1. Interactive PowerPoint: an interactive guide
Andrew Garth
Sheffield Hallam University
If you can see this message hit the F5 button on the function keys to use the resource in interactive rather than edit mode.
These notes pages can be used in an interactive presentation to go deeper into the subject or offer references or supporting material that might divert from the learning experience. Generally for references a separate slide or set of slides can be used, it depends upon the context – for a resource aimed at an audience outside the academic community then less formal references and acknowledgements might suffice.

2. OK tell me again but slow and simple...
Interactive PowerPoint, an overview.
Interactive PowerPoint is a method of applying PowerPoint to a different way of disseminating knowledge. Usually PowerPoint presentations give a slide by slide discourse on the topic being addressed, this is fine for tutor driven sessions, however, for more flexible and independent knowledge transfer resources this linearity can be a disadvantage.
If you think of the way many websites work, letting the users direct themselves to the parts of the resource most important to them you can see that the strict, default presentation structure of ordinary PowerPoint gives only one, limited, way of structuring the knowledge.
Interactive PowerPoint lets you allow the user to be more flexible and allows you to include more information because the user isn't necessarily having to go through it all in one go. It's a bit like the difference between a novel and an encyclopaedia, to understand the novel you start at the beginning and go through to the end, whereas the encyclopaedia can be read all the way through but is equally useful if referred to in practically any order.
Because it is browsed by the user at their own pace there is room for multiple examples and more interaction to help facilitate comprehension.
This tutorial works in two ways, it hopefully gives instructions that should cover the main techniques that will be useful in helping you create interactive resources using PowerPoint, it also acts as an example of the various techniques and to this end you can play with it and take it apart to see how it works.
This resource was created using PowerPoint and within this resource are the instructions to help you do it by putting slides together in a structure navigable by a series of links from buttons and menus you create. It also describes how to alter the settings in a presentation to prevent it working in the conventional "linear" manner i.e. to work as a true online resource.
For assistance on using this interactive PowerPoint tutorial click the help button above.
OK tell me again but slow and simple...

3. Click to hear an explanation.
OK – what's it all about?
The idea is simply to switch off the way that PowerPoint goes from slide to slide in a typical, lecturer driven presentation and replace the navigation with hyperlinks, just like a website!
The hyperlink and other methods are covered on these pages (slides) and the slides under the settings menu cover the change needed there, the settings are stored with the presentation, they don't effect the PowerPoint program itself.
In simple terms, to create a resource like this one, where the different slides are linked to by clicking buttons etc. we have to do two things;
1 learn how to make objects become links to other places, and,
2 switch off the default settings in PowerPoint that makes the resource a linear presentation rather than a browed resource.
This resource covers doing just that.
Click to hear an explanation.

4. Simple buttons are easy to play with.
Buttons and Links.
A typical feature of interactive resources, like websites are the links that enable the user to navigate the resource. Buttons, pictures or simple text can be used as links to other parts of the resource.
PowerPoint has a simple method that does this using some simple default buttons, it is a good way of getting to grips with the concept but you’ll soon want to branch out on your own!
Of great importance however is getting the structure right in delivering the information. For example try not to leave any blind alleys in your resource, it is frustrating for the user!
Simple buttons are easy to play with.
Text can act as a link like on a simple web page, this is especially useful for extra definitions etc.
Animated “GIF” files can be used as links – this one actually looks like a button!
Pictures can also be used as links.
Simple buttons
Text links
You can use PowerPoint's clipart for pictures, use photos (but be careful of the size see for more on this)
You might also edit or create your own GIF files to add movement etc. there is a GIF editor in Painshop on SHU PCs but you might prefer to download a shareware one of your own choice for home!

5. Simple buttons are easy to play with
To add an action button, click on the AutoShapes button from the drawing toolbar and choose Action Buttons. (Or Shapes, Action Buttons from the Home tab in v2007)
The function of each action button is described by the ToolTips if you move your mouse pointer over each one. Most are similar to video recorder buttons.
To place one on a slide, click the AutoShapes button, then Action Buttons, to try one we could use the "Back or Previous" button.
When you've clicked the button type, place the button just like any other object, by clicking to show its place and dragging to show its size. The Action Setting dialog should appear.
In later versions the Shapes are in the Drawing group under the Home tab.
Old
The button can be set to hyperlink to either an absolute slide in the presentation or a relative path, e.g. the last slide viewed.
This is essentially the same procedure as for any object set as a link, using these default buttons however means that PowerPoint already knows you are intending to set up a link.
New
The best way to find out more is to play with the system. You can also set a link to a URL in the presentation, but make sure victims know how to get back and it is a good idea to make sure they also know you aren’t to blame for content on the web!

6. Text can act as a link rather like on a simple web page
When you point to a hyperlink, the pointer becomes a hand, indicating that it is something you can click. Text that represents a hyperlink is also displayed underlined and in a colour.
To set a text hyperlink first select the text then either right-click the selected text and pick either “Hyperlink” or “Action settings”, or select Hyperlink from the Insert menu. You may need to select the option for “place in this document” to see a list of slides to link to.
If the slide has a title then this will displayed rather than the slide number, be careful though, don’t include any form of punctuation or special characters in the title of a slide you want to link to. (There is more on this limitation under the Advanced area.)

