Using the Macromedia Breeze Plug-in for Microsoft PowerPoint
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CONTENTS CHAPTER 2: Introduction ............................................ 5 Macromedia Breeze features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Design tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . System requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Guide to documentation and additional resources. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
CHAPTER 6: Troubleshooting and FAQs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 Troubleshooting audio problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 Troubleshooting microphone issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 Troubleshooting presentation problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Troubleshooting animations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
CHAPTER 2 Introduction Macromedia Breeze Plug-In for Microsoft PowerPoint lets you create an animated presentation with audio from a Microsoft PowerPoint file, and then publish the presentation to a server. Using Breeze Plug-In for PowerPoint with PowerPoint versions XP, 2000, or 97, you can create dynamic web presentations for delivery anytime and anyplace—to your employees, partners, investors, and customers.
• • • • Organize your entire presentation library. Give users the ability to search for and find information quickly. Control access and permissions to your presentations. Add and delete users to your account. Delivering presentations Effectively deliver presentations over the Internet. • Present full multimedia presentations to Netscape Navigator (version 4 and later) and Internet Explorer (version 4 and later) browsers.
To create your online presentation, select Breeze > Run Wizard. The wizard guides you through all the steps necessary to create an online presentation. For more information, see “Using the Create Wizard” on page 11. Design tips To create effective online presentations, follow these design guidelines: • Design your online presentation to optimize the bandwidth capabilities of your audience.
Microphone and sound card To add audio to your presentation, you need a microphone and a sound card. A good quality microphone and sound card can greatly enhance the final online audio quality. For more information, see “Selecting the right microphone” on page 47. Note: Built-in laptop microphones generally produce recordings of poor quality. Macromedia recommends using an external microphone.
• Breeze Live User Guide for Meeting Participants includes information relevant to users participating in an online real-time meeting. Breeze Live offers meeting participants a variety of options to make their experience truly participatory. For instance, participants can send messages and questions to presenters and to each other, and they can participate through live video and audio.
Chapter 2: Introduction
CHAPTER 3 Using the Macromedia Breeze Plug-In for PowerPoint This chapter describes how to use Macromedia Breeze Plug-In for Microsoft PowerPoint to work with audio, animations, and video, and to use a wizard to create an interactive multimedia presentation. Using the Create Wizard The easiest way to create a complete online presentation is to use the Create Wizard. The wizard walks you through each step required to create your presentation.
■ Select Breeze > Run Wizard ■ Select Breeze > Record 2. After the Set Microphone Recording Level dialog box appears, begin speaking the designated phrase into the microphone. The message “Checking Input Level” is displayed in the red box. When calibration is complete, the box turns green and you see the message “Input Level OK.” 3. When the Input Level OK message appears, press the OK button.
Recording animation You can add text or objects to a presentation slide. For example, you can have text bullet points “fly” from the right of the slide, or you can have a picture appear in the middle of your slide. Animations can start automatically at a specific time or manually through mouseclicks.PowerPoint supports two basic types of animations to enhance your presentation: Automatic animations These animations are automatically enabled during a presentation based on predefined timed settings.
If you move or copy the PowerPoint presentation and do not move or copy the PPC file, the Breeze plug-in displays a dialog box allowing you to associate the correct PPC file with the PowerPoint presentation. This dialog box automatically copies the PPC file. You can also select the option to not associate a file, which eliminates all audio from that presentation. Record and playback modes Breeze plug-in supports two different recording and playback modes: Continuously This is the default mode.
Append Imported Notes to Current Scripts This feature allows you to import the new text into the existing text. Replace current scripts with Imported Notes This feature overrides the existing script and replaces it with the new script. To import PowerPoint slide notes into Breeze plug-in slide scripts: 1. Select Record from the Breeze menu. The Record Narration dialog box appears. 2. Select the View Script text box. A text window opens.
Logging in and publishing a presentation After recording and previewing your multimedia presentation, you can upload the presentation to a Breeze server for online conversion and viewing using Macromedia Breeze Presentation platform. To upload a presentation to a Breeze server, you must be connected to the Internet, preferably through a high bandwidth connection. You can upload a presentation using the Run Wizard command or the Publish command in the Breeze menu. To log in and publish a presentation: 1.
To select a presentation location: 1. After you log in to Breeze during the publishing process, the Set Presentation window appears, and you see a list of the contents of your presentation library. Select a folder that represents the correct directory location for your presentation. If you need to add a folder, select the correct location and click Create Folder. Enter the name of the new folder. 2. To create a new presentation, click Publish. 3. To update an existing presentation, click its title.
6. If all the information is correct, select Upload. As the new presentation is uploaded, a status bar shows the upload progress. Note: Only uploaded changes are updated. Preparing audio for importing Breeze Plug-In for PowerPoint allows you to import external audio for use with your presentation. The Breeze plug-in has several features that simplify the process of importing, particularly for users of the audio-editing program Sound Forge.
