The Rapid Elearning Blog

A lot of rapid elearning hinges on PowerPoint.  That means your success building courses is influenced by how well you know PowerPoint.  To help you learn more about PowerPoint I pulled together a solid list of PowerPoint resources.

From The Rapid E-Learning Blog

Here are a few posts that cover some of the essentials tips and tricks required for successful PowerPoint-based rapid elearning.

The Rapid E-Learning Blog - free PowerPoint tips and tricks

From the PowerPoint Team Blog

One of the best places to go for help with PowerPoint is from the makers of PowerPoint.  Many don’t know it, but Microsoft has a number of really good PowerPoint resources starting with their PowerPoint Blog.

The Rapid E-Learning Blog - PowerPoint tips and tricks from the PowerPoint team

Of course, many of the tips on the blog are specific to the product and not necessarily relevant to rapid elearning.  So I went through the blog posts and pulled out the ones that I think provide the most relevant content for building elearning courses.

Tips on Presentations & Organizing Content

There are a lot of similarities between creating content for presentations and elearning courses.  The following tips provide ideas on organizing your content and connecting with those who look at the slides (or elearning screens).

Tips on Using PowerPoint

The more you know about PowerPoint, the better you’ll be at creating your courses.  Here are some tips to help you learn more about the PowerPoint features you’ll need for successful rapid elearning.  Even if you don’t use the specific tips in the posts, you will learn more about some of the PowerPoint features, so it’s worth a look.

More Resources and Free Templates

The Rapid E-Learning Blog - free PowerPoint templates

Free PowerPoint Templates

Good PowerPoint Books

The Rapid E-Learning Blog - good PowerPoint books

  • Beyond Bullet Points: What Cliff Atkinson shares for presentations is just as relevant for elearning courses.  He addresses some of the same multimedia design principles as Ruth Clark does in her book, e-Learning & the Science of Instruction and provides a solid blueprint for applying them.
  • Better Than Bullet Points: Jane Bozarth shares a lot of practical tips and tricks to help you get the most out of PowerPoint.
  • Speaking PowerPoint: To be honest, I haven’t read the book yet.  However the author, Bruce Gabrielle, shares a lot of good practical tips in the PowerPoint blog.  So I am going to assume the book offers the same approach.

The links to Amazon books may produce a slight commission.

PowerPoint Resources

  • PowerPoint MVPs: A great resource for PowerPoint tips and help.  The PowerPoint MVPs usually have blogs with all sorts of tips and tutorials.
  • Microsoft’s PowerPoint Forum: Get specific answers to PowerPoint questions from the makers of PowerPoint.
  • PowerPoint Online Help: Microsoft updated the Office Online site and offers all sorts of tips and tricks.

PowerPoint’s been around for a long time, so there are all sorts of free resources and help available online.  The secret is to take advantage of them and soon you’ll be a PowerPoint pro, too.

Events

Free E-Learning Resources

Want to learn more? Check out these articles and free resources in the community.

Here’s a great job board for e-learning, instructional design, and training jobs

Participate in the weekly e-learning challenges to sharpen your skills

Get your free PowerPoint templates and free graphics & stock images.

Lots of cool e-learning examples to check out and find inspiration.

Getting Started? This e-learning 101 series and the free e-books will help.



16 responses to “More Than 30 PowerPoint Tips from the PowerPoint Pros!”

[…] Read the original: More Than 30 PowerPoint Tips from the PowerPoint Pros! » The Rapid eLearning Blog […]

August 16th, 2011

Just found this website last week. Don’t know how I didn’t come across it sooner, but the owner of the site really knows their PowerPoint. 😉 http://learningppt.com/

[…] fret–the Rapid eLearning Blog (a great source for PowerPoint tips in general) has compiled a list of 30 resources to help you use PowerPoint more effectively. Even if you’re not a PowerPoint user (maybe you use, say, Keynote, Google, or no slides at […]

@Pink Lady: LOL…my plan is do do a blog of just PowerPoint tips, but I find that I don’t have the time. One day that site will get updated.

[…] More Than 30 PowerPoint Tips From The PowerPoint Pros (The Rapid E-Learning blog) […]

I found your post by accident but glad I did. A lot of nice Power Point information! Thanks!

@Reginald: thanks

[…] More Than 30 PowerPoint Tips from the PowerPoint Pros! » The Rapid eLearning Blog One of the best places to go for help with PowerPoint is from the makers of PowerPoint. Many don’t know it, but Microsoft has a number of really good PowerPoint resources starting with their PowerPoint Blog . From the PowerPoint Team Blog Of course, many of the tips on the blog are specific to the product and not necessarily relevant to rapid elearning. So I went through the blog posts and pulled out the ones that I think provide the most relevant content for building elearning courses. […]

[…] Doing a pre-conference workshop and presentation at the conference. More Than 30 PowerPoint Tips from the PowerPoint Pros! » The Rapid eLearning Blog […]

[…] More Than 30 PowerPoint Tips from the PowerPoint Pros! » The Rapid eLearning Blog A lot of rapid elearning hinges on PowerPoint. That means your success building courses is influenced by how well you know PowerPoint. To help you learn more about PowerPoint I pulled together a solid list of PowerPoint resources. […]

I created a PowerPoint presentation on a MAC. It was built in QuickTime. I could not make an avi work. The mov version works. However, there is a low res QT logo that appears at the first of the movie. Is there a way to get rid of it? The presenter will be showing it on a Windows based PC. It works better on his computer as it flashes just for a second before the movie begins.
Also, what setting needs to be set in order for it to play automatically without running your cursor over it?

Hi Barbara,

I’m not able to recreate what you’re seeing, but I would suggest that you open the movie in iMovie and edit out that first frame of the low res QT logo. As for the automatic play, this really depends upon the program you’re inserting the movie into. Typically, most will have settings that let you determine whether a movie plays automatically, or requires a click by the learner. If you can post these questions over in elearning Heroes forums, and attach a file, we can help you out further. http://community.articulate.com/

Mike

April 24th, 2013

Hi,

been reading the comments on your page. I need help. I am trying to put a presentation together and can not work out how I can get a photo to apear at the same time as its description. An example:

Title Co Logo

Main point
Sub point 1 Picture 1
Sub point 2 Picture 2
Sub point 3 Picture 3

as the transition comes up with the sub point I want the picture 1 to appear, sub point 2 – picture 2 etc etc. I can not group them or link them. Do you have any advice?

Many thanks

Joe

@Jeff: Assuming that subpoint 1 animates in, have picture 1 set to animate with subpoint 1. I htink if you set the animation, by default it’s going to happen after, but you can change it to happen with. If that doesn’t help, jump into the community and show us what you want to do and we can provide more detail.

April 25th, 2013

Tom,

Many thanks for your guidance! Works a charm.

Joe