Reducing file sizes

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Chris Watts - 08 Sep 2006 13:35 GMT

I, like several other poster, have trouble with bloated powerpoint files. I
include lots of pictures and regularly get files between 40 and 70M -
sometimes bigger. I use Powepoint 97.

I have tried most of the suggestions so far:

(a) Settings
Turn off Fast Save
Turn off Save Preview Picture
Past images in using Paste Special and jpg files.

Result - minimal space saving.

(b) Add-on
I have used RnR Optimiser and that was a disaster.
Sometimes it would not complete a run.
Often it would trash my files.
If it did work then the saving was a mere 1 or 2% - sometimes the resultant
file was actually bigger!

(c) Stand-alone optimise.
I tried PPTminimizer and the resultes were spectacularly good - savings of
up to 98%. In one case alone a 128M file was reduced to 12M.
It is avaialable from www.pptminimizer.com - and there is a trial version.
...and I have no connection with them!

Hope this helps others

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Chris Watts
Please reply via the newsgroup/mailing list - that way we all benefit from
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Private, or personal, messages should begin the Subject line with [NEWS] to
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Bill Dilworth - 08 Sep 2006 15:18 GMT

Interesting Chris,

What was taking up your presentation size?

You turned of fast saves, this is a good thing. Did you save the file as a
new filename after doing this?

Did you save each of the images to your hard drive as a JPG image file and
then insert them using Picture insert? Cut & Pasted images will sometimes
bring in much more than just the picture, therefore you should avoid C&P in
PowerPoint where possible. If this is the case, C&P may have created OLE
objects instead of images. They look the exact same to you on your screen,
but are handled very differently by PowerPoint.

What are the image resolutions? Most of the file bloat I run into is from
pictures that have much more detail than can be shown in PowerPoint. Often,
just reducing the picture resolution to the correct level will cut 80+% of a
bloated PPT file.

Please contact RnR, I am sure they want to know about the problems you had.
Their software has performed correctly for me on multiple
machines/configurations.

The optimizer program looks like a good solution for your situation, I am
glad you were able to get your file sizes back in control.

Signature

Bill Dilworth
A proud member of the Microsoft PPT MVP Team
Users helping fellow users.
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vestprog2@ Please read the PowerPoint FAQ pages.
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com www.pptfaq.com
.

> I, like several other poster, have trouble with bloated powerpoint files.
> I
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>
> Hope this helps others

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Chris Watts - 08 Sep 2006 15:57 GMT

I think that it was mostlty due to excessive resolution in the images - but
not totally so.
My presentations are based on old documents and I need to maintain as much
resolution in the image as PPT will allow - and I am sure that I go
overboard.

As far as I can see, PPToptimizer primarily works by working on the images -
the only user parameter is jpg compression!

I didn't change filename after turning off fastsave.

I did save the images to disk and insert as Picture from file - this helped
but not as much as I hoped. Occassionally I used C&P but am sure it didn't
insert a link. I prefered, when using C&P, to use Paste Special.

Chris

> Interesting Chris,
>
[quoted text clipped - 51 lines]
> >
> > Hope this helps others

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Kathy Jacobs - 08 Sep 2006 22:33 GMT

Chris,
You aren't by chance saving your files in PPT95 format are you? That would
explain why none of the items you tried changed the file size, but
pptminimizer did.....

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Kathryn Jacobs, Microsoft MVP PowerPoint and OneNote
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>I think that it was mostlty due to excessive resolution in the images - but
> not totally so.
[quoted text clipped - 91 lines]
>> > to
>> > ensure that they pass my spam trap.

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Chris Watts - 10 Sep 2006 11:13 GMT

Kathy,
Not knowingly.
PPT97 offers the following options, amongst other older versions:
Presentation (*.ppt)
Presentation (Powerpoint 95 & 97) (*.ppt)
Presentation (Powerpoint 95) (*.ppt)

I use the first of these.

Chris

> Chris,
> You aren't by chance saving your files in PPT95 format are you? That would
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> >> > to
> >> > ensure that they pass my spam trap.

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Kathy Jacobs - 10 Sep 2006 18:56 GMT

Ok - then you are saving in the right format. The next thing I would check
is what happens when you save them under a new name.

