Tutorial

Move a PPT 2007 Chart

Here is my PPT 2007 slide with a nice stylized chart:

The frustration is when you want to nudge the chart into position using the arrow keys it does not move… Each click of the arrow key just changes the selected item within the chart:

My solution is this – a standard autoshape box:

When you select a chart in PPT 2007 AND any other object, the focus is now on the group of items, not the individual chart. So using the arrow keys moves both items.

Move the chart into position, then delete the temporary box. Done.

– Troy @ TLC

By |2016-09-16T10:40:05-07:00April 2nd, 2009|Tutorial|

Right-Click From Keyboard

It can happen, just watch the 1:00pm – Customizing ExpressShow with Dan Davis video at TechSmith’s 24-in-24 Camatasia tutorials where someone had to run out and grab an external mouse to use a right-click to access the needed menu. Well now you will never be stuck in that situation with this nifty trick.

Just press the SHIFT + F10 and you have right clicked!

– Troy @ TLC

By |2016-09-16T10:47:11-07:00March 22nd, 2009|Tutorial|

Who is Watson and Why is He Important to Microsoft?

In this case Dr. Watson is a debugger for Microsoft, not Sherlock Holmes assistant.

If Dr. Watson is running and a Windows application crashes, such as PowerPoint, it creates a report with technical information that Microsoft developers use to determine what caused the crash. The key is sending the data, which I have been promised is anonymous, to Microsoft.

After spending a few days with the PowerPoint developers at Microsoft last week, like it or not, Watson reports play a HUGE factor in what gets fixed, or updated. So submit those Watson reports whenever possible – they make a difference.

– Troy @ TLC

By |2016-09-16T10:52:51-07:00March 12th, 2009|PowerPoint, Tutorial|

Instantly Select The Box – Not The Text

With text boxes, or autoshapes with text in them, there are two types of selection:
1. Selecting the text so it can be edited.
2. Selecting the shape so it can be edited or moved.

Selecting the text is easy, just click inside the box near the text and you get the text cursor. Note, when you have text selected the shape has a dotted line border.

But to select the shape I see people struggle all the time. The three common ways are:
1. Select the text, then carefully click on the dotted line border to change the selection to the shape.
2. Carefully position mouse at edge of shape and click (same as #1, but skipping the text selection – usually).
3. Select the text, then press the ESCape key to change the selection to the shape (this is a great trick if you are unfamiliar with it).

But the 4th, and often best, way to select a shape and not the text is also the easiest.
4. Hold the shift key and click on the shape – anywhere. This only allows the shape to be selected, never the text.

Note: the border is a solid line when the shape is selected.

– Troy @ TLC

By |2016-09-16T10:54:15-07:00March 10th, 2009|Tutorial|

SmartArt Balancing Act

SmartArt really makes you look – smart! But did you know the Balance graphic is smart enough to adjust itself…?

Go to INSERT >> SMARTART >> RELATIONSHIP >> BALANCE

Like all SmartArt the graphic is actually controlled by a standard bulleted list.

Here is my sample Balance SmartArt graphic. It has two categories, one for each side. And it starts off with equal balance – 1 bullet point per side.

But if you add more bullets to one side, the scale automatically ‘tips’ to the heavier side! Here I have added a second bullet to Category 1 and tipped the scale.

Note: only primary bullets affect the balance. Adding sub-bullets is fine, but they have no impact on which way the balance beam leans.

– Troy @ TLC

By |2016-09-16T10:55:15-07:00March 8th, 2009|Tutorial|

Resize Preview To Fit-to-Screen: PPT vs. Photoshop

To quickly get the “big picture” you may need to see the whole slide or image. There are some great keyboard shortcuts to do this, but they are different in PPT 2003, PPT 2007 and Photoshop.

PowerPoint 2003:
Option 1: Use the drop-down menu and choose FIT

Option 2: Install the PPTools free StarterSet and click the magnifying glass icon

PowerPoint 2007
Click the ‘Fit to Window’ button in the lower right corner

Photoshop:
CTRL + 0 (zero)

– Troy @ TLC

By |2016-09-16T11:09:46-07:00January 27th, 2009|Tutorial|

Resize and Keep Aspect Ratio: PPT vs. Photoshop

Another great feature is resizing (enlarging or shrinking) images and autoshapes from any corner and have it maintain the same aspect ratio.

This feature is available in PowerPoint and Photoshop, using the SAME key combination.

PowerPoint: SHIFT + adjust with mouse

Photoshop: SHIFT + adjust with mouse

– Troy @ TLC

By |2016-09-16T11:10:07-07:00January 25th, 2009|Tutorial|

Resize From Center: PPT vs. Photoshop

A great feature is resizing (enlarging or shrinking) images and autoshapes from their center point.

This feature is available in PowerPoint and Photoshop, but using different key combinations.

PowerPoint: CTRL + SHIFT + adjust with mouse

Photoshop: CTRL + ALT + adjust with mouse

– Troy @ TLC

By |2016-09-16T11:10:30-07:00January 23rd, 2009|Tutorial|

Change Photoshop Ruler Measurement

I have been using Photoshop since version 2 (the dark ages of computer design) and just had Lori point out a cool feature I never knew existed!

I know PowerPoint is our topic, but I work in Photoshop virtually everyday preparing images for templates and presentations. In this case I was moving back and forth between PPT images that are measured in pixels and a print layout that was measured in inches. So, I was constantly going into the preferences and changing the rulers until Lori came over and pointed out a better way.

If you RIGHT-CLICK the ruler in Photoshop, it can instantly (and easily) be changed!

– Troy @ TLC

By |2016-09-16T11:10:49-07:00January 21st, 2009|Tutorial|

“Just Rename It To .PPSX”… (doesn’t work)

In the old days (PPT 95 through 2003), the only difference between a presentation and a show was the extension. So if you had a presentation and wanted it to open in slideshow view, just the file extension had to be renamed. But in the new world (now 2 years old) of PPT 2007 that does not work.

1. Here is our test file – a .pptx (PPT 2007 presentation)

2. Manually change the file extension (.pptx), changing the “T” to an “S”, and Windows gives this confirmation dialog

3. The icon changes to the PowerPoint Show icon and the extension is .ppsx

4. But when you try to open the file you get this error

5. Why? Because any Office 2007 file with an “x” in the file extension is really a .zip file with lots of individual files inside it. Changing the extension does not directly change the file any longer, so the quick fix of ‘just rename it’ no longer works…

– Troy @ TLC

By |2016-09-16T11:11:15-07:00January 19th, 2009|Tutorial|
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