How to Use the Slide Master in PowerPoint 2007

PowerPoint slide master makes presentation preparation easy.

A slide master is a special type of slide in Microsoft PowerPoint that helps to bring uniformity to a presentation. When creating presentations, slide masters save time by allowing you to set up colors, styles, fonts, effects, headers, footers, logos and other placeholders, which are then reproduced automatically for each new slide. There is at least one slide master in each presentation. You should design the slide master first, so that it acts as a template for rest of the slides.

Instructions

1. Launch PowerPoint and click the "View" tab in the Ribbon on a blank PowerPoint presentation. Select "Slide Master" from the "Presentation Views" section of the Ribbon. The "Slide Master" Ribbon will appear with options for customization. A slide master replaces the default slide, and the layouts for all available slide masters will appear in the thumbnail pane.

2. Click on one of the slides in the thumbnail pane. It will appear as the main slide.

3. Delete any layout object on the displayed master slide. Click the object you don't want and then press the "Delete" key.

4. Add new objects to the slide master. Click "Insert Placeholder," on the "Slide Master" tab of the Ribbon, to open a menu of options. Click one of the choices, such as content, text, picture, chart, table, SmartArt, media or clip art. Click on the slide master where you want to put the placeholder and drag to create it. Enlarge or decrease the placeholder's size by clicking and dragging one of the size handles on its corners and midway along each edge. To change its position, click one of the edges, but not on one of the size handles, and drag the placeholder to move it.

5. Repeat the previous step to add as many placeholders as needed.

6. Click the "Themes" icon in the "Edit Theme" section of the "Slide Master" tab in the Ribbon. Select one of the predesigned themes for your work. Do the same to choose color, font and effect, by clicking those controls in the same section of the Ribbon. Select a background style by clicking "Background Styles" in the "Background" group. Adjust the slide orientation and other page setup options using the controls in the "Page Setup" group.

7. Rename a slide master layout, if the original name is not appropriate, by clicking "Rename" in the "Edit Master" group.

8. Click the "Insert" tab in the Ribbon and insert a header or footer by clicking those controls in the "Text" group. Select and enter the information you want to appear in the header or footer and click "Apply to all."

9. Click "Close Master View" in the "Close" section of the "Slide Master" tab and save the presentation.

Tips & Warnings

• A presentation can have more than one slide master. If your presentation has different types of slides, for example, title slides to introduce each new section of your presentation, you can create separate master slides for each type.

References

• Microsoft Office: Create and Customize a Slider Master
• Hewlett-Packard: Microsoft PowerPoint 2007: Create a New Slide Master