Death by power point

cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo by Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com: http://flickr.com/photos/notionscapital/4073536505/

Read this online at the ResourceLink blog:
http://resourcelinkbce.wordpress.com/2013/04/14/creating-quality-presentations-part-one-first-steps/

Image used with permission: Frits Ahlefeldt http://www.hikingartist.net/media.details.php?mediaID=NTllODkwZGI1NWZm

Every day, in conference rooms and offices around the world,
people are dying. Death by PowerPoint is the commonly used
term for presentations of endless slides, filled with dense text,
complex diagrams and poor design.
The simple tips in the following booklet will help you transform
presentations into tools of communication that will engage the
audience, and provide a memorable accompaniment to your
message.
The first half of this booklet will give you four simple steps to
improve the overall impact of your presentations. The second
half will focus on specific strategies to aid in the creation of
effective presentations, as well as a tutorial for the PowerPoint
alternative, Prezi.
This booklet can be downloaded for additional copies at
http://tinyurl.com/presentationsthatwork

Seth Godin, entrepreneur,
author and public speaker
admits that he has seen a lot
of presentations in his
cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo by Thomas Leth-Olsen:
http://flickr.com/photos/thomasletholsen/6050828458/
career; and is adamant that
most are poor. His simple
rules for creating effective presentations have formed the basis
of what I call ‘First Steps’.

One of the common issues with
slides in a presentation is ‘cognitive
load’. Cognitive load is essentially
how much your brain can take in.
cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo by DonkeyHotey:
Our working memory is limited, and http://flickr.com/photos/donkeyhotey/5713922
088/
we process words and images
separately, and therefore, when a speaker is presenting to an
audience, and there is a slide full of text behind them, the
audience must make a subconscious choice about which to pay
attention to. They simply can’t take in both. Seth Godin says
absolutely no more than 6 words per slide; however if this is too
rigid, at least try to limit the text to the main ideas. The
audience came to hear the speaker. If all of the content is on the
presentation, they could have just stayed at home and had the
slideshow emailed to them!

Now that the text on each slide is minimised, you have room to
include amazing images! The content of the presentation is
made richer when it is accompanied by images that engage the
audience emotionally. An image smokestacks belching into the
sky is far more memorable than a list of dot points about
pollution. One key thing to remember when choosing images is
that the image should illustrate the point you are making –
design, don’t decorate. For example:

PowerPoint is fitted out with many features
that are not conducive to good design.
Animations that have text swooshing across
the slide, transitions that blink and flash and
overdone backgrounds that distract from the

text simply confuse your message. The best cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo by
a_whisper_of_unremitting_demand:
presentations are simple, clean and free of http://flickr.com/photos/jpovey/3967341
366/
distractions.

Like this! The audience will be relieved to know that all of the
information being communicated during the presentation will
be theirs to walk away with at the conclusion. This frees them
up to truly listen to the presenter – rather than scribbling down
notes. It also means your slides do not have to contain all of the
information, and can be used to engage the audience using the
tips above. It is important – vital! However, that it is handed out
at the end of the presentation – otherwise the audience will
simply read the document, and ignore the presenter.
Presentations which contain the entirety of information being
delivered are known as ‘slideuments’. They are a terrible hybrid
of document and slideshow presentation. While it may take a
little longer to create a document and an accompanying
presentation, the results are worth it in audience engagement
and quality communication.

cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo by Pot Noodle: http://flickr.com/photos/maggiew/6121970836/

Your first decision when creating a presentation is deciding
which tool best suits the purpose. The main players for
presentations are PowerPoint (Windows), Keynote (Mac) and
Prezi (Online).

