PowerPoint tips

PowerPoint should help the presentation not be the presentation.  It is easy to let PowerPoint totally dominate the substance of your presentation.  Ask yourself the following questions.

     

Are the slides relevant?

Are they clear?

Are they too complex?  Will they distract the audience?

Do they supplement the talk?  There is nothing worse than listening to someone reading PowerPoint slides.
A collection of excellent hints and tips was written by Judith Swift of the Communication Studies Department here at the University of Rhode Island.

click here for "Thoughts on PowerPoint Presentations

 

A classic PowerPoint spoof was done by Peter Norvig, the director of search quality at Google.  He imagines Abraham Lincoln using the autocontent wizard to prepare the Gettysburg address.

Note the absurd graph for "four score and seven years ago."


click here for the Gettysburg address!

There are times when visuals are more useful than words.  For example, complex graphs or movies.  Should you present a graph as a handout or a PowerPoint slide or both?  There is little alternative to a movie, unless you're very skilled and can do a demonstration.  For example, here's a video, where the words add nothing.

 

Click here to learn how to fold a T-shirt!