Powerpoint General Questions:
I can't open Powerpoint templates:
Our templates are in a compressed .ZIP file. You must first 'unzip' the file using an unzip tool such as WinZip. Windows XP comes with its own unzip tool. Once unzipped our templates will open with any version of PowerPoint.
Animations in Powerpoint:
Adding our animations to PowerPoint presentations is very popular. Our animations can be used in PowerPoint 2000 or newer versions. The animations will not move when you are creating the presentation. In order to see the animations move, please play the presentation. Animations will not play in PowerPoint 97 or older versions.
Video In Powerpoint:
Can I use video backgrounds in PowerPoint?
Absolutely. The WMV video backgrounds work great in PowerPoint and are your best option for this software. However, it is important to note that PowerPoint does not support text over video for any video format.
Inserting video into PowerPoint:
The Windows Media Video (.wmv) format may be used to personalize your PowerPoint presentation. Simply download the video file you want by clicking on the link 'Windows Media Video File' and selecting 'Save', or by right-clicking and selecting 'Save Target As', then save your file to your hard drive.
Inserting video as an element:
In PowerPoint, go to the top menu, click 'Insert', select 'Movies and Sound', then click on 'Movie from File'. Select one of the .wmv files that you have downloaded. This will bring up a requester asking "Do you want your movie to play automatically in the slide show?" Click 'Yes' if you do, or click 'No' if you want to start it yourself by clicking on the movie while the presentation is going. The video will now be an object that you can drag, resize and add a border around. However, it is important to note that PowerPoint does not support text over video for any video format.
Text over video in PowerPoint:
PowerPoint™ does not allow video to play behind text or other elements; you can place an element or text in front of the video, but when it plays that item is forced behind the video. This can work well if you're putting a title over the video and want it to disappear when you manually start it. In the 'Picture Toolbar', you can change the video color to be 'Grayscale', 'Black & White', or 'Washout'. This color effect will vanish once the video plays so it's best to use when you plan on starting the video manually. One work-around is to import one of our WMV video backgrounds into a video editing application (Windows™ Movie Maker comes standard with XP™ and iMovie™ comes with Mac™ OS X), then add your text and export it back out as a WMV file. The new video can then be used to give your presentation the look you want.
This method inserts Media Player controls below the clip with a playback status bar and the file name. This is helpful if the video is longer since it allows you to pause to make a point or answer a question. Click on 'Insert', then 'Object'. A dialogue box asks you to select from a list of object types. Choose 'Media Clip'. This will open another interface. Go to the 'Insert Clip' menu, then to either 'Directshow' or 'Video for Windows" to browse for your desired clip. Depending on your version of PowerPoint and what type of file your looking for you may need to tell Windows to 'Show All Files' to find your clip. Another benefit of this method is that you can do clip-trimming within the Media Player window. However, it is important to note that PowerPoint does not support text over video for any video format.
