Has anyone experimented much with Flare compatibility with PowerPoint? I'm working on a project where our client requires PowerPoint content, and this is the first project that I was going to attempt in Flare, so I'm gathering some information.
A quick search on the forums turned up this topic, which recommends a crazy Flare > Word > PDF > PPT process, but this (understandably due to the multiple conversions) results in some formatting issues, particularly with bullet points. Does anyone know a better way? Also, because this was pre-Slideshows, I was wondering if the advent of Slideshows in Flare 10 changes things at all or not.
Flare 10 Slideshows and PowerPoint?
Flare 10 Slideshows and PowerPoint?
-Dan, Propellerhead-in-training
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kwag_myers
- Propellus Maximus
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Re: Flare 10 Slideshows and PowerPoint?
You can skip Word, which I highly recommend, by outputting your Flare project as a PDF. I'm not sure what you mean by "Slideshows in Flare". Could you enlighten me, please. Sounds like something I can use.
"I'm tryin' to think, but nothin' happens!" - Curly Joe Howard
Re: Flare 10 Slideshows and PowerPoint?
Hey,
Yeah, I'm not quite sure what the point was of the Word step; I haven't really checked this solution out personally. Avoiding a layer of conversion is most definitely a good idea if possible.
Slideshows are a new feature in Flare 10. Check out the "What's New in Flare 10" PDF guide... it has a fairly comprehensive chapter on the new slideshows. They seem really cool.
Yeah, I'm not quite sure what the point was of the Word step; I haven't really checked this solution out personally. Avoiding a layer of conversion is most definitely a good idea if possible.
Slideshows are a new feature in Flare 10. Check out the "What's New in Flare 10" PDF guide... it has a fairly comprehensive chapter on the new slideshows. They seem really cool.
-Dan, Propellerhead-in-training
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pdambrosio
- Propeller Head
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Re: Flare 10 Slideshows and PowerPoint?
Hi, I'm the author of the "crazy" Word step and also the pioneer for the Flare -> PPT output.
The logic behind the addition of the word step is to maximize editability for the third party to whom you might hand off the PPT slides and who might expect to edit these slides like typical PPT.
If you output to Word > Print as a PDF > Open in Adobe XI > Save a PPT you should have a fully editable output, minus tables that come in as a series of text block and lines.
Go w/the freeware PDF > PPT or skip Word and you will lose some editability. So your choice depends on what your reqs are. The time differential is 1-2 minutes.
I'm also working in slides and they are well received here. But they can be tricky if you go deep and add a number of the functionalities that add the additional WOW factor: togglers, pop up windows, design elements....Some of these I use to get uniformity in my slide sizes for responsive output.
A simple way to start w/a slideshow is to put your logo, doc name, copyright statement... into slides and let your WebHelp kick off its into topic as a running slideshow.
Of course, you can also add a PPT presentation for the same "movie" effect. Maybe the PPT slides that you output from Flare, designed in PPT, added animation, and are now bringing back in??
However, the slideshow does not work like PPT. I can't hand off to a trainer to edit. Internal to the Docs, we are v impressed!
The whole subject is great fun, especially if you like developing templates!!!
The logic behind the addition of the word step is to maximize editability for the third party to whom you might hand off the PPT slides and who might expect to edit these slides like typical PPT.
If you output to Word > Print as a PDF > Open in Adobe XI > Save a PPT you should have a fully editable output, minus tables that come in as a series of text block and lines.
Go w/the freeware PDF > PPT or skip Word and you will lose some editability. So your choice depends on what your reqs are. The time differential is 1-2 minutes.
I'm also working in slides and they are well received here. But they can be tricky if you go deep and add a number of the functionalities that add the additional WOW factor: togglers, pop up windows, design elements....Some of these I use to get uniformity in my slide sizes for responsive output.
A simple way to start w/a slideshow is to put your logo, doc name, copyright statement... into slides and let your WebHelp kick off its into topic as a running slideshow.
Of course, you can also add a PPT presentation for the same "movie" effect. Maybe the PPT slides that you output from Flare, designed in PPT, added animation, and are now bringing back in??
However, the slideshow does not work like PPT. I can't hand off to a trainer to edit. Internal to the Docs, we are v impressed!
The whole subject is great fun, especially if you like developing templates!!!
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kwag_myers
- Propellus Maximus
- Posts: 810
- Joined: Wed Jul 25, 2012 11:36 am
- Location: Ann Arbor, MI
Re: Flare 10 Slideshows and PowerPoint?
I came upon some procedures to import text into a slide from both Word and HTML. This would make the PPT editable, too. I tried a couple times, but the results were less than favorable. I was just wondering if you have tried it?pdambrosio wrote: The logic behind the addition of the word step is to maximize editability for the third party to whom you might hand off the PPT slides and who might expect to edit these slides like typical PPT.
"I'm tryin' to think, but nothin' happens!" - Curly Joe Howard
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pdambrosio
- Propeller Head
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Re: Flare 10 Slideshows and PowerPoint?
No, I haven't. We wanted to export to 10 or more slides at one time, creating each slide through the single export procedure.
Think of it this way: I have a ToC. Each topic is one slide. I build my project > export to Word> PDF > PPT and I see a slide for each topic.
I get topic content reuse and I don't have to build a deck one slide at a time....
Does this make sense?
Think of it this way: I have a ToC. Each topic is one slide. I build my project > export to Word> PDF > PPT and I see a slide for each topic.
I get topic content reuse and I don't have to build a deck one slide at a time....
Does this make sense?
Re: Flare 10 Slideshows and PowerPoint?
Hey,
Thanks for the helpful response. I'll definitely try it this way and compare. The "crazy' bit in this context is actually mostly a compliment. I would have never considered adding Word as an extra conversion step. It goes against everything that I've experienced in the past that a three-step MadCap > Microsoft > Adobe > Microsoft conversion works better than a two-step MadCap > Adobe > Microsoft one, though it does make some sense in hindsight.
Thanks for the helpful response. I'll definitely try it this way and compare. The "crazy' bit in this context is actually mostly a compliment. I would have never considered adding Word as an extra conversion step. It goes against everything that I've experienced in the past that a three-step MadCap > Microsoft > Adobe > Microsoft conversion works better than a two-step MadCap > Adobe > Microsoft one, though it does make some sense in hindsight.
-Dan, Propellerhead-in-training