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FAQs By John Campopiano

Co-workers have been talking about Prezi. What is it? Prezi is presentation software that allows its users to create and share ideas on, what the creators call, a virtual canvas. Prezi is a kind of software referred to as Software as a Service (SAAS), which means that it is a piece of software accessible not in the way of traditional packaged software, but through the Web. Prezi is exciting because it allows for a more dynamic, interesting, and visually enticing presentation. The format of the Prezi presentation also allows the viewer to actually following along with a particular mode of thinking or progression of ideas. Other similar presentation software products, such as PowerPoint, are a bit more formulaic with their “slide 1, followed by slide 2, followed by slide 3” pattern.

When was Prezi created? Who created it? Prezi was officially launched in 2009, though creator Adam Somlai-Fischer had been experimenting with zooming presentations since 2001. As the official Prezi website states, “…in 2007, Budapest University of Technology professor Peter Halacsy convinced Adam to develop an editor so that anyone could make zooming presentations. After creating a prototype, they recruited a business-minded entrepreneur, Peter Arvai, to join as CEO — to help them build a product and a company. Prezi was launched in April 2009 from Budapest, leading to investments from TED conferences and Sunstone Capital.”

Figure 1. Adam Solmai-Fischer

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What does ZUI mean? ZUI stands for Zooming User Interface. This kind of interface has become popular in recent years and is seen as a more interactive alternative to traditional interfaces. Users of a ZUI can browse over a virtual surface and interact with various kinds of documents.

Why bother learning Prezi when I could just use PowerPoint?

The biggest difference between Prezi and PowerPoint is the emphasis on the linear format. For individuals looking to use Prezi at the basic level, the obvious difference is the emphasis on the visual presentation. On the other hand and in a more traditional sense, PowerPoint typically places the emphasis on the textual presentation. As one reviewer of both Prezi and PowerPoint pointed out, one possible way to utilize Prezi’s non-linearity within the context of a more linear-based presentation would be to treat the Prezi presentation like a reference resource. “One possible approach,” says writer for the Classroom201x website, Phil Bird, “would be [to] build up a great big bank of resources/links around a topic (almost like a text/reference book) and then set a different path through this ‘forest of knowledge’ for each presentation depending on the audience or the time allowed etc.” Click here. This approach would prove difficult in a PowerPoint presentation. While PowerPoint serves many functions especially when designing a more linear presentation, Prezi presentations tend to service those that are putting forth complex ideas, resources, or themes and wish to have their interconnectedness expressed visually, as opposed to textually. Another wonderful feature of Prezi is that you can upload your PowerPoint or Keynote presentations into Prezi, essentially (as the Prezi site says) “Prezifying” your presentation. Going to “Insert” then clicking on “load file” does this.

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As a beginner, what do I need to know first? Are there things I should already be familiar with before using Prezi? While it isn’t necessary, it would be extremely helpful if you have had some experience with presentation programs, like PowerPoint or Keynote, before attempting to use Prezi. Furthermore (and probably more obvious) it would be wise to have your project fully mapped out before attempting to make a Prezi presentation. While the latter seems like a “duh” comment, it is easy to get excited about the visual components of a presentation and start on it before the content is flushed out. Prezi works to build a web of ideas, concepts or plans. In order to utilize not only space on the canvas but also the (ability to achieve the most effective presentation possible) it would be smart to help yourself and get the content organized first! Fill in the presentation with the content later. In general, Prezi works best on Windows and worst on Linux. Prezi utilizes Adobe Flash technology and therefore if you are trying to create a more complex and visually demanding Prezi presentation, being up-to-date with your Flash software is highly recommended.

