PowerPoint and Presenting Stuff

Filmator.net: Conversation with Agent Bleu

Agent Bleu is the pseudo name of a former designer of audio electronic products, such as the Intimidation series of DJ mixers, who then converted to scripting in 2001. He had his first online success with Doc-Film-Net, a popular resource for controversial documentaries, from which Filmator evolved.

In this conversation, Agent Bleu discusses Filmator and PowerPoint.

Geetesh: How did Filmator come about.

Agent Bleu: I designed Filmator for artists and documentary makers but with business in-mind. I wanted to create a system whereby businesses could sponsor artists, while at the same time profiting.

Every business has a message they need to convey, and until now that process has been static by way of written text and pictures, or through the traditional presentation which takes endless preparation and requires a captive audience.

Filmator seeks to profit by:

1. animating these messages
2. for an indefinite period
3. while making them available to a fluid audience

A Filmation is an online presentation compiled using images, video, and narration.

Filmators upload their pictures, videos, Flash films, and sounds. Then, simply organize the images to play in sequence according to trigger points they set in the sound file.

This is a service that is totally free for non-commercial usage and sponsored by business. The concept is simple, businesses want a system where they can create high quality online presentations, but they don’t want to invest in expensive software. With Filmator, they can post their presentations online for free. Then, every time someone watches their presentation their account is charged between 5 cents and 25 cents, depending on the usage (those with more popular content would pay less).

Geetesh: How do you make a Filmation from a PowerPoint presentation.

Agent Bleu: To make a Filmation from a PowerPoint presentation, you first save your PowerPont slides as single JPEG images (choose File | Save As, and choose JPEG as the file type). Then upload these along with your audio narration.

Thereafter, you set trigger points in the sound file when you want your images to appear (change).

These Filmations can then be embedded into your own websites or hosted free on Filmator.net.

The views and opinions expressed in this blog post or content are those of the authors or the interviewees and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any other agency, organization, employer, or company.

Filed Under: Interviews
Tagged as: Interviews, PowerPoint, PowerPoint Flash

Articulate: Conversation with Gabe Anderson

    Gabe Anderson takes care of support and community initiatives at Articulate, a provider of rich media products used for e-learning.

In this conversation, Gabe discusses Articulate’s products and compatibility issues with PowerPoint 2007.

Geetesh: Tell us more about yourself and Articulate.

Gabe: With thousands of customers in more than 75 countries, Articulate is the recognized world leader in eLearning software tools. As Director of Customer Support and Community (Articulate Community), my job is to keep our customers happy long after the sale by providing the best technical support and online resources possible.

We believe strongly in the power of viral marketing, so our success is built upon not just outstanding products, but a stellar experience with every customer interaction. I’ve been publishing on the Web and supporting software for more than a decade, and Articulate customers are by far the most passionate users I’ve encountered.

Our award-winning flagship product, Articulate Presenter 5, converts PowerPoint to Flash and allows authors to create compelling e-learning courses (SCORM 1.2 and 2004 certified, and AICC compliant) by incorporating audio, video, quizzes, live Web sites, and more.

Our other award-winning products include:

• Articulate Quizmaker 2 quickly create Flash-based quizzes
• Articulate Engage easily add stunning interactive content to your e-learning courses
• Articulate Knowledge Portal host, manage, and track Articulate-powered e-learning content
• Articulate Online effectively track e-learning activity without the usual cost and hassle

I can’t wait for our customers to see Articulate Online, which is currently being beta tested and receiving much praise, as well as our other unannounced products. The market will be blown away, and these products will further secure our position as the #1 eLearning tools vendor in the world.

Geetesh: Tell us more about Articulate Presenter compatibility with PowerPoint 2007.

Gabe: We expect to support PowerPoint 2007 no later than the end of Q1 2007, following the January 2007 general public release date of Office 2007.

The views and opinions expressed in this blog post or content are those of the authors or the interviewees and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any other agency, organization, employer, or company.

Filed Under: Interviews
Tagged as: Add-in, Articulate, eLearning, Gabe Anderson, Interviews, PowerPoint, PowerPoint Flash

PowerPlugs: Transitions 7

PowerPoint transitions can be so cool — it’s essentially a moving, animated effect that metamorphoses one slide to another over a period of time. PowerPoint itself has plenty of inbuilt transitions — and volume 7 of PowerPlugs Transitions from CrystalGraphics, which I am reviewing now adds an impressive library of new transition styles.

Read the Indezine review of PowerPlugs: Transitions 7.

Filed Under: Add-ins
Tagged as: Add-in, CrystalGraphics, PowerPoint, Review, Transitions

Focus on Xara Xtreme Pro

There are plenty of illustration programs out there, but Xara’s new Xtreme Pro is different. For starters, it is blazing fast, easy to use, and does much more than illustration. It also doesn’t cost too much, and we’ll explore some possibilities with the product in this review.

Xara Xtreme Pro lets you work with illustrations, photos, animations, and page layout — all within the same interface using a familiar set of manipulation tools.

Explore our review of Xara Xtreme Pro.

Filed Under: Reviews
Tagged as: Graphics, Illustration, PowerPoint, Review, Xara

Elicitus 6.5: Course Authoring in Minutes

Harbinger Knowledge Products today announced the release 6.5 of Elicitus, its award-winning rapid authoring tool for e-learning. This new release offers several new benefits such as improved productivity, enhanced interactivity, and additional flexibility for course developers and learners……Elicitus 6.5 productivity features include export, of course, data to XML files and bulk import of glossary in addition to questions and PowerPoint presentations.

Read more on the Mac Observer site.

Filed Under: Companion Programs
Tagged as: Companion, eLearning, PowerPoint