7. Pictures and Animated GIF files can be used as links
When you point to a hyperlink, the pointer becomes a hand, indicating that it is something you can click (the buttons on the menu above for example).
To use a picture or GIF type animation as a hyperlink first select it then either right-click it and pick either “Hyperlink” or “Action settings”, or select Hyperlink from the Insert menu while the object is still selected. You may need to select the option for “place in this document” to see a list of slides to link to. If the slide has a title then this will be displayed rather than the slide number, be careful though, don’t include any form of punctuation or special characters in the title of a slide you want to link to.
Note how the lazy old author of this resource has made two links go to the same destination here! Annoying isn't it! Linking is pretty well the same technique regardless of the object type used as the link button. There are some hints on editing clipart and creating GIFs in the more advanced section. (Sorry about the mean trick!)

8. Blind Alleys Are you sure you want to go down a blind alley?
Oh yes please, I can’t wait!
Maybe not, please send me back

9. Blind Alleys Don’t say I didn’t warn you!
But since I’m really kind I’ll put in an exit for you in a few moments…
EXIT

10. Menus.
Menus typically comprise a set of buttons that enable overall navigation. Deciding on the underlying theme of the buttons though is not as simple as it may appear and it is as well to remember that the way you as author of the resource think of the learning sequence may not be the same as that of the recipient. I could for example set this resource up as a more didactic tutorial, leading the user through creating an interactive resource, I could even have a link to an alternative menu structure that was topic lead instead so both views were covered. (Life is short – I didn’t!).
The menu on this resource is simply a collection of buttons, it could though be a set of text based hyperlinks set in a table.
The example on the right is constructed using hyperlinked text in a table (the background and line style of the table give the apparent gaps between items. To create a menu using more conventional buttons choose the buttons & link option on the menu.
To get a menu to appear on every slide simply create it once on the master slide. To override it you can cover it with a filled shape in the background colour on the odd slide that doesn't need the default menu.
Home
Overview
Buttons and links
Menus
For a clever application of object based links to make a graphical menu click here.

11. Dropdown...
Pick Area
Aligning buttons
Menus.
Menus typically comprise a set of buttons that enable overall navigation. Deciding on the underlying theme of the buttons though is not as simple as it may appear and it is as well to remember that the way you as author of the resource think of the learning sequence may not be the sae as that of the recipient. I could for example set this resource up as a more didactic tutorial, leading the user through creating an interactive resource, I could even have a link to an alternative menu structure that was topic lead instead so both views were covered. (Life is short – I didn’t!).
The menu on this resource is simply a collection of buttons, it could though be a set of text based hyperlinks set in a table.
The example on the right is constructed using hyperlinked text in a table (the background and line style of the table give the apparent gaps between items. To create a menu using more conventional buttons choose the buttons & link option on the menu.
To get a menu to appear on every slide simply create it once on the master slide. To override it you can cover it with a filled shape in the background colour on the odd slide that doesn't need the default menu.
Home
Overview
Buttons and links
Menus
For a clever application of object based links to make a graphical menu click here.

12. Dropdown menus
Dropdown menus in PowerPoint are a trick. The click on the "Menu" button from the master slide is intercepted by a see-through object on (in this case) the menu slide, this sends the user to another slide, with the dropdown menu on it. This menu appears over a copy of the original slide, so the user sees the menu appear and no other change.
The menu is just a text box, the text is hyperlinked to other slides.
People are conditioned into using dropdown menus by familiarity with other software so can generally use them but it is important that they realise that this is the way the menu works.
(This isn't the way that such a technique would be effected on a webpage but works well in PowerPoint.)
Another clever way of achieving this effect is to use "Triggers" – these are covered in the Advanced area, they are very effective if a little complex!

13. Click on the map to go to your region.
The click should link you to an external* web page. Click the "Back" button or close the browser window to return to this point.
Pick area menus can be used in a variety of applications, they can link to other slides as well as web pages. (This example links to external webpages, so if you aren't online it doesn't work, click here for an example that is self contained.)
The method is simply to cover the picture with clear objects that are linked to the destination. You might need to change the level of transparency to make a clickable object that is translucent.
The see through buttons., shaped to the click area, link to external pages but they could easily be to slides in the presentation.
Linking to external site can be a problem – they might change or become unavailable, note that I put a line on the page about this.
* Note the contents of an external web page are not the responsibility of this resource or its author.

14. Wales - Area 20,779 square kilometres population about 2,900,000.
Click on the map to go to your region.
Pick area menus can be used in a variety of applications, they can link to other slides as well as web pages or use the "trigger" facility to bring an object on the screen.
The method is simply to cover the picture with clear objects that are linked to the destination. You might need to change the level of transparency to make a clickable object that is translucent.
The see through buttons., shaped to the click area, link to external pages but they could easily be to slides in the presentation.
Linking to external site can be a problem – they might change or become unavailable, note that I put a line on the page about this.
Wales - Area 20,779 square kilometres population about 2,900,000.
Scotland covers an area of 78,782km² or 30,341miles², population estimated in 2006 at 5,116,900.
Northern Ireland, area 5,459 square miles (14,139 km²), At the time of the UK Census in April 2001, its population was 1,685,000.
England population about 51,000,000, total area of is about sq km (50352 sq miles). 14

15. Aligning buttons
When setting up a menu using objects like buttons it is worth knowing about the alignment tools offered by PowerPoint.
Snapped
to grid
Not snapped
The "Grids and Guides" dialog is reached either through the View menu or the Draw menu. Typicaly the objects in PowerPoint are set to click into an invisible grid on the slide. I recommend that you leave the snap to grid option on but use the Alt key while dragging an object if you want to override it.
You can display the grid on the screen, this is like working on graph paper, you can switch them off in the same way.
Drawing guides can be useful as a way of guiding your "by eye" judgement of silting objects, this is especially useful when the objects are not symmetrical (e.g. pictures).
Click and drag the lines to the place you need the guide. You can switch them off in the same way that you switched them on.
PowerPoint has some really clever tools to help line up objects click here for more on these...

