Creating a Slideshow

How to create a slideshow presentation, using items in your collection.
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As you saw in the Overview video, NeoCollect helps you manage and showcase your collections, connect with other serious collectors and share your expertise. 

The videos on Entering Collection Information and Describing an Item explained the template for entering information about a particular item, and provided a few ideas to consider when describing an item. 

The Organizing Your Collection video explained how your NeoCollect collections and items can be moved around so they are easy for you to locate, enjoy and share. 

Once you have created a NeoCollect collection and entered several items, you can arrange the images and other information from items in your collections into slide shows to share with others. 

This video describes the process for creating and sharing a NeoCollect slideshow, which is like an illustrated article or a set of slides that you might use to make a presentation. 

To begin creating a new slideshow, type a very brief name for the show (as you would like it to appear on the representative tile) into the Name box. 

This Name does not need to be the full title of the slideshow.  You will have the opportunity to create a title slide for the show in a moment. 

Next, select a representative image for the slideshow by clicking on the Select an Image link and choosing one of the images from an item in your collection.  This is the image which will be displayed on the tile that represents the slideshow in NeoCollect. 

While most slideshows will eventually be shared with others, you may for now want to keep the default private setting, until the catalog is complete and ready to be shared. 

Then, click the Create Slideshow button. If you’ve made a mistake or wish to change the title, description, representative image or privacy setting, simply click the Edit Title & Settings button, make the necessary changes and click Save.  

NeoCollect allows you to create four basic types of slides for your slideshow – a title slide, a text-only slide, a slide with an image on the left side and descriptive text on the right, and a slide with two images.  You can also use the two image slide template to create a slide with a single, centered image and no descriptive text, if you’d like. 

A title slide, like this one from a sample slideshow on Admiral Vernon Medals, is formatted to display a simple title with a few subtitle lines. 

A text slide can be used to display a few bullet points as on this slide from the same slideshow, or more extensive text, like this, or a combination of text and bullet points, like this. 

An image and text slide, like this one, can be used to discuss a photograph of an item at some length, while a two-image side can be used to compare two different items or show both sides of the same item. 

Every slide has a title highlighting the overall idea that the slide is meant to convey, and a lead sentence or two – perhaps what you would say if you were presenting the slide to a group. 

The image slides contain not only a title, lead sentence and the images, of course (including captions), but also indentify the source of the images, including links to the items, collectors and source collections. 

If the viewer does not want to leave the show to go to an item and learn more, there is also a description link that can be used to display more of the detailed information from the item record at the bottom of the slide. 

To create the first slide, click on the type of slide you would like – say, a title slide – type the title of the show as you would like it to appear in the box on the title page and click on the Add Slide button. 

You can then add whatever subtitle text you would like, including, for example, your name and a date, and save the slide. 

You’ll notice that each slide has a gray bar at the bottom, displaying the name of the show, the fact that it’s still private for now, and links to the NeoCollect home page, and pages for editing the show and the slide.  There is also a drop-down box that can display a list of all the slides in the show, and buttons at the lower right for watching the show page-by-page. 

Click on the Edit Show link to create the next slide. Again, choose the slide layout, enter a title for the slide, and decide where in the show you would like to insert the slide, if not at the end, then add the slide. 

Type in the text that you would like to appear on the slide and use the buttons at bottom of the text entry box to format the text, including bold or italic fonts, symbols, bullet points, and even links to web pages. 

To add an image slide, chose the appropriate slide layout, type in a title and click Add Slide. 

At this point you can add a few sentences of explanation that will be displayed over the images.  

To insert the images, click on the Select Image link, first for the left image, find the appropriate collection, item, and image, and click on it. 

You can then insert a brief caption, but can also leave the captions blank if they aren’t necessary. 

Select a second image, either another image from the same item record or an image from another item, and, again, add a brief caption. 

You can continue creating new slides, adding as many more as you wish. 

As you add more slides to your slideshow and edit them to ensure that the discussion flows smoothly, you may wish to reorganize the slideshow and perhaps even remove some of the slides that no longer fit. Click the Organize Slides button that is displayed near the top of slideshow editing page and move the slides around just as you would move items within one of your collections or catalogues.  You can move slides around in your NeoCollect slideshow by left clicking your mouse on a slide, holding down the button, dragging the slide to another position and then dropping it there by releasing the button. 

For individual slides that need to be moved just one or two spaces, it may be more convenient to use the small green arrows that you see to the left of each slide, as in your collections.  Just click on the green arrows to move a slide up or down the list one position at a time. 

As you complete your slideshow, you will want to share it with others.  A slideshow can be shared even before it is made public, in order to get feedback and suggestions.  Click on the Share this Slideshow button near the top of the page, type in the email addresses for the intended recipients, customize the message as needed and click on the Send Invitations button.  

When you are ready to begin sharing your slideshow more publicly, go to the slideshow settings, change the privacy setting to Public and click Save Changes.  Your slideshow can now be viewed more broadly on NeoCollect and will be eligible to be featured on the NeoCollect home page. 

In order for your slideshow to be displayed in the relevant NeoCollect communities, the show must be linked to those communities. Click on the Linked Communities button near the top of the Editing page and choose from the communities listed in the Add a Linked Community drop-down box.  Note that you can only link your show to communities that you have joined, so only those communities are listed. To complete the process, click on Add Link. 

Please watch the other NeoCollect videos. 

And, of course, please e-mail or call us if you need help or more information.

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