Webinar Wire

6 Ways To Convert PowerPoint To Flash

Posted by Wisdom Jenny March 24 2009 9:00 AM EST

3 comments

[Editor's note: Several web conferencing technologies recommend or support uploading PowerPoint presentations as Flash files. This submitted article talks about the process of converting PowerPoint to Flash]

There are many benefits of converting PowerPoint to Flash, such as greater accessibility, compatibility, smaller file size, sound integration, streaming, security, email-readiness, etc. Here are 6 ways for you to convert PowerPoint presentation to Flash.

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Convert PowerPoint to Flash with Wondershare PowerPoint to Flash

Wondershare PowerPoint to Flash is a PowerPoint add-in that can help anyone convert PowerPoint presentation to Flash with one click. Here are the steps:

1. Download Wondershare PowerPoint to Flash and install it on your computer.
2. Launch the program, import the presentation you want to convert.
3. Click Publish to convert your presentation to Flash.

Advantages:
Retains all the animations, hyperlinks, multimedia objects after conversion.
Has up to 90% reduction in file size after conversion.

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Convert PowerPoint to Flash using OpenOffice

1. Launch OpenOffice.org Impress.
2. File -> Open, open the PowerPoint presentation that you wish to convert to Flash.
3. Click File -> Export.
4. Choose Macromedia Flash (SWF) (.swf) in the Filter box. Click OK.

Disadvantages:
All the animations and multimedia files in the presentation will disappear after conversion. So it is ideal for static presentations.

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Convert PowerPoint to Flash manually with Adobe Flash

1. Save PowerPoint slides into WMF format.
In the PowerPoint toolbar choose File -> Save As -> Other Formats, choose Windows Metafile (*.WMF) from the Save As drop-down list, and click Save. Then choose Every Slide from the pop-up dialog.
2. Import the WMF files into Flash.
3. Export the FLA file to a SWF file.

For details, refer to:
http://www.sameshow.com/ppt2flash/convert-powerpoint-to-flash-manually.html#110

Disadvantages:
Complicated process and all the animations will disappear after conversion.

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Convert PowerPoint to Flash via online file conversion

Zamzar (http://www.zamzar.com/) is a web application to convert files. It allows users to convert files without downloading a software tool. Users can type in a URL or upload a file from their computer, Zamzar then converts the file(s) to the specified format. You can upload the presentation you want to convert, select SWF format and then input your email address to receive a notification with a URL where you can download the converted file.

Disadvantages:
Conversion will often fail, there are limitations on file size, and most of the animations will disappear.

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Convert PowerPoint to Flash with a presentation sharing website

Slideshare.net, slideboom.com, and authorstream.com are good presentation sharing websites. You can upload your presentation to these websites, and they will convert your presentation to Flash and host it on the web for viewing.

Disadvantages:
An ideal way to share the Flash presentation online, but you cannot download the Flash file to your computer.

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Convert PowerPoint to Flash with screen recorder

Download and install Camtasia (http://www.techsmith.com) on your computer and then follow the steps below:

1. Save your PPT file as PPS file.
2. Set Camtasia studio to record the whole screen.
3. Play your PowerPoint PPS file and Press "F9" to start recording the screen.
4. When you reach your last blank slide, Press F10 to tell Camtasia Recorder to stop recording. You will be prompted to save the captured slideshow, so choose a directory and enter a filename.
5. Save your capture in SWF format.

Disadvantages:
A little time-consuming if there are many slides in your presentation.

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Which way works for you

All the above methods can help you convert PowerPoint to Flash. Which method works for you depends on your presentation. For a static presentation with no music, videos or animations, you can use OpenOffice, Adobe Flash or an online file conversion service. For a multimedia presentation with music, videos and animations, Wondershare PowerPoint to Flash or a screen recorder is a good choice. However, a good screen recorder is a little more expensive than a dedicated PowerPoint to Flash utility.