16. Aligning buttons
When setting up a menu using objects like buttons it is worth knowing about the alignment tools offered by PowerPoint.
The objects now should be aligned on the vertical plane on their middles. To distribute them evenly between the ones at the extreme ends click Draw then click Align Horizontally.
Select all the objects by either shift and clicking or dragging over the objects with the mouse. (If you swap to edit view on this presentation you can try this for real.)
By moving one of the objects further out and distributing them again you can move them further apart but still evenly spread.
The same method can be used to align and distribute objects vertically.
When selected choose "Align Middle" from the Draw menu.

17. Changing the settings for the presentation to stop PowerPoint moving to the next slide when you click with the mouse...
The menus have changed in v2007, for more help look at the advanced area in this tutorial for a link to a Microsoft tutorial on the changes to find out where the features are hidden. (Click this picture to make it disappear.)
Typicaly Microsoft PowerPoint expects a slide show to be a linear progression of slides shown on the screen in sequential order (1,2,3,4 etc), the next slide comes on the screen when the presenter clicks the mouse or hits the space bar. We want to break away from this rigid linearity and so we disable the mouse click option.
A note for older versions only: For much older versions of PowerPoint the default was, as now, to advance slides when the mouse is clicked, we can switch this off in old versions by making sure it is unchecked. You can then either click "Apply to All Slides" (or, if you were making this change on the "master slide" simply apply it). (Newer versions of the software don't need this setting altered as long as you change to "Browse from kiosk" as below.)
Users of current versions (2003/2007) of PowerPoint can switch off the linearity with a single adjustment. To disable this use Set Up Show from the Slide Show menu and select the "Browsed from kiosk – full screen" option. (Click here for a picture.)
A final issue is to check that the system is set up to produce an "On-screen Show" click here for more details.
Where is this in 2007

18. Changing the settings for the presentation to stop PowerPoint moving to the next slide when you click with the mouse...
Typicaly Microsoft PowerPoint expects a slide show to be a linear progression of slides shown on the screen in sequential order (1,2,3,4 etc), the next slide comes on the screen when the presenter clicks the mouse or hits the space bar. We want to break away from this rigid linearity and so we disable the mouse click option.
Users of current versions (2003/2007) of PowerPoint can switch off the linearity with a single adjustment. To disable this use Set Up Show from the Slide Show menu and select the "Browsed from kiosk – full screen" option. (Click here for a picture.)
A final issue is to check that the system is set up to produce an "On-screen Show" click here for more details.
Where is this in 2007

19. Changing the settings for the presentation to stop PowerPoint moving to the next slide when you click with the mouse...
Typicaly Microsoft PowerPoint expects a slide show to be a linear progression of slides shown on the screen in sequential order (1,2,3,4 etc), the next slide comes on the screen when the presenter clicks the mouse or hits the space bar. We want to break away from this rigid linearity and so we disable the mouse click option.
Users of current versions (2003/2007) of PowerPoint can switch off the linearity with a single adjustment. To disable this use Set Up Show from the Slide Show menu and select the "Browsed from kiosk – full screen" option. (Click here for a picture.)
A final issue is to check that the system is set up to produce an "On-screen Show" click here for more details.
Where is this in 2007

20. More advanced features.
Simulated scrolling text box
Some of these advanced features can make very impressive effects and greatly enhance the user interface, however there are some caveats; more complex isn't always better and some of the advanced features don't translate well into HTML if you want to put a version up that can be viewed directly in a browser without PowerPoint software. The solution is to use appropriate methods, resist being carried away with the technology and always test the product thoroughly.
You should also be aware that there are some limitations introduced by the new (at the time of writing) version of PowerPoint (part of MS Office 2007). Generally the simpler techniques are the best for version compatibility and for compatibility for translation to directly readable web pages.
Pictures and resolution
Planning the Resource
Naming slides, secret names and possible traps
Zoom in diagrams
Trigger effects
Trigger effects - an example game
Trigger effects – making menus
Quizzes
Automatically running PowerPoint shows
Versions of PowerPoint
More...

21. More more advanced features.
Notes on editing clipart.
This is a huge cheat in terms of a cogent menu structure, but rather like the old programmers' adage of always leaving a few free fields in a database, you can have menus that go on and on and on...
How to get GIFs
The master slide
Pros and Cons
Exit strategies

22. Notes on editing clipart (1 of 2).
Next
Sizing Clipart.
Select the illustration by clicking once on it, the Picture toolbar may well appear depending on the version you are using and how it is set up. The object selected should then appear with the "drag handles" round it.
There are many type of clipart that you might have. The two main categories are "true" bitmap type pictures, e.g. from a digital camera and graphics mad up from a selection of geometrical shapes, often very complex ones. If the object is the latter it can be taken apart, modified and glued back together again within PowerPoint. The photograph type picture can be edited but needs photo retouching skills.
REMEMBER:
Hitting Delete with an image selected will delete it. (If you do this by mistake try the Undo facility! under the Edit menu).
Place the pointer over the drag handle and drag to change the width. 
Place the pointer over the drag handle and drag to change the height. 
Place the pointer over the corner drag handle and drag to change the width and height.
Hint:
The way a picture reacts to the corner drag handles may depend on the type of graphic it is, often after ungrouping the clipart the way the graphic reacts to being stretched, i.e. whether it keeps it height to width ratio. You can alter this by holding the shift key down while using the corner handle.
A green dot above the selected graphic allows it to be swivelled round.

