Frequently Asked Questions for PowerPlugs:
Transitions
(Formerly known as 3D Sensations
For Presentations)
If you need technical support, please visit the technical support frequently asked questions.
- How do I use PowerPlugs: Transitions within PowerPoint?
- How large is the PowerPlugs: Transitions program?
- Does PowerPlugs: Transitions run under Windows 98?
- Will PowerPlugs:Transitions work with new versions of PowerPoint when they are released?
- Can I use PowerPlugs:
Transitions without 3D acceleration hardware?
- Which 3D APIs does PowerPlugs: Transitions support?
- How much video RAM does PowerPlugs: Transitions require?
- Does PowerPlugs: Transitions take advantage of AGP-based 3D acceleration hardware?
- Is my 3D enhanced presentation portable?
- How do I use the Pack 3D Effects command?
- Can I display animated 3D artwork on my slide(s) while my 3D enhanced presentation is playing?
- Can my 3D enhanced presentation play sound effects other than those that accompany the 3D transition effects?
- Can I show my 3D enhanced presentation without sound effects?
- Can I adjust the speed of the 3D transitions in my 3D enhanced presentation?
- How can I tell if I have the most current version PowerPlugs: Transitions?
- Are there international language versions of PowerPlugs: Transitions available?
- How can I purchase more PowerPlugs: Transitions effects?
1) How do I use PowerPlugs:
Transitions within PowerPoint?
1. To start with, try playing the PowerPlugs: Transitions.ppt PowerPoint Presentation included on the CD. To play it, use the "View Show With 3D" command. That command appears on the floating palette, as well as in the PowerPoint Slide Show menu, the second item from the top. (If you press just "View Show" or "Slide Show", the presentation will play, but without the 3D transition effects.)
2. To assign a 3D transition effect (in this presentation or any other), use the "Add 3D Transition" command. That command appears on the floating palette, as well as in the PowerPoint Slide Show menu, below the (2D) Slide Transition command. The Add 3D Transition command is similar to the Slide Transition command with which you are probably already familiar. You can choose "Random" and the program will assign a variety of 3D transition effects (and corresponding sound effects) between each slide in your PowerPoint presentation.
3. You can add sound effects - for best results, use the sound effect with the same name as the 3D transition effect.
4. You can put 2D effects on some slides and 3D effects on other slides. Simply select the Add 3D Transition command when you want to add a 3D transition between slides, and, select the Slide Transition command when you want to add a standard (2D) transition between slides. (Note: Choosing "Random" in either of these commands applies a random selection of the corresponding 2D or 3D transitions effects, but not a random mixture of both 3D and 2D.)
5. To play the Slide Show with the 3D effects, use the "View Show With 3D" command which appears on the floating palette. That command is also located in the PowerPoint Slide Show menu, the second item from the top. (If you press just "View Show" or "Slide Show", the presentation will play, but without the 3D transition effects.)
6. To play your 3D-enhanced presentation on another computer, first use the "Pack 3D Effects" command which appears on the floating palette, as well as in the PowerPoint File menu. The Pack 3D Effects command collects the files and resources that you will need to play a 3D presentation on another computer. You have the option(s) to include sound files and/or the PowerPlugs: Transitions player program (PowerPlugs Player.exe) when you are packing up your 3D presentation to "take on the road." If the destination computer does not have PowerPlugs: Transitions installed, be sure to include the PowerPlugs: Transitions player. The destination computer also must have 3D acceleration hardware present. (For further details on how to use Pack 3D Effects, please read the FAQs section.)
2) How large is the PowerPlugs: Transitions program?
The software plus all the visual and sound effects included with PowerPlugs: Transitions I require just over 8 MB of hard disk space when inactive. But, to make sure that you have enough Windows swap file space while you are running PowerPoint with PowerPlugs: Transitions, you'll want at least 8.5 MB of free disk space.
3) Does PowerPlugs: Transitions run under Windows 98?
Yes.
4) Will PowerPlugs: Transitions work with new versions of PowerPoint when they are released?
PowerPlugs: Transitions works now with PowerPoint 97 or PowerPoint 2000, which is the latest version now shipping. It is our plan to keep our product working with the latest versions of PowerPoint when they are released.
5) Can I use PowerPlugs: Transitions without 3D acceleration hardware?
Yes. Now 3D Acceleration hardware is a recommendation and not a requirement. All that is needed is a fast PC or - even better - a 3D graphics acceleration chip or board with 4 MB or more of video RAM. This is not required, but is very useful for speeding up the effects creation process. With a 3D acceleration chip or board, rendering times are completely eliminated. But without 3D acceleration hardware, rendering times are dependent on hardware speed. For example, rendering times of four minutes per 3D effect is about average for a 166 MHz laptop PC, rendering the effects at 800 x 600 resolution at 15 frames per second.
