Why not use presentations and what open source tools replace them

Why not use presentations


Most Linux distributions come with LibreOffice pre-installed and all include the presentation application in their pre-installation.

This may not be the case for long. Both in the corporate world and in academia, there is consensus that presentations should be used as little as possible.

The truth is that critics of presentations agree that their use pigeonholes meetings forcing them to go slowly in one direction. What's more, They are proven to distract attention, make understanding difficult, and decrease retention. And let's not talk about when the designer of the presentation came up with adding animations and funny sounds.
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Why not use presentations and what to replace them with

Until the 90's no one used Powerpoint and despite that we reached the moon, we invented the computer and we fought diseases that killed millions of people. I am not going to say that the fault of a virus having us at home as if we were in the Middle Ages is the fault of a Microsoft product, because even for a blog about Linux it is too much. Although a member of the Pentagon is credited with having said that Microsoft with Powerpoint did more damage to the defense of the United States than all Chinese and Russian hackers combined.

But, there is no doubt that the addiction to presentations is One of the reasons for which the generation of so-called digital natives is the first with a lower IQ than their parents.

It doesn't mean we have to go back to the days of slide projectors. nor to chalk and blackboards. We just have to use other tools appropriately.

We can also use the presentation application itself as long as we do not fall into the temptation of using some of its options that do not contribute anything.

Scenario 1: Decision making

Memorandums are better than presentations when it comes to making a decision or reaching a consensusor why:

  • Force presenters to communicate with whole thoughts rather than mere schematics.
  • Make sure everyone is literally on the same page during the discussion.
  • Reduce the total time spent in a meeting by 50-80 percent.
  • Provides the basis for an edited email describing the meeting and its results.

In this case it is best to write the main points to be discussed in a short document and without adding unnecessary information, difficult-to-read fonts, or overly complex layout or formatting

Hence, the recommended tool is not LibreOffice Writer but FocusWriter or a Markdown editor

FocusWriter is A program perfectly compatible with LibreOffice, but allows you to write without distractions as it hides the toolbar unless it is needed. In addition, it only allows basic formatting options.

It is available in the repositories of the main Linux distributions and in the FlatPak store

Another option is the Markdown editors. Markdown is a language that allows you to easily create texts in a readable layout.

The number of Markdown editors available for Linux can be described as a blight. An excellent option is Standard Notes.

This program protects the content with high security encryption and allows multi-device synchronization. Among other things it can be used to create:

  • Task Lists
  • Meeting Notes
  • Technical procedures
  • Free-form notes

Scenario 2: Conferences

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. So why not use them?

Some time ago I wrote an article on how having a monopoly on knowledge that others need allows a person or organization to get almost anything they want. I used the pyramids as an example. Pharaoh was the only one who knew when and how far the Nile, the basis of Egyptian agriculture, grew. Thanks to that, he was able to get Egyptian taxpayers to fund them.

Now, if instead of an article it was a lecture, I could have made a presentation with an outline explaining the relationship of agriculture to Egypt's wealth, the Nile to agriculture and its growth patterns. Or he could have shown a photo of the pyramid and another of the River Nile and explained the rest.

What the learning experts recommend.

Thus, instead of using a presentation program we can use an image viewers. Every desk has one, and they all have some mode of presentation. We just have to make sure Make sure the images are at the correct resolution so that they look good when projected on the screen. And, that can be done perfectly with The Gimp.

If you want to use a different tool than the one that your desktop brings by default, imv is un image viewer that can be used from the terminal.

Some of its characteristics are:

  • Support for Wayland and X11
  • Support for multiple image formats and animated gif.
  • Supports the use of script.
  • Allows to display images in random format
  • Presentation mode.

Imv is in the repositories of the main distributions.


8 comments, leave yours

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  1.   John Doe said

    Maybe you should learn how to use advanced Impress (it solves everything you say)… and Writer's no-distraction mode.

    1.    Diego German Gonzalez said

      I did not write an article against Impress but against the abuse of presentations.
      In fact, I have an article recommending the program for other uses
      https://www.linuxadictos.com/software-libre-para-fotolectura-utiliza-una-tecnica-de-aprendizaje-acelerado-con-linux.html
      My goal is to make other programs known and expand the uses of those already known.

  2.   David said

    Daah ..!

    1.    Id said

      1- Because no comment that I have put in your group of media clickbait (from linux, muylinux, ubunlog, etc) no comment that corrects them is approved (this is worse than Xataka)

      2- "Microsoft with Powerpoint did more damage to the defense of the United States than all Chinese and Russian hackers combined." that was said with respect to Microsoft software in general (mainly the solitary one) not about the presentations, it is very taken out of context.

      3-Stop so much non-free clickbait spyware advertising, please, this is supposed to be a medium about free software, not about whether I should put onions in my socks.

      In case they publish my comment (I don't think so) thank you, if not, they lost 7 visitors (my family and I)

      1.    Diego German Gonzalez said

        1) I never censored any comments to my articles. Some may be in moderation and in the avalanche of comments it will pass me by.
        2) I promise to look for the appointment, but it won't be soon.
        3) https://www.actualidadblog.com/contacto/
        4) If I never publish a comment you made to an article of mine, click on my name and under my photos you will see the link to my social networks.

  3.   David said

    An egomaniac who approves the comments he responds and nothing else, on his own account of what he considers important and what not, publish, according to his wisdom, no matter what decency orders; one, not submitting comments for approval; two, do not make any more defense than that of the article itself previously made and three, since it is submitted for approval, publish what is written in the comments, no matter how silly or no matter how much it does not contribute, simply by thanking the reader for having taken the trouble to have read what was written despite its merit or lack of merit, or at least for the simple fact of having given your email.
    Definitely, from the world of free software, free software, because the whole world that surrounds it leaves much to be desired ...

    1.    Diego German Gonzalez said

      En los dos años que llevo en Linux Adictos solo borré un comentario. Contenía insultos y ni siquiera era de un artículo mio.
      For the rest, the comment approval policy is set by the editors, I have no decision on that issue.

    2.    Jose said

      You may or may not agree with the editor, but when you say this: "Definitely, from the world of free software, free software, because the whole world that surrounds it leaves much to be desired ...", you really don't know much about it. that you speak and it is sad that you confuse other people who may read you.

      Actually, non-free or proprietary programs leave much to be desired, they are limited to the time that a user wants to reprogram, expand and redistribute them. Basically you can't.