1.1.1: Introduction to Microsoft PowerPoint

📌 Click here to view Microsoft PowerPoint Setting a Foundation Chapter

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PowerPoint Scenario

The ability to communicate your vision and ideas effectively will be critical to your growth and success at WorldCorp. As a new hire, the company’s human resources department will ask you to make a presentation introducing yourself to other employees. This assignment has two purposes. First, it allows the company to get to know you better. Second, it trains you in the two most popular presentation software programs: Microsoft PowerPoint and Google Slides. (There are other presentation software programs available, such as Prezi, Keynote, or Canva, but PowerPoint and Slides are used more often.) This chapter explores the basics of these two programs.

Figure 6.1: Working on a slide presentation can be done individually or collaboratively, depending on the tools you are using. (credit: modification of “A group of people having a meeting” by Darlene Alderson/Pexels, Public Domain)

PowerPoint launched in 1990 and has grown in complexity with each new iteration of Microsoft Office. It’s hard to imagine, but many of the features that users rely on in PowerPoint today were available when it was first released on Windows 3.1. Examples include importing pictures to make them editable, adding transitions between slides in slideshows, incorporating sound and video into slides, and adding/changing fonts throughout the presentation. Over the years, the options have expanded. Image and sound quality have become a premium in today’s world. PowerPoint has been able to keep up with the ability to process high-definition images and sound. It now includes a design editor that helps users hone their graphic design skills. While PowerPoint provides tools for designing visually appealing presentations, it is not a dedicated graphic design program like Adobe Photoshop or Illustrator.

Slides, which debuted in 2006, offers many features similar to those of other presentation programs. Like other Google products, Slides relies on an internet connection. It integrates well with Google Docs and Google Sheets and offers advanced collaboration tools. Slides has continued to advance and adapt to multiple screen types and user needs.

Your first WorldCorp presentation is already scheduled: You will need to present My Life in a Snapshot. This presentation is slated to last for five minutes in front of your entire 25-person marketing team. It is designed as a formal introduction in which all new team members participate.

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Purpose of a PowerPoint Presentation

Microsoft PowerPoint is a presentation software program used to organize and present information to others. PowerPoint is a popular presentation aid that utilizes visual and stimulating elements to accompany a presenter’s communication through slides and multimedia tools. Planning a presentation necessitates defining the purpose of the presentation, identifying the target audience for the presentation, and deciding the type of output for the information.

The purpose of the presentation can generally be categorized into either of two general areas. The most common purpose for a presentation is to inform an audience by providing facts and figures. Informational presentations often include slides with tables, charts, graphics and text. Classroom lectures that utilize PowerPoint are typically information-type presentations. A secondary purpose of presentations is to persuade or sell the audience on an idea. Sales and political speeches fall into this category of persuasive presentations. Style is almost as significant as content for persuasive presentations. Therefore, design themes are important considerations for this type of presentation.

Another important consideration when planning a presentation is to determine the audience, including the venue in which the presentation will occur. The characteristics of the audience will help distinguish the type of vocabulary, font size, and design themes that would be appropriate. An audience of colleagues will allow more flexibility versus a group of customers, in terms of language and content. Understanding who the audience is, and why they are there can really influence the design and content of a presentation. The venue also influences the design of a presentation. A large room will require larger fonts and louder audio for the presentation to be understood by the audience. Conversely, a smaller room make necessitate a softer design. The presenter should also take time to ensure that the venue has ample and compatible audio-visual equipment (projector, cables, screen, speakers, etc.) to successfully run the presentation.

Get to know the elements of the Microsoft PowerPoint window! Note the similarities to Word and Excel!

Annotated PPT main window

• The Quick Access toolbar contains one-click buttons for saving, undoing, redoing, and print previewing a presentation. You can easily modify this toolbar to add your most frequently used commands. Just click the down-arrow on the right edge to customize this toolbar!
• The title bar displays the name of current presentation, and the program. A new presentation will default with a temporary file name, such as Presentation1 until you save the file with a different name. The Minimize, Maximize and Exit buttons appear on the right edge of the title bar.
• The Tell Me tool is a new way to get assistance with specific tasks in PowerPoint. When the user starts typing, PowerPoint suggests commands that are related to your keyword(s). The tool is context sensitive, and integrated into your current presentation versus opening a separate window. Therefore, if you type insert picture into the field, and click the resulting command, PowerPoint will open the Insert Picture dialog window without explaining the navigation instructions.
• The Ribbon interface is a set of toolbars at the top of the window in Office programs designed to help you quickly find the commands that you need to complete a task. The ribbon displays a combination of icons and tabs. Commands are grouped under multiple tabs. Some commands are so extensive that they need additional windows to display their entire functionality. The dialog box launcher icon will open these windows. Contextual tabs will appear only when the user needs them, such as when a picture is selected, or a table is inserted.

Backstage View 

Backstage View is the area in Microsoft Office applications where you can manage your files and application settings. To open Backstage View, click the File tab located in the upper-left corner of the Office window.

From Backstage View, you can perform tasks such as:

• Creating a new document, workbook, or presentation
• Use a template
• Opening existing files
• Saving and printing files
• Sharing documents with others
• Viewing document properties and information
• Accessing account settings and program options

Unlike the Ribbon, which is used for creating and editing content, Backstage View focuses on managing your files and settings. Clicking the File tab takes you away from the editing workspace and into this file-management area.

Mac Users

It may be difficult to go to backstage view. Often the 'File' option on a Mac is hidden. Here are a few shortcuts that will help:

• Cmd + O – Open a file.

• Cmd + P – Print.

• Shift + Cmd + S – Save/Save As.

• Cmd + N – New file.

• Esc – Close Backstage View