What is PowerPoint?
PowerPoint is one of the easiest computer programs to learn. It is the number one software used worldwide for creating presentations. Any beginner can create stunning presentations that look like they were designed by a professional.
Microsoft PowerPoint software is used to create professional slide shows that can be displayed on projectors or large screen TVs. The product of this software is called a presentation. Typically, the presenter speaks to the audience and uses a Microsoft Office PowerPoint presentation for visuals to capture the listeners' attention and add visual information.
Technological features of creating a presentation in PowerPoint
Information in PowerPoint is placed on separate sheets - slides.
Each slide can have its own design and size. Information on the slide can be presented in the form of text, images, photos, videos.
Each information block on a slide can be animated.
You can also apply animation effects to transitions between individual slides.
The video below contains examples of animation from one of the studios that creates PowerPoint presentations:
Thus, a PowerPoint presentation can be a very complex work in which information stories can be created that are easy to understand.
With the help of PowerPont they create very complex visual aids and even animation. The video below is a presentation made in PowerPoint:
Unfortunately, mastering powerful presentation creation tools does not guarantee success when delivering such a presentation! It is important to formulate a presentation methodically correctly, as well as to use it effectively during a speech.
Story
PowerPoint was first developed by Dennis Austin and Thomas Rudkin at Forethought Inc. The product was supposed to be named Presenter, but the trademark could not be registered. In 1987, the program was renamed PowerPoint (the idea for the new name belongs to Robert Gaskins). In August of that year, Microsoft bought Forethought for $14 million and turned it into its business unit, where it continued to develop software. The first iteration of Microsoft PowerPoint launched with Windows 3.0 in 1990. It allowed you to scroll through slides in one direction (forward only), and the number of settings was quite limited.
What is PowerPoint in the modern sense? The program has undergone significant changes in Microsoft Office PowerPoint 97 - full transition effects and automatic slide movement have been added. This allowed the presenter to follow the plan and continue speaking without interruption.
How to download the program?
PowerPoint is a program that enhances the visualization of oral presentation and allows the audience to focus on the subject matter. It works on the old slide show principle, but uses modern technology in the form of computers and digital projectors.
The product is included in the Microsoft Office suite and is also available as:
- separate program for PC on Windows and Mac;
- part of a PowerPoint subscription in Office 365;
- PowerPoint Online is a completely free version of PowerPoint that can be used in a web browser;
- application for Android and iOS mobile devices.
If you download the program as a separate component, download the installation file only from the official Microsoft website.
PPT file format - description, how to open?
PPT file (full PowerPoint Presentation) is a presentation file of the popular office software MS PowerPoint, designed specifically for demonstrating slides based on text, graphics, and videos. This software product is widely used on the Windows and Mac OS platforms. In the usual sense, a presentation is a set of formatted text blocks of information and graphic elements (images, multimedia fragments).
MS PowerPoint contains an integrated set of tools that allows you to add various effects to your presentation (pop-up or smoothly appearing text, gradual display of a picture, etc.).
Conferences, meetups, business meetings, events of various projects, seminars - this is just a small list of events where the PPT format is widely used as a presentation. It should be noted that with the release of MS Office 2007, PPTX became the main format for storing presentation data.
It also supports working with presentation slides on the Android system using the Kingsoft Office for Android mobile application.
Programs for opening PPT files
PowerPoint is the most popular program for opening, creating and editing PPT files. This application is not built-in and automatically installed with Windows OS, for this you need to install Microsoft Office or mark the installation of only this plugin. You can also open a PPT file online using special services, such as PPT-online.
Other popular Windows-based programs that open the PPT format include:
- ACD systems canvas;
- Corel word perfect office;
- Microsoft powerpoint viewer;
- Kingsoft presentation.
These applications are universal and support all Powerpoint , including the PPTX format.
To open and edit a PPT file on Mac OS, use Apple Keynote and Microsoft Office Open XML.
Convert PPT to other formats
PPT and PPTX are the two main formats at the level of which interaction with the Powerpoint .