23. Notes on editing clipart (2 of 2).
Previous
Grouping and ungrouping clipart.
The Grouping/UnGrouping tools are under the Draw button in older versions or the Arrange area of the Drawing section under the Home menu in version 2007.
On some pieces of clipart you may find that the grouping is all at one level.
The car on the left has been selected then ungrouped (from top to bottom), notice it isn't made up of a group for each wheel, one for the body and another for the driver, the entire collection of component parts is grouped at one level.
The car on the left is as it was imported from the clipart gallery, to change just the colour of the body we need to select just that one object of the ones making up the picture. To do this select the object, ungroup the object, make the changes to the components and then regroup them.
Using the mouse, you can select all the objects in an area by clicking and dragging a selection rectangle - see below.

24. How to get GIFs
GIF, Graphics Interchange Format, supports 256 colours. GIFs can be put together for animated images.
Creating your first GIF can be done online at; this software remotely run, i.e. on the server rather than on your PC. If you want to download some shareware to run locally and create GIFs then try downloading Easy GIF Animator at; . Users with access to Paint Shop Pro can run Animation Shop and access a very fully featured GIF creation tool. It is not realy within the scope of this tutorial to go into the minutia of using these tools but I imagine there'll be resources on the inter-web that should help if just playing gets too frustrating. Inserting the finished product is like any other picture, just use "Insert, Picture from file".

25. The master slide
Changing a Slide Master
To change a Slide Master select Master from the View menu, and then choose Slide Master.
The Slide Master appears. You can work on the master just as you would a slide, adding a logo, changing text attributes, adding a background etc.
When you've finished making changes, from the View menu, choose Slides or Normal so you're no longer viewing the master slide.
Now, when you look at the slides in your presentation, you see the changes you made applied to every slide.
If you put a menu on your master slide then this will appear on all slides, you can temporarily disable it by covering it up on a specific slide. You might also investigate the use of multiple master slides, a feature available in later versions.
You can have multiple master slides within a presentation, each master can be set to govern a set of slides.
Any changes you make to the Master Slide will affect all the other slides dependant on it, usually all the slides in the presentation.

26. What are the good and bad issues of using interactive PowerPoint?
The resource site in one file, can be easily stored, ed, hosted on an e-learning platform and even password protected if needed.
Easier than a conventional webpage to construct and uses transferable skills, building on existing PowerPoint skills.
Simple to put colour and movement in.
Allows us to be innovative about structure and delivery or the resource.
Browse-able by people with minimal IT skills, just like any web type resource.
Can be saved as raw HTML if the more complex features of PowerPoint are avoided.
Using the Microsoft PowerPoint platform can give a hostage to fortune, Microsoft can happily remove support for certain features in new versions.
Needs a special viewer, i.e. PowerPoint.
Requires a new way of thinking about structure and delivery, at first this can be difficult.
Can be a great draw on time and encourage us to add more content than we might in other media.
Limited functionality compared to “proper” web authoring tools.
I’m sure there are lots and lots more, enjoy finding them!

27. Add text to the blank action button.
Exit Strategies
How do you create an exit button? Easy, its a button, like any other, it can say "Exit" on it but might have some graphic, the "action buttons" are useful, choose a blank one and change its action settings to "End Show".
Add text to the blank action button.
You can if you want give the user the option of changing their mind, i.e. get the exit button to send them to a slide with "Are you sure?" and buttons for "Yes" & "No" on.
Are you realy sure you want to go? it's still early and when you go we all get frozen! please don't do that to us again, GIF files have feelings too!

28. Are You Sure
If you can see this message and want to use the resource interactively again then hit the F5 button on the function keys you are currently in edit mode.
Are You Sure?
Yes No

29. Creating a simulated scrolling text box in PowerPoint.
Creating a scrolling text box in PowerPoint.
This method is useful because it looks like a similar system that users may have seen on the web BUT it is only a "sham" and so is to be used sparingly. It does lead to considerable duplication in order to give the effect unlike the real thing.
How to do it...
First you need a spellchecked version of the text you want to appear in the box.
You can have this in one long text box

30. Creating a simulated scrolling text box in PowerPoint.
How to do it...
First you need a spellchecked version of the text you want to appear in the box.
You can have this in one long text box in PowerPoint, remember that the textbox in PowerPoint can be set to automatically resize as more text is added, this is fine for the initial typing but we'll need to change it later.
When you have the text in a long textbox, probably too long to fit the screen, you can start the fun.
First make an estimate of how many

31. Creating a simulated scrolling text box in PowerPoint.
First make an estimate of how many times longer than the box the text is. This will dictate how many slides you need. Don't create them yet.
Change the textbox setting from Automatically resizing to being manually sized (see opposite) then manually change it to the size you want.
Make sure you've saved the file. Copy the slide as many times as the text is longer than the box and maybe another for luck .

