Working with HyperlinksIf you've ever surfed the World Wide Web, you're already familiar with hyperlinks . PowerPoint offers hyperlinks, too. By clicking your mouse on a linked object, you can jump to another location in your presentation, to another program, or even to a location on the Web. Unlike a book or a typical slideshow in which you must proceed sequentially through the material, a hyperlinked presentation can let you move through a presentation in whatever order makes sense for the audience or let you hide information that you can show only if your audience needs or asks for it. Suppose that, for example, you are making a presentation to the board of directors of your entertainment company. You suspect some board members will want to know more about current promotions by a rival company. You can create a hyperlink in your slideshow that opens up your Web browser, connects to the Internet, and displays your competitor's Web site. Of course, if no one asks or if time is running short, you don't even need to use the link. But you know it's there, just in case. Adding HyperlinksThe first step in creating a hyperlink is to identify the object to link. You can link any object, including text, clip art, WordArt, charts , AutoShapes, and more. To create a link, follow these steps:
If you added a link to text, that text now appears underlined and in a different color (see Figure 16.3). The actual color you see depends on the PowerPoint design template you are using. If you added the link to any other object, the object's appearance doesn't change, but the object is linked nonetheless. Figure 16.3. Linked text appears underlined and in a different color.
When you open the Insert Hyperlink dialog box, PowerPoint displays the Link to Existing File or Web Page view by default. This view lets you find the URL you want in several ways:
Creating Invisible Hyperlinks for TextLinked text looks different from the nonlinked text around itit's underlined. You might not want the text to look different, but you still want to be able to click that text and jump to the linked page or document. The solution is simple: Cover the text with an AutoShape, link the AutoShape, and then make it invisible. For more information about creating AutoShapes, see "Adding AutoShapes" in Chapter 14, "Creating and Formatting Objects," p. 288 . To create an invisible hyperlinked object, follow these steps:
An invisible linked object now appears over the text you want linked (see Figure 16.7). When you play your slideshow, move the mouse pointer to that text area and click when the mouse pointer changes to a hand. To the audience, it appears that you are clicking on text, although you are really clicking a linked invisible graphic shape. Figure 16.7. An invisible AutoShape can be linked, making it appear that the text beneath it is linked.
An additional benefit to using an invisible link is that no one but you has to know the link is there. If you don't use it, no one will ever know. Text linked in the normal manner, on the other hand, begs to be clicked because the text looks so obviously different. Jumping to Other SlidesIn addition to Web sitesand perhaps of more practical useyou can link to other slides in your presentation and even to a slide in another presentation. Creating links to other slides helps you customize your slideshow so that you can go quickly to those slides you need. For example, after your opening title slide, you might want to include a table of contents slide, with hyperlinks from each topic to a specific location in the slideshow. On the last slide for each topic, you could include a link back to the table of contents slide. To create an internal link, follow these steps:
To create a link to another presentation, do the following:
Jumping to Another FilePowerPoint also lets you create a hyperlink to another document either on your own computer or on the network, if you are connected to one. When you jump from your presentation to another file, the application displaying that file starts. Other PowerPoint files open in PowerPoint, Word documents open in Word, HTML files open in your browser, and so on. To link to a file from the Insert Hyperlink dialog box, do one of these things:
Creating Other Types of LinksFinally, you can insert links to files you haven't even created, as well as links to send electronic mail. Creating a link to a new file (by clicking the Create New Document button) is a handy way to create a hyperlink and create a new PowerPoint presentation at the same time. And adding a link to an email address can be useful if you publish to the Web and want your audience to be able to contact you after viewing your presentation (see Figure 16.9). Figure 16.9. You can even link to a yet-to-be-created document.
To create a link to an email address, click the E-mail Address button in the Insert Hyperlink dialog box. Type the address in the E-mail Address field and enter a subject. You can even select the email address from a list of recently used email addresses (see Figure 16.10). Figure 16.10. Create a link to an email address, enabling a viewer to send a message.