Note: To ignore all markers within an audio file, select the Ignore Markers check box in the Import dialog box. Importing audio Breeze Plug-In for PowerPoint allows you to import external audio files into your PowerPoint presentation to use as slide narration. You can use externally recorded audio, for example, recordings from a live event or professionally produced audio, with your online presentation. During import, you can match specific audio files to specific slides in a presentation.
3. Click the Browse button to find your audio file. Select the audio file and click Open. The file is read into Breeze Plug-In for PowerPoint using the Sound Forge markers to synchronize the slides and the presentation. Information about animations, length of the audio file, and the name of the associated file should appear next to each slide name. Note: Review the information that appears during step 3 to ensure that the audio is matched to the correct animations, number of slides, and so on. 4.
To play back audio on a slide in the Edit Animation Timings dialog box: 1. Select Breeze > Set Timings. In the Edit Animation Timings window, use Next and Previous to move to the slide you want to play back. 2. Click Play. The audio and animations start to play. Use Pause and Stop to control playback. When you are ready to edit the animation timings, you can click Pause and then click the Edit Timings button to change animations from that time location.
Edit Audio dialog box Here is an overview of the Edit Audio dialog box. Record and Playback Controls: Allows you to bring up the record narration windows or play back audio. Zoom In - Zoom Out: Allows you to zoom in and out of the audio file. Current Time: Displays the currently selected time location in the audio file. Total Length: Gives the total length of the audio file. Slide Navigation: Allows you to automatically move to the audio of a specific slide. Slide Marker: Designates a slide transition.
The Edit Audio dialog box appears, displaying animation markers and slide markers. Markers within the Edit Audio dialog box The Edit Audio dialog box contains a graphical representation of your audio waveform. In addition, the Breeze plug-in automatically places vertical lines signifying different markers within the file. These markers control the timing of slide transitions, animations, and commands during the playback of your presentation.
Select the location where you want to add audio by clicking on the audio waveform. You should see a blinking vertical cursor at that location. Click Record (at the lower left corner) to open the Record Narration dialog box. When you are ready to begin recording, click Record in the Record Narration dialog box. When you have finished, click the Stop icon, and then click OK. The new audio is inserted at the location you selected.
When you release the mouse button, the marker should appear in its new location. Moving slide markers After you have recorded your audio and set the timing for your slides, you may still want to make minor adjustments to the timing of the slide transitions. To change the timing of a slide marker, you can use the Breeze plug-in graphical editor. You accomplish this task in the Edit Audio dialog box. The Edit Audio dialog box contains a graphical representation of the entire audio for your presentation.
2. Select Insert > Command. 3. In the Player Command dialog box, select Wait for User and click OK. A wait marker appears in the dialog box. To add a Go to Slide marker: 1. In the Edit Audio dialog box (Breeze > Edit Audio), click the audio location where you’ll add a Go to Slide marker. 2. Select Insert > Command. 3. In the Player Command dialog box, select Go to Slide and click OK. A marker appears in the dialog box.
Normalization Selecting this option helps even out the audio volume. This is helpful when the audio volume is low and you want to increase the volume of the entire recording. You can normalize the entire audio file (if no audio is selected) or a specific selected section. By default, the current selection is normalized to 100%. If no audio is selected, the current selection is becomes the entire presentation. When Normalize is selected, the best volume is chosen based on the peak volume of the selection.
Recording audio If you click the Record button in the Edit Audio dialog box, you will open the following dialog box, which you can use to record audio. Input Source: Used to select the input source for your audio. Audio Monitor: Shows the strength of your audio input. The stronger the audio signal, the higher the level. If the signal is too strong, the monitor turns yellow and red at the top. Recording Status: Displays either “Stopped” or “Recording.” Calibration: Used to run automatic audio calibration.
Inserting Macromedia Flash content Macromedia Breeze allows you to embed Flash SWF files (files authored using Macromedia Flash that are published with the .swf file extension) into presentations. These files are converted and played back in the published presentation. To insert Flash content: 1. Navigate to the slide where you want to insert the Flash content and select Breeze > Insert Flash Movie. A dialog box appears that asks you to select the location of the Flash content that you want to insert. 2.
Chapter 3: Using the Macromedia Breeze Plug-In for PowerPoint
CHAPTER 4 Setting Options You use the Options dialog box to set recording and account parameters in Macromedia Breeze Plug-In for Microsoft PowerPoint. You can access the Options dialog box by selecting Breeze > Options. From the Options dialog box, you can select recording and account options listed in the following section. Selecting the audio input source You can manually select the audio input source from the Macromedia Breeze Plug-in Options menu.
