How to post cleanly one slide in a WP post?

September 28, 2009 7:50 AM

Is there a way to show single slides in WordPress without losing definition?

I have been working on an online presentation with text and graphs on .ppt (just to be seen on computer screens).
I just want to be able to post a slide as an image in my WordPress blog so I can add text underneath if necessary.
I had tried before .ppt to .pdf to .jpg and I thought it looked good but obviously my test was not detailed enough: now with colored lines and 12pt text on the slide, I lose definition, colors are bleeding, artifacts everywhere.. the horror... the horror!

With slideshare, I have only 2 choices: small screen or full screen, with no option to display each slide separately.

Am I overlooking something basic or is there a solution I don't know about?
Note: I am not a coder but I can have something installed if necessary.

posted by bru to computers & internet (3 comments total)

I'd need to see exactly what results you are getting, but the jpeg format may not be the most appropriate for your needs. Jpegs are lossy, and the higher the compression ratio, the more artifacts you'll see; this is especially problematic with text and line art—jpegs are best suited for continuous-tone images.

Your options are 1) generate jpegs with minimal compression; 2) generate your images in a different format, like gif (which only supports a limited color palette) or png; 3) publish as pdf on your website and let your readers sort that out.
posted by adamrice at 8:31 AM on September 28

Instead of saving the slide as a PDF, and then converting the PDF to JPG, have you tried this?

1. Open the PPT, and go to the slide you want.

2. On the File menu, click Save As.
The Save As dialog box displays.

3. On the Save As Type field, select PNG Portable Network Graphics Format (*.png), and then click Save.
An information dialog box asks if you want to export every slide, or the current slide.

4. Click Current Slide Only.
PowerPoint saves the current slide as a PNG graphic file.

5. Insert the PNG into Wordpress.
posted by Houstonian at 8:36 AM on September 28

Thank you.
png gives better results, especially black letters are darker and more defined.
There is still some loss when reducing the image size to fit in the wp column, but I am still trying different options.

Meanwhile, thank you: I am breathing better already.
posted by bru at 9:27 AM on September 28