Microsoft Office Reference Guide

Mar 26, 2004

␡

⎙ Print

< Back Page 140 of 342 Next >

Maybe it says something about my social life, but the last time I fell in love at first sight, it happened at ShowStoppers, a media trade show event at the Consumer Electronics Show.

As "Professor PowerPoint," I am always looking for cool ways to jazz up a presentation, and three products at the Griffin Technology booth made my head turn.

These aren't for big whiz bang presentations. In those venues, hopefully you should be able to count on an audiovisual staff to set up a projector and great sound, and you're on your own.

But a lot of my projects involve more intimate settings, such as a board room or conference room. In these situations, I like to arrive with a bit more than just a laptop and perhaps a portable monitor. Let me describe some products and give some tips that I have recently added to my arsenal:

iCurve: a gorgeous laptop stand that elevates your presentation to new heights (and should tip you off that Griffin was originally targeted only to Mac users).
PowerWave: a really neat external USB sound card and amplifier that lets you toggle between speakers and a microphone.
PowerMate: a stainless steel dial that is the coolest mouse I have ever seen.
Miscellaneous accessories, such as small cheeseball speakers that are beefed up by the PowerWave, a microphone to amplify my voice, and a remote mouse in case I need to move away from the PowerMate.
Here's what my setup looks like as I prepare on my coffee table.

Figure 175

I know it's a little weird here, but bear with me. I think after we go through the components you will have some cool ideas for setting your slide show apart from the norm.
Let's start with the iCurve. Suppose you have an intimate presentation in which you walk into an office or conference room, and instead of opening your laptop, you place it on top of this...

Figure 176

So that it looks like this:

Figure 177

Do you think you might get their attention? I hate to say things like this, but I think it would give your PowerPoint presentation a real lift. Sorry.

Now, let's face it: most on board speakers on laptops are not that great, and the soundcard itself is usually ordinary.

Not only that, have you ever wished that you could travel with a small sound system that wouldn't put you at the mercy of an AV department? That all you would need is your own microphone and speakers, for a small room or seminar? And you could set it up yourself and be done with it?

Here's my suggestion:

Figure 178

The Griffin PowerWave is one of several external USB sound cards, but what I LOVE about it is the little toggle switch that lets you go between on board audio, to amplifying a microphone attached directly to the unit.

It's even neater than the pale blue light that glows in the dark.

What the Griffin PowerWave lets you do in PowerPoint is perfectly amplify a movie or sound through connected speakers. You can also actually connect "real" stereo speakers with "real" wires through a nifty breakout box.

When you're ready to speak to the group, you just flick the switch to microphone. Your own voice is amplified, giving you an air of authority that I know you just love.

Here's a look at the rear of the box, with all of the inputs and outputs, although the mike plugs in the front.

Figure 179

I almost forgot to mention this – what I liked even more about this gizmo is that it was perhaps the easiest installation I have had in ages. I thought I would have to manually disable my onboard soundcard, but no. As soon as I connect this unit, it worked perfectly through the USB connector, which can also be a beast on laptops.

Now, we get to the PowerMate. This is the photo they put on the Griffin Web site.

Figure 180

The picture doesn't do it justice – because the glow underneath makes it look like something from Area 51.

But is it useful? That is exactly the question I asked when it caught my eye at the ShowStoppers event.

Well, imagine that you are editing video for PowerPoint in Adobe Premiere. And instead of "scrubbing" through the video you could turn this nifty dial to fast forward or back, or do the same thing in Windows Media Player for playback.

Now, think about PowerPoint. You're in a presentation and get a question, and instead of doing the lame right-click find a slide, you twist this thing and fast forward through your slides to the one you want.

It takes some practice and setting up. I found it a bit hard to get the drivers right the first time, because Windows wants to install its own Human Interface Drivers, and you need to go through the instructions on the Griffin Web site to get it right.

Then you will want to install global instructions to make the twisting of the dial do what you want, such as a down arrow or right arrow to advance slides or video.

Figure 181

The good news is that your regular mouse still works, so you can get out of trouble.