There are also mobile apps that create presentations, which are
useful if you are on the move.
PowerPoint is the best known application in this area. Amazing
presentations can be created using PowerPoint – Nancy Duarte
has created an amazing example of just how far PowerPoint can
be pushed, which can be viewed here. PowerPoint is easy to
use, although it can sometimes be a little unreliable when
embedding video, (more on this later) and many of its pre-
designed themes and templates are less than appealing.
Keynote is only available to those operating on the Mac
platform. It performs the same role as PowerPoint, however
some argue its design is sleeker and it is known to be able to
handle video and music files more capably than PowerPoint.
Prezi is a relative
newcomer, but it is
growing in popularity.
Prezi is online, and
stores your
presentations ‘in the
cloud’, although for a
modest subscription
you can download a
desktop editor, which allows you to work in an offline mode.
Prezi is not based on linear slides, but has an unlimited canvas,
onto which you place your content. As you design your Prezi,
you create a ‘path’ which directs the order in which this content

is presented. Being a canvas, Prezi is terrific for creating non-
linear presentations, as you can zoom in and out to view the big
picture or focus on smaller details, and the design is not limited
by slide size. A tutorial on getting started with Prezi is included
in this booklet. Click the image to view a brief Prezi on Prezi.
A beautiful mobile device presentation app is Haiku Deck. The
focus of Haiku Deck is to create image based slides, with
minimal text. Built into the app is a search of Creative Commons
licenced images, and it automatically places the attribution onto
the image, which is a huge time saver. If you have access to an
iPad, it is worth exploring. Below is an example of a Haiku Deck
slide.

Avoid using the standard templates, if at all possible. There are a
number of reasons for this. Firstly, they are not original or
memorable. As PowerPoint is used so commonly, the layouts
will make your slides seem just like everyone else’s. Secondly,
the templates provided encourage the creation of slideuments –
encouraging headings and subheadings, dot points and even
two columns of information on the one slide.

What looks amazing on the computer may not display as well
when projected on a screen. The size and brightness of the
room and strength of the projector can impact upon the colours,
rendering some colour combinations unreadable. Another
consideration is that approximately 8% of men suffer from
colour-blindness (Victorian Department of Health and
Safety,2013). Therefore the choice of background colour, text
colour and the use of contrast are all important.

These colours contrast

These colours don’t contrast

These colours don’t contrast

These colours contrast (harder to read?)

The vast majority of images found through Google Images are
copyrighted. When presenting to an audience, replicating
images you do not have permission to use breaches copyright.
Fortunately, there are a number of sources of images you can
use, and these sources are growing.
Creative Commons licenced images are an alternative to
copyrighted images. Whereas copyright works on an all rights
reserved model, Creative Commons licences allow the creator of
the work to state which rights they choose to reserve (e.g. non-
commercial indicates the creator reserves the right to prohibit
commercial use of their creation). Images can also be labelled
Public Domain, which means anyone is free to use them. These
images are usually commonly used symbols, or images that have
passed out of copyright.
A comprehensive explanation of Creative Commons, Public
Domain and Copyright is available on the Copyright and Copyleft
wiki.
If you have a budget for the presentation,
you can purchase images from one of the
many stock photo companies online. We
have found iStockphoto to have an excellent
range, and reasonably priced.
If you have no funds, don’t despair! There are many other
excellent sources of creative commons licenced and free images
and quality clipart.

Flickr Creative
Commons – a huge
range of photos all
licenced to be used
under various CC
Licences.

Wikimedia Commons
- a database of over
16 million freely
usable media files to
which anyone can
contribute.

ClClker provides royalty
free public domain
clip art in vector
format and in image
PNG format. It also
allows you to make
simple edits to these
images.

Inserting video in
PowerPoint can be
problematic.
PowerPoint offers
three options for
inserting video.

Inserting a video from file is essentially the same as inserting an
image. You browse to where the file is located, and click insert.
There are a number of caveats on this simple process.
a) Keep the video file and the PowerPoint file in the same
folder. The video is not embedded into the PowerPoint, it
‘links’ to it, so if you move the PowerPoint (say onto a data
key to transport to the presentation location) and you
don’t move the video file as well, the video will fail to load.
Moving the entire folder with all linked files goes some way
to resolving this (although it is good to test at the
presentation location, as sometimes videos need to be
‘reinserted’).
b) If you have a video stored as a file on your hard drive, you
should either own this video or have permission to store it.
Downloading YouTube videos without the permission of
the creator is a breach of copyright.

