This 3 page paper talks about the problem of using Powerpoint or even Keynote, the program used in Gore's film. The best ways of presenting information are discussed.
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considered to be negative, at least by this author. However, in an assignment submitted by a student, there is a suggestion that in reality, PowerPoint type of presentations are actually
good and uses Al Gores film as an example. Most people are familiar with the fact that Al Gore created an Academy Award winning documentary showing the problem of global
warming. Although many people found the presentation rather drab, it seems that it was quite a hit. Tufte describes the disruptive nature of the slide show created by a
power point presentation, suggesting that one is shown slices of information that attracts attention but then goes quickly to the next thing (160). The author seems to prefer handouts
to what is found in the context of the PowerPoint Presentation (Tufte 160). But the author goes on to say that the presentation created by a PowerPoint show is actually
not as good as is good teaching (Tufte 161). This is an interesting point. Does an instructor who uses PowerPoint displays shirk his responsibilities as a teacher? Is such a
teacher relying on a less valuable method of teaching by using this type of software? There do seem to be two major points to emanate from the Tufte piece, one
of which is the fact that PowerPoint presentations have aesthetic problems and so, they are uninspiring, and the other is that they are not as good as good teaching and
are therefore deficient. The points are well taken. PowerPoint is simply a software that helps to organize material and is not used by artists for example. It is software that
is utilized by the general public to spout tid bits of information. That said, does Al Gore present his materials appropriately? He uses a presentation format similar to that of