Using our PowerPoint presentation

Our main downloadable PowerPoint presentation for Internet Evangelism Day contains 50+ slides. You are free to edit and modify the presentation in any way you wish. (There is also a short 17-slide set for use in presenting IE Day as a proposal for participation to a decision-making body.) Download them here.

• If you do not have PowerPoint installed on your computer, see below for other options to view or edit a PowerPoint file. Alternatively, you can use our Flash version though this cannot be edited, and is not so versatile.

• The accompanying set of notes for the presenter (in Word and RTF format) includes additional information and guidance on using the slides. It is important to read and use these!

• The main presentation will be modified from time to time. The version number is in the bottom left-hand of the title slide. The planning page includes the current issue number, next to the PowerPoint download link.

• We have deliberately included a large number of slides, so that you have the choice in editing down to the number you need. Realistically, if you are to explain the content of each slide meaningfully, you will need nearly a minute on each one, and you should not speak much faster than 50 words a minute. So you may well wish to create a much shorter presentation, as short as 5 minutes in length. PowerPoint software allows you to temporarily hide any slide you wish to exclude from a particular presentation, as an alternative to deleting it. Rehearse your presentation and note the time you take. Also ensure you know which transitions are automatic, and which need a mouse-click.

• One option is to show a short selection of 5-10 slides within a church service slot, and then use a much longer presentation within an after-church or midweek meeting.

• If you have not previously attempted to edit a PowerPoint presentation, it is very easy. There is a ‘delete’ and ‘add’ slide option in the menu. You can also drag and drop slides into a different order. Tip: save the PowerPoint with a new name before you start editing it. Then you can return to the original if you have made a mistake.

• You can also, if you wish, embed music or movie clips from our video page (or elsewhere) directly into the PowerPoint. Note that this is not true embedding – the movie clip must also still be on the same computer, so that it can be called up.

• The slide (about #20) that features the pictures of people who found God online, might be a suitable point in your program to show the downloadable 5-minute video stories of Kristi, Christina or Kevin.

• If you also make your own PowerPoints, learn how to avoid the common errors and pitfalls from Presentation Team 1 | Presentation Team 2 | Communicating Technology.

• In PowerPoint, it is possible to print out sheets of 6 slides, or single slides with the text commentary we have written – these options are available to you in the print dialog box, i.e. after you first press the Print icon.

• If you have bug reports, comments or suggestions for improving this presentation, please write.

Not got PowerPoint installed?

• Download the free viewer from Microsoft here. However, it will not allow you to make edits to a presentation.

• Open Office Suite is free, and can display and edit PowerPoint files. It is available for Windows, Linux and Solaris platforms. iWork Keynote for Macs does the same.
• Use the Flash version of our presentations instead. You need Flash installed on your computer. The Flash versions appear identical to PowerPoint but without the transitions (and you cannot retrace steps to previous slides). (QuickTime may also play the Flash presentation.) However, you cannot edit or remove slides – you will have to use the entire presentations as they stand. So we recommend you download software that will enable you to view and edit the PowerPoint version.