Introduction

A presentation is performed on slides. A slide is a window whose content defines a particular topic related to the subject presented. It is therefore important to know how to design, create, and manipulate slides in order to achieve a good presentation.

There are various ways you can create slides: from a presentation template, from scratch, etc. In our previous lesson, we used slides created from a sample presentation. Once more, we will use slides originating from a template.

Creating A Presentation From A Template

When creating a presentation using one of the templates, the main issues involve choosing a template topic. The application ships with many samples. The template selected is not particularly important because you can change the whole structure any time.

When StarOffice Impress starts, it displays an opening dialog. After making your choice from this dialog, click OK. The AutoPilot Presentation dialog displays various templates. Once you have selected your desired design, click Next to open the Modify Slide dialog box.

The Modify Slide dialog provides a list of slide designs you can choose to apply to a slide of your choice. You can assign a particular layout when creating the slide or you can change a slide layout any time and apply another structure.

To select a slide layout, you can click one from the Select An AutoLayout list. Since each layout is meant for a different structure, each of these layouts has a name. Whenever you click a layout, its name displays on the right side of the dialog box.

1. Start StarOffice 5.2

2. From the main menu, click File -> New -> Presentation

3. On the AutoPilot Presentation dialog box, click the From Template radio button

4. In the Type section, click the arrow of the combo box and select Presentation Layout

5. Scroll in the list box and select SuperNova
    
   

6. Click Next.

7. On the second page of the dialog box, make sure the <Original> is selected in the list box and click Next.

8. You don't need to change anything in the third page. Click Next

9. in the first text box that requests your name or your company's, type Bertrand Um

10. Click in the Subject Of Your Presentation text and type Human Body Structure

11. Click Next and notice that only one slide has been created:
     
    

12. Click Create

13. To add a slide, on the main menu, click Insert -> Slide...

14. From the Insert Slide dialog, in the Name text box, type Organization

15. Make sure that the Title, Text button is selected.
     
    

16. Click OK

17. Click the Click To Add Title text and type Body Organization

18. Click the Click to Add An Outline text and type Definitions: Tissue, Cell, Muscle and press Enter.

19. Type Objects Shapes and press Enter

20. Type Muscle Tissue and press Enter

21. Type Organ Systems and press Enter

22. Type Body Coordination and click somewhere else on the slide
    
    

23. To insert another slide, on the Main toolbar, click and hold the mouse on the Insert button .

24. When the menu comes up, click Insert Slide

25. On the Insert Slide dialog, set the name to Digestion

26. Make sure the Title, Test button is selected and click OK.

27. Click the Click To Add A Title.

28. Type Digestion

29. Click the Click To Add An Outline. Type Nutrition - Digestion: Overview and press Enter

30. Type The Mouth

31. On top of the vertical scrollbar, click the Outline View button

32. Click on the right side of The Mouth.

33. Press Enter and type Journey of Food

34. Press Enter and type The Stomach

35. Press Enter and type The Small and Large Intestines

36. Press Enter and type Diet and Nutrition

37. To get back to the previous view, on top of the vertical scrollbar, click the Drawing View button

38. To add another slide, on the Main toolbar, click the Insert button

39. On the Insert Slide dialog box, in the Name text box, type Intro

40. In the Select An AutoLayout list, click the Title, Clipart, Text button:
     
    

41. Click OK.

42. Click the Click to Add Title text and type Introduction and Overview

43. Click Click to Add An Outline

44. Type Presenter and press Enter

45. On top main menu, click View -> Master View -> Outline View

46. Click on the right side of Presenter and press Enter.

47. Type Subject Overview and press Enter

48. Type Presentation Overview

49. Right-click an unoccupied area of the view and click Slides View

50. Right-click an unoccupied area of the view and click Drawing

51. To add another slide, right-click anywhere on the slide, position your mouse on Slide and click Insert Slide...

52. On the Insert Slide dialog, set the name to Respiration and make sure the Title, Text button is selected.

53. Click OK

54. Click the Click To Add Title and type Respiration

55. Click the Click To Add An outline and type Air Circulation

56. Press Enter. Press Tab to make the new line part of a sub-bulleted list inside of the current slide.

57. Type The Mechanics of Breathing and press Enter

58. Type Air Transport and Exchange

59. To insert another slide, on the main menu, click Insert -> Slide...

60. On the Insert Slide dialog, set the name to Circulation

61. Click Title, 2 Column Text and click OK.

62. Click the Click To Add Title text and type The Circulatory System

63. On the left list, click the Click To Add An Outline text.

64. Type System Functions and press Enter

65. Type Heart and Blood Vessels and press Enter

66. Type The Blood

67. On the right list, click the Click To Add An Outline text.

68. Type Types of Blood Cells and press Enter

69. Type The Lymphatic System and press Enter

70. Type Diseases of the Circulatory System

71. To add another slide, on the main menu, click Insert -> Slide...

72. In the Name text box, type Organisms

73. Click the Title, Text button and click OK.

74. Click the Click To Add Title text and type Organisms Diversity

75. Click the Click To Add An Outline text.

76. Type Fungi and press Enter

77. Type Viruses and press Enter

78. Type Protists and press Enter

79. Type Bacteria

80. To review slides in another view, on top of the vertical scrollbar, click the Slide View button .

81. To save the current presentation, on the main bar, click File -> Save. Notice that since this is the first time you are saving the presentation, the Save As dialog box.

