1. Annoying Slide Templates
Don’t use ‘em

2. Text This is 32 This is 24 This is 16 This is 14
Select View Slide Show under Slide Show at the top of the screen to see what this slide looks at roughly the same ratio that you’ll see it in a live presentation.

3. Text
You’re not listening to me at all right now; you’re trying to read this information and becoming annoyed that my talking is jamming your reading.
Powerpoint is to show graphics, not to present text. If you have substantial amounts of text that need consideration, present it in a handout that your audience can take with them for later perusal.

4. Graphics Use one graphic per slide (maybe two to compare
Make sure the captions are readable
View the Slide Show (under Slide Show) to watch the behaviors on this slide. Notice that black on purple is insufficient contrast for reading this text.

5. Graphics Don’t crowd the page
biomed/pie-chart.gif
You have to cite the sources of your graphics, and the citations have to be readable
pie-chart.gif