In general, it is possible to convert PPT and PPTX using the integrated Powerpoint , which is available immediately after installing this presentation editor.
If for some reason you were unable to do this, use the IBM Lotus Symphony PPT converter. This software runs on Windows OS and almost always guarantees high-quality conversion results. The IBM Lotus Symphony level also provides conversion to PDF.
To convert PPT to PPS, use the SoftMaker Presentations plugin.
Why PPT and what are its advantages?
We have to state a disappointing fact: PPT has outlived its popularity among users; it has been replaced by a new version of the data storage and transmission format - PPTX.
While the PPT format stores the entire set of constructs in one file, PPTX is generated using the XML format, which is an open source format. This is the main advantage of PPTX over PPT.
How to make a presentation in PowerPoint?
PowerPoint comes with many templates that set the tone of your presentation. New users usually choose template options, replace text and images with their own, add additional slides, their own content, icons and graphics. There is also the option to select special effects, slide transitions, music, graphics and animations - all of which are built into the software to enrich the experience for the audience.
Each page in a Microsoft PowerPoint presentation is called a slide. Backgrounds can be applied to individual or all slides in a presentation. Backgrounds can be solid colors, gradient fills, textures, or images. The term "animation" is used in Microsoft Office PowerPoint to describe movements applied to objects on slides. One or more objects on a slide can be animated.
Design themes were first introduced in version 2007. They function in the same way as design templates in earlier versions of Microsoft Office PowerPoint. A very convenient feature of design themes is that you can immediately see the effect reflected on your slides before making a decision.
The program offers several different ways to add clips and images to your presentation. The easiest way to do this is to choose a slide layout and add your content.
PowerPoint files are saved with the PPS or PPTX file extension, although the original PPS format is used for compatibility with older versions of PowerPoint and viewing software.
What to do if your PowerPoint file is damaged?
If you need to quickly and efficiently put together a presentation, what solution will you use? Survey at least a million people, 99% will answer without hesitation - PowerPoint.
PowerPoint is a simple and at the same time extremely powerful, reliable tool with a wide range of functionality. But no one is immune from data loss, and it happens that a presentation file gets damaged for some reason.
However, don't despair. Microsoft has provided PowerPoint with sufficient tools to recover damaged data. And to make this process more successful, do not neglect modern versions of the program. In Office 98-2003, presentations are saved in *.ppt, while damaged files with the *.pptx extension, which are supported by Microsoft Office 2007 and later, are much more recoverable.
Restoring what was lost
So, you have some problems with the file. First, you need to check if everything is in order with the device on which the presentation is stored. In general, working with a flash drive or external HDD is not the best idea, since the likelihood of problems occurring when saving data increases significantly. Run Check Disk - a standard Windows utility will do just fine. If there are errors, copy the presentation from the damaged device to the main drive and try to open it. There is a possibility that the problem will be resolved.
If the problem is not in the disk, but in the *.ppt/.pptx file itself, it’s time to use standard PowerPoint recovery tools.
The modern version of the program recognizes a “broken” document even at the opening stage. And if the damage is not too serious, he immediately offers a solution. Double click on the file, wait for the program to load and the “Restore” dialog box to appear. Then we save our presentation again.
However, often when running a file, such a dialog box does not appear. Then you should go to PowerPoint – File – Open. In the window that appears, select the damaged file, click on the “beak” next to the “Open” button and select the “Open and Repair” option.
If unsuccessful, you can try several more solutions. For example, copy slides from a damaged file to a new one. To do this, create a clean presentation - click “Create Slide – Reuse Slides”. In the column that appears on the right, click “Browse – Search for file” and select the damaged file. As planned, the slides from the damaged presentation will be copied to the new one.
The second way is to try to open the broken file as a template. The sequence of actions is similar to the previous one: open a clean presentation - on the “Design” tab, click on the “beak” next to “Themes - Search for topics” and try to import the damaged presentation into PowerPoint, but in the form of a template.