82. In the File Name combo box, type Structure of the Human Body as the file name

83. Locate the StarImpress Exercises folder we created previously

84. Click Save.

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Identifying the Slides

During the design or review of your presentation, you should be able to recognize the slide that has focus because any change performed would apply to that slide. StarImpress has two main ways of identifying a slide: by its name or by its numeric sequence.

In the Drawing View, StarImpress displays the names of the slides as tabs on the lower left section of the screen. Each slide is recognized by its name. If there are more slides than can be displayed, the names of some of the slides would be hidden under the horizontal scroll bar. In this case, you can use the navigation buttons to display the hidden slides.

In any view, the second section from the right side of the Status Bar displays the number of the selected slide over the total number of the slide. For example, when the third slide of a six-slide presentation is selected, the Status bar would display Slide 3/7

1. On top of the vertical scroll bar, click the Drawing View button.

2. On the right side of the navigation buttons on the lower left section of the view, click the Organization tab.

3. Click the right-pointing navigation button until the Respiration tab is visible.

4. Click the Respiration tab.

5. Notice the slide sequence on the Status bar (Slide 5/8). On top of the vertical scroll bar, click the Outline View button

6. On the left section of the view, click Digestion. Notice the slide number on the Status bar.

7. On the main menu, click View -> Master View -> Outline View.

8. Notice the number on the left side of the button that is on the left side of the title of each slide.

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Copying and Moving Slides

One of the most routine tasks you will perform consists of copying or moving slides. If you have a slide whose content and/or structure should be used on another location on the presentation, you can copy it and paste it on another section of the presentation.

To copy a slide, in Outline View or in Slide View, right-click the slide or the slide button and click Copy. Then, right-click the slide that would precede it and click Paste.

Very often, you will find out that a certain slide is out of sequence based on your desired logic of the presentation. In this case, you would have to move it to another location. There are two ways you can move a slide. You can cut it from its original location and paste it to the desired location. In Slide View or in Outline View, you can drag the button representing the slide and drop it to the new location.

1. On top of the vertical scrollbar, click the Slide View button.

2. Click Slide 4/8 (Introduction and Overview) to select it.

3. Right-click the selected slide (Slide 4/8) and click Copy.

4. Click the slide titled Organisms and Diversity (Slide 7/8: the Organisms slide) to select it.

5. Right-click the selected slide (7/8) and click Paste.

6. On top of the vertical scrollbar, click the Outline View button

7. On the left section of the screen, click the button on the left side of the title of slide 3 to select it.

8. Notice that the whole slide is selected.

9. Right-click the selection and click copy.

10. Click the button of slide 5 to select it.

11. Right-click the selection and click Paste.

12. Position the mouse on the button of slide 4 and click (clicking is not necessary but is recommended if you are a beginning presentation developer).

13. Click the same button and hold your mouse down. Drag it up. Notice that while you are dragging, there is a horizontal line that guides you.

14. When the horizontal line gets just above slide 2, release the mouse.

15. Click the button of slide 3 to select it. Right-click the selection and click Cut.

16. Click the button of slide 5 to select it. Right-click the selection and click Paste

17. To switch to another view, click Slider View.

18. In Slide View, click and hold your mouse on slide 6.

19. Drag it up. Notice that a vertical line guides you.

20. When the vertical line gets between slides 2 and 3, release the mouse.

Deleting Slides

Whenever a slide doesn't fit or is not necessary for your presentation, you can delete it. There are two main ways you can delete a slide. You can right-click it and click Cut. Although stored on the clipboard, the slide would disappear from the presentation. You can also click the slide button header in Outline View or in Slide View to select or highlight it. Then press Delete.

1. Still in Slide View, click slide 9 to select it.

2. Press Delete.

3. To undo the delete action, on the main menu, click Edit -> Undo Delete

4. Click the Outline View button.

5. In Outline View, right-click the button of slide 9 and click Cut.

6. To review the presentation, on top of the vertical scroll bar, click the Start Slide Show button.

7. when you have finished, save and close the presentation.