BKSLDLGY.RVW 20081127 "slide:ology", Nancy Duarte, 2008, 978-0-596-52234-6, U$34.99/C$34.99 %A Nancy Duarte www.slideology.com %C 103 Morris Street, Suite A, Sebastopol, CA 95472 %D 2008 %G 978-0-596-52234-6 0-596-52234-7 %I O'Reilly & Associates, Inc. %O U$34.99/C$34.99 800-998-9938 707-829-0515 nuts@ora.com %O http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0596522347/robsladesinterne http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0596522347/robsladesinte-21 %O http://www.amazon.ca/exec/obidos/ASIN/0596522347/robsladesin03-20 %O Audience a- Tech 1 Writing 2 (see revfaq.htm for explanation) %P 274 p. %T "slide:ology" I've seen a mindmap used for the table of contents before, but this is the first time I've seen one used for the acknowledgements. The introduction notes that many people use PowerPoint (which is, when used properly, an effective tool) but don't know anything about design. It also promises that the book will be simple to use, with one idea per spread (two facing pages). Chapter one proposes the creation of a new "slide ideology," and promotes the idea of using slides and PowerPoint, stating that you can do it, no matter what your skill level. Unfortunately, the book itself weakens this argument. The ideas are not always lucid, and some of the graphics do not illustrate the related points. It's rather disheartening to note, right off the bat, that even professionals can get it wrong. Drawing and sketching is suggested in chapter two: the reader is exhorted to create ideas, not slides. Diagrams are discussed in chapter three, but, again, the figures often fail to display (at least to me) the concepts suggested in the text. (Which brings to mind a kind of sociological and epistemological question: are we starting to require a sort of pictorial education; a kind of "grapheracy;" in some modes of communication?) Chapter four is about displaying data, and here the figures do illustrate concepts better than the explanations do, although a fair amount of analysis is demanded of the reader (or viewer). We are told to "think like a designer," in chapter five, but wasn't part of the point of the book to provide some help to those who weren't graphic designers? (There isn't much in these pages to tell you how to think like a designer.) Well, maybe that last is not quite fair, because chapter six does give a few points on the arranging of elements on a slide. However, these items are not as clear as those provided in chapter four. This material is extended in chapter seven with respect to colour and text. Lots of rules are provided; there are seven spreads, or fourteen pages, devoted to colour theory; but many of the precepts are difficult for those not trained in the graphic arts. Chapter eight is very similar, but in regard to images. Some tips about animation are provided in chapter nine, but the "case studies" are confusing, possibly because they do not work well in the static environment of print. The material on templates, in chapter ten, is not supposed to be instructions on how to use the function in PowerPoint, but the lack of explanation on the basic template function means the reader must be well familiar with the feature in order to understand the advice given in the text. Chapter eleven gives advice on performing presentations. The suggestions are good, but they are contradictory. In other words, there are many ways to present. It might be a good idea to try out the various recommendations in different presentations, and see which ones fit you. More abstract thoughts on presenting are provided in chapter twelve. The organization of the book is unusual. While the graphically oriented may relate well to it, those of more linear thought may find it annoying. Sometimes a list of factors in a concept makes a structure for a chapter, and then again, sometimes it doesn't. I have created my share of slide presentations, and have definitely survived far too many "death by PowerPoint" harangues. (As Vint Cerf said, power corrupts, PowerPoint corrupts absolutely.) Despite the fact that many aspects of this book were personally annoying, it should be a valuable resource that most presenters and slide deck developers should read. It's not so much a tutorial book as a collection of reminders, and the vast majority of presenters desperately need to be reminded of a number of points. copyright Robert M. Slade, 2008 BKSLDLGY.RVW 20081127