Latest Feature: Introduction to Powerpoint
PowerPoint 101
Fact: Most powerpoint presentations are boring and cluttered. Ask anyone who has had to endure them at a conference.
But it is fairly easy to create a presentation that is both informative and pleasing to the eye. This can be acheived by following a few simple rules.
1 Less is Best. Many presenters try to cram ten or more bullet points per slide. The maximum to aim for is five.
2 As few words as possible. All to often the 'bullet headline' is not a headline it attempts to tell the whole story. In a newpaper the headline is just that - a headline. The speaker should use the headline to indicate the nature of the presentation point. A by-product of using a long sentence as a bullet point is that the speaker tends just to read the bullet points out loud rather than present to the audience. When this happens the audience becomes detached.
3 Add a picture. A foil or slide that is just full of words is boring to look at. A full set of ten boring slides will send your audience to sleep.
4 Be consistent. Makes sure the titles use the same font and font size. Have a consistent theme and style. This makes the whole presentation look more professional.
5 Start. Middle. End. A presentation is a story and as such needs a start or introduction, a middle that will be the main content and an end which will be a summary and if appropriate a next steps or call to action.
6 Use the technology. Powerpoint contains functions that allow each slide to be built point by point and effects can be used when appropriate.
7 Use a postcard. Rather than start trying to design and create the presentation directly using Powerpoint start by physically sketching and writing the text on a postcard. This apprach will ensure that the proportions are correct and the slide is not crowded and swamped with detail. When presenting it is preferable to have ten clear and readable slides rather than five clumbersome unreadable ones.
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Features, Articles, Comment Tutorials and Reviews
Email; Keep it all or Delete it all
Different legal statues seem to contradict one another when applied to managing a company’s email. John Hookham highlights the issues and looks at the different options available. Email and the World Wide Web are available to the masses and for many organisations digital media is now the preferred method of communication. Published by Evaluation Centre. Download pdf.
Website Accessibility
For most people access to the Intenet and the information it contains is easy. But for the disabled both accessing and viewing Web sites can present difficulties. John Hookham looks at some of the problems faced by those suffering from 'digital exclusion'. Published in Bulletin - the magazine of the Records Management Society. Download pdf.
Phishing, pharming and other scams
John Hookham looks at the current crop of cons, frauds and tricks floating around the web. Some are old, some are new but they all want one thing: your money. Published in Conspectus - The IT Report for Directors and Decision Makers. Download pdf.
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