The topic of the pros and cons of bulleted text elicits a lot of animated, opinionated discussion.

Sometimes, you can't think of a way to avoid bullets. So, how do you format them?

Some people like to animate (build) the bullets so that they come in one-by-one. I recently heard a Web seminar by an experienced presenter in the CAD (computer aided design) field say, "I hate it when people bring all the bullets in at once. I can't figure out which item the presenter is talking about. Please, make it easy on me."

And just before that, I heard another experienced presenter say, "Building bullets is like spoon-feeding the audience. I hate it when presenters do that!"

So, is there a middle ground? Yes! This technique brings in all the bullets at once, dimmed, but readable. Then you undim them as you discuss them. People who like to see all the bullets at once are happy, and those who like a clue as to the current item you're discussing are fulfilled as well.

PowerPoint doesn't have an undimming feature, so you need to change the font color, using animation. Here's are the steps:

1. Format the bullets in a medium color, such as gray. Make sure that the color you choose is visible against your background.

2. Choose Slide Show>Custom Animation. (In PowerPoint 2007, choose the Animations tab> Custom Animation.)

3. Select the text placeholder with the bullets by clicking anywhere inside it.

4. Choose Add Effect> Emphasis> Change Font Color. (You may have to click More Effects to find the Change Font Color animation.)

5. Set the Font Color to the default font color. Set the speed to Fast; there's no reason to make audiences wait while the font changes color. Keep the default On Click in the Start box, so that you can undim each line as you get to it.

Try this technique the next time you create a bulleted slide and see if the audience is happier!

Ellen Finkelstein, is the best-selling author of How to Do Everything with PowerPoint 2007 (and previous editions for PowerPoint 2002 and PowerPoint 2003) Her award-winning Web site features loads of free tips on PowerPoint, the monthly PowerPoint Tips Newsletter, and the PowerPoint Tips Blog - http://www.ellenfinkelstein.com

- This article in its original form may have included images and/or other media. To see the original article, go to: http://www.ellenfinkelstein.com/powerpointtips/powerpoint_tip_undim_bullets.html

- For more free PowerPoint tips, go to http://www.ellenfinkelstein.com/powerpoint_tip.html

When you want to make a change to the look of all of the slides in your presentation, you dont need to change each slide individually. You can make the change once on the slide master.

There are times when renting, versus owning, a trade show display makes good sense. It could be that your primary trade show booth is already in use at another show; you have budget or turnaround time constraints; or you may be testing the trade show experience for the first time.

Whatever the case, here are five fundamental guidelines that will make your trade show exhibit rental experience trouble free and successful:

1. Find a highly transportable solution

Find a rental trade show display that can be easily and quickly setup to save on trade show display installation and dismantling costs. Choose trade show exhibits that are built to survive unpredictable transport and are constructed to ensure fast, flawless trade show exhibit assembly and rapid, fool-proof trade show exhibit breakdown.

2. Choose lightweight structures

Today you can find exceptionally stable, yet lightweight, platforms such as high tech aluminum extrusion profile forms that can act as the backbone of your trade show display. Straight and curved modular elements in varying lengths also work together in virtually limitless combinations to create unique, personalized rental trade show exhibit booths.

3. Look for versatility

Being flexible is a key to providing a solution for rental trade show exhibit environmentsfrom trade show booth interiors and dividing walls to free standing podium additions or other options.
You can define your trade show exhibit areas space starting with a freestanding platform. You may want to create a quiet island for serious prospects amid the noise and chaos of the typical show floor. Todays versatile rental trade show display systems even have modular wall elements that can act to enclose some or all of your exhibit space.

4. Go for clean, clear, crisp and creative functional designs

By using advanced high tech design solutions, you will be able to have a rental trade show booth that can relay your companys message in a focused and powerful way. Contemporary rental trade show exhibit structures can be custom designed to create a personalized trade show floor statement that expresses your companys marketing goals and objectives.

5. Create environment for interaction between your sales force and hot prospects

Whether its a rental trade show exhibit or a permanent trade show exhibit, the ideal trade show display encourages person-to-person interactions through attention to traffic flow within the exhibit and careful placement of exhibit design elements for maximum efficiency and accessibility to product demonstrations, product displays, and marketing literature. Make it easy for your attendees to feel at home with visible and accessible literature. Set up exhibit demonstration areas designed to draw the attendee in and make the experience comfortable.

Try out imaginative and innovative trade show exposure ideas when you rent. Its a great way to test trade show exhibit options before purchasing a permanent exhibit or making a major trade show booth commitment.

By following the rental trade show booth tips outlined above, you will be well on the way to a having a successful rental trade show display experience. This is true wherever you have your rental custom trade show exhibit or rental custom modular exhibit, whether the trade show exhibit is at the Las Vegas Convention Center, the Moscone Center in San Francisco, the Santa Clara Convention Center or the San Jose McEnery Convention Center.

Dick Wheeler is President of Professional Exhibits & Graphics, headquartered in Sunnyvale, California with showroom in Sacramento. Firm is full service, premiere trade show exhibit, trade show graphics and management services. http://www.eurosysrental.com

Check out this article to see how you can download new layouts for SmartArt graphics from Microsoft Office Online for free.