This is the sort of eye catching device that, coupled with the iCurve and the PowerWave, can make your presentation seem unusual and well crafted.

I've written extensively about presentation checklists and setting up for audio and projection. This is more about pizzazz.

Sure, it's a pain schlepping this stuff with you, especially if you also go for a set of good speakers that complement the PowerWave. But once you set the stuff up, and put the wires aside, and make sure it's working, particularly in the more intimate setups where you don't have an AV staff available, you have the following:

A gorgeous stand for your presentation laptop.
A way to boost your own sound in a way to make you sound important.
A peripheral no one has seen, that looks impressive, and lets you dazzle the audience with video clips or fast forwarding through your show.

You should also have your normal presentation mouse handy, a microphone for the PowerWave, and all of your handouts, notes and backup media.

But PowerPoint is always about putting on a show. And I know these peripherals caught my jaded eyes. I have feeling that they would help you make an impact with your next audience.

< Back Page 140 of 342 Next >

🔖 Save To Your Account

InformIT Promotional Mailings & Special Offers

I would like to receive exclusive offers and hear about products from InformIT and its family of brands. I can unsubscribe at any time.

Privacy Notice

Overview

Pearson Education, Inc., 221 River Street, Hoboken, New Jersey 07030, (Pearson) presents this site to provide information about products and services that can be purchased through this site.

This privacy notice provides an overview of our commitment to privacy and describes how we collect, protect, use and share personal information collected through this site. Please note that other Pearson websites and online products and services have their own separate privacy policies.

Collection and Use of Information

To conduct business and deliver products and services, Pearson collects and uses personal information in several ways in connection with this site, including:

Questions and Inquiries

For inquiries and questions, we collect the inquiry or question, together with name, contact details (email address, phone number and mailing address) and any other additional information voluntarily submitted to us through a Contact Us form or an email. We use this information to address the inquiry and respond to the question.

Online Store

For orders and purchases placed through our online store on this site, we collect order details, name, institution name and address (if applicable), email address, phone number, shipping and billing addresses, credit/debit card information, shipping options and any instructions. We use this information to complete transactions, fulfill orders, communicate with individuals placing orders or visiting the online store, and for related purposes.

Surveys

Pearson may offer opportunities to provide feedback or participate in surveys, including surveys evaluating Pearson products, services or sites. Participation is voluntary. Pearson collects information requested in the survey questions and uses the information to evaluate, support, maintain and improve products, services or sites, develop new products and services, conduct educational research and for other purposes specified in the survey.

Contests and Drawings

Occasionally, we may sponsor a contest or drawing. Participation is optional. Pearson collects name, contact information and other information specified on the entry form for the contest or drawing to conduct the contest or drawing. Pearson may collect additional personal information from the winners of a contest or drawing in order to award the prize and for tax reporting purposes, as required by law.

Newsletters

If you have elected to receive email newsletters or promotional mailings and special offers but want to unsubscribe, simply email information@informit.com.

Service Announcements

On rare occasions it is necessary to send out a strictly service related announcement. For instance, if our service is temporarily suspended for maintenance we might send users an email. Generally, users may not opt-out of these communications, though they can deactivate their account information. However, these communications are not promotional in nature.

Customer Service

We communicate with users on a regular basis to provide requested services and in regard to issues relating to their account we reply via email or phone in accordance with the users' wishes when a user submits their information through our Contact Us form.

Other Collection and Use of Information

Application and System Logs

Pearson automatically collects log data to help ensure the delivery, availability and security of this site. Log data may include technical information about how a user or visitor connected to this site, such as browser type, type of computer/device, operating system, internet service provider and IP address. We use this information for support purposes and to monitor the health of the site, identify problems, improve service, detect unauthorized access and fraudulent activity, prevent and respond to security incidents and appropriately scale computing resources.

Web Analytics

Pearson may use third party web trend analytical services, including Google Analytics, to collect visitor information, such as IP addresses, browser types, referring pages, pages visited and time spent on a particular site. While these analytical services collect and report information on an anonymous basis, they may use cookies to gather web trend information. The information gathered may enable Pearson (but not the third party web trend services) to link information with application and system log data. Pearson uses this information for system administration and to identify problems, improve service, detect unauthorized access and fraudulent activity, prevent and respond to security incidents, appropriately scale computing resources and otherwise support and deliver this site and its services.