Inserting a video from a website can be problematic. There are
multiple requests for assistance online from PowerPoint users
for whom this process just simply doesn’t work. The process
seems simple:
Step 1:

Step 2:

This process has never worked successfully for us, on a range of
different computers. The video appears as a black box that will
not play, or there is an error which requires Adobe Flash to be
updated (even when the latest version is installed).
Fortunately, there are two alternatives.
a) Hyperlink to the video
b) Use a third party plug-in such as AuthorStream
Hyperlinking to the video means you temporarily leave the
presentation, and go to where the video is situated to view. This
can be disruptive during a presentation, however it does mean
you can link to any video on any website (YouTube, Vimeo,
TeacherTube etc). You can also link to a video edited on
SafeShare TV, so that all of the annoying ads are removed.
How to hyperlink to a SafeShare TV video:

Select the YouTube
video and copy its
hyperlink.

Open SafeShare TV
and paste the
hyperlink into the
field. Click
generate safe link.

If editing of the
video is required,
click customize
video. Make the
relevant edits.

Open PowerPoint
and create the
slide. Highlight the
text or image you
wish to hyperlink
from and click
insert hyperlink.

A third party plug-in such as AuthorStream allows you to
embed YouTube or Vimeo videos directly into the slideshow so
that they can be seamlessly displayed as part of the
presentation.
Download Authorstream and follow the directions to install.
Once it is installed, in PowerPoint a new tab will appear on the
ribbon at the top of the screen.
Embedding the video is simply a matter of pasting the video
hyperlink (not the embed code) into the window, as below.

Please note that embedded videos require an internet
connection to operate.
Embedding video from clipart is quite straight forward, however
the limited range of videos available from clipart means this
option is rarely chosen. The videos available are generally
classified as animations, and add little to formal presentations.
If you have many videos to embed, it may be easier to choose
Prezi as your presentation tool. To embed video into Prezi,
simply paste the link where you want the video to appear, and
as long as you have an internet connection, the process is
complete.

Choice of font is essential if you wish to have readable slides. If
at all possible, choose no more than two fonts; a headline font
and a text font. Make use of bold and italic options if you need
further differentiation.
Nancy Duarte explains font choice very well in her book,
Slideology. Essentially, there are two types of fonts; serif and
sans serif. Serifs are the small strokes at the end of letters that
aid readability – you can see them

Here
Serif fonts are good for long chunks of text. San Serif fonts don’t
have the serifs, and are

cleaner and bolder .

Once you have selected the font, don’t make the mistake of
keeping it too small. Even though it may be readable on the
computer screen, once projected this may change. As a general
rule, stick to 24pt and above, larger if you are presenting in a
large room and some audience members may be seated far
from the screen.

Choice of font does not have to be limited to those available in
the application. There are several websites where you can
download free fonts for maximum impact. Two excellent sites
are

(click on the logos to go to the sites).
One thing to note if you are using downloaded fonts – they will
only work on the computer where the fonts are installed. This is
vital to know, as many presentations are created on one
computer and transferred for presentation onto a different
computer. If you know the presentation is going to be moved, it
is best to stick to one of the pre-installed fonts, or save the
presentation in PDF format, which will prevent the fonts from
changing no matter what computer is being used.
Avoid the overuse of bullet points!

Step 1:

Sign up for a Prezi Account.
If using Prezi in Education,
you can apply for a Student
and Teacher Licence, which
gives you 500Mb storage
for free.

Step 2:

Log in, and click +New
Prezi.

Step 3: Choose from one of
the many templates, or
choose a blank prezi to
start designing from
scratch.

You are ready to begin!

To move around the canvas zoom in
and out by using your mouse’s scroll
wheel or by clicking the + and -
symbols on the right hand side of the
screen.

To move the prezi canvas left, right,
up, or down, hold down the left
button of your mouse and then move
in the direction you want to go.

