Presentation program

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In computing, a presentation program (also called presentation software) is a software package used to display information in the form of a slide show. It has three major functions:^[1]

• an editor that allows text to be inserted and formatted
• a method for inserting and manipulating graphic images and media clips
• a slide-show system to display the content

Presentation software can be viewed^{[by whom?]} as enabling a functionally-specific category of electronic media, with its own distinct culture and practices as compared to traditional presentation media (such as blackboards, whiteboards and flip charts).

Presentations in this mode of delivery have become pervasive in many aspects of business communication, especially in business planning, as well as in academic-conference and professional conference settings, and in the knowledge economy generally, where ideas are a primary work output. Presentations may also feature prominently in political settings, especially in workplace politics, where persuasion is a central determinant of group outcomes.^{[citation needed]}

Most modern meeting-rooms and conference halls are configured to include presentation electronics, such as projectors suitable for displaying presentation slides, often driven by the presenter's own laptop, under direct control of the presentation program used to develop the presentation. Often a presenter will present a lecture using the slides as a visual aid both for the presenter (to track the lecture's coverage) and for the audience (especially when an audience member mishears or misunderstands the verbal component).

Generally in presentations, the visual material is considered^{[by whom?]} supplemental to a strong aural presentation that accompanies the slide show, but in many cases, such as statistical graphics, it can be difficult to convey essential information other than by visual means; additionally, a well-designed infographic can be extremely effective in a way that words are not. Endemic over-reliance on slides with low information density and with a poor accompanying lecture has given presentation software a negative reputation as sometimes functioning as a crutch for the poorly informed or the poorly prepared.