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A Simple Method for Importing Multiple Image Files into PowerPoint

¹ Both authors: Department of Radiology, University of Florida, PO Box 100374, Gainesville, FL 32610.

Received October 23, 2003; accepted after revision November 20, 2003.

 
Address correspondence to C. Sistrom.

C. Sistrom received funding from a General Electric Association of University Radiologists Research Fellowship from July 2000 through June 2003.

Abstract

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OBJECTIVE. We developed a method for automatically inserting a large number of images into a PowerPoint presentation document.

CONCLUSION. We designed, tested, and now routinely use a simple macro program for importing all images contained in a single directory into a PowerPoint presentation. The complete text of the macro code is included in this article, and readers are encouraged to experiment with it.

Introduction

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Several authors have recently described techniques for acquiring, optimizing, and storing radiologic images for teaching and publication using PCs and common software [1–8]. Once they are finished, such images are often incorporated into slide presentation software programs, of which the most ubiquitous is Microsoft's PowerPoint program, a part of their Office Suite. The process of bringing images into PowerPoint and preparing the resulting presentations for effective teaching has been described in detail [9–13]. Importing the picture files into a presentation can take a considerable amount of time, especially when many images are required. Another time-consuming task is scaling and centering the images once they have been added to slides. Scaling is particularly troublesome when the image is larger than the slide.

We have developed a short program using the Visual Basic for Applications language that takes advantage of the macro functionality built into all Microsoft Office products. Our program automates the process of importing multiple images into a PowerPoint presentation. The only prerequisites are that the image files be in one of several standard formats and that they reside in a single directory. During the import process, each image is optimally centered and scaled on a separate slide. In this article, we briefly describe the function and use of the macro program and also give a complete listing of it so that readers can use it themselves. The software is also available for download from a Web site.

How the Macro Works

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Once activated, the macro requests a directory location from the user. It then searches through the entire directory and obtains the name the files. Each file is tested to determine if it contains an image in one of five common formats, using the three-letter file extension as its criterion. The five formats include tagged image file format (.tif), PC paintbrush (.pcx), bit-mapped graphics format (.bmp), .gif, and .jpg. If a file has one of these extensions, the image it contains is placed on a new slide and added to the presentation.

Before moving to the next file, the program code centers and sizes the image to make it as large as possible and still fit on the slide. Large images are scaled down and small images are scaled up as needed. PowerPoint stores variables representing the width, height, and absolute position for all shapes (including images) in each slide, which makes it easy to compute appropriate scale and position factors and apply them to the image. These calculations preserve the height-to-width relationship—the aspect ratio—of the original image. When the process is finished, a dialogue box is displayed listing the total number of files and the number of images imported.

Installing the Macro into Your PowerPoint Presentation

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We have included the entire macro as Appendix I of this article. To keep it as compact as possible, we have removed comment lines and show only the program itself. To obtain an electronic copy of the code, go to the AJR web site and look up the full text of this article. Scroll down to Appendix I and copy the text that appears between the dashed lines. Do this by highlighting the text with your mouse and clicking Edit –> Copy. Next, open Microsoft PowerPoint and select Tools –> Macro –> Macros. In the top of the resulting dialogue box, type the name of the macro (Fig. 1). We used the name "Getpix." Then click on "Create" and another window will open (Fig. 2). This is the Visual Basic Editor. You should see the following text in the editing window:

View larger version (26K): [in this window] [in a new window] [as a PowerPoint slide]   Fig. 1. —Macro dialogue box in Microsoft PowerPoint. Macro name (arrowhead) has been entered. To add macro code, click "Create" (arrow).

View larger version (23K): [in this window] [in a new window] [as a PowerPoint slide]   Fig. 2. —Visual Basic editing window in Microsoft PowerPoint after creating macro called "Getpix." Copy macro code to blank line (arrow) above "End Sub."

