ensurng that a presentation will be compatible

[Chris T]

Greetings all!

I am working with Powerpoint 2003, on presentations that have lots of
videos, sound effects, etc.

Right now I travel with my laptop to ensure that my presentations will work
wherever I go. I would prefer to only bring a disk and leave the laptop at
home. What are the "minimum required specifications" for me to run my 2003
Powerpoint Presentation without trouble?

(for instance, will Powerpoint 2000 work? Are there other issues i need to
be aware of?)

Thanks so much!

 

[PPTMagician]

See: http://www.rdpslides.com/pptfaq/#Versions_&_Compatibility

 

[Echo S]

Well, you could do a Package for CD and create an autorun CD. That will run
your presentation from the CD using the 2003 PPT Viewer, and nothing needs
to be installed on the presentation system.

However, no matter if you run the file from a CD with the Viewer or if you
run it using that system's version of PPT, if you're using video especially,
things will go wrong. PPT is very very touchy with video, and so sooner or
later (probably sooner), you're going to run into problems. Sound effects
can also be problematic, but those problems are much less frequent than
those with video.

 

[Chris T]

Glenna

Thank you so much for your reply. I spoke with my supervisor, and he really
wants to know exactly how compatible things will be because apparently he has
had a problem in the past with videos not playing.

So again, my question becomes:

- What are the minimum specifications required to ensure that I can play a
Powerpoint 2002 presentation with videos on a certain computer?
- Will a later version of Powerpoint (that is, 2003, X, 2004) allow me to
play a Powerpoint 2002 presentation with videos without a problem?

Sorry to be so picky and thanks again everyone for your responses!

CT

 

[PPTMagician]

Did you see Echo's response (I think she's psychic)

I recommend you consider purchasing: www.pfcmedia.com

--
Thanks,
Glenna Shaw
Microsoft PowerPoint MVP Team
http://www.pptmagic.com

 

[tohlz]

Check this out:
http://www.microsoft.com/office/previous/powerpoint/2002sysreq.asp
They should play fine if the requirement is better than what has been stated
in the link.

As for video, the link is often the one that causes the problem. Often, it
plays in your computer. But when viewing the slideshow on another computer,
the link may become broken if you did not link it properly. My suggestion to
you is create a folder in C: drive, then put the movie and ppt file in there.
Then, insert the movie. You can then zip the folder up using WinZip or
WinRaR, or write the folder into a CD-R/RW.

--
====================
http://www.pptheaven.xs3.com
PowerPoint Heaven - The Power to Animate
Contains tutorials on creating amazing animations for your PowerPoint
Presentations.
====================

 

[Chris T]

Hello everyone!

Thanks so much for all your responses. I need to be absolutely clear on
this, and I suspect this issue comes up for other people as well, so I'm
going to continue to try to ensure i understand.

In order to play a Powerpoint 2003 presentation with videos successfully I
need:

- The exact same version of Powerpoint and Windows on any computer in order
to ensure compatibility.
or
- A later version of Powerpoint and Windows (for instance, X, 2004) will
work too?
- Does the version of windows matter, or only the version of Powerpoint?

I can tell my supervisor that he simply "has to bring his laptop" if that is
the only way to be absolutely sure that everything works. However, whatever
answer I give, I need to be absolutely suer about it..

Again, sorry to be so picky and thanks for your help!





--
CT

Well, you could do a Package for CD and create an autorun CD. That will run
your presentation from the CD using the 2003 PPT Viewer, and nothing needs
to be installed on the presentation system.

However, no matter if you run the file from a CD with the Viewer or if you
run it using that system's version of PPT, if you're using video especially,
things will go wrong. PPT is very very touchy with video, and so sooner or
later (probably sooner), you're going to run into problems. Sound effects
can also be problematic, but those problems are much less frequent than
those with video.

--
Echo [MS PPT MVP]
http://www.echosvoice.com

Greetings all!

I am working with Powerpoint 2003, on presentations that have lots of
videos, sound effects, etc.

Right now I travel with my laptop to ensure that my presentations will work
wherever I go. I would prefer to only bring a disk and leave the laptop at
home. What are the "minimum required specifications" for me to run my 2003
Powerpoint Presentation without trouble?

(for instance, will Powerpoint 2000 work? Are there other issues i need to
be aware of?)

Thanks so much!

 

[Echo S]

As for video, the link is often the one that causes the problem.

Although this is true, it's not the rest of the story.

The issue with video is codecs what software is installed on the system and
all kinds of things in addition to the links.

Often, it
plays in your computer. But when viewing the slideshow on another computer,
the link may become broken if you did not link it properly. My suggestion to
you is create a folder in C: drive, then put the movie and ppt file in there.
Then, insert the movie. You can then zip the folder up using WinZip or
WinRaR, or write the folder into a CD-R/RW.

This is also all true, but it's not good enough when you need video to play
reliably.

I mean, you can use PPT 2003's Package for CD thing to resolve the links.
That's the least of the problems when it comes to video.

 

[Echo S]

Did you see Echo's response (I think she's psychic)
heh.

I recommend you consider purchasing: www.pfcmedia.com

I'd agree with that -- except for one thing.

If Chris is using PPT 2003 (or 2002 -- which is it, Chris? You've mentioned
both.), then it's possible he/she has used the new animations and/or
transitions from those versions.

To use PFCMedia, they'd have to have PPT available, and they'd have to be
able to install software on the system.

If the system in question has PPT 2000, then that could be a problem.

So, if Chris wants to spec other systems, then PPT 2002 or 2003 (whichever
matches his/her version) should be specified.

I've had a number of A/V and computer rental companies ignore Office version
specs, though. When I've specified Office 2000, I more often than not get
Office XP or 2003 instead. It's as if they read "Office 2000" as "Office
2000 or later."

 

[Echo S]

Hello everyone!

Thanks so much for all your responses. I need to be absolutely clear on
this, and I suspect this issue comes up for other people as well, so I'm
going to continue to try to ensure i understand.

No problem, Chris. It can be a confusing, frustrating subject!

In order to play a Powerpoint 2003 presentation with videos successfully I
need:

- The exact same version of Powerpoint and Windows on any computer in order
to ensure compatibility.
or
- A later version of Powerpoint and Windows (for instance, X, 2004) will
work too?
- Does the version of windows matter, or only the version of Powerpoint?

The same version of PPT and Windows will probably help, but it's not a
guarantee that your video will work reliably.

I can tell my supervisor that he simply "has to bring his laptop" if that is
the only way to be absolutely sure that everything works.

If I were in your shoes, this is what I'd do.

 

[Echo S]

If the system in question has PPT 2000, then that could be a problem.

To be clear, it could be a problem because PPT 2000 won't play the new
animations/transitions from PPT 2002 and 2003.

In my original post, it sounds as if I'm saying PFCMedia could have a
problem with PPT 2000, and that's not what I meant at all. Apologies.

 

[PPTMagician]

Me, too. I'd tell him bring his laptop.
--
Thanks,
Glenna Shaw
Microsoft PowerPoint MVP Team
http://www.pptmagic.com