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129 lines
7.0 KiB
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<!DOCTYPE chapter PUBLIC "-//KDE//DTD DocBook XML V4.1-Based Variant V1.0//EN" "dtd/kdex.dtd">
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<chapter>
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<title>General Hints and Tips for Great Presentations</title>
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<para>Okay, you've decided to use &kpresenter; for your
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presentation. Before you start making transparencies or animated slide
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shows, go and find a piece of paper and sit down at a desk away from
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the computer. It doesn't matter whether you are doing a teaching
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session or trying to convince the boss that your plan, policy or idea
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should be adopted, you need to figure out what you are trying to
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say. Write down all the subjects you need to cover, try to get them in
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the order you think will make sense. Don't put any details in yet,
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just decide on headings and the structure of your talk.</para>
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<para>Under each heading make a note of what facts you need to
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cover. You are trying to build a convincing argument. Consider
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grouping your facts into things must be included, things that should
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be included and things that it would be nice to cover if you had
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plenty of time.</para>
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<para>Once you have written down all the things you need to say,
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consider the time available to do it in. Ten minutes seems ages when
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you start, but it is very difficult to actually get much across in so
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short a time. Get your sheet of paper and a clock with a second
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hand. Practise your presentation over and over again. This has many
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benefits. Firstly, you get the timing right. If someone says you have
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ten minutes, never go over the allowed time. Secondly, when you
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actually do it in front of a live audience, it will not be the first
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time you have done that presentation. Third, you get the words right
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in your own head. You will find ways of saying things about the
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subject. If you've heard yourself do this presentation several times,
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you will know what you are going to say next and how you are going to
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say it. </para>
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<para>&kpresenter; does not produce Speaker's Notes at the time of
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writing, but I'm happy to just use ordinary slides. Produce some
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slides for yourself, printed on plain paper, and some for use with the
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Overhead Projector. Make the text on your slides nice and big, you
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need to be able to read it at a distance. I use 14 or 16 point text,
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experiment to find a size that you can read easily. I never write out
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a script.</para>
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<para>If you are using an Overhead projector, learn how to use it
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beforehand. Make sure that the bulb works, that the spare bulb is
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still okay. Clean the lens and display plates. If you are not used to
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working with projectors, practise. Ensure that the projection screen
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itself is clean. It's probably best, when timing yourself, to allow
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for five seconds (count <quote>one thousand and one, one thousand and
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two....</quote>) to change each slide. That way you know you don't
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have to rush. If you need to point at something on a slide, you can
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use a pointer and point at the display screen, find a laser pointer or
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put a pencil on the transparency itself. Be warned, these tend to roll
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out of place when you nudge the table.</para>
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<para>Consider where you are going to stand. You can not stand in
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front of your display, so off to one side is probably your best option
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if you want your audience to be able to see. I often project a picture
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onto a wipeboard and draw over the top of it. If you are using a PC
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with a digital projector you can draw over the top of your slides with
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&kpresenter;'s pen tool. Remember, drawing freehand with a mouse is a
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skill that needs practise. If you are using an Overhead projector, you
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can use transparent overlay slides and a pen over the top of your
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computer generated ones.</para>
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<para>When you are doing the presentation do not accidently look into
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the light, it's easy to do. If you are not going to use the machine
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for a few minutes, turn it off. Practise to get where you are going
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to stand sorted out. Check the room you intend to use for electrical
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sockets and learn how the blinds work and where the light switches
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are. Good preparation not only makes you less likely to make mistakes
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(inanimate things can be a nightmare in front of an audience) but also
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gives you confidence. Always have a <quote>Plan B</quote> ready if
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something refuses to work. Have a paper copy of your slides with
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you. You can photocopy and distribute these to your audience if the
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equipment fails.</para>
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<para>I have not said much about the content yet. At present all you
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have is a piece of paper with everything you want to say on it. Before
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you make anything, ask youself if their understanding of what you are
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saying is going to improved by showing them a picture. Bad
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presentations consist of a series of slides full of text. The
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presenter then reads the slide to the audience (who have already read
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it as they can read faster than someone can say it aloud). Try to
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avoid writing anything on the slide, except a title and a number. Draw
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a picture of what you need to say, then explain the picture to
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them. That way they do not get ahead of you (they can read faster than
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you can speak, remember?) and you look like you know it. You do not
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know it, you are using the picture as a series of prompts. A slide
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should support what you are saying, not duplicate it. A slide should
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be the focus of the audience's attention, not a distraction.</para>
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<para>An example. I teach Railway staff how to respond to accidents. I
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wanted to use a slide to discuss how you can move dangerous loads from
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a derailed or damaged rail vehicle to a road vehicle after an
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accident. The slide I made had a simple drawing of tank wagon, the
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kind used for carrying gases or oils. On the side I wrote
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<quote>Lethal Chemical Company</quote> so that I do not have to
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explain it. I wanted to make several important points. First, you must
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get any overhead electric wires turned off before you do anything if
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they are within a certain distance. I drew one of the supporting
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structures and drew an arrow with the safety distance on it. Then I
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wanted to say that you must not transfer the wagon's contents in
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darkness or thunderstorms. I drew a moon and a lightning bolt above
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the vehicle. You must get specialist advice, so I drew a sheet of
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paper and wrote the word <quote>Plan</quote> near the vehicle. You
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also have to ensure that the vehicle does not move when the weight
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inside is removed. I drew little red wedges by the wheels. Everything
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I need to talk about is on this drawing. All I have to do is look at
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the drawing and it tells me what I need to cover. When I have covered
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all the things in the drawing, I have finished on that
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subject. </para>
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<para>In general, only use a slide or picture if it shows something
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that adds to what you are saying. Finally, relax and try not to rush
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through it all. Talk to them, not at them and remember that a
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presentation is about whatever message you are trying to get
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across. &kpresenter; is a useful tool. It can help you to get that
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message over, but it can not do the job for you.</para>
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</chapter>
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