Discussion on:

10 ways to get more mileage out of PowerPoint

The tip for number 6 is useful, but in the case that you don't have a mouse, you might find it hard to select the item you want.

It is easier than you think! just use the Tab key to cycle through the objects on the current slide.

I would like to view my notes below each slide even when the slides are up on the screen.

very interesting basic and useful tips!

Tip#1: Another good tip is that you can simply press Ctrl + P (while in Slide Show) to display the pen. Then you can press Ctrl + A to change back to the arrow. Press E to erase what's on the screen.

Also, press B to change to a Black screen (and focus attention back on the speaker--helpful if people have gotten a bit engrossed in the PowerPoint and forgotten to listen to you!). Press B again to go back to the PowerPoint presentation. An alternative is to press W for white instead of B for black. W is helpful if you don't want the room to get too dark.

A keen-eyed reader alerted me to a problem with PowerPoint 2007 -- the entire AutoShape doesn't execute the hyperlink. Instead, only the shape's border executes the hyperlink. I've posted a solution at the MS Office blog: http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/msoffice/?p=417

Tip #1 Question
I'm in slide show mode, select the felt tip pen (tried all methods of selecting that I can find), but my pointer never changes to a pen...I'm using PPT 2003. Any hints on what I'm doing wrong, or if there is a configuration issue?

Can you describe what you do get?

I'm not sure what you mean by "pointer never changes to a pen" -- you won't see a pen type pointer -- just a dot of color. Are you expecting to see an icon that looks like a pen? It doesn't. Also, I've noticed that the ballpoint pen and felt tip pen look a lot alike -- ballpoint is thinner, but you might think they're the same.

When I select any of the pen options, using ctrl p or by left clicking on the pen in the bottom left hand corner, basically nothing happens...my pointer remains an arrow and does not draw on my slide, I do not see a dot of color...If I left click on the slide, nother changes. If I right click, go to pointer options, the arrow is still selected. Try to change to a pen, same result. Very disappointing, as it sounds like a great tool

If you've run Office in safe mode, some features might be disabled. Choose the About PowerPoint item from the Help menu and click the Disabled button (bottom-right). PP will display a list of disabled items -- select them and click Enable.

It sounds like a right-click doesn't produce a menu at all though. If this is correct, try resetting your toolbars. Just remember that doing this will reset any customization, so be forewarned. From the Tools menu, choose Customize. On the Toolbars tab, click Reset and click OK to confirm.

So far, I've not found any way to disable the pen options, but if I find one, I'll post again.

Not running in safe mode, right click produces a menu, but under pointer options, the arrow is always selected, even if I select a different option. I tried the MS site, but couldn't find anything useful.

If I figure this out, I'll let you know. Thanks for your help!
Sonja

Great tips for all PPT users! I would add my "two cents" on the following:
# 4: Keyboard shortcut to view in show mode from actual slide is Shift + F5.
# 7: Another quick way to make a copy of a slide or slide element is CTRL + D (as in Duplicate...)
# 10: When my hyperlinked text in not part of a big text placeholder, I simply add text to a shape made 100% transparent to avoid having 2 separate elements on my slide.

Thanks for always sharing such useful information!

I use the arrow keys all the time to move my objects; however, sometimes the nudge is just a little too much. Then I use Ctrl-arrow to move the object one pixel at a time. This is one screen pixel, so zooming in to 200% will result in a tiny nudge compared to a nudge executed at 50% view.