Moving to a Better Office

Microsoft

Have problems using Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2007 to create presentations and posters? HSLS can help. The most significant changes to the interface include the addition of the Office button and the display of tools and functions through the Ribbon.

• Office button: located on the upper-left of the program window, replaces the File menu and provides access to common commands including open, save, and print.
• Ribbon function bar: uses tabs to group commands in task-specific sorting. PowerPoint 2007 offers tabs that are organized according to the familiar categories Home, Insert, Review, View, as well as more specific distinctions for Design, Animations, and Slideshow.

Also available is the Quick Access toolbar, which can be customized to personal preferences, and live previews, which previews how various color themes, fonts, and effects will appear before being selected.

Enhancements include:

• SmartArt: the hybrid of WordArt and AutoShapes that can be used to easily create color coordinated and pre-assembled diagrams to show relationships. For example a list can be quickly converted into a circle diagram.
• Theme option: enables users to alter the look and feel of their entire presentation by designating different styles. Changing a theme of a presentation does not only format the background color, but it also changes your presentation by choosing the colors, styles, and fonts of the diagrams, charts, shapes, etc, all with one click of a button. Personalizing a theme ensures that your entire presentation is professional and aesthetically pleasing.
• More sophisticated options for chart and table making. Powerpoint and Microsoft Excel are now directly linked.
• An improved presenter view, better document security, and smaller file saving capacity.

If you have questions about PowerPoint 2007 call the Computer and Media Center helpdesk at 412-648-9109. Scheduled classes are also available.

~ Sam Lewis

Posted in the 2008 Issue