Working with Presentations: Glossary

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A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

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A

align objects: To line up objects like images, tables, and charts with respect to each other - left edges, right edges, centered over each other, top edges, bottom edges, centered horizontally.
animation: An effect applied to part of a slide controlling the entrance, emphasis, or exit of that part.
animation scheme: A pre-set combination of animations and slide transitions
AutoContent Wizard: PowerPoint wizard that creates a presentation with a standard set of slide for a particular type of presentation.
AutoCorrect dialog: Dialog which allows you to control what kinds of corrections Microsoft Office programs will make automatically, such as inserting the copyright symbol when you type (c) or substituting the company's full name when you type its initials.; The AutoFormat As You Type tab controls a number of formatting changes that Microsoft Office programs make, such as changing "straight quotes" to "smart quotes" and changing 1/2 to ½.
AutoCorrect Options: When Microsoft Office programs make an automatic correction, the AutoCorrect Options button allows you to keep or discard the correction. It first appears as a small blue rectangle under the correction. It does not appear until the mouse pointer is near the corrected text. Hovering over the rectangle makes the full button appear.; Clicking the down arrow opens a list of your options, which varies depending on what the change was.
AutoFit Options: The AutoFit Options button appears when PowerPoint changes the size of your text to make all the text fit into the placeholder. Clicking the button opens a list of options.
AutoLayout Options: PowerPoint automatically changes the layout when you add certain kinds of objects to the slide, like an image or table. The AutoLayout Options button appears when PowerPoint changes the layout of your slide when you insert an object like a table or clipart. Clicking the down arrow opens a list of options.
AutoPreview: Allows the Slide Pane to play an effect as you choose them.
axis: The X-axis is the horizontal base line for a chart. The Y-axis is the vertical base line for a chart.

B

bitmap image: An image which defines the color of each pixel in the image.
build: To build a slide is to reveal its parts in stages.

C

cell: The intersection of a row and a column in a table.
chart: A picture of data showing how values compare to each other (commonly with a Column chart) or how they compare to the whole (Pie chart).
clip art: Images which can be inserted into document, usually drawings in vector format.
collate: When printing several copies of a document, collating the pages makes the printer print all of the pages in order before starting on the next copy. Not collating will print all copies of page 1 before starting on page 2.
color scheme: A set of colors and fills for the parts of a slide
column: Table: a vertical set of cells
Chart: a single data item in the shape of a vertical rectangle or 3-D column
content template: A design template for a presentation that includes sample slides with suggestions for what information to include. Only when used to create a new presentation will the sample slides appear.
copyright: The legal ownership with the right to control how a document or image is used.
Custom animation: Animation that you have chosen and modified for selected slide parts.
Customize dialog: The Customize dialog allows you to select which toolbars to display and to change which buttons and commands are shown on the bars.
custom template: A presentation template that you created yourself or have modified and saved as a .pot file.

D

datasheet: The table of data values used by Microsoft Graph to create a chart.
default: What happens unless you have changed the setting or make a specific choice.
demote: To change the outline level of text in an outline hierarchy.
design template: Using a design template changes the presentation's Masters to control the placeholders, background, and text formatting of the slides.
Dialog Help: You can get a popup tip explaining items in most dialog boxes. Click the question mark button on the dialog's title bar. The mouse pointer changes to the Dialog Help shape . Click on a dialog item to see the explanation of its purpose.
docked toolbar: A toolbar that is fixed to an edge of a window.
Drawing Bar: A toolbar, usually docked to the bottom edge of the window, which has tools for creating, formatting, and managing drawing objects.

