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Essential Concepts
Colors
In the Design Tab you can choose a PowerPoint theme and color variant. These are preloaded in PowerPoint and provide a visually appealing format to your presentation slides. If you’re working with branded content you may want to create a custom color theme to apply to your slides. When using color and design in your presentation make sure that the visual remains accessible by following accessibility standards for font style, font size, and color contrast.
Lists
Just like with Microsoft Word, you can add bulleted and numbered lists to your PowerPoint slides. If you choose a Two-Content slide it comes with a list already started, Since PowerPoint is more visual, you may want to customize your bullets with color, symbols, and even icons.
Audio and Video
Audio can be recorded (with a microphone) and then added to your PowerPoint presentation. To add Audio you select Insert>Audio>Audio on My PC. This will insert an audio file from your computer to your slide. Instead, if you select Insert>Audio>Record Audio you will see a dialog box that prompts you to record.
Audio inserts give a menu of Playback Options and adjustments including:
- Trim
- Fade in/Fade out
- Volume
- Start: start on click, click sequence, automatically, or even play in background
When adding video you can search the Internet directly from PowerPoint, upload a video file from your computer, or embed a video from a link (for a YouTube video for example). Videos that have been uploaded have some video editing tools available including:
- Styles
- Resizing
- Playback
- Start
- Loop until stopped
- Trim
- Start and End time
Glossary
audio
a sound or music file that can be added to a presentation.
audio file
a digital file that contains audio data, which can be inserted into a presentation.
bullet list
a list of items preceded by bullet points, often used to organize information in a presentation.
color theme
a predefined set of colors that can be applied to a presentation to ensure a consistent and professional look.
embed
to insert an object, such as a video, audio, or another file, into a presentation so that it becomes part of the presentation file.
icons
small graphical representations or symbols used to visually represent objects, actions, or concepts within a presentation.
list
a series of items or points, which can be organized with bullet points or numbers.
numbered list
a list of items preceded by numbers, used to show a sequence or order.
Paragraph Group
a set of tools in PowerPoint’s home tab used to format paragraphs, including alignment, spacing, and list options.
playback
the action of playing audio or video content within a presentation.
resize
to change the dimensions of an object, such as an image, shape, or text box, within a presentation.
trim
to shorten an audio or video clip by removing parts from the beginning or end.
variants
different versions of a color theme or design theme that offer variations in style while maintaining a cohesive look.