Need Info on Send To Word Feature

[Susan Binford]

I create training manuals by using File > Send to Microsoft Word, and
selecting the Paste link option. Then I copy the results into another blank,
preformatted doc and format and add text to each page of slides.

The Send to Word feature is rather mysterious, and I'm having problems
troubleshooting it. One of the main issues is the size of the Word files.
For example, a 1.78 MB PPT file converted to a 45 MB word doc. After I took
out shadows in the graphics of the PPT, the ppt file was the same size, but
the converted word doc was 18 MB. (Removing the shadows and updating the
links didn't affect the word file size. I had to send to again to see a
result.)

Could anyone explain or refer me to documentation on how the Send to
Microsoft Word feature works, i.e., what happens during the send process,
how the paste links option works, etc.? I'd also appreciate any tips on
using the feature.

Ever grateful,
Susan

 

[Bill Dilworth]

Check:
**A kinder, gentler Send To Word
http://www.rdpslides.com/pptfaq/FAQ00667.htm

It does not auto-update the slide images within the Word document from their
source within PowerPoint, but it makes re-sending them a lot less painful.



--
Bill Dilworth
A proud member of the Microsoft PPT MVP Team
Users helping fellow users.
billdilworth.mvps.org
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yahoo2@ Please read the PowerPoint
yahoo. FAQ pages. They answer most
com of our questions.
www.pptfaq.com
..
..

 

[Echo S]

There's not really any documentation on Send to Word that I'm aware of.

Large file sizes are a known issue with Send to Word. The paste link option
actually links the PPT file and the Word file (OLE link). That contributes
to the large file size, I believe.

Removing any background graphics on your slide template seems to have a
fairly significant impact. I suspect that when you use Paste Link the
resulting Word document actually has its own full copy of the presentation
contained with each slide thumbnail, and that's partly why the files are so
large. That's just a plain ol' guess on my part, though.

Updating links is in a Sent to Word file is terribly unreliable as far as
I'm concerned. Resending is better, although it is indeed tedious. But I
still recommend using Paste Link when sending and then breaking the link (in
Word use Edit/Links/Break Link) once the slides have been sent. This process
seems to result in a smaller file size than using the plain Paste option
when Sending to Word. I believe that the plain Paste options sends WMF
thumbnails of the slides to Word.

http://tinyurl.com/8f9wo is a Google Groups search on phrase Send to Word in
group microsoft.public.powerpoint. John O and I used to chat quite a bit
about this feature, and there may be something useful, especially in the
earlier posts. Send to Word hasn't changed any over the years (that I'm
aware, anyway). You may have to hit the option to include omitted results
and jump out to about page 100 to get to the end.

 

[John O]

Could anyone explain or refer me to documentation on how the Send to

Microsoft Word feature works, i.e., what happens during the send process,
how the paste links option works, etc.? I'd also appreciate any tips on
using the feature.

It's magic, I say. Like Echo says, theres no documentation other than
our (this group's) collective speculation based on our observations.

A couple thoughts...Send To always uses Word's normal.dot. If you want to
send the presentations into a pre-formatted template or a doc that contains
formatting macros, you need to create a new normal.dot, and stash the old
one while you're converting.
Bill's tool is probably a value, considering the time I spent making that
Word template and tweaking the formatting macro we use once it gets there.

With a conversion process worked out, I wouldn't even bother with links.
First thing I do after sending the pres is to break them in Word. (Makes for
much smaller files) If I make changes, it's far more reliable to just send
the pres to Word again...the key being a fast process in Word. And, hard
drive space is cheap, cheap cheap.

-John O