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Use Keyboard Shortcuts to Speed Up PowerPoint Presentations

By Wendy Russell, About.com

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Keyboard Shortcuts While Running a Slide Show

Keyboard shortcuts during a PowerPoint slide show

Keyboard shortcuts during a PowerPoint slide show

© Wendy Russell

While the slide show is running, often you need to pause to answer questions from the audience, and it is helpful to insert a simple black or white slide while you are talking. This gives you the complete attention of the audience.

Here is a list of several useful keyboard shortcuts to use during a slide show. As an alternate choice to keyboard shortcuts, simply right-clicking on the screen will show a shortcut menu of options.

Things you can control during the slide show

Spacebar or Click the mouse - Move to next slide or next animation
Number + Enter - Goes to the slide of that number (for example: 6 + Enter would go to slide 6)
B (for black) - Pauses the slide show and displays a black screen. Press B again to resume the show.
W (for white) - Pauses the show and displays a white screen. Press W again to resume the show.
N - Moves to next slide or next animation
P - Moves to previous slide or animation
S - Stops the show. Press S again to restart the show.
Esc - Ends the slide show
Tab - Go to the next hyperlink in a slide show
Shift + Tab - Go to the previous hyperlink in a slide show

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