PowerPoint is the best known and most used presentation software application – for good reason. It’s simple and powerful, and is available cross-platform.
But there are other options out there as well:
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For the Mac: Keynote is comparable to PowerPoint, but doesn’t automatically record the speaker’s camera. There’s a relatively easy workaround for this.
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Prezi (nice video option, rather high learning curve, not free)
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Google slides (can’t automatically record narration)
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Visme web-based presentation software
Recording your presentation in Zoom
Instead of recording in PowerPoint, you can record your presentation using Zoom. There are some advantages and disadvantages to this:
Advantages:
greater control of your camera placement – it sits outside the slide window
automatically records in .mp4 format
Disadvantages:
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requires a Zoom account
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no option for deleting and re-recording a slide – you’ll need to restart if you make errors
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Zoom doesn’t handling in-presentation video very well – if your presentation contains videos (of, for instance, lameness exams), be prepared for sub-optimal display. Select “optimize video” in the screen share window for best playback
How to properly present PowerPoint slides in Zoom (Video: 10:05)
In this step-by-step tutorial, learn how to best present Microsoft PowerPoint slides in Zoom Video Conferencing.
Zoom’s latest option
Zoom has recently come out with an option that allows you to use your PowerPoint slides as a “background” for your presentation. This allows you to control camera size and, but there are some drawbacks:
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Your cursor or “laser pointer” won’t appear on your slide show
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Camera control only works if you record to your local computer (not to the cloud)
Sharing slides as a Virtual Background (text)
Present with PowerPoint as Virtual Background in Zoom Meeting (Video 5:59)
Zoom Meeting recently released an exciting new feature that allows presenters to display PowerPoint slides as a virtual background.
Zoom: PowerPoint / Keynote as Virtual Background (Video, 9:21)
Zoom's Virtual Background feature is trendy. It is easy to share a PowerPoint or Keynote presentations in a Zoom meeting, but now you can share your presentation as a Virtual Background. Sharing your slides as a Virtual Background allows your participants to view your video imposed directly on the screen share. This feature is part of Zoom 5.2.0. I covered this briefly in one of my Zoom roundup videos, but this video is a detailed look at sharing your presentation as a virtual background. I cover hosting requirements, viewer requirements, managing slides, moving and resizing, and splitting video from PowerPoint/Keynote. Finally, I discuss recording options when using PPT as a virtual background.
Have questions or need some help? Contact Karen Pautz, AAEP director of education, at kpautz@aaep.org.