| PowerPoint 2003 includes many new features that users of previous versions will enjoy. This new version of PowerPoint focuses particularly on user productivity and integration with the Web. Some new features that might interest you include the following: -
Smart tags ” PowerPoint now offers smart tags, which let you do things in PowerPoint that you would normally use other programs to do. PowerPoint recognizes certain information in your text ”such as names , telephone numbers , or stock ticker symbols ”and makes smart tags from them. The smart tag links to a program that lets you do something with the information, such as create a contact in Microsoft Outlook, or see a graph of a stock's performance.  For more information about smart tags, see Chapter 3, "Working with Text," p. 63 .
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More task panes ” The Research task pane puts a host of reference books and Web sites at your disposal, including dictionaries, thesauruses, translation services, an encyclopedia, and business and financial research sites. The Shared Workspace task pane helps you work on presentations you're developing with others in a central location called a document workspace. For more information about task panes, see "Using Task Panes" later in this chapter, p. 15 .
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Improved viewer ” Microsoft has updated the PowerPoint Viewer, a program you can use to display a presentation on a computer that does not have PowerPoint. The Viewer is now freely distributable and, unlike earlier versions, can show animation. For more information about the PowerPoint Viewer, see Chapter 9, "Presenting a Slideshow," p. 175 .
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Package to CD ” If your computer includes a CD writer, you can use Package to CD to make CDs of your presentations so that you can easily carry them with you. Package to CD also places the PowerPoint Viewer on the CD so that you can give your presentation on a PC that doesn't have PowerPoint. Package to CD replaces the Pack 'n Go feature in previous versions of PowerPoint. For more information about Package to CD, see Chapter 9, "Presenting a Slideshow," p. 175 .
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Integration with Windows Media Player ” When your presentation includes audio and video clips, PowerPoint now uses Windows Media Player to play them within the presentation. You get a panel of controls that let you stop the clip, replay it, adjust its volume, and more. For more information about the integration with Windows Media Player, see Chapter 9, "Presenting a Slideshow," p. 175 .
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Document workspaces (collaborative authoring) ” A document workspace makes it easier to work with others to create, edit, and review a presentation. The presentation is stored in the document workspace, which everybody accesses . The document workspace is a Microsoft SharePoint Services site, so you need SharePoint installed on a server to use document workspaces. For more information about document workspaces, see Chapter 7, "Collaborating on Presentations," p. 135 .
Other new PowerPoint features and enhancements include the following: -
Access to Word's thesaurus -
Office Web services, including online training, the Clip Art and Media site, the Assistance Center site, and the Template Gallery -
New user interface skin that matches the Windows XP color scheme you choose -
Improvements to slide-show navigation -
Improved support for tablet PCs, especially their use of ink |