Sub Getpix()

Macro created mm/dd/yyyy by xxx zzzz

End Sub,

where mm/dd/yyyy is the current date and xxx zzzz is the user's name. If a different name for the macro was used, it will show up in the first line instead of "Getpix." The macro text (copied from Appendix I of the online article) should be pasted in the blank line above "End Sub." Then select File –> Close and return to Microsoft PowerPoint. Before importing any images or creating other slides, select File –> Save As and save a blank presentation containing the macro for future use in one of your folders.

Using the Macro

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Once the macro has been created in a PowerPoint presentation file, using it is fairly simple. Select Tools –> Macro –> Macros, and highlight the name of the macro (e.g., Getpix as in Fig. 3). After the "Run" button is clicked, the macro activates and displays a dialogue box that asks for the location of the directory containing the images to be imported. Type the directory path (C:/Temp/Pix1/) in our example and click the "OK" button (Fig. 4). The macro imports all the images into the chosen directory, places each one on a separate slide, and centers and scales them to fit. The slides are ordered in an alphabetic sequence that is based on the file names of the source images. A completion dialogue box (Fig. 5) gives results of the operation and displays the source directory, the total number of files, and the number of slides created. The macro may be executed again, and additional images will be added to the end of the presentation.

View larger version (29K): [in this window] [in a new window] [as a PowerPoint slide]   Fig. 3. —Macro dialogue box in Microsoft PowerPoint. Macro called "Getpix" has already been installed. To activate it, click mouse once on macro name to highlight and then click "Run" (arrow).

View larger version (23K): [in this window] [in a new window] [as a PowerPoint slide]   Fig. 4. —Prompt displayed by PowerPoint (Microsoft) macro at run time asks for path to image source directory. Name and path (C:/Temp/Pix1/) have already been typed. Program will activate when "Run" is clicked.

View larger version (32K): [in this window] [in a new window] [as a PowerPoint slide]   Fig. 5. —Prompt displayed by PowerPoint (Microsoft) macro after completion lists source directory, total number of files, and number of slides created. Presentation may be edited after "OK" is clicked.

One convenient way to use the program is to create and save a blank PowerPoint presentation file (e.g., call it "Blank.ppt") that contains the macro. Set up the master slide template in this blank presentation to reflect your individual preferences for slide background and text properties. To start a new working presentation, simply open Blank.ppt and run the macro. Before importing the images, select File –> Save As and specify a new location and name for your presentation. After you click "Save," the file name at the top of the PowerPoint window will change to reflect the newly chosen name. The blank presentation will remain unchanged and ready for the next session.

Presentations can be edited to add text slides between image slides.

Deleting the Macro

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A minor drawback of using macros in PowerPoint presentations is that when they are opened, an extra dialogue box may appear (Fig. 6). It warns that macros can sometimes be harmful and offers to disable them. Some particularly conservative antivirus programs may identify a presentation containing a macro as being potentially compromised. The best way to avoid this message is to delete the macro from your working presentation after all the images have been imported. To do this, select Tools –> Macro –> Macros and highlight the name of the macro (e.g., Getpix in our example). Then click "Edit" and a new window will open. The upper left corner will show a sub window called "Project—VBAProject" (Fig. 7). Highlight "Module1," right click, and select "Remove Module1." Answer "No" to the dialogue box that appears, and the macro will be removed. Next, select File –> Close and return to Microsoft PowerPoint. If the presentation is saved at this point and then reopened, it will activate and display the slides without the initial warning dialogue box.

View larger version (34K): [in this window] [in a new window] [as a PowerPoint slide]   Fig. 6. —When file containing macro is opened, PowerPoint (Microsoft) may display dialogue box that warns about possible harmful effects and offers to disable any macros in file. For our macro to work, "Enable Macros" must be clicked.

View larger version (55K): [in this window] [in a new window] [as a PowerPoint slide]   Fig. 7. —Window displayed after clicking on "Edit" in PowerPoint (Microsoft) macro dialogue box (Fig. 3). To remove code from current presentation, highlight line called "Module1" (arrows), right click with mouse, and select "Remove Module1" from resulting pick list. Answer "No" to subsequent dialogue box that offers to save module.