Does Prezi cost anything? How much space do I get with the web-based version? There are three different versions of the Prezi software: Prezi Public, Prezi Enjoy, and Prezi Pro. Prezi Public is free for all users, while Prezi Enjoy and Prezi Pro come with a payment plan. For Prezi Public you are given 100MB of space. Prezi Enjoy costs $59/year and you are allotted 500MB of space. Finally, Prezi Pro costs $159/year and you are allotted 2GB of space. Each version of Prezi also comes with certain features that help users create, share, and save their Prezi presentations. With Prezi Public, you’re given access to the Prezi Offline Software, which allows you to play your Prezi presentation from your desktop and while being offline. As already mentioned before, with Prezi Enjoy you are given 400MB of more space as well as the Prezi Offline Software. With Prezi Prousers are given more presentation storage space as well as access to the Prezi Desktop Software, which allow users to create, edit, and view their Prezi presentations offline. (There are educational accounts at the Prezi Enjoy and Prezi Pro level. These are called EDU accounts, which are only available for users with educational credentials, i.e., professors, teachers, librarians, etc).

What is the Prezi canvas? The “canvas” is the area in which users can design their presentations. Because Prezi utilizes ZUI technology, any given canvas will be bigger than the given viewing area. The ZUI technology allows users to freely move around this virtual canvas and add or remove content.

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What is Prezi Desktop?

For a fee, Prezi Desktop allows the user to edit and save Prezi presentations on a home computer. While it does cost something, it’s beneficial in that the user can work on presentations without the interruption of non-functioning websites or limited Internet access. A subscription to Prezi Pro or Edu Pro is required.

Can I see my Prezi project on my iPad? Yes! --- However, you must download the free Prezi Viewer application from Apple first. To download it click here.

I teach fourth and fifth graders. Would Prezi be too challenging for my students to learn? No, I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s too challenging. In fact, I think it would be a good way to help students understand larger concepts. In fact, teachers and librarians have already been sharing their ideas about Prezi in early education both in online forums and blogs as well as in journal articles. Some of the ideas presented in which Prezi could be beneficial to younger students are using Prezi to show multiple perspectives of an argument, related YouTube clips, for telling stories, and for simple assignments. Prezi can also be a valuable tool to help teach students the nature of collaboration. In addition, students using Prezi Meeting can be given the opportunity to interact with other students from around the world in a way that is creative and constructive. Too often young people are absorbing unhealthy amounts of technology, specifically technology that may not be proving beneficial to their mental and social growth (i.e., video games, online meandering, etc). If used appropriately, Prezi has the power to engage students in a colorful, stimulating way, while keeping them interested and informed. For a better look into how Prezi is being utilized in early education watch this YouTube video.

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Would Prezi be beneficial for libraries and archives? Absolutely. Prezi Presentations could be helpful to librarians who are presenting complicated topics or topics that have multilayered elements. Let’s say that a librarian is helping students in a class to pick a midterm paper topic. Lets also say that this is a history class and their paper topics have to somehow involve some aspect of the American Civil War. The librarian could give a presentation outlining various topics the students could choose from and also supply examples of valuable resources in the library’s collection that cover the given topic. Figure 2 below shows how this layout might look.

Figure 2

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Now that we’ve seen the possible layout, let’s take a look at Figure 3 and see how a librarian might organize the path of the presentation.

Figure 3

To see how all of these elements come together to make an interactive, yet extremely helpful presentation, click me! Andy Burkhardt, writer for the “Information Tyrannosaur” blog, wrote in 2010 about a friend of his who is utilizing Prezi in the library setting. He writes, “…I found out about a presentation tool called Prezi from my friend Becky who is doing some very cool things at the University of Dubuque in Iowa. She’s using Prezi as a tool to help with some of the dozens of research and information literacy classes that she teaches.” Burkhardt goes on to talk about how utilizing Prezi with students in a library (or any other academic setting) could help to narrow research topics and keywords. Ultimately, the presenter can always zoom out from the virtual canvas to show a bird’s eye view of the connected themes and topics. Aside from academic instruction, I see Prezi having a place in the administrative and even archival realms, too. In today’s technology-heavy work environments, giving presentations to either co-workers or supervisors is certainly the norm. Therefore, I think librarians, archivists, and just about any other working professional could find Prezi both engaging and helpful, particularly when trying to present difficult or complicated ideas or concepts. Perhaps an archivist might be trying to present ways in which certain collections within a repository have been

