The PowerPoint Add-In for Visual Studio Premium and Ultimate users is a great tool to quickly create interface designs that you can provide to your customers. This in turn allows you to gain valuable feedback from them because you can make these designs interactive.
What is even better is that, because it is PowerPoint, your customers can change elements on the form to illustrate exactly what they mean. To start using PowerPoint Storyboarding, head on over to your Windows 8 Search. (Windows Key + C to activate the Charm Bar and select Search)
As you type “PowerPoint Storyboarding” into the search field, the results will filter until you can select the application from the search results.
Clicking on the application will start the familiar PowerPoint splash screen.
After PowerPoint has started, you will notice that it defaults to a blank slide and to the Storyboarding Tab.
On the right you will notice the Storyboard Shapes menu. This allows you to use common elements to design your interface.
Begin by adding the Ribbon Application shape to your slide.
After you have done that, you can add elements to your design as needed.
After you have added your elements to your design (you add elements by dragging them from the Storyboard Shapes menu), you can create hyperlinks between your slides to create the effect of interaction. For this I created a duplicate slide of the first one, and added a message dialog screen to the second slide. Then, by creating a hyperlink from the Set Reminder button to the second slide, you can create the interaction.
After you click on the Hyperlink option, the Insert Hyperlink screen is displayed. Select the second slide and click on OK.
On the second slide, select the Message Dialog screen, and create a link back to Slide 1.
When you have done this, click on the ‘Slide Show’ button to play your slide show.
Now you can interact with your slides and use the interface as it is designed to create the effect of user interaction with a live application. If you use a set of custom shapes frequently, select them and add them to your Storyboard Shapes.
This is just scratching the surface of what is possible with PowerPoint Storyboarding. It is a very powerful tool for developers and customers alike.
Download more Storyboard Shapes here.
Lastly, have a look at Storyboard a User Story or Requirement Using PowerPoint and Storyboard Backlog Items for further reading on the subject.
Source: Zain Naboulsi