TIP As a shortcut, just type your email address directly on your slide (jsmith@work.com). PowerPoint recognizes common email formats and automatically creates a link for you. NOTE Traditionally, PowerPoint presentations were designed to be presented to an audience by a speaker. PowerPoint is now designed so that viewers can also be allowed to run the presentation by themselves . PowerPoint presentations placed on a company network or on a Web site can be designed so that viewers can navigate and even interact with the presentation at their own pace. Customizing a Hyperlink's ScreenTipWhen you point your mouse at a linked object during a presentation, a ScreenTip appears, detailing the location of the link. You can customize the ScreenTip to make it easier for you (or the audience) to know just where you will go if you click the linked object. To change the ScreenTip, follow these steps:
Modifying HyperlinksThe Edit Hyperlink dialog box is a powerful tool for quickly and efficiently modifying your hyperlinks. To change the URL for a hyperlink you created, follow these simple steps:
Removing HyperlinksAfter inserting a hyperlink, you might decide that you don't want it or that you need to link a different object instead. To remove a hyperlink, select the object, access the Edit Hyperlink dialog box, and click the Remove Link button. Changing a Hyperlinked Object's Action SettingsThe most important action for a linked object is to jump to a desired location. However, using PowerPoint's action settings feature, you can control how you activate the hyperlink and also add some style to the linked object. To learn more about action settings, see "Using Action Settings" in Chapter 15, "Working with Animation," p. 333 . To access the Action Settings dialog box
If you've created a hyperlink, Hyperlink To is already selected, and the location of the link is listed. Note that the action appears on the Mouse Click tab, which means that you have to click the linked object to activate the hyperlink. The Mouse Over tab offers the same options, but actions are activated merely by passing the mouse pointer over the linked object without clicking. NOTE You might be able to save some time by both selecting an object and using the Action Settings dialog box to create the hyperlink and to set any actions you want. CAUTION You don't want surprises during your slide presentation. Unfortunately, the Mouse Over option for activating hyperlinks can take you places before you're really ready to go. Generally, you should activate hyperlinks only by clicking the mouse. You can add some style to your presentation by creating actions that produce sound effects or that highlight linked objects. For example, you can require a mouse click to activate a hyperlink, but you can highlight the object (graphic objects only) or add a sound effect when the mouse pointer is passed over the object. To add Mouse Over sound and highlighting effects, follow these steps:
NOTE You can associate any WAV sound file with the object. Choose Other Sound from the drop-down list and browse until you find the sound you want. NOTE If you add action settings to an object, the Action Settings dialog box opens when you click the Insert Hyperlink button (rather than the Insert Hyperlink or Edit Hyperlink dialog box). You can still edit the URL, but you have to remove any action settings if you want to access the Edit Hyperlink dialog box. Testing HyperlinksBefore you present to an audience, test all your hyperlinks to make sure that you set them up correctly. The last thing you want during your presentation is a surprise when you click a hyperlink. NOTE Don't forget that you must be connected to the Internet, either via a network or through a dial-up connection, if you want to test links to the Web. To test a hyperlink, follow these steps:
Test all the links in the presentation. This means starting the slideshow at the beginning and trying out each hyperlink. (We'll talk about how to do that in the next section.) Stop and fix any hyperlink that doesn't work the way you expect it to. TIP If you're presenting at a remote location and want to use hyperlinks to the Internet, be sure to arrive early to test your Internet connection and hyperlinks again. Even if you tested your hyperlinks at home and they worked fine, you need to verify your network connectivity at an unfamiliar location and have enough time to resolve problems before you present. Navigating a Hyperlinked PresentationYou would probably never get lost in a sequential slide presentation, but in a hyperlinked presentation it's easy to lose track of what slides, URLs, or files you've viewed. You can minimize the likelihood of getting lost by rehearsing your presentation many times, trying out various links, and learning what will happen and how to get back on track. Some typical techniques for returning to the right place in your presentation include the following:
Linking to the Web During a PresentationThe more elements you add to your presentation, the more complex it becomes, thus increasing the chances that something will go wrong. This can be particularly true when you link to the Internet during a presentation. Try to determine what parts of your presentation are most critical, and have a backup plan in case things don't work the way you hope they will. Make allowances that minimize your risk, and consider the following:
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