Interesting Problem

I work for a group of physicians who do a lot of presentations nationally
and internationally. One of them showed me something today I've never seen
before:

He opens up a presentation on his laptop (WinXP Pro, Office 2003). The
presentation has several avi and mpeg movies on various slides. We run
through it, everything works fine. We then connect his laptop to a projector
via VGA cable to display the slideshow to the as-yet-to-arrive audience. We
go through the presentation once again and some of the media files do not
work! Somehow the links have been broken by simply connecting the laptop to
an external display. Fortunately, he has a copy of Fix Links so a few
seconds later everything is working again.

The presentation and media files are all in the same folder - my
understanding was that PowerPoint would look for the location that the file
was originally linked from, if it didn't exist, it would then look in the
folder that holds the presentation. If the media files were there, they
would play.

I have never seen the simple act of connecting to an external display break
the links in a presentation before. He told me this had been happening to
him and frankly, I didn't believe him until I saw it with my own eyes today.

Anyone experience anything like this before?

Dave

TDunn
Wed Oct 01 22:19:01 CDT 2008

Sounds strange indeed. Can you provide more detail regarding "some of the
media files do not work!" What does happen...error messages, blank, black,
white screen or boxes where the media should show? When is the projector
being connected.....system off, on, PowerPoint open or not? Content folder on
desktop, root of system drive, external drive?

.................TD


"Dave Melvin" wrote:

> I work for a group of physicians who do a lot of presentations nationally
> and internationally. One of them showed me something today I've never seen
> before:
>
> He opens up a presentation on his laptop (WinXP Pro, Office 2003). The
> presentation has several avi and mpeg movies on various slides. We run
> through it, everything works fine. We then connect his laptop to a projector
> via VGA cable to display the slideshow to the as-yet-to-arrive audience. We
> go through the presentation once again and some of the media files do not
> work! Somehow the links have been broken by simply connecting the laptop to
> an external display. Fortunately, he has a copy of Fix Links so a few
> seconds later everything is working again.
>
> The presentation and media files are all in the same folder - my
> understanding was that PowerPoint would look for the location that the file
> was originally linked from, if it didn't exist, it would then look in the
> folder that holds the presentation. If the media files were there, they
> would play.
>
> I have never seen the simple act of connecting to an external display break
> the links in a presentation before. He told me this had been happening to
> him and frankly, I didn't believe him until I saw it with my own eyes today.
>
> Anyone experience anything like this before?
>
> Dave
>
>

HeartMan
Thu Oct 02 08:58:02 CDT 2008

Sequence of events:

1. Laptop is booted up, connected to power. Content folder (presentation and
media) in the user's "My Documents" folder.
2. PowerPoint opened by double-clicking presetation, slides with media play
as expected in slide show mode, back to edit mode.
3. VGA cable is connected (PowerPoint is still open in edit mode, laptop is
still powered on, etc)
4. Slides with media don't play - a still frame of the movie is presented as
usual, when clicked to run, nothing happens, no error messages as I recall.

A total of maybe 60 seconds have elapsed from the time they worked to the
time they don't work. The only things that have changed are - PowerPoint was
taken back into edit mode from slide show mode and the VCA cable was
connected. The laptop was already in dual display mode (no need for
function-f8). PowerPoint was take back to slide show mode after the cable was
connected, slides advanced as normal but media did not play. PowerPoint taken
back to edit mode, the FixLinks add-on was used to reset the links.
Presentation works as it should, media files play as they should.

Thanks,

Dave

"TDunn" wrote:

> Sounds strange indeed. Can you provide more detail regarding "some of the
> media files do not work!" What does happen...error messages, blank, black,
> white screen or boxes where the media should show? When is the projector
> being connected.....system off, on, PowerPoint open or not? Content folder on
> desktop, root of system drive, external drive?
>
> .................TD
>
>
> "Dave Melvin" wrote:
>
> > I work for a group of physicians who do a lot of presentations nationally
> > and internationally. One of them showed me something today I've never seen
> > before:
> >
> > He opens up a presentation on his laptop (WinXP Pro, Office 2003). The
> > presentation has several avi and mpeg movies on various slides. We run
> > through it, everything works fine. We then connect his laptop to a projector
> > via VGA cable to display the slideshow to the as-yet-to-arrive audience. We
> > go through the presentation once again and some of the media files do not
> > work! Somehow the links have been broken by simply connecting the laptop to
> > an external display. Fortunately, he has a copy of Fix Links so a few
> > seconds later everything is working again.
> >
> > The presentation and media files are all in the same folder - my
> > understanding was that PowerPoint would look for the location that the file
> > was originally linked from, if it didn't exist, it would then look in the
> > folder that holds the presentation. If the media files were there, they
> > would play.
> >
> > I have never seen the simple act of connecting to an external display break
> > the links in a presentation before. He told me this had been happening to
> > him and frankly, I didn't believe him until I saw it with my own eyes today.
> >
> > Anyone experience anything like this before?
> >
> > Dave
> >
> >

Steve
Thu Oct 02 10:03:43 CDT 2008

Short version, based on a hunch:

Give it another try but this time open the PPT file in any way BUT choosing one
of the recently opened files listed at the bottom of the File menu.

