Excellent and detailed analysis-
ETEC 551
Comparison of Slide Show Tools
Advantages &
Disadvantages
Relative To Similar
Tools
Best Practices
Are There
Available
Tutorials Or
Online Support?
Tool
Problem It Solves
Steps For Use
Ease Of Use
PowerPoin
t
Allows users to organize
and present text, graphs,
and sound to stylistically
create an effective standalone or
accompanying presentatio
n
Open a blank
document or
template. Add
text as in a word
processing
program. Add
subsequent
slides. Customiz
e style, colors,
background,
sound, and
animation. The
final product can
be opened
through many
platforms.
Very easy to
use. Many
commands
are shared
amongst the
Office Suite
of programs.
+ Easy to learn and
use
+ Comes as part of
the Microsoft Office
Suite
+ The amount of
available help from
other users makes
this this tool an
attractive option
* Use a unifying
stylistic theme
throughout the
document
* Avoid using too
much text
* Use distracting
transitions,animations
, and sounds sparingly
The program
includes on-disk
and online
tutorials. Online
resources include
official Microsoft
support, usercreated advice
videos, and user
groups for FAQs,
tips, and best
practices.
Yodio
Allows users to voice over
or narrate photos. Users
can document an entire
story or voice tag
individual photos.
Upload photos
from your digital
camera or smart
phone. Use the
web-based
Very easy to
use. Audio
Publishing
Enterprises
prides
+ Free
+ Easy to use
+ Works well with
smart phone voice
recordings
* Use smartphone to
record audio
* Do not record audio
in WMV format as
Yodio cannot upload
Online support
can be found at
www.yodio.com.
Helpful
instructional
Flash
Allows users to create
effective animations
limited only by
imagination and expertise
application to
combine photos
and audio clips.
themselves
on how user
friendly their
web-based
interface is.
It is self
explanatory
and requires
minimal
instructions.
+Web based: can be
accessed from any
computer with
internet connection
- Requires you to
upload personal
photos to the web
this format.
yodios, and
narratives explain
how to use the
software in a
variety of settings.
Many user
uploaded yodios
are neatly
organized for easy
access.
A user must
know what the
desired product
should look like
before beginning
a project. Slides
are added to the
timeline. Users
can include
images, text,
animation, and
sound on chosen
slides throughout
the project
timeline. The
finished product
is exported for
play in the Flash
Player or in an
enabled browser.
Very
technical,
requiring
substantial
knowledge of
programming
language to
get the most
out of the
program and
to create
truly stylish
products
+ With the right
knowledge and
expertise, Flash is
extremely powerful
tool allowing a user
complete control to
bring a vision to life.
- The amount of
knowledge and
expertise necessary
to make an effective
product creates a
very large barrier for
entry
- The
program/subscriptio
n is expensive
* Set the frame rate to
a minimum of 24
frames per second so
that vector animations
play smoothly
* Use individual
layers for separate
items and animations
An extensive
amount of user
help exists online
for ActionScript
and
JavaScript. Adob
e also has online
tech support.
Prezi
Allows users to organize
data and graphics into a
slide-style interface for
presentation reinforcement.
Create an
account, login
from any
computer with
internet access,
pick a theme, and
insert pertinent
text, data, and
images.
Very easy to
use. Only a
basic level of
computer
proficiency is
needed to
create
effective
prezi
presentations
.
+ Presentations are
accessible from any
computer with web
access.
+ Attractive graphics
and themes.
- Animations make
some people
nauseous.
- User has to trust
Prezi with any
information
uploaded to prezi
website.
* Use a simple theme
with contrasting
colors.
* Avoid using too
much text.
Prezi.com/learn
will teach you all
you need to learn
to make an
effective
presentation.
Tutorials are very
effective.
Explanation
Powerpoint, Yodio, Flash, and
Presi are all applications that can be used as slideshow tools. These four tools all are
extremely effective when used for specific tasks. Powerpoint has long been the tool of choice when users need effective graphics to
accompany their presentation topics. Because of ease of use, and flexibility, Powerpoint is considered standard presentation software
in the educational and professional worlds. It is seldom that presenters venture to the other programs discussed in this comparison, and
even when Prezi is used for a formal meeting, group members often still refer to the slideshow as the “Powerpoint.” One
characteristic that makes Powerpoint so universal, is that all computers, most smart phones, and even web based software including
email can view Powerpoint slides. Since Powerpoint presentations can be accessed from absolutely anywhere, people can prepare for
important presentations while on the run.
Making a huge impact on the formal presentation world, Prezi is truly an updated, more “digital age” version of Powerpoint.
Prezi allows you to create a graphically intense slideshow, complete with animation, all by simply logging into Prezi’s website for
free! Users do not even have to purchase any software. Prezi users can login from anywhere, and access all past presentations with
ease. These advantages are making Prezi more widely used, but Prezi still doesn’t offer the same global accessibility as Powerpoint.
The perfect middle ground for the commuter that is on a budget is to download Powerpoint in Open Office. Open Office is an open
source software package that mimics Microsoft Office, so allows users to enjoy the advantages of Powerpoint for free.
Yodio and Flash are two programs that vary from Powerpoint and Prezi in their intended purpose. Yodio is a simple web based
program for providing voice narrations on photographs. Flash, on the other hand, is a highly technical program useful for making
anything from simple animations to complex games and engaging web content. It is extremely powerful for those with the know
how. Highly stylized audio, video, and text can be presented in truly awesome ways. However, for the average user looking to make
a visual presentation to back up talking points, Flash would not be the choice. Yodio, Powerpoint, and Prezi are all extremely easy for
the average computer user to learn within an hour, whereas Flash requires the user to spend weeks or months to learn. Flash’s
extremely powerful and complex interface also comes with a price. Flash is not free, like the other three programs, it costs hundreds of
dollars. Also, no open source Flash alternatives are available. All four slide show tools in this comparison prove extremely useful in
specific applications. It is up to the end user to decide which one works best for his or her intended purpose.