Alternate Solutions

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In his article titled Getting Images into PowerPoint, Schreibman [12] briefly notes an enhancement for PowerPoint 2000 that is available from Microsoft. We accessed the Web site listed in the article text [14] and downloaded and installed the program (a photo album add-in for PowerPoint). We used the software to import the same set of images we had previously used to test our macro. The "Fit To Slide" option was chosen. The resulting PowerPoint presentation was identical to one created by our macro in every respect. Readers are encouraged to experiment with the Microsoft photo album solution. It has a graphic interface to browse for image files, allows preview of images, and permits selection of individual images. However, the photo album addin is specific to the Office 2000 version of PowerPoint. Also, the photo album feature is an extension to the PowerPoint program itself and must be installed on each computer before it is used. Our macro does not require installing any new software and is "portable" in the sense that a blank presentation file containing the code can be copied to any computer, and the image import function will be immediately available. We have confirmed that the macro functions identically on numerous computers running the Windows 97, Windows 2000, Windows XP, and Macintosh versions of PowerPoint.

One group has developed a teaching file system with Microsoft Visual C++ and a Visual FoxPro database [15]. This system uses programming techniques similar to those in our macro to "inject" multiple images from the teaching file into a PowerPoint presentation. These authors also stressed that this feature would save considerable time over the conventional method of inserting images onto individual slides in a presentation. The concept of complete integration of a teaching file database with presentation software is powerful, and we are working toward this with our own departmental electronic teaching file system. In the meantime, our approach offers a method for at least partial automation of the process that should be useful to all readers.

Troubleshooting

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The most obvious source of problems will be any errors made while creating the macro. The macro is a computer program and must be entered or copied accurately in exactly the correct sequence. If the macro is entered incorrectly, a variety of error messages may result when it is run. For the code to function correctly, the Microsoft Office installation must have included all the relevant image import filters. These filters are common to the whole suite of Microsoft Office programs and will be present if the "typical" configuration option was chosen during the initial Office installation.

The default security behavior of PowerPoint pertaining to macros has already been mentioned: The "Medium" security setting causes display of a warning dialogue box at startup (Fig. 6) when the presentation contains a user-defined macro. With "High" security, PowerPoint opens a macro-containing presentation without any warning dialogue box. However, if Tools –> Macro –> Macros is selected, the "Run" button will be inoperable. To correct this, click Tools –> Macro –> Security and select the "Medium" setting. After you exit and restart PowerPoint, answer "Enable Macros" in the warning dialogue box and proceed to use the macro.

If your current Microsoft Office software does not include one or more of the graphics import filters, PowerPoint may attempt to automatically install the relevant filter when the macro encounters an unrecognized image type. A dialogue box will appear indicating the need for a filter, and the user may be prompted to insert the original program disk (usually a CD-ROM). Updating the Microsoft Office installation manually may require running the Office setup program again. In newer versions of Windows (98 or later), this operation is performed through the "Control Panel" and its "Add/Remove Programs" function. Older versions of Windows may require inserting an Office installation CD-ROM and running setup from the CD-ROM. After activating the setup program, select the "Add/Remove Features" option, select Converters And Filters –> Graphics Filters, and make sure that all the relevant graphics import filters (labeled BMP, JPEG, PCX, GIF, and TIF) are active by verifying that they have a check mark next to them. Then follow the onscreen directions to update the installation.

One more potential barrier to proper functioning of our macro is somewhat esoteric. The macro draws on "references," which are ancillary files included in most standard Microsoft Office installations. They are external to the main PowerPoint program and are needed to enable the functions coded in macros. We experimented with various versions of PowerPoint and found that three references must be active: Visual Basic for Applications, Microsoft PowerPoint X.Y Object Library, and Microsoft Office X.Y Object Library. X.Y is the current version of the Microsoft software your computer is running. For example, X.Y = 9.0 at our installation, but it may be different for other computer systems.

