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Consistency is everything in a PowerPoint presentation. To make slides consistent with one another, PowerPoint offers the Slide Master, which is similar to a Word template.
 | Formatting changes that you make to a Slide Master are also made to the slides that use the Slide Master as the basis for their design. Drop a logo or other image in the corner of a Slide Master, for example, and the logo will appear on all slides that are governed by the Slide Master. To put slide numbers, footers, the date — anything that might appear on every slide in a presentation — on slides, insert them on a Slide Master. |
When you click the New Slide button and choose a layout for a slide, you make either the Slide Master or the Title Master the basis for your new slide. The majority of slides are governed by the Slide Master, because the majority of slides are not title slides.
Here's the lowdown on the Slide Master and Title Master:
- Slide Master: The master for all slides except those assigned the Title Slide layout, the layout designed for the introductory slide. Figure 1 shows a Slide Master. It has placeholders for entering a slide number, the date, and a footer. The placeholder text shows which font and font size is used for slide titles, first-level bulleted lists, second-level bulleted lists, and so on. By changing one of these fonts, you change fonts on all slides that the Slide Master governs. Drop a company logo onto this slide and it will appear on all slides except the title slide.
Figure 1: Working with a Slide Master
- Title Master: The master for slides assigned the Title Slide layout, the first layout in the Apply Slide Layout task pane. Most presentations have only one title slide, but some people use more than one to mark when a new stage of the presentation is forthcoming. If more than one slide in your presentation has been assigned the Title Slide layout, you can go to the Title Master, make formatting changes to it, and rest assured that your changes will appear on all title slides.
Changing formats on the Slide Master
Follow these steps to open the Slide Master or Title Master and make formatting changes there:
1. Choose View --> Master --> Slide Master.
Slide Master thumbnails appear on the task pane, as shown on Figure 1.
2. Move the mouse pointer over a thumbnail to see which is the Slide Master and which is the Title Master.
A pop-up box tells you the name of the slide design you are working on, whether the slide is the Slide Master or the Title Master, and how many slides in the presentation are title slides or normal slides.
3. Select the Slide Master or the Title Master in the task pane.
Which slide you choose depends on whether you want to alter the appearance of a title slide or the other slides in your presentation.
4. Change formats on the slide, insert a logo graphic, change the size of text frames, or do whatever it is you want done to slides throughout your presentation.
When you finish your masterful work, click the Close Master View button or switch to Normal or Slide Sorter view.
Removing a Slide Master item from one slide
Sometimes, Slide Master items get in the way. They occupy valuable space that you need for a chart or they clash with the clip-art illustration on the slide.
PowerPoint offers two ways to remove Slide Master elements from a single slide:
- Removing the footer and all Master Slide graphics: Select the slide, choose Format --> Background, and, in the Background dialog box, select the Omit Background Graphics from Master check box. Then click the Apply button.
- Covering up the item: With this technique, you block out the item. Click the Rectangle button on the Drawing toolbar and draw a rectangle over the item. Next, open the Fill Color menu on the Drawing toolbar and choose the same color that appears on the slide background. Finally, open the Line Color drop-down menu on the Drawing toolbar and choose No Line.
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