Windows 8 apps development using power point

Question

While the slide show can be used for presentation etc, there are ways by which  it can serve as simple apps such as games etc.

The power point slides can be created with controls, scripts, and can have user interactions. I recently saw the ways by which

Windows 8 apps can be developed and observed that the power point was not listed. We need a systematic way by which a

power point developer may easily build and deploy a windows 8 app.

Warm regards

CRSK

Answer 1

Sorry, I don't have any specific links. PPT is on the fringe of my area of expertise.  But "google is your friend", just search the internet for variations on "compile PowerPoint", "PowerPoint Compiler" to find out what is out there.

Maybe Steve R has direct experience using them and can make a worthwhile recommendation.

You can also try asking at some of these PPT specialist sites.

http://www.indezine.com1)/powerpoint/templates/freetemplates.html

http://www.dummies.com/how-to/computers-software/ms-office/PowerPoint/PowerPoint-2010/All-PowerPoint-2010.html

http://blogs.office.com/b/microsoft-powerpoint/?PageIndex=1 – MS PowerPoint Blog, lots of interesting tips

http://www.indezine.com/products/powerpoint/addin/ - Addins Page

PPTools “StarterSet Free” Overview

http://www.pptools.com/starterset/index.html

Office Timeline – PPT addon to create project Schedules

https://officetimeline.azurewebsites.net/default.aspx

Answer 2

Thanks for the useful information. I saw the link on '10 steps to adding a drop-down menu to power point' very practical. I also observe that developing simple tic-tac-toe kind of games and Multiple Choice Quiz is easier in power point.  You have mentioned about addons which can compile PPT into executables. Can you please share the links.

Warm regards

CRSK

Answer 3

Steve is the PPT guru, so he'd know.

I also haven't heard of using PPT for Windows 8 Apps.  As he says, presentations can be setup to do lots of complex functions if you are willing to "think outside of the box" and dig into the deep dark corners of programming PPT. 

I do know you used to be able to buy addons that would "compile" PPTS into standalone EXE presentations. Could that be what you are thinking of?  I have not seen recent mentions of them.

You could also create a PPT "app" and bundle it with the PowerPoint viewer.

A couple of techniques you may use in a "PowerPoint App" would be found in these tips about "Relational Presentations"

Creating a Custom Slideshow in MS PowerPoint 2010 - http://www.itechtalk.com/thread9746.html

Create and present a custom show -http://office.microsoft.com/en-ca/powerpoint-help/create-and-present-a-custom-show-HA010338296.aspx 2010

Creating Custom (Slide) Showshttp://www.d.umn.edu/~hrallis/guides/PP/slideshow.html

Create a custom PowerPoint presentation from a set of slides -http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/msoffice/create-a-custom-powerpoint-presentation-from-a-set-of-slides/884

The Alternative to Traditional PowerPoint -http://www.indezine.com/articles/relationalpresentations.html

PowerPoint Rebellion: One Professor’s Pioneering Experimentation with Interactivity -http://www.indezine.com/articles/powerpointrebellion01.html

10 steps to adding a drop-down menu to a PowerPoint presentation -http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/10things/?p=1505&tag=nl.e106

5 Minute into Video to Creating hyperlinks inside Slideshows -http://www.loyola.edu/edudept/facstaff/marcovitz/PowerPoint/HyperlinkPPT.mp4

Another place that this "PowerPoint Apps" idea may have come from is the newly renamed idea of addons being extended and called "Office Apps"  I've seen a couple demonstrated and they can be quite impressive. I'm just not impressed with the name.

Answer 4

I don't have a clear idea what "Windows 8 app" means.  Honestly, I don't think Microsoft does either, beyond "Something the marketing department thinks sounds cool".

In any case, you can write code within PowerPoint that does sophisticated things within PowerPoint, but that's all.  You can't write standalone programs, things that run outside PowerPoint.