32. Picture resolution issues.
The two pictures here seem similar, there is a difference however in the amount of information each contains. The lower resolution version takes up KB (25,389 Bytes) of space on disk and typically takes 16 milliseconds to display on the screen, the higher resolution one takes up KB (92,983 Bytes) of space on disk and typically takes 47 milliseconds to display on the screen.
A larger resolution picture from a digital camera might well take up 500 KB or more, even several megabytes if a modern high resolution camera is used! this makes the presentation very large and unwieldy and offers no benefit to the viewer, since the limiting factor is the screen resolution, it just slows the interaction down.
A guide to changing resolution – a simple way.
Click to see the pictures larger

33. Picture resolution issues.
The two pictures here seem similar, there is a difference however in the amount of information each contains. The lower resolution version takes up KB (25,389 Bytes) of space on disk and typically takes 16 milliseconds to display on the screen, the higher resolution one takes up KB (92,983 Bytes) of space on disk and typically takes 47 milliseconds to display on the screen.
A larger resolution picture from a digital camera might well take up 500 KB or more, even several megabytes if a modern high resolution camera is used! this makes the presentation very large and unwieldy and offers no benefit to the viewer, since the limiting factor is the screen resolution, it just slows the interaction down.
A guide to changing resolution – a simple way.
Click to see the pictures larger

34. Medium resolution picture shown large.
Back to Picture resolution issues.
Medium resolution picture shown large.
This picture is stored in roughly the same resolution as the screen, there is little point in using files of a higher resolution for showing on a screen, they simply make the file larger and pictures will be slower to load and display on the screen.
A guide to changing resolution – a simple way.
Click the image to switch between low and high resolution

35. Very Low resolution picture shown large.
Back to Picture resolution issues.
Very Low resolution picture shown large.
This picture is stored in a low resolution lower than the screen resolution when expanded to this size. When used as a smaller picture there is not much difference between the two versions, only when seeing this expanded version does the lack of resolution become apparent..
A guide to changing resolution – a simple way.
Click the image to switch between low and high resolution

36. An ideal solution to the size effect
If you have a document that is huge then this may well be due to embedded pictures that are of a very high resolution, (many modern digital cameras work on a 6 megapixel resolution or more, each picture may be well in excess of a megabyte! so if they are embedded in a document that document it will become a big one!)
In The 2007 versions of Office products the "Compress Pictures feature is available under the "Format tab" when a picture is selected.
You can select the "Options" button to see the specific settings before clicking "OK".
A similar feature was available on earlier versions.
You can check the file size in the well hidden "Advanced document properties", or simply look at it on disk to see if it is smaller.
Another method of reducing resolution for pictures rather than within a document or presentation.

37. Solutions to the size effect...
Back to Picture resolution issues.
Solutions to the size effect...
Copy the picture from the source (a right mouse click over the picture then choose copy is easiest) – you can use this method to reduce the size of pictures in a presentation (in edit mode) or even from the web.
Start the "paint" program. (under Start, Programs, Accessories...on a SHU PC it is Start, Programs, Tools and Accessories, Accessories)
Once in the Paint program choose Paste from the Edit menu.
You may be asked if you want to "enlarge the bitmap" if the picture you want to paste is bigger than the current canvas – if so answer yes.
If your picture is smaller than the canvas you can reduce the size of the white canvas by clicking on the white area then clicking and dragging the bottom right corner.
When the picture looks reasonable choose Save As from the File menu and change the file type to JPEG (.jpg) – this is the format that saves space. Then click Save. Once back in PowerPoint, use Insert, Picture, From file to insert the picture.

38. Planning the Resource
Paper and pencil are still excellent tools for designing the structure and feel of the resource.
If designing a resource along with others the rough outline helps collaborators share and buy into a common view, hopefully they will then be pulling in roughly the same direction.
Good “off-keyboard planning” is the key to a good structure. A good tip in designing a menu structure is to allow for expansion, this resource originally didn’t have the “Advanced” menu item, when I added it I put in an intermediate sub-menu page to allow for future expansion!
The plan isn’t written in stone but should be a fluid thing.
Sketching out the design is a useful development step, you can do it in a way that has meaning to you. There is no need to use formal flowcharting conventions!

39. Naming slides secret names and traps
(Tricks and traps when naming slides.)
If the slide has a title it is easier to recognise it when linking to it.
Only certain types of slide offer a title for you to fill in when they are created, so if you want a blank slide but also want to title it then you can create a title only slide, type in the title but then set the text colour for the title to the same as the background so it can't be seen.
Be careful, the linking system doesn't work if you try to link to a slide with certain punctuation in the title! Don't ask me why not, and it might not be a problem in some versions but in PowerPoint 2003 this is an issue. The title of this slide is realy "Naming slides secret names and traps" however, the one you see has all kinds of punctuation in it.
If you open this presentation in edit mode you’ll see that the title isn't “Naming slides, secret names and traps. (Tricks and traps when naming slides.)” but is actually “Naming slides secret names and traps”, this title is hidden from the user by making the font colour the same as this slides’ background, the title the user sees is realy just a text box. While not an essential trick it can be useful in complex resources to help the author keep track!

