There’s nothing linear about Prezi, in fact, it takes a little while to get used to making a Prezi innovative presentation. Prezi can be used on Mac, Windows XP, Vista, 7, or 8 Classic, as well as the iPad. It ranges from free to $159/ year depending on the services you choose.
If traditional presentations are like putting a train on the track, one car hooked up and pulling another along, Prezi presentations are like making a painting — a cloud here, a tree over there, a river flowing through the woods — and you step back to see the whole complete picture. And the farther you step back, the more of the picture you see.
Unless you spring for the Pro version, you work online. The desktop version offers an easy way to create this interactive, mind-map style presentation, whereas the iPad version is limited to using text and photos.
The best way to take full advantage of Prezi is to create presentations on your computer and then access them through the cloud service. Like many of the other cloud-based presentation services, you have to create an account, or you can use your Facebook username and password if you prefer.
The free version allows you to create presentations stored on Prezi’s server and available to the general public. The fee-based levels let you use Prezi’s cloud service and maintain your presentations private or shared only with those to whom you give access.
In the desktop version, you choose a template that’s a metaphor for your presentation, then choose a color and typeface theme from the theme chooser. Frame by frame you build your presentation. The frames link from one to the next although you move left, right, up, down, or zigzag depending on how those frames are arranged on the workspace.
Zoom in or out to see details or a bird's-eye view of the whole. For example, you can move from one idea to another in a circle and then zoom out to see all the linked parts. You can also import PowerPoint slides. You can conduct a meeting in real-time with up to ten remote sites looking at the same presentation.
Aside from the original, freeform design, one of the biggest advantages of Prezi is the number of training and learning resources available on the website. You can even sign up for a webinar to learn how to use Prezi.