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Work with PowerPoint Objects

In CDM, PowerPoint objects are primarily used for visual presentations in a report.

CDM can take advantage of existing PowerPoint documents by importing them directly into the PowerPoint object for use in the report. You can add charts, display ranges, or image ranges containing data or graphics to enhance the PowerPoint object. Every time you save a PowerPoint object, the data is saved in the CDM database.

You can view an audit trail for the report object information and content in the database and you can compare different versions of the PowerPoint object.

Important: PowerPoint objects in CDM have the same functionality as Microsoft PowerPoint. The advanced functionality for Microsoft products is beyond the scope of this guide. However, some topics are included for your convenience. For more information, see the Microsoft documentation. Depending on the version of Microsoft PowerPoint that is installed on your computer, some of the steps that you must follow might vary slightly.

Reference a Chart in a PowerPoint Object

In a PowerPoint object in CDM, you can reference a chart from an Excel object.

In the source Excel object, you must have defined a chart. See Add a Chart to an Excel Object.

  1. Open the report that you want to work with.
  2. Open and check out the PowerPoint object that you want to edit.
  3. Click the Section View Mode icon in the status bar.
  4. Insert a text box and position it where you want the chart to appear in the PowerPoint object.

    Tip: You can also make the text box the size you want the chart to be displayed.

  5. Click the Report Object tab on the ribbon, then click Insert Variable > Chart. The Reference Variables window opens, displaying all chart variables in the report.
  6. Select the chart variable you want to use and from the Insert as Chart button drop-down menu select one of the following options:
    • Insert as Chart - Use this option to import a chart in its original size.
    • Insert as Chart and resize - Use this option to import a chart according to the size of the text box you have created. Make the text box bigger or smaller depending on the size of chart you want displayed.

    A hyperlink to the chart is inserted.

  7. Save your changes to the PowerPoint object.
  8. Click the Default View Mode icon in the status bar.
  9. Save your changes to the report and check in the PowerPoint object.

After you generate the document, the chart defined in the Excel object will resolve in the PowerPoint object with the original formatting.

Reference a Picture in a PowerPoint Object

In a PowerPoint object in CDM, you can reference a picture from an Excel object.

In the source Excel object, you must have inserted a picture. If you format the picture by entering an ALT Text description for it, this description is then used to identify the picture by name in the Reference Variables window. If no ALT Text description exists, the file name of the picture is used to identify the picture.

To reference a picture from an Excel object in a PowerPoint object:

  1. Open the report that you want to work with.
  2. Open and check out the PowerPoint object that you want to edit.
  3. Click the Section View Mode icon in the status bar.
  4. Insert a text box and position it where you want the picture to appear in the PowerPoint object.

    Tip: You can also make the text box the size you want the picture to be displayed.

  5. Click the Report Object tab on the ribbon, then click Insert Variable > Picture. The Reference Variables window opens, displaying all picture variables in the report.
  6. Select the picture variable you want to use and from the Insert as Image button drop-down menu select one of the following options:
    • Insert as Image - Use this option to import a picture in its original size.
    • Insert as Image and resize - Use this option to import a picture according to the size of the text box you have created. Make the text box bigger or smaller depending on the size of picture you want displayed.

    A hyperlink to the picture is inserted.

  7. Save your changes to the PowerPoint object.
  8. Click the Default View Mode icon in the status bar.
  9. Save your changes to the report and check in the PowerPoint object.

After you generate the document, the picture inserted in the Excel object will resolve in the PowerPoint object.

Reference a Source-Destination Variable in a PowerPoint Object

In an PowerPoint object in CDM, you can reference a source report object variable in an Excel object.

In the source Excel object, you must have defined a source variable.

  1. Open the report that you want to work with.
  2. Open and check out the PowerPoint object that you want to edit.
  3. Click the Section View Mode icon in the status bar.
  4. Position the pointer in the PowerPoint object where you want to insert the destination variable. If you are inserting the variable in a blank slide, you do not have to position your cursor.
  5. Click the Report Object tab on the ribbon, then click Insert Variable > Source-Destination. The Reference Variables window opens, displaying all destination (##D<varname>) and global destination (##GD<varname>) variables that have a corresponding source (##S<varname> or ##GSD<varname>) variable defined in CDM.
  6. Select the destination variable you want to use and click Insert. The destination variable is inserted into the PowerPoint object.
  7. Save your changes to the PowerPoint object. The data defined in the value of the source variable is copied into it.
  8. Click the Default View Mode icon in the status bar.
  9. Save your changes to the report and check in the PowerPoint object.

