Ask HN: How do I learn to use Powerpoint well?
I work a job that uses Powerpoint both for traditional presentations (talk in front of slides) and documentation (here's a 10 slide presentation covering X that you read yourself).
I don't pick the format, I am aware of all the disadvantages, I have read Tufte, Powerpoint is the tool I will be using for this.
I am looking for a method to learn how to use PP quickly (shortcuts, best practices, features to avoid) so I can put things together quickly that look decent. The vast majority of online content on this is extremely basic or focused on presentation skills - I am looking to learn the software. Something like Joel Spolsky's "You Suck At Excel" talk, but for Powerpoint.
Articles, MOOCs, video, whatever will be fine. Thanks.
39 comments
[ 3.2 ms ] story [ 98.1 ms ] threadThat last bit is important. I see academics trying to emulate Steve Jobs, not realising the Steve Jobs style doesn't work when you have genuinely technically difficult material to get across.
I highly recommend using templates. You can get some really good ones here (from 5 to 30 dollars)[1] or for free using google.
[1] https://graphicriver.net/category/presentation-templates/pow...
Good luck!-
Use the 6 by 6 rule: keep your slides to a maximum of 6 words per line, and 6 lines per slide.
Budget about 30 seconds per slide, and then talk about the things that your slides outline; don't just read what's on the slide.
You can add notes to the slides that don't show up in the presentation but I prefer to use a piece of paper as it lets you walk around.
The most boring presentations are the ones where they spend like 10 minutes a slide.
I usually know what I need in a document, I just want to spend less time putting it together.
To edit text files quickly I learnt vim commands, I'd like to find something similar to take the sting out of working with PP. Keyboard driven workflows, advanced features etc.
Right now I am doing a lot of clicking, a lot of inserting textboxes, changing text formats and dragging things around on slides. I would like to type and hit a few shortcuts as I go to arrange things.
I appreciate people suggesting rules for numbers of slides and tips for preparing to speak but that isn't what the problem is.
I guess it didn't occur to me that a HN user wouldn't know how to use powerpoint.
When you prepare slides several times a year you can get by with the usual method, when it's weekly I would rather spend a couple of hours upfront learning the software inside out. I thought this would be apparent to HN users from the OP.
Use another tool to create each slide. Photoshop if that's your thing. I use omnigraffle on my mac a lot. Each slide should consist of a single jpg or png.
So you don't have to learn anything about PPT, which is a worthless tool, but unfortunately ubiquitous. Make your content and use PPT only to share and present.
> I don't pick the format, I am aware of all the disadvantages, I have read Tufte, Powerpoint is the tool I will be using for this.
And still there are people that go on telling him not to use PowerPoint and the reasons why.
Of course, I am biased and encourage you to try my app, but failing that, feel free to browse through blog posts I have written over the past 8 years that include a lot of PowerPoint advice: http://www.slidemagic.com/search-the-presentation-design-blo...
My book (free) also provides useful pointers: http://www.slidemagic.com/book#free-presentation-design-book
If you can't find it, ask someone in marketing, as they'll probably have something similar if not official.
2. Use the keyboard to move things around. It is much more effective than using a mouse.
The Old KISS principal applies here too.
Use whatever standard template your company or whomever mandates and then have a Title per slide and Bullet points.
If none mandated, just plain white background and standard font size in the default template works best.
All transitions etc.... get lost when converting and delay switching time.
Only have a single image per slide. The image should be self contained. i.e: Create the diagram in word or other and use image of it.
It might look BORING, but it'll be easier to read and the slides are a guide. People should be looking at presenter, NOT at the slides. :)
http://blog.dilbert.com/post/144505424481/impossible-to-igno...
Cut the bullet lists. Cut the animated transitions. Cut the clip art, tacky color schemes, overabundance of wacky fonts.
Use text big enough to read. Don’t put too much of it on each slide. Write in complete sentences. If you have more information than easily fits on slides, print it on a handout.
This will both improve your talk, and reduce the amount of work you have to do trying to herd powerpoint into doing anything tricky. All the MS Office products are hilariously bad at doing precise layout work, full of inexplicable and unreproducible bugs. The best approach is to not try too hard with it, you’ll just frustrate yourself. If you keep your layouts exceedingly simple, you have a chance of success.
GOOD PowerPoint presentations add to the speaker's presentation and requires more from the speaker and less from the audience. These are very rare. People who are selling you something are the most likely to do this well.
Colors:
When choosing colors for presentations, use http://colorhunt.co, http://Coolors.co, or http://colorlovers.com, as you'll find prebuilt color templates that look quite good than the stock colors of powerpoint. This will definitely save you a lot of time on deciding colors.
Fonts:
If you can, install google fonts and use them instead of stock fonts. Most of the stock fonts are overused in the industry (comic sans) and gives your presentations a boring look. You can use http://canva.com/font-combinations for fonts suggestions that go well togather. One for headings and other for content. You can choose a thrid font for comments or captions.
Template:
Here, I would suggest that many other are suggesting. Use your company's provided template. It would be much easier to modify that than to start from scratch and think of something new. Still if you want to use something new, watch a lot of presentations, especially the featured one on Slideshare.
And if Powerpoint is not the only option: I would highly suggest using http://canva.com for your designing needs. I, from past year, have been using it to design almost everything. From presentations to Infographics and deliverables.
3 benefits I would like to highlight - 1. It is much more flexible than powerpoint to modify, add colors, add pictures, resizing your designs.
2. Provides hundreds of shapes, illustrations, images, few good fonts (for free). This saves a lot of time.
3. Offers multiple free templates to start with.
The major of all is, its free and you can use it anywhere, on home, office. Share the files easily with just a link.
PS: I'm not related to Canva's marketing or anything, I'm just a too happy client of them. I haven't even purchased their premium package as I never felt the need.
1 - use your corporate template
2 - stay away from fancy transitioning between slides
3 - watch font size, avoid small font unless printed, and even then...
4 - augment what is seen on slide with what you say, do not read verbatim, or if you do read, read then expound.
5 - control viewing with bullet point transition, revealing one bullet point at a time.
6 - fewer slides are better unless your internal corporate is accustomed to 100 page decks (I've actually seen this)
7 - Images are great, but avoid juvenile images.
The other thing is that Powerpoint creation is an actual career in and off itself. A friend of mine in marketing said that some executives offload PPT creation to freelancers and that is ALL that the freelancer does to feed and house themselves. Creating a good presentation is an art in and off itself.
If anyone can find me these slides (they weren't traditional slides and the whole thing felt more like a smooth movie almost), I'd be extremely grateful. Great material to learn from.