Powerpoint Macros Tutorial
Microsoft PowerPoint presentations allow you to create colorful, informative presentations with ease. Macros can help make using and creating PowerPoint presentations even easier. They can automate common tasks and be highly customized to do exactly what you need. Tasks that normally take several minutes can be done in seconds with a macro. Macros can be accessed through the macros menu.
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Record Macro
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Macros can be recorded as you perform a task or set of tasks. This is the perfect option for anyone who doesn't want to create macros through Visual Basic. Open PowerPoint. Click on "Tools," select "Macro" and choose "Record New Macro." Choose a macro name and which PowerPoint to store the macro in. If you want to access the macro in other PowerPoint files, choose the "Personal PowerPoint Presentation." Note: This feature isn't available in certain versions of PowerPoint.
Press "OK" and begin performing your tasks as usual. When complete, press the small square in the macro toolbar that appears. Once the macro has been recorded, it will appear in a list of created macros.
Play Macro
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To play a macro, go to "Tools," select "Macro," and choose "Macros" or press "Alt" + "F8." Click the macro you want to run and press "Run." You can also access the macros toolbar by going to "View," selecting "Toolbars" and choosing "Visual Basic." Drag the toolbar to the main toolbar menu to lock it in place. Press "Play" when you want to run a macro.
Security
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Macros can be extremely dangerous if they aren't created by you. Macros from untrusted sources can alter, delete or even steal information from your PowerPoint presentations. Go to "Tools," select "Macros" and choose "Security" to choose which macros are allowed to run in your presentations. Select your security level. You can also add trusted publishers to prevent any other publishers from adding macros to your presentations.
Editing Macros
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Macros can be edited at any time by going to "Tools," selecting "Macro" and choosing "Macros." Press "Edit" once your desired macro is highlighted. This will open the Visual Basic editor. Make your changes within the Visual Basic code. If you are unfamiliar with Visual Basic, delete your macro and record a new one. You may wish to refer to your current macro to write down the current steps the macro takes. Go to "Tools," select "Macro," choose "Macros" and select your macro. Press "Step In" to view your macro step by step. This will help you to troubleshoot which portion of the macro needs to be edited. This is useful for both re-recording and Visual Basic edits.
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