See below for the blow-by-blow description ...

> He opens up a presentation on his laptop (WinXP Pro, Office 2003). The
> presentation has several avi and mpeg movies on various slides. We run
> through it, everything works fine. We then connect his laptop to a projector
> via VGA cable to display the slideshow to the as-yet-to-arrive audience. We
> go through the presentation once again and some of the media files do not
> work! Somehow the links have been broken by simply connecting the laptop to
> an external display. Fortunately, he has a copy of Fix Links so a few
> seconds later everything is working again.
>
> The presentation and media files are all in the same folder - my
> understanding was that PowerPoint would look for the location that the file
> was originally linked from, if it didn't exist, it would then look in the
> folder that holds the presentation. If the media files were there, they
> would play.

Not exactly. More precisely, it's like this:

If you put the media files in the same folder as the PPT file and only then
insert them, the links will be pathless (they'll point just to the filename).

Then

When you open the PPT, if the needed media files are in the same folder and the
links are pathless, PowerPoint will find the media files. If the links have
paths, PowerPoint will look for the linked files wherever the paths point, and
only there. It won't look in the same folder as the PPT unless the path
specifically points there.

AND ...

There's another little hitch that may be the reason for your problem:

If you start PowerPoint and open the file using the MRU (Most Recently Used)
list ... that numbered list of recently opened files at the bottom of the File
menu ... then PPT won't find the media files, even if the links are pathless
and the files are in the same folder as the PPT file.

Any other method of opening the PPT file will work ok.


> I have never seen the simple act of connecting to an external display break
> the links in a presentation before. He told me this had been happening to
> him and frankly, I didn't believe him until I saw it with my own eyes today.
>
> Anyone experience anything like this before?
>
> Dave
>

-----------------------------------------
Steve Rindsberg, PPT MVP
PPT FAQ: www.pptfaq.com
PPTools: www.pptools.com
================================================

HeartMan
Thu Oct 02 10:27:02 CDT 2008

Steve,

Thanks for clearing up my misconceptions about media files being in the same
folder with the presentation and how links are resolved.

That is interesting about the MRU list, but in our circumstance the file was
not closed and reopened - it was open the entire time.
Prior to connecting the VGA cable, the links worked. After connecting the
cable, the links were broken. Running FixLinks successfully repaired the
links and everything worked.

He swears by FixLinks, it has saved his bacon on numerous occasions.

Thanks, again,

Dave

"Steve Rindsberg" wrote:

> Short version, based on a hunch:
>
> Give it another try but this time open the PPT file in any way BUT choosing one
> of the recently opened files listed at the bottom of the File menu.
>
> See below for the blow-by-blow description ...
>
> > He opens up a presentation on his laptop (WinXP Pro, Office 2003). The
> > presentation has several avi and mpeg movies on various slides. We run
> > through it, everything works fine. We then connect his laptop to a projector
> > via VGA cable to display the slideshow to the as-yet-to-arrive audience. We
> > go through the presentation once again and some of the media files do not
> > work! Somehow the links have been broken by simply connecting the laptop to
> > an external display. Fortunately, he has a copy of Fix Links so a few
> > seconds later everything is working again.
> >
> > The presentation and media files are all in the same folder - my
> > understanding was that PowerPoint would look for the location that the file
> > was originally linked from, if it didn't exist, it would then look in the
> > folder that holds the presentation. If the media files were there, they
> > would play.
>
> Not exactly. More precisely, it's like this:
>
> If you put the media files in the same folder as the PPT file and only then
> insert them, the links will be pathless (they'll point just to the filename).
>
> Then
>
> When you open the PPT, if the needed media files are in the same folder and the
> links are pathless, PowerPoint will find the media files. If the links have
> paths, PowerPoint will look for the linked files wherever the paths point, and
> only there. It won't look in the same folder as the PPT unless the path
> specifically points there.
>
> AND ...
>
> There's another little hitch that may be the reason for your problem:
>
> If you start PowerPoint and open the file using the MRU (Most Recently Used)
> list ... that numbered list of recently opened files at the bottom of the File
> menu ... then PPT won't find the media files, even if the links are pathless
> and the files are in the same folder as the PPT file.
>
> Any other method of opening the PPT file will work ok.
>
>
> > I have never seen the simple act of connecting to an external display break
> > the links in a presentation before. He told me this had been happening to
> > him and frankly, I didn't believe him until I saw it with my own eyes today.
> >
> > Anyone experience anything like this before?
> >
> > Dave
> >
>
> -----------------------------------------
> Steve Rindsberg, PPT MVP
> PPT FAQ: www.pptfaq.com
> PPTools: www.pptools.com
> ================================================
>
>
>

