Sound in PowerPoint Strikes on another Computer

The sound problem is one that frequently vexes PowerPoint presenters. Your PowerPoint presentation with a sound plays well on your home or office computer. However, when you move it to the spotlight, usu. a different computer from yours, the sound seems missing. So where has it gone?

Insert a sound into PowerPoint

Four possible situations should be the chief culprits of the problem.

• 1. There is no copy of the sound file on the target computer. That is, you saved the PowerPoint presentation alone on a USB stick or CD, but forgot to package the source of its media clips including the sound. The sound object in the PowerPoint will not work on a different place unless being located in the same folder with the presentation.
  Remember - When moving a PowerPoint presentation to a different computer, keep a complete copy of the presentation along with the sound file and other effects, and locate the complete folder to the target computer for presenting.


• 2. The target computer of your presentation has a different OS or an earlier version of PowerPoint from the source one. If you create a presentation on Windows, there may be a hinder to play on a Mac. Or suppose the two Operating systems are the same, still you may face the sound problem of playing a 2007 PowerPoint presentation on a 2003 version; for some functions in a PowerPoint 2007 file are not supported by earlier versions.
  Tips - Cross-platform puzzle is a hot potato that requires a great command of PowerPoint techniques. If you don't want bother yourself with such complicated skills, you can try some easy alternatives. To ward off the issue straight ford, a once-and-for-all cut is to convert and save your PowerPoint presentation to DVD with PowerPoint to DVD and video converter. Your presentation in DVD can travel safe without a worry of sound loss, and play in full on any target platform.


• 3. The sound file is a linked one rather than embedded into the presentation. You simply inserted the sound file (usu. an audio format other than WAV, the only one accepted by PowerPoint) from Internet, and forgot to take the source with the presentation to the target computer. The linking-to-PowerPoint practice always triggers a strike of the sound on another computer, as the sound source is separate from the presentation. Seems back to Situation 1.
  Note that you have packaged all the effects for the presentation in the same folder and place the entire folder to the target computer.


• 4. The embedded sound file in WAV is too large to work on the target computer. Although the sound file in WAV, the only audio format that allows embedding into a PowerPoint presentation, goes with your presentation to the destination computer, it may fail to play well there due to the large size.
  Solution - Adjust the size of the sound file to an appropriate level. By default, a WAV file to embed in PowerPoint is 100 KB or less. Smaller size is preferable for a smooth play at any computer.

Related: Free download PowerPoint to DVD and video converter