And finally, you can change the extension of the damaged presentation file from .ppt to .rtf, and try your luck using Word. Here, of course, data loss is inevitable, but it’s better than nothing.
Nothing worked, what should I do?
If all efforts are in vain, it’s time to turn to specialized applications and services.
One of the most advanced .ppt/.pptx file recovery algorithms was developed by the “File Master” command. You can restore the file directly on their website through the web interface (cost $5 for each file). Three steps to victory: on the page, click the big orange “Upload file and start recovery” button, select the broken file on your computer, enter your e-mail, go through the captcha, wait, admire the preview, pay $5, download. Ready.
In this case, the service will inform the user in advance about the number of restored pages and objects. Moreover, in the event of a total destruction of the internal architecture of the file, which especially often happens with presentations with the *.ppt extension created on older versions of PowerPoint 98-2003, the smart program identifies files attached to the presentation (pictures, videos, sound, spreadsheets) and will save them in a separate folder. Thanks to this approach, it will not be difficult for you to later assemble a new presentation from the recovered files.
If you need a full-fledged desktop solution for Windows - this is especially true if you have several damaged files, it is recommended to use the proprietary utility from Recovery Toolbox. The Recovery Toolbox for PowerPoint license costs $27, but there are no restrictions on the number of recoveries, and your privacy is definitely guaranteed.
The powerful program is packaged in a simple interface; no special training is required.
No tricks or complex settings: launch “Recovery Toolbox for PowerPoint”, select the damaged presentation, wait and then save the recovery result.
How to Recover a PowerPoint Presentation
If the Microsoft PowerPoint presentation file does not open and the built-in functions cannot recover the PPTX/PPT file, then you need to perform the following steps:
- Download Recovery Toolbox for PowerPoint from here.
- Install and run Recovery Toolbox for PowerPoint.
- Select the damaged file on the first page of the program.
- Click the “Next” button.
- Wait for recovery.
- Click the “Transfer” button.
- Save the recovered presentation in the opened Microsoft PowerPoint.
Group work
PowerPoint Sharing - What is it? Although PP is often used by one person, the program also supports collaboration on presentations.
In this case, the document is saved online on OneDrive or SharePoint, and collaborative editing is enabled by sharing a link and co-editing.
Go to the Review tab at the top of the program and click the New Comment button - here you can leave notes and move them on the screen for other team members to see. Comments can be a particularly useful tool for explaining changes made and are visible to everyone involved in co-editing.
You can also upload your presentation to such websites, including all the slides and notes. To do this, go to “File”, “Save and Send” and “Create Video”. The document will be saved in WMV format, which can be played on Windows Media Player and can be uploaded to most video sites.
PPT Reader
Free product from FoxPDF Viewer. The utility is the closest opponent of a similar product from Microsoft. It is inferior to the latter in popularity, but has a wider range of slide display modes.
How to open a presentation in PPT Reader?
- We launch the utility and press the familiar key combination “Ctrl + O” or the opening folder button located first in the toolbar.
- Specify the location of the presentation file and click “OK”.
Application area
Microsoft PowerPoint is in demand for all types of business and personal presentations. Among them:
- classes for employees;
- product launch;
- sales meetings;
- demonstrations for exhibitions;
- club meetings;
- public performance;
- marketing strategies;
- quarterly presentations;
- business plans.
A PP presentation is equally effective for large audiences and small groups.
Analogs
Microsoft Office PowerPoint is by far the most popular program for creating presentations. About 35 million PPT files are released every day. Although this software solution has several competitors, they all lack PP's global reach. Apple's Keynote software is similar to Microsoft Office PowerPoint and comes free on all Macs, but they only have a tiny share of the entire presentation software user base.
Definition
Before understanding the question of what the PPT format opens, it is necessary to define it. This is a file format that contains presentations created in the office program PowerPoint.
is the originator of this format, but today numerous other software developers are incorporating support for the PPT format into their own presentation programs.