E

effect: A transition or animation for slides.
embed: fonts: To include the fonts used in a package of files to transport a presentation to a different computer.; objects: To insert an object onto a slide, like a chart or spreadsheet, from another program without linking the object to the original. Changes to the original will not show on the slide. Changes to the object on the slide will not show in the original.
Emphasis: A change in a slide part that draws attention to it after it is revealed. Examples: change of color, change of size, blinking, spinning
Entrance: How a slide part is revealed
Exit: How a slide part leaves the screen

F

file extension: The part of a file's name that follows the dot, like mypresentation.ppt or myimage.gif.
file format: See file type.
file name: The name you see in an Explorer window for the file, such as worldtraveloffer.ppt.
file type: A file or document always has a file type, which tells how the information is stored in the file. A program can only work with certain file types. The file extension (the letters after the dot in the file name) are specific for a file type. The extension for PowerPoint presentations is ppt. (Your computer may not be set to display the extensions.)
floating toolbar: A toolbar that is not attached to an edge of a window. It can be moved by dragging.
footer: An area at the bottom of a slide or printed page, above the margin, that will be repeated on each slide or page. You often find the page or slide number, the creation date, and copyright info in a footer.
format: To set a characteristic of the appearance of text or an object, such as its font, its size,or its background.
Formatting Bar: A toolbar which primarily contains buttons for formatting text.

G

H

handle: A small circle or square at the corner or center of an object's edge that, when dragged, changes the size of the object.
handout: A handout is any paper that you give to your audience. PowerPoint has several layout options for such handouts.
header: An area at the top of a slide or printed page, below the margin, that is repeated on each slide or printed page. You might see the company name, logo, address, or decorative art in the header.
heading: A paragraph style in a word processing document which includes an outline level.

I

import data: To bring into a document data that already exists in another document.
import filter: The software that interprets data from a different program so that it can be imported.

J

K

keyword: A word or phrase that is attached to an image. The image will be listed in the results of a search that includes the keyword.

L

linked file: A file which is included in another file in a way that allows changes to the original to be displayed in the new file.

M

Menu bar: The Menu bar contains commands or menus of commands for the program.
merge cells: To combine two or more cells into a single cell
Microsoft Graph: Software that is part of Microsoft Office programs that enables you to create graphs or charts
Microsoft PowerPoint Viewer: Software that allows a computer without PowerPoint to show a PowerPoint slide show.

N

Navigation pane: At the left of the Normal view in PowerPoint, the Navigation Pane has two tabs: Outline and Slides. You can do some of your editing tasks directly in the Outline or with the Slides thumbnails.
Notes page: A view which shows a slide and its notes on a single page for printing.
Notes Pane: A small pane at the bottom of the Normal view in which you can write notes to yourself or to be printed on handouts.

O

Options dialog: A dialog which contains settings that control how PowerPoint behaves.
orientation: The paper we normally print on is rectangular, so you have the choice of printing in Landscape (horizontal) orientation or in Portrait (vertical) orientation.
outline: An outline arranges the thoughts in your document in a hierarchy order where the most important points are at the same outline level and the supporting points are at a lower level. In a PowerPoint presentation, the slide titles are at the highest level in the outline. The bullet points fall in levels below, based on their indentions.
outline levels: The hierarchy levels in an outline.
overhead: Short for overhead transparency, a plastic sheet used with an overhead projector to project onto a screen what you have written or drawn on the plastic sheet. PowerPoint can print transparencies, if your printer can handle them.

P

pack: To use Pack and Go to combine files, fonts, Microsoft PowerPoint Viewer with one or more presentations for transport to a different computer
package: The files created by Pack and Go for transporting one or more presentations and the related files to a different computer.
Pack and Go: Feature of PowerPoint that compresses files and includes files related to your presentation for transporting to a different computer.
Page Setup dialog: The PowerPoint Page Setup dialog offers fewer choices than in many other programs. You can choose the orientation of slides and print-outs but not the page margins. The Slides sized for: box has several choices, which affect the proportions of your slides.
pane: A section of the program window. PowerPoint in Normal view has 3 panes: Navigation which shows either the outline or thumbnails of the slides, Slide, and Notes. In addition, the Office Task Pane is displayed when needed.
paragraph styles: Assigns formatting characteristics to a paragraph and may assign an outline level.
Paste Options: The Paste Options button appears just after you paste, near where you pasted. It is easy to overlook! Clicking the down arrow opens a list of options.
placeholder: A placeholder is a text box whose text will appear in the Outline. You cannot create a placeholder or change an ordinary text box into a placeholder. You must use the placeholders from a PowerPoint slide layout. You can move or resize a placeholder. The illustration at the right shows a bullet list placeholder.
Play button: A button which causes the Slide Pane to run the animations and transitions of the displayed slide
.ppt: File extension for PowerPoint presentations.
presentation: A set of slides for use on-screen or in printed handouts, primarily to accompany a speaker.
presentation graphics: Another term for presentation software.
Print dialog: A dialog for controlling how your presentation prints.
Printer Properties dialog: Varies with the brand and model of your printer. Controls the printer's hardware choices - print quality, color, media.
Print Preview: View of a presentation that show what will print.
Print Preview Bar: Toolbar at the top of the Print Preview window. Contains commands and buttons for controlling what is printed and how it is printed.
print quality: Usually you can choose from at least Draft, Normal, and Best. Better quality means smoother lines and smoother transitions in gradient backgrounds.; For some printers you can choose the dots per inch (dpi). The more dots, the higher quality the printing.
Print what: box: On the Print Preview toolbar. Offers a list of print layouts.
promote: To raise a paragraph to a higher outline level

