How to do a Report Using PowerPoint

First, set up a new folder on your computer to hold your work-in-progress.  Practice this several times till you get the hang of it – otherwise, you may risk losing your images.  Then use the real name of your report to set up your new folder.  To get rid of extra folders, left-click your mouse over the name of the folder and hit the delete key.  I’ve highlighted some information because those are the things that tend to cause new users the most trouble.

What you do	What you see
Double click your left mouse button on “my computer” on your opening Windows screen	A listing of all your drives and folders (directories) on your computer.
If you are sharing your computer with another person, double click on your own directory	All of your documents (this is the directory called “my documents”)
Right-click your mouse once anywhere in the white space next to the column called “name”	A window opens up.  Choose the option “new” and hold the right mouse button down  Another window opens up with the option “folder”
Left-click your mouse to create a new folder	A new folder appears at the bottom of your documents, but it is highlighted
Left-click your mouse over the words “new folder”	The highlighted words “new folder” now have a border around them
With your left mouse button pressed, drag the mouse over the words “new folder” and type a sensible name instead (e.g. “Villandry”)	Your chosen name for the new folder now appears (note: we are only using “Villandry” as an example – use your own report topic for the filename)
Left-click your mouse over the filename of your new folder	You see a folder with your filename on it.  Now you are ready to put your images into it.

Next, find some images on the Internet.  If you decide to scan some images, be sure you follow the naming convention below and store your scanned images in your Villandry (or whatever your report is named) directory as a .jpg file.

What you do	What you see
Get into your browser (Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox)	There is a Google textbox in the upper right hand corner of the screen
Type the name of your report in the Google textbox (e.g., Villandry)	A list of Internet websites with information about Villandry (note: Wikipedia usually has fairly good historical information that gives you some background for your report)
Find the word “images” above the Google title in the upper left corner of the screen	Lots of images, with their sizes listed in kilobytes (e.g., 36k, 404k) – the bigger, the better.
Double click your left mouse button on top of an image you like.  Any image larger than about 50 or 60k is worth exploring – anything smaller will look fuzzy on the OLLI screen.	A “thumbnail” of the image, often with the message “see full size image”  The reference to the webpage (“original context”) where the image is found
See if there is any interesting information in the image of the “original context” – if so, then make notes on it to explore it later. Next, double click your left mouse button on top of the thumbnail	The enlarged image, ready to be saved to your computer
Right-click your mouse once over the image	A window opens with several options.  Choose the option “save image as”
Choose the option “save image as”	Windows shows you your directory called “pictures” – but that is not where you want to put your first Villandry image.
Move your mouse to the top of the screen where you see the words “save in” and left-click once on the down arrow	You see a list of your folders in “my documents”
Double click on your new folder named “Villandry” to open it	A window opens with a blank screen.  This is where you will put your chosen image
Right-click your mouse once anywhere in the blank screen	A window opens with several options.  Choose the option called “paste” Another window opens with the name that the original author gave the image, including the file extension (.jpg or .bmp)
Rename the image to something that you will remember (e.g. Villandry_1.jpg)	The new filename of your image, located in your Villandry folder
Double click on the filename of the image	A new screen opens, showing you what the image will look like in your presentation
Repeat this procedure until you have enough images for your report.  Then click on the filename of your first image in your “Villandry” folder.	Microsoft will display your images for you.

Third, create your PowerPoint presentation.

What you do	What you see
Using your left mouse button, go to the “start” menu in Windows	You see a selection of programs
With the left mouse button depressed, select Microsoft Office, then select Microsoft PowerPoint – then release the mouse button.	You have opened Microsoft PowerPoint 2003.  Select the option “create a new presentation”.  Your best method, as a beginner, is to use one of the design templates with a background that you like.
Note: If you are using of PowerPoint 2007, be sure to “save as” your report as a PowerPoint 2003 document.	You see a blank slide with no color, and text boxes for your title and subtitle.  This is your first slide.  Type in the information that identifies your presentation.
“Save as” the presentation (so far you only have one slide) in your Villandry folder, changing the name of the presentation to something sensible.	You see your title slide in the left hand column.
Go to the top of the screen and select “Insert” and “new slide”	A second slide appears with a textbox for the title of the slide.  Underneath the title box is a large box where you are going to insert a image, not text.
Click on the title box and type the title of the slide.  You can change the font size if you think it looks better.	You can shrink or expand the textbox using the little dots at each corner.  Be sure you see a double-headed arrow to change the size and shape of the textbox.  If you see a four-headed arrow, that only moves the textbox around – not change its shape.
Click on the large box below the title box.	You see an arrow.
Go to the top of the screen and select “insert” and “image”- “from file.”	Microsoft Windows always wants to go to your “images” folder – but that’s not where you stored your Villandry slides.
Using the right arrow next to the “images” selection, find your Villandry folder.  Double click on it.	You will see the names of your images.
Single click your left mouse button over the chosen image for your first slide and click “insert” at the bottom right hand side of the screen.	Your image appears in your second slide.
Using the dots in the corners of your image, size and move it around.	Your second slide is finished.  Now repeat this till you have all your slides completed.  Save your work.
Go to the top of your screen and pull down the “view” menu and select “slide sorter.”	You will see all your slides laid out like a Solitaire deck, where you may move them around until the sequence is the way you like it.
Save your work.	Now you are ready to view your presentation.
Go to the top of your screen and pull down the “view” menu again, but this time select “slide show.”	Voila!  This is your slide show.  Use the right keyboard arrow to move through the slides in order.  When you are finished, hit the “esc” button at the top left hand corner of your keyboard.
Dry-run your slide show with your script.	Congratulations!  You’re ready to present it to the class.

Finally – you are ready to burn a CD and bring it to class.

What you do	What you see
Insert a CD-RW (rewritable CD) into your CD drive.  Be sure that you have a read-write CD drive, not just a read-only CD drive.	Mostly, you should hear a whirring sound, letting you know that your computer is checking the new CD.  In case you only have a read-only CD drive, you won’t be able to burn a disc, so e-mail your instructor for help.
Double click your left mouse button on “my computer” on your opening Windows screen	A listing of all your drives and folders (directories) on your computer.
Find your PowerPoint presentation (Villandry.ppt) and left-click your mouse once on the filename.	Villandry.ppt is now selected
Edit-copy Villandry.ppt from your computer’s hard drive	You have copied your presentation to your computer’s virtual memory, but there’s nothing to see yet.
Using the arrow at the top of the screen, go back to “my computer”	You will see the listing of your drives and folders again
Double click on your CD drive (it will be the D drive if you have only one external CD drive)	You have accessed the CD drive now.
Edit-paste your presentation onto the D drive	You will hear a whirring sound.  Depending on whether you use the Windows software or some other software, you may have to do something else when prompted.  When the copying is done, click “finish” or “exit” – whatever is displayed
Go back to the D drive in “my computer” and double click on it	You should see the filename of Villandry.ppt
Double click on Villandry.ppt (on the D drive now) and open your presentation	You should see the PowerPoint screen with the options to view the slide show, view normal, view slide sorter, etc.
Select view/slide show	Your presentation should play now.

This last procedure very much depends on how your computer is configured and what software you are using.  Some caveats – first, be sure to use CD-RW discs or else you cannot edit the disc; and second, be sure to check your presentation using the D drive (not just your computer’s hard drive).  Finally, check everything out on the OLLI computer before your presentation.