The Transformation Tool is the main
way to edit. Once you add anything to
the canvas, click on it once to bring up
the Transformation Tool. The tool
allows you to move, size, and rotate
your content. If you add a frame to
your prezi, you can click on it once to
bring up the Transformation Tool and
move, scale, or rotate everything
inside.

Use the Theme Wizard to customize
the colors of your prezi and to set
your font choices from Prezi's font
library.

Frames work like slides and can be
used to group your ideas. Frames
come in a variety of shapes and
sizes, and you can change the
color of them as well as their size
and position.
To create frames, choose 'Add
Frames' from the top-center
menu, or select the type of frame
you want.
Place the frame around the
content you wish to group or
feature.
Adding a frame will automatically
add another step to your prezi’s
path.

Quickly add content to your
drawings, and duplicate them
(using the right-click menu or
keyboard shortcuts) to start filling
your prezi with content.

Click the ‘Shapes’ icon at the top of
the screen to add shapes, lines,
arrows, and more to your Prezi .
Highlight text with the Highlighter.
Jot down ideas and make sketches
with the Pencil.

Creating a path gives your
presentation direction. With the Left
Sidebar, you can create a journey
from one idea to the next. Edit your
path and its points in Edit mode and
take your audience along that path in
Present mode.

To set your path, click the ‘Edit Path’
button on the left-hand side of
screen. Then click on the objects in
your prezi canvas in the order you
wish them to appear.

Use the sidebar to rearrange and
delete path points or to zoom to a
specific path point.
Creating smooth transitions from one path point to the next is an essential part of
creating a good prezi. Some general tips include:

1. Don’t overdo rotation - it could make your audience a little nauseous.
2. Show an overview at regular intervals to give the your audience some context.
3. Create path points that are not long distances apart. Zooming and rotating
from one side of the canvas to another can be disorienting for the people
watching.

Add URLS to your prezi

To put live links into your prezi,
copy and paste the desired URL
into a text box. Then click away
from the text box and your link
will become active (you will see it
automatically underline).

Your Prezi saves automatically as
you create, however it is also good
to save at regular intervals by
simply clicking on the disc icon.

If you have a free Public account,
your prezis will always be available
for others to view online. The free
account for Educators allows you
to keep a Prezi private. You can
also choose to make a prezi
available for others to reuse. This
means that anyone can use the
content in your prezi for
themselves.

Click the share button to access the
weblink and embed codes for
further sharing.

A portable prezi is a downloaded version of a prezi, which you can view offline without
either a Prezi account or Prezi Desktop. You can use it to present in a setting where you
don't have access to the internet. It contains a non-editable version of your prezi, as well as
software for Windows and Mac that will play your prezi. This is good for presenting where
there is no internet connection, or for sharing with others who aren’t online.

Further information can be found on the Prezi Support Page.

5 Ways to Make PowerPoint Sing! (And Dance!). (n.d.). Duarte Blog.
Retrieved April 12, 2013, from http://blog.duarte.com/2010/01/5-ways-to-
make-powerpoint-sing-and-dance/

Department of Human Services, Victoria. (n.d.). Colour blindness.
Better Health Channel. Retrieved April 12, 2013, from
http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Colour_blindn
ess

Duarte, N. (2008). slide:ology: The Art and Science of Creating Great
Presentations (1st ed.). O’Reilly Media.

Godin, S. (2001, January 10). Really Bad PowerPoint: (and how to avoid
it): Seth Godin: Amazon.com: Books. Do You Zoom Inc.

Hooker, D. (2012, March 25). Get Started with Prezi. Prezi Support.
Retrieved April 12, 2013, from https://prezi.zendesk.com/entries/23448918-
Get-Started-with-Prezi

Lessons from TED: 5 Simple Tweaks. (n.d.). Duarte Blog. Retrieved April
12, 2013, from http://blog.duarte.com/2009/02/lessons-from-ted-5-simple-
tweaks/

Reynolds, G. (2011). Presentation Zen: Simple Ideas on Presentation
Design and Delivery (2nd Edition) (2nd ed.). New Riders.

Death by power point

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