Presentation Tips

• Read the last point first!!!
• Test all media in advance. Do this with enough lead time to make changes in settings or equipment if necessary. If settings have to be changed, know how to do so, and do so before the audience enters the room.
• Practice and show your presentation to sympathetic colleagues before going public.
• Before you begin your presentation, take time to focus on your role. You are more of an expert in your subject than anyone else in the room, and you have something to say which is vitally important to your audience. Speak clearly and with confidence. Don't get too "familiar" with the audience or act too casual; this undermines your authority to speak.
• If possible, greet people as they come in to the room. Get their names and ask how they might use the information you are scheduled to share. ["How will you use PowerPoint in your office?"]
• Use the microphone if one exists. Test sound levels beforehand. If there is a lapel mic, use it. Clip it high on your shirt, and test the location before the program.
  When testing the sound level, be aware of how loud your projector fan, or other ambient noise, is. Also, warm human bodies tend to absorb sound. Your sound level should be "a little too loud" in the empty room before hand.
• Be sure you understand how to operate the projector, including the various controls on the button panel, and the remote control. They are there to make your presentation more functional and interesting. For instance:
  • The standby button is useful when you're not going to use the projector for a while, but don't want to turn it off for the day.
  • The video/computer button allows you to switch between inputs.
  • If your projector has a remote control, use it for the above controls and others. Many projector remotes also have a laser pointer.
• Be sure your computer's resolution and that of the projector are in synch with each other. We commonly find that a computer with a native XGA or higher video output does not match with an older projector which, for example, may be only SVGA native output. Many of these computers claim to be able to handle XGA or higher signals and "dumb them down" to their own native output, but in reality this sometimes leaves the presenter with illegible text on the screen. The point is to match the native video output with your computer and the projector for best performance. As always, testing in advance is a great idea.
• Be sure you understand the function/toggle switch on your laptop. For many computers this is Function/3 [or 4 or 5 or whatever]. If you're unsure, check your owners' manual or look for a CRT icon [looks like a monitor screen] on one of the function keys. This is a two or three-position toggle for video output. Position one is for the laptop screen only, two is for the laptop and projector, and three is projector only. In our experience, not understanding the function/toggle is usually the problem when a user reports that the projector is broken.
• Realize that some projectors will not project from the computer unless you have connected their cables to the laptop and [sometimes] turned them on before powering the laptop.

During the Presentation
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• Don't stand in front of the projector! It's amazing how often this happens, especially with overhead projectors.
• Stand where you are not blocking anyone from seeing the screen.
• If you are using a data or overhead projector, don't look at the screen more than a quick glance once-in-a-while just to make sure it didn't get away. Look at the computer monitor, if you have one. The loss of eye contact and the view of the back of the speaker's head is distracting for the audience.
• If two projectors are in use, such as a video and overhead projector, turn one off, or put it on standby, before turning on the other. I have seen where two projectors were directed at the same screen at the same time, if the first projector is still on white light, at best you'll have a washout of the second projector's image.
• Know how to darken the screen and to bring it back. This is a good technique when the screen might distract from discussion. With a laptop connected to a projector, this is easy with the function/toggle; or you could use the remote and put the projector on standby. In a Smart Classroom you can switch to an unused "source" to get a black screen.
• If possible, don't run your application from a floppy or ZIP drive. They will usually be slower than running from your hard drive, especially if it is a movie. However, if you have a fast CD ROM, it may actually deliver data faster than running from your hard drive. Check this out ahead of time.
• If you are using the Internet in your presentation be sure your computer is compatible with the connection in the room. Also, set up your bookmarks ahead of time in a bookmark folder on your computer--and save them. Test the bookmarks before the show because web sites have a way of disappearing just before major presentations. I recently attended a technology convention where the hotel was entirely "wireless." Of course none of the presenters had a wireless card in their laptops, and several presentations were seriously affected. At Wheaton, for security reasons, the LAN connections don't work for most laptops in most rooms. Laptops are "sectored" to specific rooms. Test yours in your presentation room. You may have to work this out with Computing Services.
• If you are using a borrowed computer, before returning it delete any applications, files, shortcuts, or browser bookmarks you have installed. Also report to the staff any problems you had with the computer or other technology.
• Keep in mind that it is easy to overuse clip art, sounds, the laser pointer, and animations. Generally, the more sophisticated your audience [or the more sophisticated they think they are] the less impact these have. With such an audience the medium is not the message [sorry, Dr. McLuhan!], they are looking for content.

PowerPoint Tips
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• Close one application before opening the other. If you are using two separate PowerPoint files, or two files or applications of any kind, it may overtax the RAM of the computer when you have two. This could slooooow down your shooooow.
• If your PowerPoint is a very large file, consider showing it with the PowerPoint viewer, rather than the PowerPoint program. This will use less RAM and not require as fast a processor. You can set this up with the "Pack 'n Go" feature under the File menu.
• Darken the screen when you've moved on to another point and the current slide isn't still relevant.
• If you are using PowerPoint, make the last screen black or some other solid color. When you click the last slide in PowerPoint [which you shouldn't, but few can resist!] it kicks you to the "view" that you were in before beginning the show. How many of us have seen a high-powered presentation lose its impact when, after the sunset at the end, the presenter clicks one time too many and we are all given a peek at "slide-view," complete with the filename, location on his hard drive, and other unsought information. [It gives the same feeling as looking in someone else's top dresser drawer!] Alternatively, if your last slide is black, you know when you come to it not to click again, and your audience will be impressed!
• Fonts: Be careful of the size of font to use for your show. Be sure your audience can read the text from the back row. Whether to use serif or sans serif fonts is a big debate. Some say that sans serif are easier to read and others say the opposite. Whichever you think is right, use it on purpose. Don't use different fonts in the same show, unless there is some impact to be made, and then do it very carefully. Have you ever noticed a PowerPoint where the presenter began with Arial and finished with Times New Roman [or any other combination]? It shows a rush job and poor attention to detail.
• One test for font size is to print out a slide and place it on the floor at your feet. Stand up, read it, and decide whether the font is large enough.
• Scanned forms and images often lose resolution and can't be read or seen clearly. If you use them, get a good scan at a high resolution. Be careful importing images into PowerPoint. Never import *.tif files, and keep in mind that *.gif and *.jpg files will increase your file size, especially if they are in color. Inserting several images will require more RAM and a faster processor. I have seen great presentations crash because they were prepared on a better computer, which had enough RAM, than was available to use for the show.
  

Always, always, always, have a backup. Sooner or later the technology will fail you. For instance, if you usually use PowerPoint to present, back up your show with overhead transparencies. If you are planning to show a VHS video, have a backup plan in case the VCR doesn't work or the cabinet is locked. If this is a high-risk presentation, take a spare laptop and projector. Technology can make the presenter look very good or very bad!

If you've got more tips to share, email David Kletzing.