Cookies and Related Technologies

This site uses cookies and similar technologies to personalize content, measure traffic patterns, control security, track use and access of information on this site, and provide interest-based messages and advertising. Users can manage and block the use of cookies through their browser. Disabling or blocking certain cookies may limit the functionality of this site.

Do Not Track

This site currently does not respond to Do Not Track signals.

Security

Pearson uses appropriate physical, administrative and technical security measures to protect personal information from unauthorized access, use and disclosure.

Children

This site is not directed to children under the age of 13.

Marketing

Pearson may send or direct marketing communications to users, provided that

Pearson will not use personal information collected or processed as a K-12 school service provider for the purpose of directed or targeted advertising.
Such marketing is consistent with applicable law and Pearson's legal obligations.
Pearson will not knowingly direct or send marketing communications to an individual who has expressed a preference not to receive marketing.
Where required by applicable law, express or implied consent to marketing exists and has not been withdrawn.

Pearson may provide personal information to a third party service provider on a restricted basis to provide marketing solely on behalf of Pearson or an affiliate or customer for whom Pearson is a service provider. Marketing preferences may be changed at any time.

Correcting/Updating Personal Information

If a user's personally identifiable information changes (such as your postal address or email address), we provide a way to correct or update that user's personal data provided to us. This can be done on the Account page. If a user no longer desires our service and desires to delete his or her account, please contact us at customer-service@informit.com and we will process the deletion of a user's account.

Choice/Opt-out

Users can always make an informed choice as to whether they should proceed with certain services offered by InformIT. If you choose to remove yourself from our mailing list(s) simply visit the following page and uncheck any communication you no longer want to receive: www.informit.com/u.aspx.

Sale of Personal Information

Pearson does not rent or sell personal information in exchange for any payment of money.

While Pearson does not sell personal information, as defined in Nevada law, Nevada residents may email a request for no sale of their personal information to NevadaDesignatedRequest@pearson.com.

Supplemental Privacy Statement for California Residents

California residents should read our Supplemental privacy statement for California residents in conjunction with this Privacy Notice. The Supplemental privacy statement for California residents explains Pearson's commitment to comply with California law and applies to personal information of California residents collected in connection with this site and the Services.

Sharing and Disclosure

Pearson may disclose personal information, as follows:

As required by law.
With the consent of the individual (or their parent, if the individual is a minor)
In response to a subpoena, court order or legal process, to the extent permitted or required by law
To protect the security and safety of individuals, data, assets and systems, consistent with applicable law
In connection the sale, joint venture or other transfer of some or all of its company or assets, subject to the provisions of this Privacy Notice
To investigate or address actual or suspected fraud or other illegal activities
To exercise its legal rights, including enforcement of the Terms of Use for this site or another contract
To affiliated Pearson companies and other companies and organizations who perform work for Pearson and are obligated to protect the privacy of personal information consistent with this Privacy Notice
To a school, organization, company or government agency, where Pearson collects or processes the personal information in a school setting or on behalf of such organization, company or government agency.

Links

This web site contains links to other sites. Please be aware that we are not responsible for the privacy practices of such other sites. We encourage our users to be aware when they leave our site and to read the privacy statements of each and every web site that collects Personal Information. This privacy statement applies solely to information collected by this web site.

Requests and Contact

Please contact us about this Privacy Notice or if you have any requests or questions relating to the privacy of your personal information.

Changes to this Privacy Notice

We may revise this Privacy Notice through an updated posting. We will identify the effective date of the revision in the posting. Often, updates are made to provide greater clarity or to comply with changes in regulatory requirements. If the updates involve material changes to the collection, protection, use or disclosure of Personal Information, Pearson will provide notice of the change through a conspicuous notice on this site or other appropriate way. Continued use of the site after the effective date of a posted revision evidences acceptance. Please contact us if you have questions or concerns about the Privacy Notice or any objection to any revisions.

Last Update: November 17, 2020

Email Address