Converting your PowerPoint presentations to DVD is kind of like baking a cake over a campfire. It was never intended for that use, but who knows, maybe you'll get lucky. Since that was never PowerPoint's intended use, you are simply hoping the bolt-on DVD export option will work, and that you don't have too much fanciness (multi-media, music, audio clips, animation, etc.) that might throw off an otherwise "possible" conversion.
Typically, if I know my end format is DVD, I try to produce with that in mind. That means starting in a program that is intended to output DVDs. Flash can work, iMovie can work, or, here's a thought... iDVD (MovieMaker in windows). I'd strongly suggest FinalCut Express, but if you are not using any kind of video, obviously those tools are unneccessary (but if you're not using video, why do you need a DVD? Those are the questions I ask that tend to make people hate me, so lets push forward to some recommendations).
If it's not clear already, I am not an expert on PowerPoint to DVD conversion, so I would welcome anyone to post their own insights, but for the time being, I have come across some third party software that seems to serve the market of folks who have something in PowerPoint that they want to play on their DVD player:
Wondershare offers PPT2DVD:
http://www.ppt-to-dvd.com/ppt2dvd/whats-new05.html
Here's an unverified free trial of that software:
http://www.allformp3.com/powerpoint-dvd-maker/
My best advice is to always have your output in mind when you create something. While Microsoft has done a great job adding functionality to Office products like Word and PowerPoint, those are typically almost good enough for casual use, but rarely get the job done for your clients.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Type 1 Diabetes Group Started in Omaha
Hello, All. There's a new group in Omaha to join if you're over 18 and have Type 1 Diabetes. It's the first group in the area for adults with Type 1 Diabetes. Become a part of something that is entertaining, educational, collaborative, and can lead to lifelong friendships. Members are encouraged to blog about anything Diabetes related. Health, Diet, Exercise, Problems, A1C, and other issues.
This link will always be found under the "Random Links" section of my blog. Please feel free to pass it on to friends and family who may have an interest. thanks!
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Cost Cutting is a Mentality Not a Strategy
"Whenever I read about some company undertaking a cost cutting program, I know it's not a company that really knows what costs are about. The really good manager does not wake up in the morning and say 'This is the day I'm going to cut costs,' any more than he wakes up and decides to practice breathing."
- Warren Buffett
In my line of work, we are constantly coming across firms whose top priority is cutting costs. Obviously to a tech company providing web application development, and trying to push the limits of what is possible on the web, this isn't exactly music to our ears - but it should be.
A member of management once asked me, "Ben, how can we cut costs?" He brought up great ideas like double checking with two or three vendors before a print project, or challenging our assumptions on expenses of signage, banners, conference materials, etc. Even the concept of shutting down computers and turning off the lights came up.
These were all valid ideas, and I was initially surpised (and a little dissapointed) in myself for not being able to rattle a list of ten cost saving ideas off the top of my head. But the more I thought about what things would really make a difference, the more I realized that, unlike good design or other great inventions, saving money doesn't come out of a flurry of short-term necessity. It comes from people who practice it way before management tells them to.
It was then that I realized I had been cutting costs, for about the last ten years. As far as marketing budget, I have made a reputation for being a practicing meiser with my company's money (which isn't always a good thing). For example, out of 100 or so people in our firm, it turns out my laptop is the oldest one currently in use. That's not even among the power users, that's all employees. My other laptop (the Macbook Pro) is three years old. I've rebuilt it myself four or five times, including Windows XP and Vista virtual machines each time. I'm not going to say I'm the companies biggest time-saver, because it consumes hours to be your own tech support, but as far as costs... And what about software? Probably half the software I use is free, open source problem-solving shareware (fine, the other half is the entire Adobe Design suite, and Microsoft's entire MSDN library of software - but we still get a great deal on those licenses!). Yeah, overall, I'd say I've been practicing what you are now preaching.
