves the audience dazzled!

(3) F5 runs the slide show without using the menu

(4) Esc key ends the slide show

(5) Embedding YouTube videos: you will never be short of an interesting video for your presentation. Here is how to go about it.
1. Identify the video and the url on YouTube
2. Go to www.mediaconverter.org and paste the url
3. Follow the simple instructions to download and save the file (download it in the AVI format)
4. That’s it! Now you can insert this video like any other normal video. (Insert –> Movie –> “Movie from file” to put the YouTube video in the current slide)

Do you have any Powerpoint Tips or Ideas
or a tried and true formula?

Email webmaster@toastmasters.org.nz with your information and links.

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