Powerpoint

One of my all time favourite pieces of ICT, powerpoint, epitomises (in my opinion) how technology should be used in the classroom or in the workplace, and that is to complement or enhance not replace, the existing knowlege or skills of the individual. As a presentation tool this tool is simple and effective and has a multitude of uses. It allows the user to embed other technologies such as youtube aswell, thus acting as a platform which can support the presenter and elaborate on certain key points through embedded items such as pictures, graphs, and videos.

It is quick to use and presentations can be as elaborate or as simple as the user wishes. There are templates available which allow you to concentrate more on content than lay-out which is a major plus. The only criticism of Powerpoint, and really this is more to do with the user, is that some people just read from the slides. A good presenter will use key notes and be knowledgable enough on the subject to elaborate without reading and just refer the audience to certain graphs or tables.

As already stated, this tool combines seamlessly with many other applications. One example of this is embedding podcasts or Audio. This can be seen on a number of CQU flex courses by which the narrator can talk the audience through the slide as if they were in the lecture theatre.

Powerpoint is a technology that has been around for years, however its simplicity and effectiveness as well at the way in which certain features have been updated and others added, means that it is as relevant and useful as it has ever been and will continue to be so in to the future.