Recommendations for presentation equipment

[neeneenana31]

Hello,

I am doing some volunteer work doing presentations to schools and other
groups on the situation in Sudan. Not all schools have a PowerPoint
set-up that we can use. If we try to get the technology donated, I'm
wondering what is the minimum that we would need to request? What kind
of laptop, projector or other attachments would we need? Approximately
how much would these items cost? I have PowerPoint on my eMac but I
have no idea what we would need to take the show on the road. I'm
assuming that PC equipment would be less expensive.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Bill Dilworth]

If you have an eMac and PowerPoint on it, why buy another laptop? Use that
one to run the shows.

As for projectors, that is a really tough question. You will need to know
the basics about where you will need to set up. Will the room be brightly
sun lit? or will it be dimmable? Will you need to supply a screen or will
they just use a flat wall? Will you be hand carrying this stuff around, or
will you be able to use cart(s).

Screens:
Will you need one to start or will a wall be ok?
Reflective grey screens allow for better contrast, but are generally more
expensive than their white counterparts.
Size requirements depend on audience distance. How far away will the
people be from the screen?

Projectors:
Wattage is important, but not everything
Contrast is critical, the higher the contrast ratio the better
Size and weight may be issues
Noise level (from cooling fan) is also important

Cables and converters:
I would keep a couple of extension cords and converters on hand. You may
need to place the projector a fair distance from you, you will need that
much computer-to-projector cable or invest in a remote control. It has
been my experience that the place where you want the projector is the
farthest away from any power outlet.


--
Bill Dilworth
Microsoft PPT MVP Team
Users helping fellow users.
===============
Please spend a few minutes checking vestprog2@
out www.pptfaq.com This link will yahoo.
answer most of your questions, before com
you think to ask them.

Change org to com to defuse anti-spam,
ant-virus, anti-nuisance misdirection.
..
..

 

[neeneenana31]

Thanks!

I have a desktop eMac but not a laptop. We're going to be bringing the
whole set-up to many different venues (schools, camps, meetings, etc.)
to do presentations, and we won't have a lot of control over the
conditions in the room. I'm going to assume that they at least have a
screen or white wall for us to use.

Can you recommend a real basic, go-anywhere, not too expensive set-up?
I'm not at all familiar with the different types of projectors. What
would be a reasonable price for a basic model? Also, what would be the
minimum operating system for a laptop to be able to run PowerPoint?

Thanks for your help!

 

[Steve Rindsberg]

Thanks!

I have a desktop eMac but not a laptop. We're going to be bringing the
whole set-up to many different venues (schools, camps, meetings, etc.)
to do presentations, and we won't have a lot of control over the
conditions in the room. I'm going to assume that they at least have a
screen or white wall for us to use.

What sort of presentations do you have? Are they fairly basic or are they
heavy with graphics, sounds, movies, animations and such? The more of the
goodies you use, the beefier the computer you'll need, in general.

Are you pretty much sold on Macs or are Windows computers an option?

The littlest iBook is really a nice way to go, but I'd fill it up with as much
RAM as it'll hold and get an extra external video adapter or two; it doesn't
use standard VGA connectors.

In the Windows PC/laptop area, pretty much anything you get will do a decent
job of running basic PPT presentations, but again, I'd make sure to budget for
extra RAM. Shoot for 512mb or more if at all possible.

Note that some (most?) laptops come with two memory slots; one will have a chip
in it already. If you buy one with 128mb installed, you'll have to toss out
that chip and add two 256mb chips to get 512. Some manufacturers will let you
specify the amount of ram you want AND that it be in a single chip. Worth
doing, IMO.

 

[neeneenana31]

Thank you for your input! The presentation has a lot of graphics, but
I don't think we'll be doing anything fancier than just going from
picture to picture.

I am a Mac person, but I don't know whether we will be able to either
afford or get donated a Mac, so we'll have to take whatever we can get!

I appreciate the specifics you provided. Thanks!

 

[Steve Rindsberg]

Thank you for your input! The presentation has a lot of graphics, but
I don't think we'll be doing anything fancier than just going from
picture to picture.

I am a Mac person, but I don't know whether we will be able to either
afford or get donated a Mac, so we'll have to take whatever we can get!

Understood. Obviously, what you're most familiar with will be best, so good
luck on finding a kind soul with a spare Mac. One caution: PowerPoint under
pre MacOS X versions was notorious for running out of memory and refusing to
display any further images. The more memory you allocated to it, the better
things got, but this only postponed the inevitable.

I'd avoid earlier PPT/MacOS versions if at all possible, since you have lots of
graphics.

 

[Paul Jackman]

How large are the images you want to project?
How many people will be viewing it each time?
Do you have a budget $$$ in mind?

There are many issues regarding portability, screens and wall projections,
as well as creating presentations for those types of venues.
Content is just as important as hardware.

You can contact us for more detailed information through our website. There
is no charge for consultations. http://www.jacktech.net