In this introduction Why You Should Use This Book How This Book Is Organized Conventions Used in This Book Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2007 is the latest version of this powerful presentation graphics software program and is part of the Microsoft Office 2007 family. Using PowerPoint, you can create a basic slide show quickly or you can delve into sophisticated features to create a customized presentation. Because it's part of the Microsoft Office suite of products, you'll find PowerPoint intuitive and very familiar if you already use any other Office applications, such as Word or Excel. In this new version, Microsoft has initiated a dramatic interface change that makes using PowerPoint even more intuitive. Because creating a successful presentation is more than just becoming a PowerPoint power user, we've included a special section in this book on presentation skills. After you master PowerPoint, you can master presentation techniques, such as creating a script, evaluating the use of multimedia and color, reaching your audience, rehearsing your speech, speaking in public, and dealing with the technicalities of presentation. This information combines with a thorough discussion of all PowerPoint's many features to create a complete reference manual for anyone who makes presentations with PowerPoint. Why You Should Use This Book Special Edition Using Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2007 is for experienced computer users who want to be able to use PowerPoint's more sophisticated features, as well as its basic ones. This book gets you up and running quickly and then spends more time exploring the advanced features PowerPoint has to offer--customization, web interface, animation, and multimedia. If you want to become a PowerPoint power user, this book is for you. How This Book Is Organized Special Edition Using Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2007 is divided into seven parts. Part I, "PowerPoint 2007 Basics," introduces the fundamentals of using PowerPoint, such as navigating, using views, getting help, creating a basic presentation, and saving and opening files. If you're an experienced computer user but are new to PowerPoint, these chapters will get you up and running quickly. If you've used PowerPoint extensively in the past, they can serve as a quick review and introduce you to the new, exciting features of PowerPoint 2007. In Part II, "Editing and Formatting Presentations," you continue on to the most essential, and universally used, features of PowerPoint--formatting, organizing, and adding content to your slides. You'll learn to work with text and tables, organize with Outline view, and customize and format your presentation. Part III, "Making Presentations," takes you to the logical next step--the actual delivery of a presentation. You'll learn how to set up a slide show easily, customize it to work with a particular projector, create timings and narrations, preview your work, and even create portable PowerPoint presentations to display from another computer. Finally, you'll learn how to create a variety of printed material, such as notes and handouts, to go with your slide show. Next, you can start exploring some of PowerPoint's more advanced capabilities. Part IV, "Working with Graphics, Charts, and Multimedia," introduces you to techniques that you can use to make your slideshows more varied and interesting. For example, you can add charts and diagrams--including organization charts--to provide additional information in a presentation. Or you can add clip art, photos, movies, sounds, and animation for a streamlined multimedia experience. For a finishing touch, you can format, customize, and add a variety of special effects to each of these multimedia objects. Part V, "Maximizing the Power of PowerPoint," explores other sophisticated uses of PowerPoint. You can present PowerPoint presentations on the web, embed and link Office objects, create macros to automate procedures, use the power of VBA (the programming language Visual Basic for Applications), and extensively customize PowerPoint's features and interface. And finally, this part covers areas such as troubleshooting and using PowerPoint's foreign language features. Part VI, "Extending the Power of PowerPoint," introduces you to Microsoft third-party tools that enhance your PowerPoint experience. It covers PowerPoint-to-Flash conversion, e-learning tools, sophisticated templates, and hardware that makes presenting with PowerPoint even easier. It also explores the many features of Office Online, Microsoft's website for Office users. Part VII, "From Concept to Delivery," takes you out of PowerPoint and into the world of presentation design. Written by a presentations expert, this section offers detailed information and advice about actually creating a presentation specifically for PowerPoint. It covers topics such as scripting in a concept, choosing a visual design, developing presentation skills, and using technology in your presentation. Conventions Used in This Book Special Edition Using Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2007 uses a number of conventions to provide you with special information. These include the following elements. The New icon makes it easy to find discussions of features new in PowerPoint 2007. Tip - Tips offer suggestions for making things easier or provide alternative ways to do a particular task. Note - Notes provide additional, more detailed information about a specific PowerPoint feature. Caution - Cautions warn you about potential problems that might occur and offer advice on how to avoid these problems. Cross-references refer you to other sections of the book in which you find more detailed explanations of a particular function, such as the following: To learn how to create innovative text objects with PowerPoint WordArt, see "Using WordArt" in Chapter 3, "Working with Text," p. 63. Most chapters end with two specific elements: "Troubleshooting" and "Design Corner." The "Troubleshooting" section provides tips on common problems you might encounter when using the PowerPoint features presented in the chapter. "Design Corner" provides a before-and-after look at a specific feature explained in that chapter. "Design Corner" takes you one step further than the typical example in this book by showing you common design tasks you might perform and their end results. (c) Copyright Pearson Education. All rights reserved. Excerpted from Microsoft Office Powerpoint 2007 by Mucciolo, Geetesh Bajaj, Patrice-Anne Rutledge All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