40. Zoom in diagrams.
This very simple demonstration shows the general idea of zooming in/out. Given time and patience the entire picture could be covered with areas to link to “zoomed in” images. I only did one part as a demo. On a picture similar to this we might have the clickable areas take us to specific instructions or detail about how the particular control works, ideal for tutorials about specific equipment or systems.
How does it work?
In a similar fashion to the other methods and it is used in other areas of this resource. A drawing object is created over the area in the picture we want to make clickable.
This annoyingly covers up the bit we are interested in, don't worry yet.
We set this object (a rectangle or in this case I used an oval) to hyperlink to the slide with the zoomed in view on it.
Finally set both the fill colour and the line colour to “none” so we can see through it.
Have a go at reading the dial half way down the picture on the far right, click it to zoom in…

41. Zoom in diagrams.
This very simple demonstration shows the general idea of zooming in/out. Given time and patience the entire picture could be covered with areas to link to “zoomed in” images. I only did one part as a demo. On a picture similar to this we might have the clickable areas take us to specific instructions or detail about how the particular control works, ideal for tutorials about specific equipment or systems.
How does it work?
In a similar fashion to the other methods and it is used in other areas of this resource. A drawing object is created over the area in the picture we want to make clickable.
This annoyingly covers up the bit we are interested in, don't worry yet.
We set this object (a rectangle or in this case I used an oval) to hyperlink to the slide with the zoomed in view on it.
Finally set both the fill colour and the line colour to “none” so we can see through it.
Have a go at reading the dial half way down the picture on the far right, click it to zoom in…
Zoom
out

42. Zoom in diagrams.
This very simple demonstration shows the general idea of zooming in/out. Given time and patience the entire picture could be covered with areas to link to “zoomed in” images. I only did one part as a demo. On a picture similar to this we might have the clickable areas take us to specific instructions or detail about how the particular control works, ideal for tutorials about specific equipment or systems.
How does it work?
In a similar fashion to the other methods and it is used in other areas of this resource. A drawing object is created over the area in the picture we want to make clickable.
This annoyingly covers up the bit we are interested in, don't worry yet.
We set this object (a rectangle or in this case I used an oval) to hyperlink to the slide with the zoomed in view on it.
Finally set both the fill colour and the line colour to “none” so we can see through it.
Have a go at reading the dial half way down the picture on the far right, click it to zoom in…
Zoom
out

43. Click here to see how to set up triggers.
Link to MS pages on triggers.
What are "Triggers"?
A trigger is an item on a PowerPoint slide (a picture, shape, button, or text etc.) that sets off an action when you click it. The action might be a sound or video clip or more likely an animation effect on some other object, for example making a picture move or text appear. It is relatively easy if you make sure you start it simple! Already if you use a hyperlink on an object it becomes a trigger, but PowerPoint has built in some clever features in the animation system that allow you to trigger events other than simply going to another slide.
This text should appear when the top oval is clicked. This textbox was selected and a "custom animation" set for it. Under the "timing" options click "Triggers" and select "start effect on click of" then use the dropdown to pick the object to be clicked as the trigger.
Click here to trigger some text
Click here to read more, click again for it to go away
The trigger is set as part of the animation for the object you want to appear or play. This text has two trigger events, one to appear and another to make it disappear – very messy!
Click here, the text should stay only 2 seconds
This text is triggered by the bottom oval but has an exit animation set to make it dissolve 2 seconds after it is triggered to appear
Click here to see how to set up triggers.

44. Setting up trigger events.
Click on the item you want to be triggered, choose custom animation from the Slideshow menu and add an entrance effect. This determines how the object will appear on the screen. the object should appear in the list in the custom animation pane. To make it appear when another object is clicked rather than in a sequence of other objects click the arrowhead on the right of the objects' name in the list on the custom animation list. The menu that drops down lets you access the Effect Options. The timing tab is the most important for our simple needs. Click the trigger button and choose the "start effect on click of:" option. Then choose the object to be the trigger.
When you've set the trigger check it works by displaying the slide.
When you get more than a couple of triggers on a slide it can get very complex and I certainly get easily confused, for a complex example look at the apple picking game.
It is important to note that if you are intending to save the slides as a webpage later then this is one of the features that probably won't translate to pure HTML.
For a step by step guide click here.

45. How many apples can you pick in 3 seconds?
Time remaining 2 3 1
seconds
Time done, how many did you get? did you get all ten?

46. Menus and triggers
Each of the sub links could have a hyperlink to another slide or be a trigger for another event on the current slide. Having the menus drop or size is easier than moving from the side because if the user doesnt "put them away" they can get quite tangled up. In this example I haven't made the sub menus do anything in order to try to keep the slide as clear as possible. Notice I changed the animation slightly on item three, you can be quite clever with such things – depending upon how sure you are that anyone is watching! (If you do click the items then you should hear an animal sound, this is another feature of PowerPoint, accessed via the "Action settings" menu on a right mouse click over the object you want to link to a sound. Click here if you are desperate to know what each sound is.)
Cow
Duck
Frog
Horse
Lamb
Lion
Owl
Seagull Tiger
Notice the concertina effect on the sub menus, this is because I've set each item in a separate text box rather than all in one with a clear button on top. The advantage of my way is that it makes the linking easier in the trigger dialog because the text in the box helps navigation.
Item 1 sub choice 1
Item 2 sub choice 1
Item 2 sub choice 1
Item 1 sub choice 2
Item 2 sub choice 2
Item 2 sub choice 2
Item 1 sub choice 3
Item 2 sub choice 3
Item 2 sub choice 3
Item one
Item two
Item three

47. Triggers step by step
This animation will cycle through repeatedly, just let it wash over you a few times then have a go on a blank slide.

