Dear Microsoft

[Guest]

Dear Microsoft,

The built-in "Two Content Layout" is nice because it automatically
maintains consistent font sizes between the two content boxes. If you
type more text than will fit in one box, the font will keep getting
smaller so it fits. If you look at the other box, its font will be
smaller too. This makes your slide look consistent.

Now, if I use the Slide Master to create my own custom "Two Content
Layout", it doesn't work that way. The font in one box can keep
getting smaller, but the font in the other box stays large.

The only way I can get a custom "Two Content Layout" to work exactly
the same as a built-in one is to duplicate the original one and edit
that. But if I add any more content boxes, it "breaks". The font sizes
will no longer be consistent between boxes.

Can you please make it so that I can link together content boxes so
that the font sizes are consistent?

Thank you,

-Dan

 

[Steve Rindsberg]

Dear Microsoft,

The built-in "Two Content Layout" is nice because it automatically
maintains consistent font sizes between the two content boxes. If you
type more text than will fit in one box, the font will keep getting
smaller so it fits. If you look at the other box, its font will be
smaller too. This makes your slide look consistent.

Now, if I use the Slide Master to create my own custom "Two Content
Layout", it doesn't work that way. The font in one box can keep
getting smaller, but the font in the other box stays large.

The only way I can get a custom "Two Content Layout" to work exactly
the same as a built-in one is to duplicate the original one and edit
that. But if I add any more content boxes, it "breaks". The font sizes
will no longer be consistent between boxes.

You can't create layouts in PPT versions before 2007, so what you want to do
wouldn't be possible.

I'm not sure if it's possible in 2007.

What version do you use?

 

[Guest]

I'm talking about 2007 Professional here. The latest version. It's
definitely possible to create custom layouts. There is missing
functionality, though, as I described.

Thx,

-Dan

 

[Steve Rindsberg]

I'm talking about 2007 Professional here. The latest version. It's
definitely possible to create custom layouts. There is missing
functionality, though, as I described.

OK, I see what you mean, and can produce the same thing here.
Whether you add a content box or duplicate an existing one, the third box doesn't
behave like the first two.

I'll pass this along to MS.

 

[Echo S]

I suspect they had to do some magic to make those boxes work together. IIRC,
some similar magic happened for the picture layout slides. (We can't make
our picture placeholders work exactly like those MS provides for us.)

Probably duplicating that layout and making changes to it would keep the
boxes working together. (Sorry, no time to try it here right now.)

 

[Guest]

Steve Rindsberg wrote...
"> I'll pass this along to MS."Excellent!

Thank! I appreciate that.

-Dan

I'm talking about 2007 Professional here. The latest version. It's
definitely possible to create custom layouts. There is missing
functionality, though, as I described.

OK, I see what you mean, and can produce the same thing here.
Whether you add a content box or duplicate an existing one, the third box doesn't
behave like the first two.

I'll pass this along to MS.

Thx,

 

[Guest]

Echo S wrote...

Probably duplicating that layout and making changes to it would keep the
boxes working together. (Sorry, no time to try it here right now.)

As I wrote earlier, it is possible to duplicate the original layout
and make *minor* changes to it, but as soon as you add a new content
boxes, the "font size linking" feature breaks, and you end up with
mismatched font sizes.

-Dan

I suspect they had to do some magic to make those boxes work together. IIRC,
some similar magic happened for the picture layout slides. (We can't make
our picture placeholders work exactly like those MS provides for us.)

Probably duplicating that layout and making changes to it would keep the
boxes working together. (Sorry, no time to try it here right now.)

--
Echo [MS PPT MVP]http://www.echosvoice.com
What's new in PPT 2007?http://www.echosvoice.com/2007.htm
Fixing PowerPoint Annoyanceshttp://tinyurl.com/36grcd
PowerPoint 2007 Complete Makeover Kithttp://tinyurl.com/32a7nx

OK, I see what you mean, and can produce the same thing here.
Whether you add a content box or duplicate an existing one, the third box
doesn't
behave like the first two.

I'll pass this along to MS.

-----------------------------------------
Steve Rindsberg, PPT MVP
PPT FAQ: www.pptfaq.com
PPTools: www.pptools.com
================================================

 

[Guest]

Echo S wrote...

I suspect they had to do some magic to make those boxes work together. IIRC,
some similar magic happened for the picture layout slides. (We can't make
our picture placeholders work exactly like those MS provides for us.)

That's a good point. There are clearly features present in
PowerPoint's built-in layouts that are not exposed in the interface.
To set up a user-definable linking system between content boxes would
be an interesting UI design challenge, but it's certainly possible for
an innovative co. like Microsoft, right?

-Dan

I suspect they had to do some magic to make those boxes work together. IIRC,
some similar magic happened for the picture layout slides. (We can't make
our picture placeholders work exactly like those MS provides for us.)

Probably duplicating that layout and making changes to it would keep the
boxes working together. (Sorry, no time to try it here right now.)

--
Echo [MS PPT MVP]http://www.echosvoice.com
What's new in PPT 2007?http://www.echosvoice.com/2007.htm
Fixing PowerPoint Annoyanceshttp://tinyurl.com/36grcd
PowerPoint 2007 Complete Makeover Kithttp://tinyurl.com/32a7nx

OK, I see what you mean, and can produce the same thing here.
Whether you add a content box or duplicate an existing one, the third box
doesn't
behave like the first two.

I'll pass this along to MS.

-----------------------------------------
Steve Rindsberg, PPT MVP
PPT FAQ: www.pptfaq.com
PPTools: www.pptools.com
================================================

 

[Steve Rindsberg]

Steve Rindsberg wrote...
"> I'll pass this along to MS."Excellent!

Thank! I appreciate that.

And have heard a bit back about it.

It seems that Echo was right on the money ... the two-placeholder layout placeholders
do in fact have some special ProgrammerMojo that makes them behave as they do. The
magic only works with two placeholders, no more; and users can't actually create even
two such placeholders themselves. We have to modify the existing layouts if we want
dual placeholders that stay in synch.

Not the news you wanted to hear, I know, but it beats not knowing.

-Dan

 

[Guest]

Steve Rindsberg wrote...

Not the news you wanted to hear, I know, but it beats not knowing.

Hehe, true. One other thing that would be nice is if MS would consider
making the synching thing a properly supported feature in a future
update/version.

Thx again,

-Dan

Steve Rindsberg wrote...
"> I'll pass this along to MS."Excellent!

Thank! I appreciate that.

And have heard a bit back about it.

It seems that Echo was right on the money ... the two-placeholder layout placeholders
do in fact have some special ProgrammerMojo that makes them behave as they do. The
magic only works with two placeholders, no more; and users can't actually create even
two such placeholders themselves. We have to modify the existing layouts if we want
dual placeholders that stay in synch.

Not the news you wanted to hear, I know, but it beats not knowing.

-Dan