Selecting the service for publishing and managing accounts To add a new account destination: 1. In PowerPoint, select Breeze > Options. 2. Click the Account tab, and then click New. 3. Enter an identifier in the Name text box. (for example, Enterprise Service) 4. Enter the URL where the Macromedia Breeze service is hosted (for example, admin.breezecentral.com) To select a different account destination: 1. In PowerPoint, select Breeze > Options and click the Publishing tab. 2.
CHAPTER 5 The Macromedia Breeze Quiz Feature Macromedia Breeze Plug-in for Microsoft PowerPoint gives you the ability to add quizzes and surveys to your PowerPoint presentations. You can upload your presentation to Macromedia Breeze for conversion into a complete online presentation and quiz. You can track quiz results using Macromedia Breeze or an AICC-compliant learning management system. You can use these key features: • You can add quizzes and surveys directly to your PowerPoint presentation.
3. In the Quiz Properties dialog box, select Add/Remove Quizzes from the Current Quiz pop-up menu. 4. In the Quiz Manager dialog box, Select Add. 5. The Quiz wizard appears. 6. When you finish using the Quiz wizard, select Finish. For detailed information about a specific quiz property, see “About quiz and survey properties” on page 35 Deleting a quiz or survey You can easily delete a quiz or survey from your presentation. To delete a quiz or survey in your presentation: 1.
To collect quiz results, you use the Macromedia Breeze server or a compatible learning management system (LMS). For more information, see the next section, Viewing quiz or survey results. Viewing quiz or survey results The quiz feature is designed to collect test results for viewing by test administrators in the Breeze Manager. To view quiz or survey results: • Select Breeze > Manage Account to log in to Breeze Manager.
• Display a progress indicator for users as they take the quiz. For more information, see “Modifying Progress Display options” on page 36. • Control how the user navigates through the quiz. For more information, see “Modifying User Movement options” on page 37. • Control when the user can move to the next question. For more information, see “Modifying Advancement options” on page 37. • Set the default feedback behavior after an answer.
3. Select the name of the quiz or survey from the Current Quiz pop-up menu. 4. In the Properties dialog box, click the General tab. 5. Next to the Progress Display property, click the ellipsis (…) button. 6. In the Progress Display dialog box, select a progress display option for this quiz. Modifying User Movement options You can specify whether users must move linearly through your questions or whether they can revisit questions they have already seen.
Modifying After Each Answer options After Each Answer options control the default action performed after the user answers a question. After each correct answer The default behavior after the user gives a correct answer. There are two possibilities: • Provide no feedback after correct answers. After submitting the answer, the user automatically moves to the next question with no feedback message. • Display a default message. You can specify the default message to display.
Modifying a Question If you want to modify a question and its answers, you have two options: • Use the Quiz Properties window and the Questions tab to modify any question, including its properties. • Use PowerPoint to change text and formatting. You can make those changes directly on the PowerPoint slide. Note: To change the properties of a question, you will need to use the correct Quiz Properties window. To modify a question using the Properties dialog box: 1. Select Breeze > Quizzes and Surveys. 2.
True/False This type of question supports two answers (True/False, Yes/No). To modify the question format: 1. Select Breeze > Quizzes and Surveys. 2. In the Properties dialog box, select the name of the quiz or survey from the Current quiz pop-up menu. 3. In the Properties dialog box, click the Questions tab and click the name of the question you want to modify. 4. Next to the Format option, click the ellipses (…)button. 5. In the Question Format dialog box, select the question format and click OK.
Adding answers For each question, you can enter answers and Answer properties. Answer properties include: Number of Answers Correct Select the number of answers for this question, from two to eight. Select the correct answer. For multiple-answer questions, select the correct answers. Answer Text Enter the exact text for the answers. Setting Feedback Set feedback handling for this question after the user has answered.
Specifying the passing score for a quiz Breeze Plug-In for PowerPoint allows you to set a passing score that determines whether a test taker passes the quiz. After a user completes the quiz, Breeze calculates the score by adding up the scores from each correct answer and compares the total to the passing quiz score. To modify the passing score: 1. Select Breeze > Quizzes and Surveys. 2. In the Properties dialog box, select the name of the quiz from the Current quiz pop-up menu. 3. Click the Questions tab.
Yes, allow the user to go back and review questions The user can review the quiz questions after completing the quiz. To modify Post-Quiz options: 1. Select Breeze > Quizzes and Surveys. 2. In the Properties dialog box, select the name of the quiz y from the Current quiz pop-up menu. 3. Click the Post-Quiz tab. 4. In the Post-Quiz Review area, select your desired option.
Hiding question feedback text boxes in PowerPoint Hiding answer feedback does not discard changes you make to feedback text boxes or delete the text boxes. To hide question feedback text boxes: 1. Select Breeze > Quizzes and Surveys. 2. In the Properties dialog box, select the Advanced tab 3. Deselect Show answer and click OK.
