******************************************************************* Dave Paradi's PowerPoint Tip     Issue #167 September 2, 2008 Published & Copyright by Dave Paradi of ThinkOutsideTheSlide.com Circulation over 8,400 ******************************************************************* Please forward this newsletter to executives and professionals who want to create PowerPoint presentations that sell their ideas, products or services more effectively.  If this newsletter has been sent to you by a friend, sign up to get your own copy at http://www.ThinkOutsideTheSlide.com/newsletter.htm . ******************************************************************* In this issue: Eight new videos on www.PPtHowToVideos.com New YouTube channel for Slide Makeover Video Podcasts I am coming to Chicago & Georgia PowerPoint Tip - Going green with your presentation handouts Best of the Blog - Converting Quicktime MOV files  Dave's Travel Schedule ******************************************************************* Eight new videos on www.PPtHowToVideos.com This past week I recorded 8 new short "how-to" videos which are now available at http://www.PPtHowToVideos.com .  The first video covers how to create your own Gantt chart to easily show a timeline instead of using a text list of dates.  The other three videos cover the topic of animation.  I've broken it down to three areas: 1) how to build elements on your slide to keep the audience's attention (ties in to step five in the KWICK method of creating persuasive visuals), 2) how to build the parts of a graph to keep the audience's attention, and 3) how to use advanced animation techniques to create movie like experiences and custom movements.  Each topic is covered in both PowerPoint 2003 and 2007. ------------------------------------------------------------------- New YouTube channel for Slide Makeover Video Podcasts The latest Slide Makeover Video Podcast was released last Tuesday and it covers how to transform a table of numbers from Excel into a meaningful summary highlighting the key issues for decision-makers. It is available through iTunes and on the web site in the normal spots, but it is also viewable in a new way.  To assist those who can't view QuickTime format videos, I have now created my own YouTube channel with all of the slide makeover video podcasts and two free "how-to" videos as well.  It is at: http://www.youtube.com/ThinkOutsideTheSlide . ------------------------------------------------------------------- I am coming to Chicago & Georgia Travel costs are rising for all of us and I wanted to let you know of an opportunity to bring me in for an on-site workshop and save some of the travel cost.  On October 23rd I'll be delivering an all- day session in Chicago, IL and on November 6th I'll be in Savannah, GA.  If you want to book a day before or after in those general areas, we can split the costs with my other clients, saving everyone.  Let me know this week if you are interested because I need to make travel plans next week in order to get the best fares for my clients. ------------------------------------------------------------------- PowerPoint Tip: Going green with your presentation handouts In this issue of the newsletter and the next issue, I'll be sharing some ideas on how we can all be more environmentally responsible when it comes to preparing and delivering our presentations.  Today I'll cover what I consider to be the biggest area of potential savings - handouts.  Next time I'll cover some tips on creating our presentations.  Here are some tips to help you be more environmentally sensitive when using handouts - and they will probably save you money as well. 1. Print four slides per page Too often presenters print handouts using the three slides per page format with lines beside each slide.  In addition to being less visually dense and easier for audience members to take notes on, the four per page option can use up to 25% fewer pages. 2. Print using Pure Black & White The default when printing slides with a colored background on a black and white laser printer is "Grayscale", which converts each color to a shade of gray and uses a lot of toner to print the background of each slide.  By using the "Black & White" option, you use much less toner because all backgrounds are converted to white. 3. Print on both sides of the sheet By printing your handouts on both sides of the sheet of paper, you can cut your number of sheets used by up to half. 4. Eliminate a contact information sheet By adding your contact information in the footer of each handout page, you eliminate the need for a separate sheet in the handout listing your contact information. 5. Print only the slides the audience needs Go through your slides and determine what slides the audience really needs to have in the handout.  It is probably not every slide, so use the options when printing to select only those slides that are truly necessary. 