A case in point - IT asked everyone to turn off all devices at night, not just computers. This means monitors, printers, etc. I went a step further and offered, "Employees should use power strips, since we all know that even if your monitor (for example) is turned off, it still draws juice from a standard outlet. Multiply that by all employees (two monitors for many) and over a year, I'll bet that would make a measurable impact." Of course that's a non-issue in my case. I bought mine myself. Well, obviously that idea got laughed at as "a little over the top." I guess I thought that kind of thinking was what really affected the bottom line, but it would seem that me and my friend Warren are in the minority here (I think the above quote is worth repeating):
"Whenever I read about some company undertaking a cost cutting program, I know it's not a company that really knows what costs are about. The really good manager does not wake up in the morning and say 'This is the day I'm going to cut costs,' any more than he wakes up and decides to practice breathing."
- Warren Buffett
OK, my own self pandering asside, there are still plenty of things I can do. For an example that I think will really blow your mind, see my post about the Industrial Revolution of Data about how Google will bring us analytics about our own energy usage through their smart PowerMeter application.
But, for the time being, I should focus on my job, which, if you remember the beginning of this article, is helping business owners learn how to approach their design projects with a cost cutting mentality. That way, when they find that management finally catches up, they know the fad will pass, but good practices will drive the company forward.
- Warren Buffett
In my line of work, we are constantly coming across firms whose top priority is cutting costs. Obviously to a tech company providing web application development, and trying to push the limits of what is possible on the web, this isn't exactly music to our ears - but it should be.
A member of management once asked me, "Ben, how can we cut costs?" He brought up great ideas like double checking with two or three vendors before a print project, or challenging our assumptions on expenses of signage, banners, conference materials, etc. Even the concept of shutting down computers and turning off the lights came up.
These were all valid ideas, and I was initially surpised (and a little dissapointed) in myself for not being able to rattle a list of ten cost saving ideas off the top of my head. But the more I thought about what things would really make a difference, the more I realized that, unlike good design or other great inventions, saving money doesn't come out of a flurry of short-term necessity. It comes from people who practice it way before management tells them to.
It was then that I realized I had been cutting costs, for about the last ten years. As far as marketing budget, I have made a reputation for being a practicing meiser with my company's money (which isn't always a good thing). For example, out of 100 or so people in our firm, it turns out my laptop is the oldest one currently in use. That's not even among the power users, that's all employees. My other laptop (the Macbook Pro) is three years old. I've rebuilt it myself four or five times, including Windows XP and Vista virtual machines each time. I'm not going to say I'm the companies biggest time-saver, because it consumes hours to be your own tech support, but as far as costs... And what about software? Probably half the software I use is free, open source problem-solving shareware (fine, the other half is the entire Adobe Design suite, and Microsoft's entire MSDN library of software - but we still get a great deal on those licenses!). Yeah, overall, I'd say I've been practicing what you are now preaching.
A case in point - IT asked everyone to turn off all devices at night, not just computers. This means monitors, printers, etc. I went a step further and offered, "Employees should use power strips, since we all know that even if your monitor (for example) is turned off, it still draws juice from a standard outlet. Multiply that by all employees (two monitors for many) and over a year, I'll bet that would make a measurable impact." Of course that's a non-issue in my case. I bought mine myself. Well, obviously that idea got laughed at as "a little over the top." I guess I thought that kind of thinking was what really affected the bottom line, but it would seem that me and my friend Warren are in the minority here (I think the above quote is worth repeating):
"Whenever I read about some company undertaking a cost cutting program, I know it's not a company that really knows what costs are about. The really good manager does not wake up in the morning and say 'This is the day I'm going to cut costs,' any more than he wakes up and decides to practice breathing."
- Warren Buffett
OK, my own self pandering asside, there are still plenty of things I can do. For an example that I think will really blow your mind, see my post about the Industrial Revolution of Data about how Google will bring us analytics about our own energy usage through their smart PowerMeter application.
But, for the time being, I should focus on my job, which, if you remember the beginning of this article, is helping business owners learn how to approach their design projects with a cost cutting mentality. That way, when they find that management finally catches up, they know the fad will pass, but good practices will drive the company forward.
