Powerpoint turns 20

Well, the big news this week is how the software that is respected, loved, hated all at the same time depending on who you talk to, turned 20 years old. 20 years after Robert Gaskins and Dennis Austin rolled out Powerpoint 1.0 for Macs in 1987, Powerpoint remains the most popular presentation software used by everyone from business folks, students and even kids these days.

While Powerpoint is widely blamed for the degradation in presentation skills (read my earlier post on “Presentation skills – do you care about your customers” on how to buck this trend), it is still a very useful tool. I use it very effectively for my presentations (only when needed) and just like any other tool, you cannot blame the tool for its misuse. The way you use it is up to you.

More details on Powerpoint’s ride to a ripe old age can be found in a recent article on the Wall Street Journal.