To PC or not to PC, that is the question
For the first time in twelve years of running m62, I am producing something using a Mac, a MacBook Air to be precise. Because of this I am expecting some bitter comeback from my designers, who have always used high-powered PCs in the studio.
Because most of our clients use PCs (at least for work), it has always been sensible to produce our presentations on the same platform. The last thing a client needs is his m62 PowerPointTM presentation collapsing halfway through a major event because we developed it in a different environment. You shouldn’t judge a notebook by its cover, and my MacBook Air seems to be running XP well, but even in this age of (superficial) convergence it is wise to keep in mind the mantra mind the gap when crossing platforms.
My experience at events with presenters has taught me the dangers of assuming absolute compatibility between Mac and PC versions of PowerPoint. As a general precaution, if you are using Mac and Office 2008 we recommend that you run through the presentation on the event hardware before you get in front of the audience and as early as possible. Animations mess up occasionally, especially motion paths, and if you are used to a one-button shiny interface this sort of glitch can take quite a while to fix. It is also always worth clicking through each and every slide in your deck the first time you open the presentation; different machines cache animations at different rates, and a once-through helps to smooth out any ‘sticky’ movement when you get up for the real thing. If I encounter any other cross-platform issues, this blog will be the first to know.
A case in point. Here I am in Atlanta to deliver a seminar to a potential client and I’ve just discovered that my animations are all screwed up. Yes, happy with the new MacBook Air, but also relieved that I got here a day early . . .
MacBook Air
