Microsoft® PowerPoint® 2010 Bible

Chapter 16. Adding Sound Effects, Music, and Soundtracks

IN THIS CHAPTER

• How PowerPoint uses sounds

• Understanding sound file formats

• Knowing where to find sounds

• Inserting a sound file as an icon

• Fine-tuning sound play settings

• Assigning a sound to an object

• Adding a digital music soundtrack

• Adding a CD audio soundtrack

• Using the advanced timeline to fine-tune sound events

• Recording sounds

Whether it's a simple sound effect or a complete musical soundtrack, sounds in a PowerPoint presentation can make a big difference in the audience's perception of your message. In this chapter, you will learn when and how to use sounds, how to place them in the presentation, and how to manage their playback.

How PowerPoint Uses Sounds

There are several ways that you can include a sound in a presentation:

• Insert a sound file. The sound plays during the presentation whenever anyone points to or clicks the sound icon, or plays automatically, depending on the settings that you specify. This is useful in an interactive presentation because it gives the audience a choice of whether to play the sound.

• Associate a sound with an object (such as a graphic), so that the sound plays when anyone points to or clicks that object. This is another good technique for interactive presentations.

• Associate a sound with an animation effect (such as a series appearing in a graph), so that the sound plays when the animation effect occurs. For example, you might have some text "drive in" onto a slide and associate the sound of an engine ...