reunion info distribution

Skyroket said:

I don't know if PowerPoint is the best way, though. I would say something like a spreadsheet printed out and mailed. Isn't that the best way you old fogeys like to do things? (haha I'm sorry, I had to go there)

This old fogey taught Computer Science for 30 years b4 retirement. Mrs. Fogey managed an Access Database for an airlines b4 retirement and has subsequently marketed similar software to retirement communities. However, we agree that many old fogeys have avoided computers like the plague and if they have one, it's likely 10 or 15 years old. That's why we're not sure yet as to what avenue to pursue with this project. I think we need a product that will operate on ANY windows computer.

ChuckN said:

If you build a PPT presentation and send it to someone who does not have PPT on their machine, they need to download a free viewer from MS, which allows viewing only. (I guess that's why they call it a Viewer).

Yes, that's a given. If you look in my quote, I was referring to a .pps file, which basically turns a ppt into a self-contained executable. The question was...if a .pps file could be played on a computer without PoerPoint...not a .ppt.

okay, enough on PowerPoint. Does anyone have suggestions on OTHER software, something that would operate on all windows machines ?

DeaconFrost said:

Yes, that's a given. If you look in my quote, I was referring to a .pps file, which basically turns a ppt into a self-contained executable. The question was...if a .pps file could be played on a computer without PoerPoint...not a .ppt.

You still need the viewer program, unless you use the "Package for CD" feature when creating the presentation. With that feature, it puts all the files needed to play it into one folder and sets it up with an autorun.inf. I'm pretty sure you could even just copy those files to a USB stick and it would work, but that would be a bit more pricey than burning CDs.

ChuckN said:

okay, enough on PowerPoint. Does anyone have suggestions on OTHER software, something that would operate on all windows machines ?

The next thing up I'd think would be a website or PDF.

Skyroket said:

ChuckN said:

okay, enough on PowerPoint. Does anyone have suggestions on OTHER software, something that would operate on all windows machines ?

The next thing up I'd think would be a website or PDF.

aha, two good suggestions to think about....

I was thinking you wanted something physical to distribute, but in all honesty, a website is the best approach, and can even be done free or at a very low cost. The advantage to a website is that it is the most flexible option, where you can provide whatever content you feel like, in whatever format you feel like. Every computer has a web-browser.

DeaconFrost said:

I was thinking you wanted something physical to distribute, but in all honesty, a website is the best approach, and can even be done free or at a very low cost. The advantage to a website is that it is the most flexible option, where you can provide whatever content you feel like, in whatever format you feel like. Every computer has a web-browser.

I will run this idea through the others. Where would you suggest getting a free website? What would you use to develop a simple site? I developed a site once, using MS Publisher. I was told it was terribly inefficient, but it worked, and was easy to use....

Most blog type sites, like Wordpress, allow you to set up a free site. I'm sure there are countless others. If you want a hosting plan with your own domain name, you can get them for as little as $3 or so a month. I use 1and1 to do my hosting. Most places will also have tools available to make your own websites with no programming experience. Many ISPs also give their customers free webspace as well, but limit the amount of storage space you have.

ChuckN said:

I will run this idea through the others. Where would you suggest getting a free website? What would you use to develop a simple site?

I use iPower.com for my hosting and domain management. They have a cool and easy web site builder called Weebly Drag & Drop builder. I don't know if it will do very well for chart type data like names and contact information, but it does really well for pictures and text. You can only create a small site, like 5 pages, with the free version, then you have to pay more if you want a bigger site.