Steve
Thu Oct 02 23:37:52 CDT 2008

> Thanks for clearing up my misconceptions about media files being in the same
> folder with the presentation and how links are resolved.
>
> That is interesting about the MRU list, but in our circumstance the file was
> not closed and reopened - it was open the entire time.
> Prior to connecting the VGA cable, the links worked. After connecting the
> cable, the links were broken.

Man, that is WEIRD. Have you got some holy water handy? Silver crosses? A stake?

Hmm. Reaching deep and speculating for all I'm worth here ... in some instances,
PPT will open a new copy of a presentation for reasons of its own, I think. If it
uses the same (buggy) method as the MRU menu does, and if it gets triggered into
doing that when the external projector is plugged in ... that might explain it.

At least, I like it better as a working theory than the "Posessed by Satan" one.

Try quitting PPT before plugging in the projector, then start it up once the PJ is
up and running. Does that help?

> Running FixLinks successfully repaired the
> links and everything worked.
>
> He swears by FixLinks, it has saved his bacon on numerous occasions.

LOVE to hear that kind of thing.

> He swears by FixLinks, it has saved his bacon on numerous occasions.

There. I made you say it again. :-)


> > Short version, based on a hunch:
> >
> > Give it another try but this time open the PPT file in any way BUT choosing one
> > of the recently opened files listed at the bottom of the File menu.
> >
> > See below for the blow-by-blow description ...
> >
> > > He opens up a presentation on his laptop (WinXP Pro, Office 2003). The
> > > presentation has several avi and mpeg movies on various slides. We run
> > > through it, everything works fine. We then connect his laptop to a projector
> > > via VGA cable to display the slideshow to the as-yet-to-arrive audience. We
> > > go through the presentation once again and some of the media files do not
> > > work! Somehow the links have been broken by simply connecting the laptop to
> > > an external display. Fortunately, he has a copy of Fix Links so a few
> > > seconds later everything is working again.
> > >
> > > The presentation and media files are all in the same folder - my
> > > understanding was that PowerPoint would look for the location that the file
> > > was originally linked from, if it didn't exist, it would then look in the
> > > folder that holds the presentation. If the media files were there, they
> > > would play.
> >
> > Not exactly. More precisely, it's like this:
> >
> > If you put the media files in the same folder as the PPT file and only then
> > insert them, the links will be pathless (they'll point just to the filename).
> >
> > Then
> >
> > When you open the PPT, if the needed media files are in the same folder and the
> > links are pathless, PowerPoint will find the media files. If the links have
> > paths, PowerPoint will look for the linked files wherever the paths point, and
> > only there. It won't look in the same folder as the PPT unless the path
> > specifically points there.
> >
> > AND ...
> >
> > There's another little hitch that may be the reason for your problem:
> >
> > If you start PowerPoint and open the file using the MRU (Most Recently Used)
> > list ... that numbered list of recently opened files at the bottom of the File
> > menu ... then PPT won't find the media files, even if the links are pathless
> > and the files are in the same folder as the PPT file.
> >
> > Any other method of opening the PPT file will work ok.
> >
> >
> > > I have never seen the simple act of connecting to an external display break
> > > the links in a presentation before. He told me this had been happening to
> > > him and frankly, I didn't believe him until I saw it with my own eyes today.
> > >
> > > Anyone experience anything like this before?
> > >
> > > Dave
> > >
> >
> > -----------------------------------------
> > Steve Rindsberg, PPT MVP
> > PPT FAQ: www.pptfaq.com
> > PPTools: www.pptools.com
> > ================================================
> >
> >
> >
>

-----------------------------------------
Steve Rindsberg, PPT MVP
PPT FAQ: www.pptfaq.com
PPTools: www.pptools.com
================================================