Handling Bulleted and Numbered Lists
What is a PowerPoint presentation without a list or two? It is like an emperor without any clothes on. This part of the tutorial explains everything there is to know about bulleted and numbered lists.
These lists can be as simple or complex as you want them to be. PowerPoint offers a bunch of different ways to format these lists, but if you are in a hurry or you do not care whether your lists look like everyone else’s, you can take advantage of the Numbering and Bullets buttons and go with standard lists. Nonconformists and people with nothing else to do, however, can try their hand at making fancy lists. The following pages cover that topic, too.
Creating a standard bulleted or numbered list
In typesetting terms, a bullet is a black, filled-in circle or other character that marks an item on a list. Many slide layouts include text frames that are already formatted for bulleted lists. All you have to do in these text frames is "click to add text" and keep pressing the Enter key while you enter items for your bulleted list. Each time you press Enter, PowerPoint adds another bullet to the list. Bulleted lists are useful when you want to present the reader with alternatives or present a list in which the items are not ranked in any order. Use a numbered list to rank items in a list or present step-by-step instructions. Follow these instructions to create a standard bulleted or numbered list:
Creating a bulleted list:
Select the list if you have already entered the list items, click the Home tab, and click the Bullets button (or click the Bullets button on the Mini Toolbar). You can also right-click, choose Bullets on the shortcut menu, and choose a bullet character on the submenu if you do not care for the standard, black, filled-in circle.
Creating a numbered list:
Select the list if you have already entered the list items, click the Home tab, and click the Numbering button. You can also right-click, choose Numbering on the shortcut menu, and select a numbering style on the submenu.
Converting a numbered to a bulleted list (or vice versa):
Drag over the list to select it, click the Home tab, and then click the Bullets or Numbering button.
To remove the bullets or numbers from a list, select the list, right-click it, choose Bullets or Numbering on the shortcut menu, and choose None on the submenu.
Choosing a different bullet character, size, and color
The black filled-in circle is not the only character you can use to mark items in a bulleted list. You can also opt for what PowerPoint calls pictures (colorful bullets of many sizes and shapes) or symbols from the Symbol dialog box. While you are at it, you can change the bullet color and size.
If you decide to change the bullet character in your lists, be consistent from slide to slide. Unless you want to be goofy, select the same bullet character throughout the lists in your presentation for the sake of consistency. You do not want to turn your slide presentation into a showcase for bullets, do you?
To use pictures or unusual symbols for bullets, start by selecting your bulleted list (if you already entered the list items), clicking the Home tab, and opening the drop-down list on the Bullets button. Do any of the bullets on the drop-down list tickle your fancy? If one does, choose it, otherwise, click the Bullets and Numbering option at the bottom of the drop-down list. You see the Bulleted tab of the Bullets and Numbering dialog box. Starting there, you can customize your bullets:
Using a picture for bullets:
Click the Picture button and select a bullet in the Picture Bullet dialog box.
Using a symbol for bullets:
Click the Customize button and select a bullet in the Symbol dialog box. By opening the Font drop-down list and choosing a Wingdings font, you can choose an oddball character for bullets.
Changing bullets’ color:
Click the Color button in the Bullets and Numbering dialog box and choose an option on the drop-down list. Theme colors are considered most compatible with the theme design you choose for your presentation.
Changing bullets’ size:
Enter a percentage figure in the Size % of Text box. For example, if you enter 200, the bullets are twice as big as the font size you choose for the items in your bulleted list.
Choosing a different list-numbering style, size, and color
PowerPoint offers seven different ways of numbering lists. As well as choosing a different numbering style, you can change the size of numbers relative to the text and change the color of numbers. To select a different list-numbering style, size, or color, begin by selecting your list (if you already entered the list items), clicking the Home tab, and opening the drop-down list on the Numbering button. If you like one of the numbering-scheme choices, select it; otherwise choose Bullets and Numbering to open the Numbered tab of the Bullets and Numbering dialog box. In this dialog box, you can customize list numbers:
Choosing a numbering scheme:
Select a numbering scheme and click OK.
Changing the numbers’ color:
Click the Color button and choose a color on the drop-down list. Theme colors are more compatible with the theme design you choose than the other colors are.
Changing the numbers’ size:
Enter a percentage figure in the Size % of Text box. For example, if you enter 50, the numbers are half as big as the font size you choose for the items in your numbered list.