6. Check before you print Use the Print Preview feature to check to see if the last page of the handout has only one slide on it.  If it does, see if there is a way you can cut one of the slides from the handout to save a page. You may know some of the ideas above and may be using some already. They may sound like small things, but consider a 45 slide presentation that prints handouts using the usual 3 slides per page format on one side of the paper.  By implementing the ideas above, you can go from using 16 sheets of paper (15 for slides + 1 for contact information) to using 6 sheets of paper (12 sides printing on both sides of the sheet of paper) - that is a reduction of over 62%!  Every little effort counts. If you want to try some of these ideas but don't know how to select some of the different handouts options, you can check out the two short "how-to" videos I have on handouts at http://www.PPtHowToVideos.com . ------------------------------------------------------------------- Best of the Blog - Converting Quicktime MOV files for use in PowerPoint Many video files today come to us in Apple's QuickTime MOV file format. And that causes a problem when we want to insert it on a slide since PowerPoint for Windows does not natively play QuickTime files. One solution is to convert the file to a format that PowerPoint can play. Geetesh Bajaj of www.indezine.com recently wrote a great article on converting QuickTime MOV files using a free video tool program. Read the whole article at: http://www.indezine.com/products/video/convertquicktimetoaviwithradtools.html . I downloaded the tool he suggested and tried it on one of my slide makeover video podcasts and it worked very well. I would suggest you follow his suggestion to convert to the AVI format, but don't stop there. Then use Windows Movie Maker to convert the file to a Windows Media Video (WMV) format file. Why? Because it is much smaller than an AVI file. In my test, a 3.56 MB MOV file was converted to a 272 MB AVI file, which is so much larger because it is essentially uncompressed. I then used the default settings in Windows Movie Maker to convert it to a 8.04 MB WMV file. The WMV file can then be easily used in PowerPoint because it is the default format for video files in PowerPoint. Another benefit to this extension of the conversion process is that you can then edit the clip if needed because Movie Maker has editing features. Try the above procedure the next time you are given a QuickTime MOV file to use in your presentation. Other recent blog posts at http://pptideas.blogspot.com : ------------------------------------------------------------------- Dave's Travel Schedule I work with business presenters who want to transform their overloaded text slides into persuasive presentations that effectively sell ideas, products and services to decision-makers. My research based PowerPoint Presentation Effectiveness System helps my clients achieve greater productivity and deliver presentations that close more sales.  You can save money by booking me to speak to your organization or conference when I am close to your area for other clients.  Here's where I will be in the next few months: September 5-7 - Kansas City, MO September 21-24 - San Diego, CA for PowerPoint Live, register at http://www.powerpointlive.com September 26 - Cincinnati, OH October 1 - Toronto, ON October 16 - Toronto, ON October 23 - Chicago, IL October 29 - Vaughan, ON November 5-7 - Savannah, GA November 30-December 2 - CAPS Convention in Toronto, ON February 21-23, 2009 - Chicago, IL April 23, 2009 - Toronto, ON IAPA post-conference workshop open to the public, details coming in the fall May 8-9, 2009 - Chicago, IL E-mail me at Dave@ThinkOutsideTheSlide.com to discuss how my Think Outside The Slide(tm) sessions can help your organization be more productive and improve communication throughout the organization. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Privacy Policy: I will never sell or distribute your e-mail or information to anyone. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Need articles for your newsletter?  Check out my many articles at: http://www.ThinkOutsideTheSlide.com. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Check out the books, e-books and other learning tools at: http://www.ThinkOutsideTheSlide.com/resources.htm ------------------------------------------------------------------- If you want to read back issues of this newsletter, click on the following link to go to the Archives: http://www.ThinkOutsideTheSlide.com/archives.htm ------------------------------------------------------------------- Microsoft, PowerPoint, Windows and other terms are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.  Microsoft product screen shot(s) reprinted with permission from Microsoft Corporation.  All books, products and seminars are independent publications and are not affiliated with, nor have they been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Microsoft Corporation.