CHAPTER 6 Troubleshooting and FAQs This chapter describes some common problems encountered after installing the Macromedia Breeze Plug-In for PowerPoint, and describes ways to fix them. Also included are frequently asked questions (FAQs) about using the Breeze plug-in. Troubleshooting audio problems One common audio problem is with recording sound.
4. Make sure that you are not speaking too closely to the microphone. Move a little farther away from the microphone and repeat the Set Microphone Level process. If you are too close to the microphone, your voice will be too loud and you will not be able to correctly set your microphone level. 5. Pause before and after speaking the “test” phrase (during the Set Microphone Level process). 6. Check the background noise of your surrounding area.
• Make sure that you finish speaking before clicking the Stop button. • Pause slightly after pressing the Record button, to ensure that recording has started. After pressing the Record button, you can pause for about 1/2 second prior to speaking your audio.
High quality audio microphone These microphones are designed for audio recordings and provide good quality audio recordings. However, in some cases they may not work well with your PC sound card. In those cases you may need to use these microphones with a mixer as described below. This combination provides good quality audio recordings. First you connect the microphone to your mixer. You then connect the analog output of the mixer and to the line-in connector of your sound card.
• Confirm that your administrator has set up the correct permissions necessary for uploading a file. To publish a presentation, you must have at least Publisher permission for the folder you are uploading to. Your Breeze administrator can set up the correct permissions for you.
Slide titles do not show up in my outline when viewed online Breeze Plug-In for PowerPoint creates an outline from the slide titles in PowerPoint. You can view this online. To view your PowerPoint slide outline: 1. Select Normal in the View menu in PowerPoint. An outline should appear at the left of the screen. The slide titles appear next to the slide number and slide icon. If you cannot see the outline, you may need to drag the right window frame (next to the slide numbers) to the right. 2.
• Use PowerPoint to verify the operation of your mouse clicks. To do that, select the View Show command in the Slide Show menu. Select the appropriate slide and use mouse clicks to view the animations. Animations do not appear when presentation is viewed If your animations appeared during the recording process they should appear when you view the presentation. If not, you may need to re-record the slide and animations.
Animations don't convert correctly During the conversion process from a PowerPoint presentation into an online presentation, Breeze converts the PowerPoint animations for online playback. During the conversion process, the converted animations might not appear exactly as they do in PowerPoint. Some of the changes that might occur include the following: • Animations might appear slightly different than they do in PowerPoint.
• The animation effects are different when viewed online. Not all animations are currently supported for viewing with Netscape browsers. If you use an unsupported animation effect, Breeze Plug-In for PowerPoint substitutes a similar animation effect during the online conversion process. Frequently asked questions This section gives answers to frequently asked questions. Can I use PowerPoint to record audio? No. You must use Breeze Plug-In for PowerPoint to record audio.
Can I use PowerPoint to modify the question order? Yes. You can use PowerPoint to reorder questions. Using the PowerPoint outline or slide sorter, move the questions to the right location. Note: Keep all questions in a specific quiz together. You cannot include non-quiz PowerPoint slides between quiz questions. If you do, Macromedia Breeze treats them as separate quizzes. Can I copy questions from one presentation to another? Yes, you can copy questions from one quiz to another within PowerPoint.
INDEX A account settings 31 add a question to a quiz or survey 38 After Each Answer options modify 38 AICC integration 44 animation automatic 13 conversion problems 52 editing 21 timings 20 mouse click 13 recording 13 animation markers moving 24 answers adding to a quiz 41 audio add silence 26 controls 26 editing 21 importing 19 insert 23 play from a specific location 23 recording 12, 28 audio import file naming conventions 18 preparation 18 audio input source 31 B Breeze documentation 8 C changing quiz or
G getting started 6 I importing audio 19 embedded PowerPoint audio narration file 20 importing and exporting scripts 14 inserting silence into a presentation 25 L learning interactions setting 39 learning resources 8 logging in to Breeze 16 M Macromedia Flash content inserting in a presentation 29 markers controlling timing and animation 23 microphone connecting 48 setting recording level 11 Modify a presentation 17 modify a question for a quiz or survey 39 modifying a quiz or survey 34 multiple answer ques
recording audio 28 Record Narration dialog box adding script text 14 recording animation 13 recording audio 12 recording animation 13 audio 12, 28 narration 12 audio problems 45 microphone 47 presentation problems 48 problems with online presentations 52 slides not in outline 50 true/false questions 39 S score value setting in a quiz 40 scoring setting options for a quiz 42 script text adding to your file 14 scripts importing and exporting 14 replacing with notes 14 setting the microphone level 11 silence
Index