48. Quizzes
I recon there are three basic ways to set up a quiz in interactive PowerPoint – there may be more, but three is enough for me!
Putting a yes/no or other selectable link after the question, the link takes the user to a slide saying the answer is correct or not. These feedback slides can be common and just link back to the "last slide viewed". This method is simple but can lead to a lot of slides. (To link back to the previous slide viewed right click the button or item that activates the link and use the Action Settings menu to hyperlink to "last slide viewed".)
Use the trigger technique to give answers and feedback, this works well and allows quite in depth feedback but is complex to set up and may not transfer well to HTML if the resource is to be converted later. (Example)
Use the "Highlight click" action setting in older versions BUT it doesn't work if viewed in version This enables the answer to be hidden on the slide and revealed when an area is clicked on. The first two methods are covered in this tutorial though not in the context of testing, the last is explained here. This is an excellent system that works well in versions prior to Office Unfortunately it appears to be interpreted differently in this later version! however there is a workround.

49. Quizzes not using the "Highlight on click" – an example.
True
Bar charts show categorical data, there is no continuous progression between one bar and the next hence the bars not touching. (True/False?)
Histograms are for data that is continuous or in continuous groups, e.g. age 0-9,10-19, (True/False?)
What kind of graph is the graph below?
Click the boxes to see the answer when you've had a think.
True
True
True
Histogram
You can have the answer appear over the button BUT this may mean that clicking on the centre of the button doesn't trigger the answer, the answer text may shield it. You must test these effects.
NOTE: This method works Office I've left the action setting on for the third answer, the effect works well in either version but has the added zest if viewed in pre 2007.
How do we do it?

50. Quizzes Version 2007 – how. True True True True Histogram
How does this work?
The answer buttons are set as trigger events for the box containing the answer. To do this create both objects, the trigger and the one that should appear when the trigger is pressed.
select the answer and set its custom animation to add an effect on entrance, e.g. set it to "appear" – this would make the object appear on a mouse click – not what we want.
next, customise this effect so that it appears only when you click a given object (the trigger) do this while the object is still selected. The object will appear in the Custom Animation pane, click the dropdown to the right of the description, in the example below it says "Rectangle 11"
True
True
True
True
From the menu that drops down pick "Timing" and then "Trigger on the dialog box, select the button for "Start effect on click of:" and use the dropdown to select the object that will trigger the objects appearance. This method is quite complex and it is easy to get confused, do be sure to check that the objects do as you want before releasing the resource to a wider audience! You can of course make the object trigger itself, the last of the three answer boxes does this. Instead of having a second box for the answer we simply change the font using the "Emphasis" option rather than the "Appear" option, the button itself has the text already in but in the same font as the background, by triggering "Change font colour" as the type of emphasis we can make it change to a contrasting colour, the effect options are useful, we could set "rewind after playing" so the answer disappears after appearing. To get used to using this method I recommend trying it out on a sparsely populated slide.
Histogram

51. Click or swipe the boxes to see the answer when you've had a think.
Quizzes using the Highlight on click feature – an example. (Pre 2007 versions of PowerPoint only.)
Bar charts show categorical data, there is no continuous progression between one bar and the next hence the bars not touching. (True/False?)
Histograms are for data that is continuous or in continuous groups, e.g. age 0-9,10-19, (True/False?)
What kind of graph is the graph below?
Click or swipe the boxes to see the answer when you've had a think.
True
True
Histogram
NOTE: This is an excellent method that works well in versions prior to Office Unfortunately it appears to be interpreted differently in this later version!
How do we do it?

52. Quizzes – how we do it (pre 2007 versions).
If using Office 2007 this is not the method to use, Action settings are not available from the RH mouse menu and if selected from the main menu, where available (and it isn't for all objects) it doesn't have the desired effect of reversing the video on a click.
Create a shape...
In version 2007 use Custom animation, Emphasis, More effects, Change Font Colour, then set the box to trigger itself. Set the font colour on the shape to the same as its background, when this changes on a click the text becomes visible.
Add the answer to the shape (Right Hand click the shape - add or edit text)
Select the object (not the text).
Right Hand click the shape and choose Action Settings.
The action setting option does still exist in version 2007 but is interpreted differently!
Choose Highlight Click.
NOTE: This is an excellent method that works well in versions prior to Office Unfortunately it appears to be interpreted differently in this later version! Rather than changing the colour of the object it simply reduces its size slightly, presumably to indicate it has been clicked.
The shape colour will now change when clicked.
Change the text colour to the same as the un-clicked shape colour. You can now only read it when clicked.

53. Making a PowerPoint presentation open in Slideshow mode rather than in the PowerPoint editor mode.
Typically when you open a PowerPoint file the file will open in MS PowerPoint in editing mode, pressing the F5 key would start the "show" and make the resource dynamic. You can alter the way that the file opens to make the file open straight in "show" mode.
The method is simple...
A normal PowerPoint file has a filename extension PPT , e.g. filename.ppt you can alter this to PPS e.g. filename.pps this will not alter the file at all but will tell PowerPoint to open the file straight into show mode so the user doesn't get the "behind the scenes" view. (You can even do this from within PowerPoint by choosing to "SaveAs" a PowerPoint show.)
By default, PPT files open in edit mode within PowerPoint allowing you to use all the menus and commands. By default, PPS files open in slideshow (play) mode and you see no PowerPoint interface. When the presentation finishes or you manually exit using the ESC key, PowerPoint also quits. (Bajaj 2007) For interactive resources with no default endpoint you can put a button in that ends the show.
BAJAJ, Geetesh. PPT vs. PPS, (2007), last accessed January 2007 at;
Reference;

54. Versions of PowerPoint
There are many versions of PowerPoint available on the PC and Apple Mac platforms. Typicaly versions after version 97 support most of the features covered in this resource. There are some changes in using version In v2007 the menu structure is very different from the previous versions, this is likely to be quite a barrier to many users – it certainly surprised me! Microsoft have created a simple online tutorial designed to help people translate from version 2003 to The link may decay in time but presently accessible here.

