CHANGE YOUR SCREEN DISPLAY SETTINGS

CHANGE YOUR screen display settings

You can access your Display settings by right-clicking anywhere on the Desktop and then:

• In Windows XP choose Properties
• In Windows Vista & Windows 7 choose Personalize

Both of these bring you to the Display section of the Control Panel (so you can also get to the same spot by going to your Start Menu, Control Panel & Appearance/Display)

When you access the Properties or Personalize command:

• In Windows XP you will open the Display Properties Dialog Box – there are five tab choices: Themes, Desktop, Screen Saver, Appearance and Settings
• In Windows Visa & Windows 7 a Page of Lists appear and you’ll have the ability to make changes in all these same categories – you will just have many more options…

Basically, this is what each segment allows you to do… 

Themes

This allows you to choose a theme which will apply to all your Windows screen,the icons, sounds and colors – such as jungle, underwater & many more.

Desktop

This will allow you to choose different desktop background images, from samples which are inlcuded or you can use the BROWSE button to find a photo you have saved in you’re My Picture Folder…  Remember – if you find a photo in an email or on the internet that you want for your background, when your cursor is on the image, right click on the image and choose Set as Desktop Background. In Windows 7 there is a grat new feature which allows yiu to have the desktop change using  photos from Windows or your own photos-similar to what happens in the Screen Saver segment

Screen Saver

Screen Savers are the “motion” choices we use when our computer is idle – many different ones are built in, or you can use the photos in you’re my Picture Folder or when you are on vacation you can purchase “screen savers” to remind you of your trip… This is also where we can change our Power settings for the monitor, noting how long it should stay on when we leave our computer alone.. Remember you can change how quickly you want the screen saver to go on and other choices…

Appearance

This choice allows us to change the style and colors and size of fonts for our Windows and buttons.  Just click on the drop-down arrow buttons to choose different settings; the font size option is great if text is too small – just change it to large fonts or extra large fonts..  The advanced tab allows us to change size & colors for all our screen items including borders, icons and the menus.

Settings

This choice allows us to change screen resolution and color quality – remember the resolution determines the number of pixels used to make up the display. The higher the setting, the more detailed your display and the higher resolution gives you a larger screen area to work with, but if you find text and icons are now too small you may need to increase font size and use larger icons to compensate.

You can only go up to the highest resolution that your monitor can support. Experiment to find a resolution you are comfortable with – many opt for the highest setting.

When you set a high resolution, increasing the DPI (dots per inch) setting – it makes all screen items including text appear larger.

PowerPoint Tips: Slide Background choices

Adding color to the background of your slides makes them more interesting. Simple is better so step back and review your presentation and think twice before using “wild colors” that detract from your slides.. To add color to your slide backgrounds:

If you have PP 2000 OR 2003:

1. 1. Select "Format" - "Background".
2. 2. A "Background" dialog box appears and you can left click on the pull-down menu to choose from one of a few selected colors, "More Colors", or "Fill Effects".

More Colors

• If you choose "More Colors" it opens a dialog box with several tabs which shows you different standard colors or you can choose “custom colors” which shows you the color prism and the colors RGB values if you are trying to match a specific shade of a color.
• When you are done, click "OK" to close the dialog box.

Fill Effects – This option opens another dialog box with several tabs for different fill types:

• Gradient – One – two and preset multicolor gradient fills and there are different fill type, colors, transparency, shading styles, and variants.
• Texture – There are a variety of textures, or click "Other Texture" to import a texture graphic of your own.
• Pattern – There are different pre-made patterns and you can adjust the pattern foreground and background colors.
• Picture – This allows you to select your own photo for your presentation background.

When you are done, click "OK" to close the dialog box.

Apply your Changes - When you are happy with your changes, decide if you want the background graphic to appear on printed slides (doing so increases print time and requires more toner/ink), but if not – you can check "Omit background graphics from master". Then click "Apply" to apply the changes to the current slide only, or "Apply to All" to apply the changes to all slides.

If you have PP 2007 or 2010:

As with earlier versions, backgrounds can be applied to individual slides or to all the slides in a presentation - choices in 2007 & 2010 are located on the Design Ribbon. To access the Design Ribbon:

• Click on the Design Tab and you will see the Design ribbon options & features.
• Hover your mouse over any of the design themes shown.
• The design is reflected immediately on your slide.
• Click the design theme when you find one that suits your needs.

To change the background on an individual slide - click on the background button on the right end of the Design ribbon, which opens the Format Background dialog box – If you want to apply your choice to all the slides in your presentation, once you make your choice, be sure to choose the “Apply to All” button at the bottom of the dialog box.