Click here to see a list of tested 3D acceleration hardware products.
6) Which 3D APIs does PowerPlugs: Transitions support?
PowerPlugs: Transitions supports the following industry standard 3D accelerated rendering APIs: Direct3D 5.0 and above for Windows 95/98 and OpenGL for NT 4.0.
7) How much video RAM does PowerPlugs: Transitions require?
PowerPlugs: Transitions' effects require a 3D graphics accelerator that has a minimum of 4 MB video memory onboard. You may require more video RAM in your 3D graphics accelerator, depending on the display resolution you want to use. A general rule of thumb is that the higher the screen resolution, the more video RAM will be required. For example, 640x480 and 800x600x16 can generally be rendered with 4 MB of video RAM, whereas 1024x768x16 will require 8 MB of video RAM.
8) Does PowerPlugs: Transitions take advantage of AGP-based 3D acceleration hardware?
Yes.
9) Is my 3D enhanced presentation portable?
Yes. Using PowerPlugs: Transitions' "Pack 3D Effects" tool, you can pack up your 3D enhanced presentation and take it "on the road" or send it to some one else for viewing. Keep in mind that, in order to see the 3D effects, the viewer's system must have the following software installed: PowerPoint 97 or 2000 and the PowerPlugs: Transitions player program - PowerPlugs Player.exe (or a copy of PowerPlugs: Transitions installed). And, 3D acceleration hardware must be present.
10) How do I use the Pack 3D Effects command?
1.) Select the "Pack 3D Effects" command which appears on the floating palette, as well as in the PowerPoint File menu. The Pack 3D Effects command collects the files and resources that you will need to play a 3D presentation on another computer.
2.) The Pack 3D Effects dialog offers options to include sound files and/or the PowerPlugs: Transiitons player program (PowerPlugs Player.exe). If you choose to pack the sound files and the player program, the sound files will be compressed and saved within the packed 3D effects file, whereas the player program, tranplay.exe, will be saved in the designated folder as a separate file, PowerPlugs Player.exe. If the destination computer does not have PowerPlugs: Transitions installed, be sure to include the PowerPlugs: Transitions player. Note: Pack 3D Effects only packs up PowerPlugs: Transitions-related items. So, if your presentation includes AVI files, images, Excel charts, Truetype fonts or other similar external files, make sure you transport these files to the destination computer. (For your convenience, PowerPoint's "Pack and Go" command located in the PowerPoint File menu, will compress these files plus your PowerPoint presentation file into one transportable file, giving a file extension name of ".ppz.")
3.) Select a drive/folder where you want to save the packed 3D effects file. The saved file will have the same name as your PowerPoint presentation file, and a file extension named ".3dp."
4.) Make sure you transport the following files to the destination computer:
- your PowerPoint presentation file (.ppt or .ppz)
- your packed 3D effects file (.3dp)
- the PowerPlugs: Transitions player program (PowerPlugs Player.exe)
5.) Once you have the above files copied onto the destination computer (it is recommended that you copy all of the transported files into the same folder on the hard drive of the destination computer), click the PowerPlugs Player.exe application on the destination computer to play your 3D presentation. Note: Make sure PowerPoint 97or 2000 is installed on the destination computer as well as appropriate 3D acceleration hardware and corresponding drivers.
11) Can I display animated 3D artwork on my slide(s) while my 3D enhanced presentation is playing?
Yes. Using PowerPoint's "Insert Movies and Sounds/Movie from File" command, you can insert animated artwork (for example, an AVI movie of animated 3D text created using Crystal 3D IMPACT! Pro software) as an object in your slide(s).
Yes.
13) Can I show my 3D enhanced presentation without sound effects?
Yes. The "Add 3D Transitions" dialog box allows you to turn off the sound effects entirely on a selected slide.
14) Can I adjust the speed of the 3D transitions in my 3D enhanced presentation?
Yes. The "Add 3D Transitions" dialog box allows you to set the speed, and direction, of the 3D transition effects applied to your selected PowerPoint slide(s).
15) How can I tell if I have the most current version of PowerPlugs: Transitions?
There is an "About PowerPlugs: Transitions" tool which provides this information. It can be accessed by selecting the Help button within the "Add 3D Transitions" dialog box. Use this to check what version of the 3D Transitions application you are using. And, visit our web site (www.crystalgraphics.com) to verify what version is currently available and to check out our newest volumes of 3D transition effects that may be available..
16) Are there international language versions of PowerPlugs: Transitions available?
No. PowerPlugs: Transitions is available only in English. However, it should work with all language versions of PowerPoint.
17) How can I purchase more PowerPlugs: Transitions effects?
Please visit the PowerPlugs: Transitions main page to see the 3D transition effects that are available now. More will be coming soon! You can order more effects from the purchase page.
© CrystalGraphics, Inc.