TEN TIPS FOR

GETTING THE MOST

OUT OF KEYNOTE

Tip 1: Use Outline view to map out ideas

Keynote has four view options. The default view, Navigator,

is ideal for building most presentations, but the Outline view
lets you sketch out ideas and sequence your presentation as
lists and bullets without any design distractions."

Tip 2: Develop one slideshow for multiple

presentation types
If you need to deliver several presentations on a single topic, each of
diering length, create one Keynote that covers the longest
presentation time slot, and then skip slides to reduce the presentation
length when you need to speak for a shorter time."
Figure shows a presentation with slides 10 through 13 selected in the
Navigator. (Notice the yellow border around each thumbnail.)
Control-clicking a selected slide opens a shortcut menu; choose Skip
Slide. Slides marked with Skip Slide will no longer appear in the
slideshow. Remove skipping by using the same process.

Tip 3: Build presentations using a variety of master

slides

Keynote has several themes, such as Photo Essay, Classic, and Slate. Themes have
distinctive styles, and each theme contains master slides for title and subtitles, title and
bullets, photos, and so on. By using the available masters to build a presentation, you can
easily swap themes, including using any custom designs you create. Consider this realworld example: Youve built 20 presentations for your company, but now you need to apply
a new graphic identity using the new company colors and logo. If youve used masters
properly, swapping to the new theme will be a breeze; cementing your reputation as a
Keynote genius."
The Change Theme button is located in the Document Inspector (see Figure ). Clicking it
will reveal all the themes installed on your system, including any custom themes youve
created.

Tip 4: Use dingbats and screen shots as graphics

Dingbats used to be known as printers ornaments, and youre

likely to have at least one font family of dingbats on your
system. Not everyone can draw or create graphics, but when
you need icons to illustrate a point, take a look at the character
set of a dingbat font."
Heres how: In the Finder, press Command-Shift-A to go to the
Applications folder. Locate and open the Font Book. In Figure,
the Zapf Dingbats font is chosen, and a hand symbol is selected.

Tip 5: Use animations sparingly

Keynote is like a box of chocolates, with a mouthwatering
selection of animations that can be applied as transitions between
slides; to create builds in and out on page elements; or to move,
rotate, and fade objects. You might be tempted to try them all, but
too many eects can obscure your message and distract your
audience. Decide on a suitable transition and build method, and
apply it consistently. Build animations can be copied and pasted to
help speed things along; select Format > Copy Animation and then
Format > Paste Animation (see Figure 9).

Tip 6: Use an iPad or iPhone as a

remote control
If youre playing a presentation from your Mac and you want the freedom to move across the
stage (however large that may be), use the Keynote app for iOS as a remote control. You can set
the app to display your presenter notes so youll always have the elusive facts in the palm of
your hand. I describe this process in Lesson 15, Rehearsing and Delivering a Presentation, in
Apple Pro Training Series: Pages, Numbers, and Keynote."
1. Make sure that Wi-Fi isturned onboth on your Mac and your iOS device."
2. On your Mac, open your presentation in Keynote."
3. ChooseKeynote >Preferences."
4. Select the Remotes tab."
5. Select the option to Enable.

Tip 7: Use Light Table view to assess

the balance of a presentation
As your presentation develops, it can be useful to see it in a
fresh light. Try Keynotes Light Table view to review your
presentation as a series of thumbnails. You might notice sections
of heavy statistics bunched together, or perhaps you have too
many introductory slides before you get to the first major
point. You can also use Light Table view to drag slides around,
changing the sequence of the slideshow, as shown in Figure.

Tip 8: Record slideshows and post

them for playback on demand
It may not be desirable or feasible to repeat presentations. If your
audience cant get together for some reason, you may want to make your
Keynote slideshow available online. The process for recording a
presentation is pretty straightforward. Your Mac is likely to have a
built-in microphone, so you already have all the equipment you need,
although having a dedicated microphone for narration improves the
clarity of vocal recordings."
In Keynote, choose Play > Customize Presenter Display to arrange the
layouts of slides, presenter notes, and timers (see Figure 1).

Tip 9: Combine Keynote with GarageBand

and iMovie for play-on-demand presentations

Keynote slideshows can be exported as HD video. You can also

import HD video into Keynote, where you can record a
narrated slideshow, as mentioned in Tip 8. However, to move
things up a level, why not export a presentation as a movie
and open it in iMovie? There you can chop up it up,
intersperse video footage, and apply edits using the power of
iMovie, as illustrated in Figure.