But not for the reasons posited by Edward Tufte. In his article "PowerPoint
is Evil," Tufte's principal concern relates to the use of slideware
for data reduction. His preference is for voluminous tables of statistical
data, allowing the reader to interpret the entire set for himself. Eschewing
the value of data reduction--in the form of graphs, in this case--Tufte goes so far
as to say that the use of templated graphs leads to "an analytical disaster."
As a researcher, I don't mind reading tables--chances are I'll be the
one creating them for myself and others in the first place. But it's just as
likely that I'll be trying to communicate with others who don't have the
statistics background that I have. One example I'll never forget was a
situation in which I was trying to describe a problem to a very high-level
executive. In nearly any aspect of this executive's work, he was clearly head
and shoulders above the crowd. Getting him to buy into my idea should have been
a piece of cake, given his intellectual capacity. My problem? I used the word
"mean" to describe a set of numbers. The executive's response? "Okay, so that's
the mean, but what's the average?" Lesson learned: Knowledge sharing doesn't
happen if you don't communicate effectively.
Which brings me to why PowerPoint is
evil: In many cases, it isn't an effective communication vehicle. As many
others have correctly observed, PowerPoint become
the presentation, rather
than the support for the presentation. I might be the worst of all at
presenting without accompanying slideware. It's become as much of a crutch for
me as my wireless laser pointer has. The only thing that keeps me from making
it even worse is that I simply refuse to learn any of the more "sophisticated"
features of PowerPoint, like fades, animation, and audio. I often wonder: What
have I really gotten across to everyone by the time I get to the "Questions"
slide?
The bottom line? Sharing knowledge effectively requires not only context,
but also a shared context if the receiver is going to be able to make
good use of the knowledge.
Exellent points.. and may I also add ..
A good presentation in PowerPoint or a similar tool is as much about what ISN'T on the slide as what is. Focus enables clarity.
What can have as much value in a group setting is a "one pager" with full sentences, appropriate context, a highly applicable concept graphic or two for us visual folks, and distributed in ADVANCE of the get togethter.
And finally, shared context comes through discussion and dialog, not one way transmission of information content, which is too easily interpreted in as many uniqe ways as there listeners in a given audience. When will we ever get away from the old fashioned presentation + Q&A in settings where people are reluctant to ask good questions..