If PPTminimizer is working for you, that is great. I just want to make sure
that if there is a problem with the presentations themselves, that gets
fixed. Fast Saves doesn't just bloat files, it makes it harder to open them.
What I am thinking might have happened is that PPTminimizer did save them
under a new name and merged the changes into the main file - thereby giving
you the savings we all would have expected you to see when fast Saves was
turned off and the file re-saved.

Does that make sense?

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> Kathy,
> Not knowingly.
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>> >> > to
>> >> > ensure that they pass my spam trap.

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Chris Watts - 11 Sep 2006 16:59 GMT

Saving under a new name, with Fast Save and preview images off reduced a
19,990KB file down to 19,973KB.
That is typical for what I have been getting!

Chris

> Ok - then you are saving in the right format. The next thing I would check
> is what happens when you save them under a new name.
[quoted text clipped - 137 lines]
> >> >> > to
> >> >> > ensure that they pass my spam trap.

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Bill Dilworth - 11 Sep 2006 19:58 GMT

As long as the information in the presentation is not too sensitive, could
you send me the PPT file? I would be interested in seeing what the size-hog
objects are. You can use www.yousendit.com as they allow free registration
(with limited usage) for sending larger files. Please send it to the
vestprog2/at/yahoo-dot-com address in my signature, not the reply to
address.

You have peaked my curiosity.

Signature

> Saving under a new name, with Fast Save and preview images off reduced a
> 19,990KB file down to 19,973KB.
[quoted text clipped - 166 lines]
>> >> >> > to
>> >> >> > ensure that they pass my spam trap.

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Steve Rindsberg - 08 Sep 2006 16:17 GMT

Hi Chris

As Bill says, I'm always interested in hearing from people who've run into
problems with Optimizer or any of our products.

I've been using PowerPoint literally since version 1 and if I've learned
anything, it's that no matter how long you use it, there's a way of doing
things with it that you haven't ever heard of or even *thought* of.

If that happens to cause problems for our software, I'd really like to hear
about it and get examples to test with, as would any developer. Suggestions
and bug reports from our users are the two best ways we have of improving our
products FOR our users.

By the same token, because there are so many different ways of making PPT files
bloat and because different programs take different approaches to shrinking
them, it's almost certain that one will do a better job for your particular mix
of presentations. It sure sounds like you've found the one that works best for
you. I'd stick with that.

-----------------------------------------
Steve Rindsberg, PPT MVP
PPT FAQ: www.pptfaq.com
PPTools: www.pptools.com
================================================

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Chris Watts - 08 Sep 2006 16:35 GMT

Hi Steve,
I'd gladly explain what it is that RnR Optimiser doesn't like in my
situation - but cannot figure how to do so! [That's even after 25+ years in
another field of IT!] Clearly it will depend on the PPT configuration
(PPT97), the OS (Win 98SE) and whatever I have done in my presentations (I
know not what - except they are big!) - and they are rather too big to
email.

From my own, selfish, viewpoint I have something that works for me - so I
will stick with that as you suggest.

Chris

> Hi Chris
>
[quoted text clipped - 21 lines]
> PPTools: www.pptools.com
> ================================================

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Steve Rindsberg - 08 Sep 2006 18:37 GMT

> Hi Steve,
> I'd gladly explain what it is that RnR Optimiser doesn't like in my
> situation - but cannot figure how to do so!

Figuring out the problem is my job. Your job is coming up with 'em, and you've
done that already. ;-)

Seriously, if you'd like to pursue it, I'd be most appreciative. No sales
pitch, I promise. As you say, you've got a solution you're happy with.

We can try a simple diagnostic test or two first, but if files need to move, I
can grab them from anyplace convenient for you, or give you an FTP location to
use. If you've the time and are willing, email me at steve at-sign pptools dot
com

If time doesn't permit, well ... it goes that way sometimes. No problem.

Thanks for taking the time so far to follow up on this.

hat's even after 25+ years in

> another field of IT!] Clearly it will depend on the PPT configuration
> (PPT97), the OS (Win 98SE) and whatever I have done in my presentations (I
[quoted text clipped - 38 lines]
> > PPTools: www.pptools.com
> > ================================================

-----------------------------------------
Steve Rindsberg, PPT MVP
PPT FAQ: www.pptfaq.com
PPTools: www.pptools.com
================================================

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