[CRITICAL UPDATE - Anyone using Office 2003 should install the critical
update as soon as possible. From PowerPoint, choose "Help -> Check for
Updates".]
[TOP ISSUE - Are you having difficulty opening presentations in PowerPoint
that you just created (you can save, but not open)? -
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=329820]
Hello,
PowerPoint does not have built in capabilities to manage or publish
collections of presentations and slides (including, for example, previews
and searchable database) in order to facilitate the reuse
(combining/recombining) of existing content. There are a variety of 3rd
party tools available for performing varieties of management, search and
retrieval tasks for "digital assets" including the kinds of assets created
and used by PowerPoint (slides, presentations, movies, pictures, etc.).
They range all the way from products which focus specifically on PowerPoint
assets to enterprise wide solutions for managing all kinds of digital
assets.
Some of them include (in no particular order of preference and without any
implied recommendation):
* Presentation Librarian - Accent Technologies
* PowerSearch - Accent Technologies
* Cumulus Office Suite - Canto
* Teams - Artesia
There are two Microsoft sites where you can search for various 3rd party
PowerPoint "solutions" including:
1) Microsoft Office System Solutions Directory -
http://directory.partners.extranet.microsoft.com/default.aspx
2) Office Marketplace -
http://office.microsoft.com/marketplace/
Some examples that you can find at these sites, which fall into this
category include:
A) SlideManager for Microsoft Office PowerPoint - SlideManager, developed
for Microsoft Office PowerPoint® 2003, captures and leverages an
organization’s collective PowerPoint slide content and makes it readily
available for reuse. Users can then easily create new presentations based
on simple searches, audience needs, and objectives.
http://directory.partners.extranet.microsoft.com/SolutionPage.aspx?i=21&cat=
4&SolutionID=2631&pid=0&vid=0
B) The Brainshark Communications Platform - The Brainshark Communications
Platform enables companies and businesspeople to easily create, manage, and
share rich-media on-demand communications. Users publish content by
uploading a Microsoft Office PowerPoint® 2003 presentation, adding recorded
audio using a telephone, and distributing the content using Microsoft
Office Outlook® 2003.
http://directory.partners.extranet.microsoft.com/SolutionPage.aspx?i=1&cat=0
&SolutionID=2416&pid=21&vid=0]
C) Business Development Productivity Solution - The Business Development
Productivity (BDP) solution automates many of the tasks associated with the
creation of client presentations and pitchbooks. It takes advantage of the
power of Microsoft Office System tools such as Microsoft Office PowerPoint
2003, Microsoft Office Word 2003, and Microsoft Office Excel 2003, and it
is customized to meet specific business needs.
http://directory.partners.extranet.microsoft.com/SolutionPage.aspx?i=1&cat=0
&SolutionID=1134&pid=21&vid=0
D) Collaborative Presentation Builder - The Wipro Collaborative
Presentation Builder helps business people create relevant, compelling
presentations quickly and with the most accurate and current data
available. Users create presentations in Microsoft Office PowerPoint® 2003
using Web services and XML-enabled templates.
http://directory.partners.extranet.microsoft.com/SolutionPage.aspx?i=1&cat=0
&SolutionID=2166&pid=21&vid=0
E) KeyPrep - KeyPrep is a corporate communication and information
management system designed to assist people in the preparation of
presentations in a highly retrievable form. KeyPrep, which uses Microsoft
Office PowerPoint® 2003 and Microsoft Office Word 2003 to create its
deliverables, presents information that is up-to-date and from an
authoritative source and can be shared both internally and, where approved,
externally.
http://directory.partners.extranet.microsoft.com/SolutionPage.aspx?i=31&cat=
0&SolutionID=2723&pid=21&vid=0
And most of the growing number of 3rd party solutions for capturing and
archiving recorded presentation 'casts include server-side tools for
mangement (search, access control, retrieval, etc.)
If you (or anyone else reading this message) feel strongly that PowerPoint
(Office?) should include some BUILT-IN features for managing and publishing
presentations and presentation content for easy retrieval and reuse, don't
forget to send your feedback (in YOUR OWN WORDS, please) to Microsoft at:
http://register.microsoft.com/mswish/suggestion.asp
It's VERY important that, for EACH wish, you describe in detail, WHY it is
important TO YOU that your product suggestion be implemented. A good wish
submssion includes WHAT scenario, work-flow, or end-result is blocked by
not having a specific feature, HOW MUCH time and effort ($$$) is spent
working around a specific limitation of the current product, etc. Remember
that Microsoft receives THOUSANDS of product suggestions every day and we
read each one but, in any given product development cycle, there are ONLY
sufficient resources to address the ones that are MOST IMPORTANT to our
customers so take the extra time to state your case as CLEARLY and
COMPLETELY as possible so that we can FEEL YOUR PAIN.
IMPORTANT: Each submission should be a single suggestion (not a list of
suggestions).
John Langhans
Microsoft Corporation
Supportability Program Manager
Microsoft Office PowerPoint for Windows
Microsoft Office Picture Manager for Windows
For FAQ's, highlights and top issues, visit the Microsoft PowerPoint
support center at:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?pr=ppt
Search the Microsoft Knowledge Base at:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?pr=kbhowto
This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.
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