How to Make a PowerPoint Presentation Using Microsoft PowerPoint 2007

Use PowerPoint 2007 to create engaging presentations

PowerPoint 2007 introduced "the ribbon." The ribbon is a round Microsoft Office button and menu tabs across the top of the workspace to make presentation design more efficient. The redesigned workspace puts all your design and formatting options in the top menu bar for easy access. To make a basic presentation, all you need to do is point-and-click to create slides and add text and graphics.

Instructions

1. Open PowerPoint 2007. A blank presentation appears by default.

2. Press Control + S or click the Save icon in the top toolbar. You can also click the round Microsoft Office button and choose "Save As...." The "Save As..." dialog box appears.

3. Give your presentation a name and type it in the "File name" box. Choose a destination folder from the "Save in" list and click "Save."

4. Click on the small arrow on the "New Slide" button in the top menu bar. The theme gallery will open.

5. Choose a layout for your new slide. Options include a title slide, title and image, comparison, picture with caption and more. You can also opt for a blank slide and manually add elements using the insert buttons in the top toolbar.

6. Create the number of slides you need. Either work from an outline of your presentation or create the slides as you write your presentation. Microsoft Support suggests at minimum a title slide, an introductory slide to outline your main points, one slide for each main point, then a summary slide to recap your points.

7. Add text and images to each slide using the formatting buttons in the top menu bar. Go to the "Insert" tab to insert clip art, images and charts. You can also add bullets, change fonts and colors, or insert files from your computer.

8. Apply a theme if you don't want to manually choose background colors and fonts. Go to the "Design" tab at the top of the screen and click "Themes." Scroll through the available themes and click one to apply it to your presentation.

9. Save your presentation frequently to avoid accidentally losing it. Once your slides are created you can experiment with design elements, create handouts based on your slides and rehearse your presentation.

Tips & Warnings

• If you click the "New Slide" button without clicking the arrow under it, your new slide will have the same layout as the previous slide.

• PowerPoint has many advanced features. Once you start exploring the program you may find yourself creating elaborate audiovisual presentations.

References

• Microsoft PowerPoint Help: Create a Basic Presentation in PowerPoint 2007
• Microsoft PowerPoint Help: Creating a Presentation