3 Questions At The Start of Every Project
With every presentation project for a corporate event, my first 3 technical questions are:
– What version of ppt?
– What is the projector and scaler resolution?
– What is the screen size (screen does not always match projector aspect ratio)?
Based on these answers, I am able to begin developing presentation templates, images and content.
– Troy @ TLC
Woody Flies On This Slide
Marketing presentations for Pixar properties are always fun! In this slide, I was provided art from Toy Story 2 with the instructions to make it lively for the product introduction.
[youtube src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/-DZZsOXnu3A?rel=0″]
Here is the slide with is composed of 3 animated images:
Animation:
1. The background image (picture 7) is oversize and uses a short motion path to make the sky move as Woody flies by.
2. The first instance of Woody flying is the image on the right (picture 4), which uses a custom motion path.
3. Finally, Woody flies back and stops in the middle of the slide with a simple Fly In animation.
Note: Images for this presentation are provided by client and cannot be distributed (so the editable slide is not available, sorry).
– Troy @ TLC
How Do I know if Service Pack 1 For Office 2010 is Installed?
There is a lot of confusion over the recent (and much anticipated) SP1 (Service Pack 1) for Office 2010. The install process was easy, but verifying it was installed has been a source of confusion.
Back with Office 2003, it was very easy and clear to know if a Service Pack was installed. Open PowerPoint, go to HELP and ABOUT and just read the first line of information:
But in Office 2010, that simple information is missing… Go to FILE >> HELP >> and in the right section is the install information – but where is the “SP1?”
(Before SP1 install)
(After SP1 install)
The answer is in the numbers. Thanks to PPT MVP Steve Rindsberg for figuring this out.
– Base build = 14.0.4760.1000
– Service Pack 1 = 14.0.6023.1000
The “6023” is the important number as it equals SP1. Now you know.
– Troy @ TLC
What Version of Flash is Installed On My Computer?
Flash is still a major component of many projects. On a recent presentation that integrated Flash elements, I ran into a need to know exactly what version of the Flash Player was installed on each computer.
I use this website to instantly tell me exactly what version is installed (Click here to open):
Note: Firefox and Internet Explorer (IE) use separate installs of the Flash player. If you use Firefox as the default browser but a Flash app does not work, be sure to update Flash player through IE too as most applications access the IE player (like PowerPoint).
– Troy @ TLC
Breaking Down Web Design
I read this explanation of how multifaceted web design has become –
“You have to realize that Web design is broken apart in several areas:
1. UI ‘Front end development’ (Which includes HTML, CSS, Photoshop, and some Jquery, Java Scrip and Flash elements, Etc….)
2. Web Programmer ‘Back End Development’ (Which includes PHP, Java Script, C#, CMS, Ajax, Apache, Ruby on Rails, Python, Etc…)
3. SEO Specialist ‘Search engine Optimization’ (Which includes Ad words, Blogging, Press releases, Forum Posting, Key word research, Meta Tagging, Etc…)”
That got me thinking how diverse “PowerPoint” is: speaker support presentations, kiosk presentations, learning modules, visual displays, etc. Each is a very different use of the PowerPoint application and each is really an expertise in itself.
Just something I was thinking about…
– Troy @ TLC
The 2011 Presentation Summit
The Presentation Summit is most likely the largest gathering of PowerPoint users at a dedicated presentation-specific conference. I was also at the inaugural event (then called PPTLive) several years ago and have participated in some capacity every year since.
This September, the Summit is in Austin, TX and should prove to a be another fantastic event for the 250 lucky enough to attend.
– Troy @ TLC
2011 4th of July PowerPoint 16×9 Template
The 4th of July weekend was great! Lots of relaxing, time with family and grilling. This template is posted after the weekend, so everyone is very prepared for next year! This is a full featured 4th of July themed PowerPoint 2010 template that is setup for widescreen (16×9) presentations.
1 = Theme slide
2 = Title slide
3 = Content slide, and all standard layouts based on this one
Download the template here.
– Troy @ TLC