Technology

Backup your files regularly!

RW CDs (650 MB or so)
USB flash/jump drives (at least 1GB)
external USB hard drives, 120GB for less than $100
use synchronization software to replace only the files that were changed on your computer hard drive or your external USB drive

try: SyncBack Freeware V3.2.18.0 (see bottom of page)
or Allway Sync
your external drive might also come with synchomization software
the problem is only that files on your external drive are usually not password protected

in ppt: under tools/options/save: unclick: allow fast save
make sure that images are not being stored at a resolution higher than the screen (or print) resolution

different sizes of graphic file formats vary in their filesize, gif format is appropriate for images with sharp transitions and few colors, jpeg is better for images with lots of colors and smooth transitions, such as photographs
use an image editing software to adjust resolution of the images and thus file size

copying and pasting, paste only what is needed, e.g. just the graph and not the whole workbook by using Paste Special

the graphics in your thesis proposal/thesis need to be of high quality
images taken from the web often do not have high enough resolution, you perhaps need to redraw the image
if you copy graphs from Adobe Acrobat, the resolution of your image depends on how large it appears on screen
you may scan images from printed materials, keep in mind what you want to use the image for
in case you have trouble lifting images from electronic sources, you can always take a screen dump and paste it into an image processor, such as Paint or Photoshop
use the drawing toolbar to make cartoons yourself

files created by the same applications on a Macintosh and PC are not always compatible, although they should be
the problem is often that images are not transferred correctly or fonts are not recognized

tip: use basic fonts (e.g. Times Roman, Arial)
from a former version of teh microsoft website:
"When you add graphics to slides, be sure to use pictures saved in a graphics file format that is common to both platforms, such as Portable Network Graphics (PNG), Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG), or Graphic Interchange Format (GIF). If you are opening the presentation on a computer that has PowerPoint 2000 or later, you’ll get the best results by using pictures saved in PNG format. Otherwise, use a third-party graphics program to convert your pictures into JPEG or GIF files."

projection equipment at BC is PC based, if you create a file on a Mac, make sure it works fine on a Windows PC before you give the presentation
another possibility is to store the presentation as Adobe pdf file, that format seems to be the most compatible between different operating systems.

the remote control has a timer which will vibrate when you have 5 minutes and the again when you have 2 minutes left.
the remote has a laser pointer as well

please deposit your ppt file on the courseworks web page of EESC BC 3800 (under 'shared files/mini conference') before noon of the day of your presentation
use LastnameF.ppt as filename an add your Lastname, Firstname under 'title' when you post the file