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 PowerPoint – File Types – .ppt, .pps, .pot, and htm
PowerPoint lets you save files in a variety of formats. Each format serves a different purpose.
- .ppt (PowerPoint Presentation) – this is the default file format for PowerPoint. By using this file format your presentation will always open in normal (edit) mode. This format also allows your file to be opened using PowerPoint 97 or later versions.
- .pps (PowerPoint Show) – once you have saved a presentation as a .pps it will always open in presentation mode instead of the normal (edit) mode. This is a great way to save a file if you want to give a final presentation to someone for review or post the presentation on the web to be viewed in PowerPoint as a show.
- .pot (PowerPoint Design Template) – this type of file is a design template file and should only be used to save design templates. These templates are used to set up the look of your slide set. When saving these, be sure to save them to C:\Documents and Settings\user name\Application Data\Microsoft\Templates. This is the default directory for all template files. To see the saved design template, right click on a slide, and choose Slide Design – this will bring up the task pane showing the different templates available.
- .htm (web page) – saving in this format will give you a Web page set up as a folder with an .htm file and all supporting files such as images, sound files, cascading style sheets, scripts, and more. This file is suitable for posting on a site.
Sizing Up Your Files for Print
We often find that clients are confused as to what size their artwork needs to be – especially when we are printing something on a large scale. So, we’d like to provide our clients, and you, some tips to keep in mind that will make your print pieces look professional.
- Output Size: Your artwork must be created proportional to the final
 output size. Save your art at 100%, 75%, 50% or 25% scale. So, if you are creating a poster that is 24” x 36” you could safely scale that by 50% and create your file at 12” x 18” without losing any quality.
- Resolution: The minimum recommended image resolution is 100 dpi at final size (or 400 dpi scaled to 25%). Again using the example of the 24” x 36” poster, your resolution should be at least 200 dpi at the scale of 50% or 12” x 18”. The higher the resolution (dpi) the clearer your printed piece will look.
- Vector Art is made up of lines and curves defined by mathematical objects called vectors. Vector art is resolution independent; therefore, it can be scaled to any size without loss of quality. Text should be converted to outlines, paths or curves. This way no fonts need to be sent with the artwork.
- Raster images consist of a grid, or bitmap, of small squares known as pixels. Raster images are resolution dependent (set at a fixed resolution). We may be able to use raster art as a template to convert the art into vector format.
- Images from the web (.gif or .jpg) – are not recommended due to their low (72 dpi) resolution.
If you have any questions, or need help sizing a file, contact us. We’d be more than happy to assist you. Click here, email us, or call us at 203-934-4275.
Word – Taking a “Break”
When you need a “break” in Word, follow these instructions.
- To create a Page Break or a new page in Word is very simple. Put your cursor where you want the page to break to be and click Control and Enter at the same time. Or with your cursor at the point where you need to break, from the Menu bar choose Insert / Break / Page.
- Using Section Breaks let you vary the layout of a document within a page or between pages. Use Insert / Break / Section to divide the document into sections, and then format each section the way you want. For example, format a section as a single column and then format the following section as two columns.
- If your document contains columns, you will need to use column breaks to move or flow your content to the next column. The best way to do this is to first switch the view of your document to print layout (View / Print Layout). Then put your cursor where you want the column to break and use Insert / Break / Column break. Word will move the text that follows the insertion point to the top of the next column.
Fun Facts for March – Daylight Saving Time
Daylight Saving Time (DST) was first suggested by Benjamin Franklin while he was the US envoy in France in 1784. He anonymously published a letter suggesting that Parisians economize on candles by rising earlier to use morning sunlight. This gave way to other proposals and studies and in 1916 Germany was the first to adopt DST. The rest of the European countries soon followed suit the following year, and the US began DST in 1918.
Prior to 2007, daylight savings time began the first Sunday in April and ended on the last Sunday in October. Because of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, in 2007 Daylight Saving Time was extended one month and begins for most of the United States at 2 a.m. on the Second Sunday in March (Spring Forward) and ends at 2 a.m. on the First Sunday of November (Fall Back). To find out more – click here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daylight_saving_time.
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