Q

R

recolor: To change the colors in a clip art image
Rehearse timings: To step through a slide show and record the number of seconds between changes.
Rich Text Format: A text format that includes basic formatting, like font, font size, bold, and italics.
row: A horizontal set of cells in a table.

S

slide: in computing: one of a set of images to be shown on a monitor or projected onto a screen. Part of a presentation.
in photography: a 35 mm transparency for projecting onto a screen using a slide projector
slide layout: The arrangement of placeholders on the slide
slide show: Displays the slides on the monitor as they will be shown on a screen
Smart Tag: A feature of Microsoft Office programs that produces buttons with context-sensitive menus directly over the document being edited. Different Office programs use different Smart Tags. PowerPoint has Paste Options, AutoCorrect Options, AutoFit Options, and AutoLayout Options.
Standard Bar: A toolbar which has buttons and commands for the most commonly used actions, like Open, Save, Print, Preview, Spell Check, Undo and Redo.
Status Bar: A bar at the bottom of the window which has areas that tell you of the current status of the program. In PowerPoint you will see a Message Area, Design Template area, Language area, and Status area for icons about spell check and printing.

T

table: A set of rows and columns
Task Pane: A feature of Microsoft Office 2002. Appears at the right of the window and offers choices for doing a task, such as creating a new document or inserting clipart.
template: A file that already has a set of formatting choices along with temporary text that guides you in what to say.
text document: A document with plain text, virtually no formatting.
text table: Creating the effect of a table by lining up text using tabs and spaces.
thumbnail: A small image of a larger image or document
timings: The set of time intervals between changes in a presentation.
Title Bar: Bar at the top of the window that contains the title of the current document, the name of the program, and the window control buttons - Minimize, Maximize, Close.
Tools button: This button appears on the Internet Explorer toolbar when IE opens a document that is not a web page. Clicking the Tools button displays toolbars from the program that created the document. You can edit the document right in the IE window.
transition: An effect that controls how the next slide comes into view.
transparency: in presentations: a transparent plastic sheet used with an overhead projector to display on a screen the text or images on the transparency; in photography: a 35 mm transparency for projecting onto a screen using a slide projector

U

update: To make a linked document match the current state of the original.

V

vector image: An image that is made of calculated parts. Resizing a vector image does not lose any of its quality.
view: A combination of window parts that work well together for a task
View: Masters: The Masters view shows the Title and Slide masters for a presentation. You set the default placeholders and formatting for a presentation on the masters.
View: Normal: The Normal view includes the Slide pane, Navigation pane, and Notes pane.
View: Notes: The Notes View shows the slides, one per page, with their notes below.
View: Print Preview: The Print Preview view shows how the slides will print. There are several layouts to choose from.
View: Slide Show: The Slide Show opens the presentation full screen so you can see how your audience will see the slides.
View: Slide Sorter: In Slide Sorter view you see rows of thumbnails of all the slides. You can drag the slides to new locations or delete them.
Views Bar: A bar at the bottom of the Navigation Pane. The buttons switch you to a different view. The Views Bar buttons vary depending on your version of PowerPoint.
virtual printer: Not an actual physical device. Examples include fax software, which sends a fax instead of printing, and Adobe PDFWriter, which creates a file in PDF format.