Module 6c · LibreOffice Impress: presentations
Impress is PowerPoint's twin. Slide thumbnails on the left, the current slide in the centre, F5 to present. This module shows you how to build a deck, place text and images without distorting anything, add a restrained transition and present in a meeting. Including when a colleague on Windows sends you their .pptx.
By the end of this module you will be able to:
- Create a presentation, add slides and choose their layout in the Properties pane
- Type text in Outline view and insert images from your Pictures folder without squashing them when resizing
- Apply a discreet transition to the whole deck and an "Appear" effect when it is justified
- Start the slideshow with F5, stop it with Esc, and use the presenter console with a projector
- Open, edit and re-save a PowerPoint colleague's deck as
.pptx
Impress, PowerPoint's twin
Open Impress from the apps grid, the way you would open PowerPoint from the Start menu. The window is already familiar: the left panel lists your slides as thumbnails, the centre shows the one you are working on, and the right pane holds the settings. You already know how to use this.
| Your PowerPoint habit | In Impress |
|---|---|
| New slide | Right-click in the left panel → New Slide (or Ctrl+M, the same shortcut) |
| Choose a layout | Properties pane on the right, Layouts section |
| Outline view | View → Outline |
| Transitions | Slide → Slide Transition |
| Slideshow from the start | F5 |
| Quit the slideshow | Esc |
1. Create the presentation
Impress opens on a first slide with a title. Click the "Click to add title" area and type.
2. Add a slide
Right-click in the left panel → New Slide. It appears just after the selected one.
3. Choose its layout
In the Properties pane on the right, click a thumbnail in the Layouts section: title only, title and content, two columns. Exactly PowerPoint's "Layout" menu.
Text and images
The dotted areas of the layout fill in with one click: click, type. To place text elsewhere on the slide, Insert → Text Box, draw the frame, type. The same move as PowerPoint.
Outline view: the whole deck from the keyboard
View → Outline shows your deck as a list: one title per slide, bullets underneath. Type, press Tab to go down a level, and Impress creates the slides as you go. Then return to View → Normal to tidy the layout. It is the fastest way to lay down content, like PowerPoint's Outline view.
For an image: Insert → Image. The window opens on your folders, go to Pictures, pick the file, it lands on the slide. Drag it to move it.
Shift to resize without squashing
A difference from PowerPoint: when you drag a corner handle, Impress does not keep the proportions on its own. Hold Shift while you drag and the photo grows without distorting. A flattened face in a meeting gets noticed.
Animations, in moderation
To move between slides smoothly: Slide → Slide Transition, choose Fade, then click Apply Transition to All Slides. One transition, the same everywhere: the deck looks finished, not decorated.
To make bullets appear one at a time: select the text box, open the Animation pane in the sidebar, click + and choose the Appear effect. It is the equivalent of PowerPoint's "Animations" pane.
In a ministry meeting, less is more
A discreet fade between slides is enough. Text that spins around makes the room smile once, then irritates. Your colleagues should be listening to what you say, not watching the bullets fly.
Presenting to the room
Press F5: the slideshow starts at the first slide, full screen. A click, Space or the right arrow to advance; the left arrow to go back; Esc to stop. The same keys as PowerPoint.
The presenter console
Plug in the projector and start the slideshow: the room sees the slide, your screen shows the presenter console, with your notes, the next slide and the timer. The equivalent of PowerPoint's Presenter mode, with no setup.
A colleague's .pptx
Someone sends you a PowerPoint deck to finish? Double-click the file: Impress opens it, slides, notes and layouts included. Make your changes, then save. Impress asks which format: click Use PowerPoint Format! to stay in .pptx. Send the file back: your colleague opens it in PowerPoint without noticing a thing.
For a new deck meant for colleagues on Windows, File → Save As, and choose "PowerPoint Presentation (.pptx)" from the format list. If the layout shifts slightly from one machine to another, it is almost always a missing font: Module 6 shows how to install the Microsoft fonts in two clicks.
LibreOffice Impress keyboard shortcuts
A 2-page PDF in the course colours and fonts: file, slides, objects, formatting, slideshow and views. Print it or keep it open next to Impress.