Powerpoint on Mac does not allow windowed presenter view - therefore if presenting during a meeting you need three screens !

Question

Powerpoint on a Windows PC allows the use of a resizable presenter window. Powerpoint on a Mac does not allow the presenter window to be anything other than full screen.
This means that if you are presenting to a meeting (or streaming) you cannot see meeting controls unless you have three screens (one for presentation, one for presenter window and one for meeting/streaming controls.

Can Microsoft advise if this is fixable within Powerpoint, or is it a restriction on the Mac side ?

Many thanks

David Keight (UK)

Answer 1

This isn't a perfect solution, but it's better than nothing:

Presenter View is always full screen; use Mission Control to switch to other apps

On a Mac Presenter View is always full screen and cannot be resized. To get to the meeting controls or any other app, press Control+UpArrow to view Mission Control. This displays all the open windows and allows you to switch to another window by clicking on it.

https://www.thinkoutsidetheslide.com/expert-tips-for-using-powerpoint-presenter-view-on-a-mac-in-teams-or-zoom-1-or-2-screens/

Answer 2

You're correct, the presenter view window is always full-screen on a Mac. The PowerPoint for Mac Feedback forum has a couple of suggestions like this. You might want to add your vote to them. Microsoft uses this feedback to prioritize their programming:

Allow for minimized presenter view window on Mac

Presenter View parity between Windows and Mac

Answer 3

Thanks for your reply John.

I am aware of the option to run PowerPoint slideshow in a window, and this would allow the presentation screen to be resized - but not the presenters (control) screen which really wastes a whole screen for such a simple function, I.e. slide control and notes.

On Windows I can leave the presentation at full screen (to share in meetings or project) yet then run two or more items on my main screen (Zoom,/OSB streaming plus YouTube studio and PowerPoint presenters screen at the same time).

It looks like my only option is to have two screens plus a 3rd port for the projector if using a Mac:

1: Control (OSB, Zoom, YouTube studio)

2. Powerpoint presenter view
3. Projector (or sharing) for output.

On Windows I can get away with just two ports - one for projector and one for everything else.

I do wonder if this is a Mac OS restriction rather than a Windows one, so might also ask on an Apple forum.

Thanks

David

Answer 4

Voted for the one that is still active. One has been removed. This is hHands down the most frustrating thing about PPT for Mac.

Answer 5

PowerPoint for Mac has the same ability as the Windows version in this regard. Using Slide Show>Set Up Slide Show, choose the option for Browsed by an individual (window) to show the presentation in a resizable window.