Saving Powerpoint slide shows

[Guest]

We are having a problem with saving files in PowerPoint.

What we are trying to achieve is: the ability to share our PowerPoint
Presentations, either on the web as a downloadable file or by sending them as
an attached file via e-mail, without the recipient being able to open them as
a PowerPoint file and being able to manipulate them.

The problem we've run into is if we save the file as a PowerPoint slide
show; while they can see the slide show, people can still open the file in
PowerPoint and make change to the slides, or copy and paste or make changes
in the file. If we password protected the file under options they are not
capable of opening the file to see the slide show unless we provide them with
the password. But then they still have the ability to open the slide file in
PowerPoint and are able to make changes.

If we password protect the file and save it as a PowerPoint file then they
are incapable of opening the file at all, unless we give them the “passwordâ€
but then they have the ability to open the file and manipulate it.

We are a consulting company and we have a lot of proprietary information we
would like to share, but we don’t want to have it stolen, I am sure Microsoft
can appreciate that.

We have been dealing with this issue since Feb and would like a solution.
Any help would be apprecia

 

[Bill Foley]

You might want to consider this program. It saves the file as an executable
so they can't get into it to modify the PPT or PPS file.

http://skp.mvps.org/securepack/index.htm

 

[Guest]

Thanks for your suggestion, however the link does not seem to be working.

Also as additional information I am working with Office 2003.

 

[Bill Foley]

I just checked it out and the link works just fine. It supports 2003 as far
as I know. Check out the main page:

http://skp.mvps.org/

 

[Echo S]

This'll give you the skinny on your various options.
Password protect a presentation
http://www.rdpslides.com/pptfaq/FAQ00038.htm

And note that you can apply a *modify* password to a presentation, and users
can open and view the file without being able to make changes. However,
users with PPT 97 and 2000 will not be able to open the file at all -- not
even to view it. Same goes for the "open" password (as you described
below) -- even if a 97/2000 user has the password, they won't be able to
open the PPT file at all. This is also explained in the FAQ link.

 

[Echo S]

Oh, and the securepack link seems to be working fine here!

 

[John O]

We have been dealing with this issue since Feb and would like a
solution.
Depending on what the presentation does, it could be saved as a PDF. You
don't get animations, and I don't think you get sounds, but PDFs can be
nicely secured. (Products to open standard-security PDFs are available, but
you still cannot edit the slides...)

-John O

 

[Steve Rindsberg]

The other answers are good ones, but to belabor the obvious but often ignored:

You may be able to prevent me from electronically copying your proprietary
data, but as long as you let me see it, I can print it one way or another, take
a pencil and write it down, maybe even get screen shots and do OCR on it to
extract the text.

For that matter, most if not all of the solutions suggested have one flaw or
another in the security ointment. If the goal is to discourage casual theft of
intellectual property (thieves in Dockers? <g>) then they're probably adequate.

If lives and livelihoods depend on it, then they're not secure enough.

Oh dang. All that foot stomping poked a hole right through the top of the
soapbox. Sorry folks, I'll try to have it glued back together by morning.