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The
ability to play video clips within a presentation is what
really makes PowerPoint the "show me" presentation
tool that it is. However, knowing what type of video file
will work best on different computers can be a challenge. |
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The
following two issues cover 99.9% of video playback problems:
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Video
Clips are NOT part of the actual PowerPoint Presentation.
Unlike pictures, which are actually embedded within the
PowerPoint file, video clips are LINKED only. PowerPoint
takes a "snapshot" of the first frame of the video
and embeds that as a picture, however, the video motion
comes from the actual video file playing in a
"window" on a slide in PowerPoint.
What
this means is that in order to transfer your full
presentation to a CD ROM, for example, you must copy both
the PowerPoint file (your_presentation.ppt) AND your video
file (your_video.avi) onto the CD ROM, into the same folder.
If your presentation originally ran with your PowerPoint
file in "My Documents", while your video clip was
located on your computer at C:/Video/Archive/my_video.avi,
then you may have to open PowerPoint, then in work-mode go
to the slide in which the video clip was inserted,
double-click your mouse pointer on the video image: if it
plays, you are finished. If it doesn't play, it will ask you
to locate the file. At that point simply press
"Ok" and navigate to the folder on your CD ROM
that you copied it to. It is often recommendable to arrange
your files in a new folder prior to creating a CD ROM.
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Two: |
The
second issue is file compatibility. This results from
different manufacturers of video capture cards, editing
software, operating systems each creating their own
proprietary formula to compress video signals into the
digital form. It's VHS vs. Betamax all over again!
While
some computers are equipped with high performance display
cards and the appropriate software to playback a wide range
of video formats, often at conferences the systems provided
are certainly fast computers, however, the are ill-equipped
to play the vast range of videos presenters bring.
Therefore
presenters have three options: i) use your own computer
where you know your presentation works correctly, ii) learn
from the conference organizers what the capabilities of the
playback computers are and make certain that your files are
compatible, or iii) have your video files created in a
format that is universally compatible.
So,
what kind of files are universally compatible? MPEG, AVI,
MOV? The truth is you cannot just deal with a general type
of file, even a Windows avi, and believe that it will run on
all computers. We recommend that your video files are
either an avi which uses any of the following codecs
(compression/decompression algorithms): Microsoft, Indeo, or
Cinepak; or video files that are MPEG1. If you cannot create
these types of files you can send them to SpeakerReady.com
for conversion by clicking here. Prices for this
service are listed below.
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Collection to Projection.
If your organization
has outgrown the usual service offerings of the audiovisual community,
then ask us for a quote on your next meeting.
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