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A transition is how PowerPoint gets from one slide to the next during an on-screen slide show. The normal way to segue from slide to slide is simply to cut to the new slide — effective, yes, but also boring. PowerPoint enables you to assign any of more than 50 different special effects to each slide transition. For example, you can have the next slide scoot over the top of the current slide from any direction, or you can have the current slide scoot off the screen in any direction to reveal the next slide. You can have slides fade out, dissolve into each other, open up like Venetian blinds, or spin in like spokes on a wheel.
To use a slide transition, follow these steps:
1. Move to the slide to which you want to apply the transition.
If you want to apply the animation scheme to all your slides, you can skip this step because it won't matter which slide you start from.
 | If you want to apply different transitions to different slides, you may prefer to work in Slide Sorter View (click the Slide Sorter View button near the bottom left corner of the screen), which allows you to see more slides at once. Slide Sorter View also has a few added bells and whistles for working with transitions. If you're going to use the same transition for all your slides, though, there's no benefit from switching to Slide Sorter View. |
2. Choose the Slide Show --> Slide Transition.
The Slide Transition task pane appears, as shown in Figure 1. (Figure 1 shows PowerPoint in Slide Sorter View, but the Slide Transition task pane looks the same in Normal View.)
Figure 1: Setting a slide transition.
3. Click the slide transition that you want to use.
PowerPoint previews the transition by animating the current slide. If you want to see the preview again, just click the transition again.
4. Adjust the transition speed if you want.
You can choose from Slow, Medium, and Fast. Choose the setting that looks best on your computer.
5. If you really want to be obnoxious, add a sound.
The Sound drop-down box lists a collection of standard transition sounds, such as applause, a cash register, and the standard "whoosh." You can also choose Other Sound to use your own .wav file.
6. If you want the slide to advance automatically, check the Automatically check box and set the number of seconds.
If you leave this box unchecked, PowerPoint waits for you to click the mouse or press a key to advance to the next slide.
7. If you want to apply the animation to the entire presentation, click Apply to All Slides.
This applies the animation to all the slides in the presentation.
Here are some additional points to keep in mind when using slide transitions:
- Consider computer speed: Transition effects look better on faster computers, which have more raw processing horsepower to implement the fancy pixel dexterity required to produce good-looking transitions. If your computer is a bit slow, change the speed setting to Fast so the transition won't drag.
- Select sets of transitions: Some of the transition effects come in matched sets that apply the same effect from different directions. You can create a cohesive set of transitions by alternating among these related effects from slide to slide. For example, set up the first slide using Wipe Right, the second slide using Wipe Left, the third with Wipe Down, and so on.
- Use random transitions: PowerPoint has a Random Transition option that picks a different transition effect randomly for each slide. Although you may be tempted by indecision to use this option, that's not advisable. Your presentation will be more cohesive if you pick a transition effect and stick to it. Using a different transition for every slide can be tacky.
- Choose effective transitions: If the next slide has the same color scheme as the current slide, even the most bizarre transition effects, such as "Wheel Clockwise, 8 Spokes" or "Wedge" looks pretty tame. To maximize the impact of the transitions, use slides with contrasting color schemes.
- Preview transitions: When you work in Slide Sorter View, you can click the little star icon beneath each slide to preview the transition for that slide. Also, the automatic slide timing is shown beneath the slide if you set the slide to advance automatically.
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