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Re: Form, not content

Posted: Sat Aug 19, 2006 11:53 am
by SiteAdmin
Eccles wrote:
1. Don't use the S or Shadow font capability except in very rare instances. It generally makes a presentation look muddy...a subliminal for fuzzy thinking? Is this defaulted on the Master page?
Yes, that was the default on the master. I didn't mess with fonts, only the font size (which it seems to do automatically most of the time).

Eccles wrote:
2. Use Bold face in general; it looks better and is easier to perceive. A different color font (yellow) is better than italics, which is harder to read.
Good idea; I'll do that.

Eccles wrote:
3. Use fewer words, thus marginally bigger type...an acquired art.
I'm trying to make it more graphic, but RS concepts have always been hard to depict graphically. I want to defer most of the text to an audio commentary.

Eccles wrote:
4. With multiple paragraphs, put them in the same text box...it's easier to control them. And, use 1-line of line spacing...Format/Line Spacing.../After paragraph: 1 line.
I did eventually figure that one out. Apparently you can apply effects to individual paragraphs in a list, which I didn't know before.

Eccles wrote:
I didn't spend much time on the text; I don't know enough yet; however, less is more. You don't need to "tell them what you're going to tell them" at the top of the page if the material is self-explanatory in the body of the slide with your audio explanation.
I'm starting the 2nd presentation on the "photon group" of particles, which includes electrons, positrons and photons. What is the best way to handle animation? I want to show movement, but if I use effects, they are lost when I convert to HTML. Animated GIF files? I hate to do that, because they can get rather large in file size.

Next question is: is this a proper tool to use for web-based eductation? It's nice because it is quick and easy, but seems to be more designed for conference-room style lectures.

Thanks for the example presentation--good reference for me!

conference room

Posted: Sat Aug 19, 2006 2:47 pm
by Eccles
bperet wrote:
Next question is: is this a proper tool to use for web-based eductation? It's nice because it is quick and easy, but seems to be more designed for conference-room style lectures.
I've seen PowerPoint used in many commercial and government training applications. With Microsoft and PCs having such a large part of the market share, MS Office suite of applications are familiar to many people, including the education biz, even with its bigger bite of the Apple.

I don't know the answer to the animation question. As you know, "animation" to MS is largely transitions between slides.

If your photon group presentation is in PP, I'll spend more time on it. Also, it's amazing how much a Background slide right after the table of contents helps to frame the session. Some people need a one- or two-pager on RS/RS2 just to get up to speed on what you will be discussing.

Good Luck...Happy Trails...Watch the Sky....