To look at the references, open a presentation containing the macro and select Tools –> Macro –> Macros, highlight the macro name, and click "Edit." When the Visual Basic Editor window opens, select Tools –> References, and the dialogue box shown in Figure 8 should be displayed. One can scroll down through the list and click the boxes next to the relevant entries if they are not already checked. Be careful about clearing the checks from any other boxes because they may be providing functionality needed for other features that your particular Office installation is using.

View larger version (48K): [in this window] [in a new window] [as a PowerPoint slide]   Fig. 8. —Dialogue box displayed after selecting Tools –> References from Visual Basic window (Fig. 7) during macro editing shows that three required objects (Visual Basic for Applications, Microsoft PowerPoint 9.0 Object Library, and Office 9.0 Object Library) are checked, which indicates that they are active. Version number for Microsoft Office (here, version 9.0) will vary depending on your software.

Limitations

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Our program lacks the ability to add multiple images to a single slide. This feature is not needed for most purposes. In fact, crowding multiple images onto one slide may make it much harder for the audience to see the radiologic findings. Some may believe that putting multiple images on each slide would reduce the file size of the resulting presentation. This is not the case because imported images are kept in their entirety with scaling tags that are added to cause them to be displayed as specified. We find it preferable to make the points about cases and findings in our text slides and then illustrate the points with full-sized images augmented with annotations such as arrows.

Multiple images can be placed on a single slide during the editing of the presentation content after the images have been imported. The macro code can also be modified to scale images to one half or one quarter the size of a slide, which would make it easy to show several images at once. One of the reasons that we are including the full code of the macro is to encourage readers to modify it to suit their individual needs.

The method of specifying the image input directory is rudimentary and does not use the graphic file selection methods available in Windows. The user must accurately type the complete path to the image file directory. Also, we have not provided an option to preview or select individual images for the import directory. These features could have been written into our macro. However, the code would have been much longer, more complex, and version-specific. We decided to keep the program simple to reduce the possibility of errors. More functionality requires additional customization of the PowerPoint installation. Users may already face challenges in getting the existing code to work properly on their particular computers.

Conclusion

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Appendix I contains the complete text of the macro. Detailed instructions are provided in the text for copying the code from the online version of this document on the AJR Web site and installing it in a blank PowerPoint presentation.

We have described how to use the macro and given troubleshooting advice for common problems that might arise. We have also placed blank PowerPoint presentation files with the macro already installed on an Internet server [16] for any interested readers to download. To obtain them, simply browse to where you will find download links for the macro text and blank presentation files in formats for various versions of PowerPoint. We hope that interested readers will use the program, modify it as needed, and pass it on to their colleagues.

References

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1. Caruso RD, Postel GC. Image editing with Adobe Photoshop 6.0. RadioGraphics2002; 22:993 –1002[Abstract/Free Full Text]
2. Caruso RD, Postel GC. Image annotation with Adobe Photoshop. J Digit Imaging2002; 15:197 –202[Medline]
3. Corl FM, Garland MR, Lawler LP, Fishman EK. A five-step approach to digital image manipulation for the radiologist. RadioGraphics2002; 22:981 –992[Abstract/Free Full Text]
4. Taylor GA. Initial steps in image preparation. AJR 2002;179:1411 –1413[Free Full Text]
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9. Daffner RH. On improvement of scientific presentations: using PowerPoint. AJR2003; 181:47 –49[Free Full Text]
10. Dreyer KJ. Using Microsoft PowerPoint for electronic presentations. RadioGraphics2001; 21:1318 –1321[Free Full Text]
11. Schreibman KL. Hello, and two great tricks. AJR 2001;177:1017 –1018[Free Full Text]
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13. Willing SJ. Getting images into PowerPoint. AJR 2002;179:533 –534[Free Full Text]
14. Microsoft Download Center. Microsoft Web site. Available at: http://office.microsoft.com/downloads/2000/album.aspx. Accessed March 19, 2004
15. Frank MS, Schultz T, Dreyer K. Integrating digital teaching-file systems with off-the-shelf presentation software to facilitate speaker-led conferences. J Digit Imaging2001; 14[suppl 1]:98 –101[Medline]
16. Author's Web site. Avialable at: http://xray.ufl.edu/sistrom

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