Monday, March 16, 2009
The Industrial Revolution of Data
My next genius blog idea was going to be a discussion about when tech becomes mainstream, sifting through the "next big thing" vs. the "next big nothing." Bear with me here, but I believe the point at which a technology becomes profitable is not when it becomes popular. In fact, far after that first push (thats when it becomes popular) and people start asking - but how does this make any money? An example of this is Gary Vaynerchuk's How will Twitter Monetize?
Google is another perfect example of a company who, even well after its 2004 IPO (where Google initially set their stock price at $85, to close that day over $100) folks continue to ask - but how do they make money?
You might say "advertising" and leave it at that. And you would be as right as you are vague - but right nonetheless. While that's the second most common way to make money (right behind selling something), the longer winded answer is much more interesting to me. And it's the one that gives us a real insight into the long-term plans of some of these corporate geniuses.
So what are these guys really up to?
When you look at the standards that these organizations build upon in their "spare time," the Hadoop MapReduce project comes up. So, What is it?
MapReduce is a programming paradigm that expresses a large distributed computation as a sequence of distributed operations on data sets of key/value pairs.
Huh?
The Hadoop MapReduce framework harnesses a cluster of machines and executes user defined Map/Reduce jobs across the nodes in the cluster. A MapReduce computation has two phases, a map phase and a reduce phase. The input to the computation is a data set of key/value pairs.
Huh?
A perfect example is Google's PowerMeter program, which aims to give us all a tool to measure our own energy consumption, ideally leading to lower bills and a lower collective carbon footprint. Google estimates that with access to personal energy information, each family could save 10-15% a month on energy consumption costs. The practical application from Google is to answer questions like: How much does it cost to leave your TV on all day? What about turning your air conditioning 1 degree cooler? Which uses more power every month — your fridge or your dishwasher? Is your household more or less energy efficient than similar homes in your neighborhood?
The question of "why would Google provide this information?" is answered only by imagining just how they can use the data. Keep in mind, for every bit of data Google reports to you and me, it's data they are archiving, parsing and crunching for their own use elsewhere. Besides that, this so-called "Smart Grid" of power appears to be a joint effort between Google and GE. No one said it was going to be free to join.
Google is another perfect example of a company who, even well after its 2004 IPO (where Google initially set their stock price at $85, to close that day over $100) folks continue to ask - but how do they make money?
You might say "advertising" and leave it at that. And you would be as right as you are vague - but right nonetheless. While that's the second most common way to make money (right behind selling something), the longer winded answer is much more interesting to me. And it's the one that gives us a real insight into the long-term plans of some of these corporate geniuses.
So what are these guys really up to?
When you look at the standards that these organizations build upon in their "spare time," the Hadoop MapReduce project comes up. So, What is it?
MapReduce is a programming paradigm that expresses a large distributed computation as a sequence of distributed operations on data sets of key/value pairs.
Huh?
The Hadoop MapReduce framework harnesses a cluster of machines and executes user defined Map/Reduce jobs across the nodes in the cluster. A MapReduce computation has two phases, a map phase and a reduce phase. The input to the computation is a data set of key/value pairs.
Huh?
A perfect example is Google's PowerMeter program, which aims to give us all a tool to measure our own energy consumption, ideally leading to lower bills and a lower collective carbon footprint. Google estimates that with access to personal energy information, each family could save 10-15% a month on energy consumption costs. The practical application from Google is to answer questions like: How much does it cost to leave your TV on all day? What about turning your air conditioning 1 degree cooler? Which uses more power every month — your fridge or your dishwasher? Is your household more or less energy efficient than similar homes in your neighborhood?
The question of "why would Google provide this information?" is answered only by imagining just how they can use the data. Keep in mind, for every bit of data Google reports to you and me, it's data they are archiving, parsing and crunching for their own use elsewhere. Besides that, this so-called "Smart Grid" of power appears to be a joint effort between Google and GE. No one said it was going to be free to join.
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