Reference a Named Range Variable in a PowerPoint Object

In a PowerPoint object in CDM, you can reference a named range variable in an Excel object.

In the source Excel object, you must have defined a name range variable for a cell range.

  1. Open the report that you want to work with.
  2. Open and check out the PowerPoint object that you want to edit.
  3. Click the Section View Mode icon in the status bar.
  4. Position the pointer where you want the named range variable to appear in the PowerPoint object. If you are inserting the variable in a blank slide, you do not have to position your cursor.
  5. Click the Report Object tab on the ribbon, then click Insert Variable > Named Range. The Reference Variables window opens, displaying all named ranges including print area variables.
  6. Select the named range variable you want to use and click Insert. The named range variable is inserted into the PowerPoint object.
  7. Save your changes to the PowerPoint object. The data defined by the source named range variable is copied into it.
  8. Click the Default View Mode icon in the status bar.
  9. Save your changes to the report and check in the PowerPoint object.

Reference an Image Range Variable in a PowerPoint Object

In a PowerPoint object in CDM, you can reference an image range variable in an Excel object. The image range can contain either a graphic or data that is rendered as an image in PowerPoint.

In the source Excel object, you must have defined an image range by using the image range start (##IRS) and image range end (##IRE) variables. The image range can contain data or a graphic. If you have specified a choice in the Zero Amount Shown As report property, or if you have specified rows or columns in the Excel object that you want to show or suppress, your choices might affect the appearance of the image that you create.

To reference an image range variable from an Excel object in a PowerPoint Object:

  1. Open the report that you want to work with.
  2. Open and check out the PowerPoint object that you want to edit.
  3. Click the Section View Mode icon in the status bar.
  4. Position the pointer where you want the image range to appear in the PowerPoint object.

    Tip: You can also create a text box and make it the size you want the image to be displayed and position the pointer inside of it.

  5. Click the Report Object tab on the ribbon, then click Insert Variable > Image Range. The Reference Variables window opens, displaying all image range variables in the report.
  6. Select the image range variable you want to use and from the Insert as Image drop-down menu select one of the following options:
    • Insert as Image - Use this option to import a referenced image range that contains only data (no pictures or charts). The data is converted into an image that contains only the cell data (in effect, numbers or text). This option causes changes to suppression and zeroes. The image is generated according to the default size of 150 DPI.
    • Insert as Image and resize - Use this option to import a referenced image range that contains only data (no pictures or charts) into a table or text box you created and sized. The data is converted into an image that contains only the cell data (in effect, numbers or text). This option causes changes to suppression and zeroes. The size of the generated image fits the size of the table or text box you have created. Make the table or text box bigger or smaller depending on the size of image you want displayed.
    • Insert as Snapshot - Use this option to import a referenced image range that is an exact snapshot of the image range you specified, which can include data, pictures and charts, or just pictures and charts. The range is converted to an image according to the default size of 150 DPI.
    • Insert as Snapshot and resize - Use this option to import a referenced image range that is an exact snapshot of the image range you specified, which can include data, pictures and charts, or just pictures and charts, into a table or text box you created and sized. The size of the generated image fits the size of the table or text box you have created. Make the table or text box bigger or smaller depending on the size of image you want displayed.

    A hyperlink to the referenced image is inserted.

  7. Save your changes to the PowerPoint object.
  8. Click the Default View Mode icon in the status bar.
  9. Save your changes to the report and check in the PowerPoint object.

After you generate the document, the image range defined in the source Excel object will resolve in the PowerPoint object.

Preview Variables in a PowerPoint Object

You can preview variables that are displayed as unresolved in a PowerPoint object in CDM.

When a PowerPoint report object is opened, variables in that object are displayed by default as resolved (that is, they are shown as they will look when the report is generated). However, if you have selected Open or Edit as the setting in the Report Object Double Click Action checkbox in File > Options > General, then double-clicking a PowerPoint report object will open the object with variables displayed as unresolved. You can then preview the variables to show how they will look when the report is generated.

To preview variables in a PowerPoint object:

  1. Open the report that you want to work with.
  2. In the User Object Summary tab in the work area, select the PowerPoint report object you want to preview variables in and click Preview. The report object is opened and checked in with the variables displayed as resolved (that is, how they will look when the report is generated).

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