Yesterday, I gave my first Keynote presentation, and I have to say that it was a great success. I used my old PowerBook G3/400/512 along with the Clicker software, my
Sony Ericsson T68i mobile phone and a Keynote preso loaded with photos and video.
Yesterday, I gave my first Keynote presentation, and I have to say that it was a great success. I used my old PowerBook G3/400/512 along with the Clicker software, my
Sony Ericsson T68i mobile phone and a Keynote preso loaded with photos and video.
Now, when I say complete success, I don’t mean completely perfect, but close. The Clicker software and my T68i worked flawlessly with my D-link Bluetooth adapter, so go out and get that stuff – it really works. The PowerBook is old, I know, but I don’t have the cash necessary to upgrade it right now, and the thing still does its job.
As far as Keynote goes, I’d definitely give it 5 out of 5 stars for the effects category. I used all of the 3d transitions and almost all of the 2d’s, and they were sweet. Heard many oohs and aahs out of the audience, and several people saying, “What IS that he’s using?” However, the response from click to action was a tad slower than PowerPoint. I would give response time 3 out of 5 stars.
The problematic part of Keynote was the handling of video. I can play MPG’s compressed with Toast’s video CD setting in QuickTime, full screen without a hitch, for days straight in a kiosk, but Keynote won’t play them without stuttering even in a tiny little window. I give video playback a 2 out of 5.
The creation of the Keynote preso was definitely easier than Powerpoint. However, there are some controls that are either nonexistent or difficult to find. Bullets, for example, are items that seem to come only with a template. I may be wrong, but they could be easier to deal with.
Automatic showing is non-existent, so no kiosk function there. At any rate, all of the items put together really wowed the crowd, and gave the presentation an over-the-top sensation just on technical merit. Macs are the easiest machines that you could ever ask to work with, and even an “old” one still runs laps around the functionality of a PC. We have those too, and they behave badly under the pressure that my Mac just scoffed at. And, they play video in their own version of Powerpoint worse than my old G3 does with Keynote.