55. Select a help topic by clicking the appropriate button...
What does the menu at the top do?
Why doesn't the slide change if I click?
This feels like a website what's the difference?
Back to the help index.
About.

56. What does the menu at the top do?
Help.
the “Home” button, it takes you back to the opening page.
goes back to the last page (slide) viewed, rather like the back button but only one shot..
gives an overview of the process, and roughly how it can be done.
covers the basics of creating buttons and making hyperlinks.
creating a menu that appears on all the pages/slides.
covers the changes in PowerPoint default settings needed
covers some quite advanced features you might want to inflict on yourself.
goes to the help index (these
pages).
Exits the presentation and returns to the referring web page if viewing over the internet.
What does the menu at the top do?
Overview
Why doesn't the slide change if I click?
Buttons & links
Menus
This feels like a website what's the difference?
Settings
Back to the help index.
Advanced
About.
Help
Exit

57. The Settings area on this presentation gives more detail.
Help.
PowerPoint by default is set to move from slide n to slide n+1 missing any hidden slides. This can be overridden in the slide transition settings. This can be done either on the “Master Slide” or a single slide and applied to all slides.
The Settings area on this presentation gives more detail.
An alternative method on older versions is to create a transparent object the same size as a slide that is set as a link to the slide it is on, this is then sent behind the active objects on the slide and so catches any mouse clicks on the body of the slide. This however doesn’t defend against the spacebar being used to move to the next number slide.
What does the menu at the top do?
Why doesn't the slide change if I click?
This feels like a website what's the difference?
Back to the help index.
About.

58. What does the menu at the top do?
Help.
It is very similar to a website. It uses hyperlinks in a similar way and can even link to web based resources. The advantage of this method is that it is based on similar skills to ordinary PowerPoint and the rest of MS Office and so is easier to work with and the content is packaged in a direct-able form, i.e. it can be placed on a website or ed, or sent on disk for use on a PC with no internet connection.
It is possible to compile the slides into web pages using PowerPoint and with a few caveats this is a quick way to create online content simply. You will see though that for some advanced features this conversion isn't always available, the file will save as HTML but not all features will function as they did in the PowerPoint file. These help pages for example are set up simply as linked pages, rather like they would be in a simple web site, if we had used the PowerPoint "trigger" method to create them they would not have translated using version 2003 however we would have used less slides, but had considerably more content and complexity on one.
Note: currently (in Office 2003) the files, if kept as PPT or PPS files, need the full PowerPoint version to browse them, the PowerPoint viewer is not currently enabled for this level of interaction. If converted to html though they can be viewed in a we browser. These issues I believe are due to change in Office However this latest version brings some other changes, I've tried to note the important ones in the appropriate parts of the tutorial.
What does the menu at the top do?
Why doesn't the slide change if I click?
This feels like a website what's the difference?
Back to the help index.
About.

59. About this tutorial resource.
Help.
Interactive PowerPoint: an interactive guide, was originally developed as a by-product of a set of interactive tutorials to aid students understanding of descriptive statistics and used as part of the teaching on an undergraduate module at Sheffield Hallam University. The general applicability of the technique is such that the technique is relevant to a vast range of teaching situations at many levels, consequently, with the help of the CIPEL project I was able to create this generic tutorial.
About this tutorial resource.
What does the menu at the top do?
Why doesn't the slide change if I click?
This feels like a website what's the difference?
I hope you enjoy playing with it as much as I've enjoyed developing it!
Back to the help index.
Andrew
About.
Andrew Garth, Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield, England

60. Annotated Bibliography (1 of 2)
NORMAN K L. (1991), The Psychology of Menu Selection: Designing Cognitive Control at the Human/Computer Interface Ablex Publishing Corporation, also online at;
Written at the dawn of computer science this book covers basic menu structure issues but before the general acceptance of WIMP technology. It covers types of menus and cognitive structures, which is highly relevant to informing the menu structure for this resource. Menu selection is emerging as an important mode of human/computer interaction. This book is gives detailed theoretical and some empirical information of general interest to people designing human useable interfaces to complex information systems.
GILLESPIE J, (2005) Web Page Design for Designers [online] last accessed in November 2006 at;
The power of colour is an important one if not over used, in the resource Joe Gillespie gives many ideas for the use of colour, contrast and tone as well as addressing some more technical such as palette complexity and its possible effects on transferability. Specific colour and palette issues are addressed at;
Idaho State University, Instructional Technology Resource Center (2005), Enhancing PowerPoint Presentations for PowerPoint XP and 2003 [ONLIN] LAST ACCESSED November 2006 AT;
This short guide on additional features of PowerPoint is a useful starting point for more advanced PowerPoint skills development. It covers embedding additional media types into the slides and gives links and references to other useful resources.

61. Annotated Bibliography (2 of 2) <
gifanimations.com (2005) GIFAnimations [online] last accessed in November 2006 at;
Purports to be the Internet's original and largest collection of free animated GIFs. Right here, you have access to more than 20,000 animations, clipart and backgrounds. Resources structured in topics – one of many free GIF sources on the Web. It is always important to check the copyright on resources to be used, this site offers free downloading but does have some limiting terms.