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utilized by researchers in a given year. Prezi could function as a great tool to map out the ways in which users have utilized collections. An archivist might want to relay this kind of information to a supervisor for funding needs or to legitimize the acquisition of a particular collection. Furthermore, an archivist or librarian may be asked to give a statistical breakdown of patron usage to an administrative committee or board of trustees. Prezi’s virtual canvas format and flexible maneuvering would make for a much better presentation tool for clearly showing stats, trends, and information (more so than the more linear slide-based presentation tools like PowerPoint and Keynote). Keeping with the example of the American Civil War, this Prezi is an example of what a student’s final project might look like.

What are other people saying about Prezi? Prezi’s zooming capability solves a key cognitive problem of PowerPoint – maintaining context – primarily through the Tuftean concept of micro-macro views. It also easily affords nonlinear authoring of ideas with the option to add the linear presentation “path” later. This is a liberating way of working. – Solid State UX, 2009 I’ve been using Prezi for well over a year in my teaching and in buyer and seller presentations. The reaction is the same every time… they are captivated and amazed. -Liz Landry TechSavvyAgent.com, 2010 Perhaps the best feature is that it allows designers to focus on designing. Using Prezi, you can present a concept and supply multiple branches to supporting media without writing a line of code—it’s like sketching an idea on a napkin...Prezi is a unique tool you’ll want to consider adding to your toolset. -Cyndy Cashman, Layers Magazine, 2009 Whether you rely on Powerpoint, Keynote or another presentation application, you’re sharing a series of slides that progress in a linear fashion. While you can craft beautiful presentations, you’re up against a format that never changes. One web-based application is working on changing that, though: Prezi has an intuitive interface for both building a presentation and sharing it with your audience. -Thursday Bram NYT, 2009

I’m a visual learner. Is there anywhere I can see exactly how to make my first Prezi presentation? Yes, right here! Below see the step-by-step, visual guide to starting your own basic Prezi presentation! The visual guides should serve to highlight the basic steps

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in starting a Prezi presentation, assigning it a theme, and a general overview of the tools you’ll need to know about in order to design your unique presentation.

Step 1: Create An Account

Step 2: Click “New Prezi”

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Step 3: Title and Describe Your Prezi Presentation

Step 4: Choose a Template For Your Prezi Presentation

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Step 5: Start Editing Your Prezi Presentation!

5a: Colors & Fonts, *Note, each “style” or template comes with three different fonts to choose from.

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5b: Paths, *Note, “paths” function in the way slides function in PowerPoint. This navigational feature is one of the ways in which Prezi differs from the more traditional presentation software.

5c: Frame

5d: Insert

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5e: Shapes

6. Understanding the Prezi Zebra, *Note, the Zebra functions in a variety of ways. For instance, to re-size an image, simply click the image and the Zebra will appear. Then, follow the rules presented in the chart below to re-size, rotate, or delete the image. This same rule applies for altering text and video.

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Resources For Further Learning While I’ve outlined what Prezi is, it’s history, who its potential users are, why it’s a useful tool, and the basic steps to starting your own presentation, consider these following sources as extremely valuable as you develop your skills and take your Prezi presentation to the next level of complexity. 1. For tips and tricks on how to take your basic Prezi presentation to the next level, watch this instructional Prezi presentation video here. 2. These two videos made by Prezi founder Adam Somlai-Fischer, provide helpful information on looping and zooming with Prezi as well as inserting animations into your Prezi presentation. In addition, advice is given for those who don’t know Adobe Flash but who still want to incorporate animations into their work. 3. This website has extensive information about everything from designing your Prezi, to keyboard shortcuts for the Prezi software, to publishing your Prezi presentation, to upgrading your Prezi account. This is a fantastic resource for all of your complex Prezi needs. 4. Are you up-to-date with Adobe Flash? Not sure? Click this link.