The primary feature of the Breeze menu in powerpoint is the ability to add audio commentary to the presentation. This can be accomplished using the Record Audio option in the Breeze menu. In addition to using a microphone to add audio, you may also import audio using .wav files and the Breeze menu import feature.
To add audio your computer will need a microphone attached to record your voice. The best choice is the headset type with an attached boom mike. They can be purchased at most computer stores for around $20.
Click on the Record Audio option found in the Breeze Menu located in the Microsoft Powerpoint menu bar.
The first requirement is to set the microphone recording level. This level is set by speaking into the microphone while reading the text shown in bold out loud. It is important that you speak using the same volume as you will use in creating the narration. The Red Box with the text "checking recording level" will turn green and display the message "Input Level OK" when the levels are acceptable. If the computer is unable to set the levels properly a dialog box will pop up telling you that the levels could not be set. Check all connections and the computer volume settings in the control panel then click OK to clear the dialog box and repeat the procedure. Click OK to continue.(See figure below)
To begin recording the audio for the slide, click on the record button and speak into your microphone. Beneath the playback controls are 2 check boxes. Selecting the "Record/Play this slide only" button will cause the recording to stop between each slide. If you have added slide notes for narration, clicking on the checkbox labeled "View script" and then clicking the import button will display the notes as shown below. You can also enter the script directly by clicking in the text box. Clicking the export button will then place the narration into the slide notes section in Powerpoint.
When you have completed the narration for each slide, click OK. You must now save the powerpoint presentation by clicking on the save button in Powerpoint. Failure to save will cause you to lose your narration.
Other Breeze Menu Features
Inserting Flash Movies
Flash files with an extension of .swf can be embedded into you presentation using the "Insert Flash Movie" command in the Breeze Powerpoint Menu. It should be noted however, that not all Flash movies will play back properly in Breeze. In particular, some Flash movies containing audio may interfere with the narration on the slide. Macromedia recommends that the Flash movie includes controls allowing it to be played by the viewer when prompted. Additionally, the file cannot exceed 10 megabytes in size. For a complete discussion of Flash movie criteria for Breeze, Click Here.
To embed a video in your Breeze presentation follow these steps:
Select the slide where you want the Flash Movie displayed.
Click on "Insert Flash" in the breeze menu. The Select Movie to Insert dialog box will open as seen below. Browse to the desired .swf and click on the Open button.
You can now adjust the dimensions of the embedded movie object using the resize handles (small circles) located at the corners and along each side.(see image below) When the 4 headed arrow is visible, you can click and hold down the mouse button and drag the movie object to it's desired location.
For the best image quality, it is recommended that you size the object as close to the original movie size as possible.
NOTE: Adding video to the presentation will cause a dramatic increase in file size! This will lead to long download times for students using a dial up connection. The best option would be to add a link to a video in the presentation. The video can then be saved in a streaming format and uploaded to your UASHome web directory.
Creating Quizzes and Surveys
The Quiz Manager can be used to ask questions which will allow the students to test their comprehension of the topic being presented. This tool cannot be used as a faculty evaluation tool due to the fact that at present their is no support for creating and maintaining student accounts in Breeze at UAS. This means that there is no way of tracking student answers to the quizzes in Breeze. The quiz tool on UAS Online can be used for faculty evaluation of student knowledge or to survey the students and save the results.
To create questions in Breeze:
Click on Quiz Manager in the Breeze Powerpoint menu. The Quiz Manager window opens. Click on the Edit Quiz Settings button to edit the quiz options.
In the Quiz Settings window you can set a name for the quiz and control how the quiz will be presented. You can set the quiz to be required or optional, decide whether to allow backward movement in the quiz and control whether or not to allow the user to review the quiz, the messages provided during the review, whether or not to display the correct answers, and if the score is to be shown when the quiz is complete. The pass or fail options tab allows you to set the required score to pass the quiz and if the quiz may be taken more than once. Once you have completed entering the quiz setting click on the OK button to return to the quiz manager window.
To add questions to the quiz click on the Add New Question button. The Question Types window opens allowing you to choose the type of question you wish to add. Select the type of question you want to add by clicking on it. Breeze allows 5 basic question types including Multiple Choice, True/False, Fill-in-the-blank, Short Answer, and Rating Scales. Next you can decide whether the question you are creating is to be grade as a quiz question, or if the question is to be part of a survey by clicking on the appropriate button at the bottom of the window.
Once you have clicked on the button to create a question the appropriate dialog box opens allowing you to enter the questions and the answers for that question. Once you have entered the question click on the OK button to add the button to the quiz/survey. The Quiz Manager window will now reopen. The question will now be displayed under the quiz name as shown below. Click here for Macromedia online information about the types of questions and the options associated with each type.
When you have finished entering buttons click on the OK button and slides containing the questions are added to the Powerpoint Presentation. It is important that you save the presentation at this time. Failure to do so will cause the questions to be erased.