Like earlier versions - you now have choices of colors and effects, but the newer versions have more choices in easy – such as the Gradient Fill now has multiple choices to play with:

• Linear - the gradient colors flow in lines which can be from preset angles or a precise angle on the slide
• Radial - colors flow in a circular fashion from your choice of five different directions
• Rectangular - colors flow in a rectangular fashion from your choice of five different directions
• Path - colors flow from the center out to form a rectangle
• Shade from title - colors flow from the title out to form a rectangle

Be careful using Background Textures: they can be very busy and make text difficult to read, which can detract from your message. If you do use a textured background, choose a subtle design and be sure to choose a text color that will stand out from the background.

A great feature in the new PowerPoint 2007 & 2010 is DESIGN & COLOR THEMES that change not only the backgrounds but totally coordinate the colors, font styles and sizes used for a total look… These are similar to the design templates which were available in earlier versions of Power Point. What I like, is that when you are choosing a design theme in the new PP 2007 & 2010, you will immediately see the effect on your slides, so you can decide before making your decision final…

CHANGE YOUR SCREEN DISPLAY SETTINGS

You can access your Display settings by right-clicking anywhere on the Desktop and then choosing Properties in Windows XP (Windows Vista OR Windows 7 – choose Personalize or Customize)

OR

You can always do it the long/old way and go to your control panel (on your start menu), then to Appearance – Themes and the Display icons.

When you access the Display Properties Dialog Box – there will be multiple choices and the newer your operating system the more choices you will have, such as: Themes, Desktop, Screen Saver, Appearance and Settings and within each of these categories the newer your operating systems the more design & other choices you will have...

Themes
This allows you to choose a theme which will apply to all your Windows screen,the icons, sounds and colors – such as jungle, underwater & many more.

Desktop
This will allow you to choose different desktop background “wallpaper” images, from samples which are inlcuded or you can use the BROWSE button to find a photo you have saved in you’re My Picture Folder… Remember – if you find a photo in an email or on the internet that you want for your background, when your cursor is on the image, right click on the image and choose Set as Desktop Background.

Screen Saver
Screen Savers are the “motion” choices we use when our computer is idle – many different ones are built in, or you can use the photos in you’re my Picture Folder or when you are on vacation you can purchase “screen savers” to remind you of your trip… This is also where we can change our Power settings for the monitor, noting how long it should stay on when we leave our computer alone..

Appearance
This choice allows us to change the style and colors and size of fonts for our Windows and buttons. Just click on the drop-down arrow buttons to choose different settings; the font size option is great if text is too small – just change it to large fonts or extra large fonts.. The advanced tab allows us to change size & colors for all our screen items including borders, icons and the menus.

Settings
This choice allows us to change screen resolution and color quality – remember the resolution determines the number of pixels used to make up the display. The higher the setting, the more detailed your display and the higher resolution gives you a larger screen area to work with, but if you find text and icons are now too small you may need to increase font size and use larger icons to compensate. You can only go up to the highest resolution that your monitor can support. Experiment to find a resolution you are comfortable with – many opt for the highest setting.

When you set a high resolution, increasing the DPI (dots per inch) setting – it makes all screen items including text appear larger.

CHANGE YOUR DISPLAY SETTINGS

You can access your Display Settings by right-clicking anywhere on the Desktop and then choosing Properties (Windows Vista – choose Personalize) or you can change these settings by going to your control panel (on your start menu) and then going to Appearance – Themes and the Display icons.

When you access the Display Properties Dialog Box – there are five tab choices: Themes, Desktop, Screen Saver, Appearance and Settings.

Themes
This allows you to choose a theme which will apply to all your Windows screen,the icons, sounds and colors – such as jungle, underwater & many more.

Desktop
This will allow you to choose different desktop background images, from samples which are inlcuded or you can use the BROWSE button to find a photo you have saved in you’re My Picture Folder… Remember – if you find a photo in an email or on the internet that you want for your background, when your cursor is on the image, right click on the image and choose Set as Desktop Background.

Screen Saver
Screen Savers are the “motion” choices we use when our computer is idle – many different ones are built in, or you can use the photos in you’re my Picture Folder or when you are on vacation you can purchase “screen savers” to remind you of your trip… This is also where we can change our Power settings for the monitor, noting how long it should stay on when we leave our computer alone..

Appearance
This choice allows us to change the style and colors and size of fonts for our Windows and buttons. Just click on the drop-down arrow buttons to choose different settings; the font size option is great if text is too small – just change it to large fonts or extra large fonts.. The advanced tab allows us to change size & colors for all our screen items including borders, icons and the menus.

Settings
This choice allows us to change screen resolution and color quality – remember the resolution determines the number of pixels used to make up the display. The higher the setting, the more detailed your display and the higher resolution gives you a larger screen area to work with, but if you find text and icons are now too small you may need to increase font size and use larger icons to compensate.
You can only go up to the highest resolution that your monitor can support. Experiment to find a resolution you are comfortable with – many opt for the highest setting.

When you set a high resolution, increasing the DPI (dots per inch) setting – it makes all screen items including text appear larger.