If you do frequent public speaking, particularly in medium-to-large venues, how do you create/use your speaker notes? I’ve done everything from handwritten index cards to printed full manuscripts to teleprompters to Pages presenter mode to on-screen pdfs and more. What do you use? What apps? Etc?
@matt Never used an app but have always written good old fashioned index cards. But then, I haven't exactly done a lot of public speaking beyond a club or group of friends.
@Mtt I currently write my final notes in iA Writer and export them as PDFs. I open those PDFs in PDFExpert, reduce the margins, and then either print a paper copy or present them directly from an iPad.
@AlexWolfe Index card can be so useful. If you speak a lot, I suggest getting some custom made ones. Can have your name or logo on the backside (what audience sees) and special information on your side (such as a spot for notes order, self queues, etc).
@matt Oh, that does sound very fancy. I'm sure if I ever went that route, I would gladly have personalised cards.
Most of the talks I ever did were mostly off the cuff and from memory. The cards were talking points and a memory aide.
@AlexWolfe Yeah, that’s perfect for index cards. Kind of gives the late night talk show vibe. You see them use what’s basically larger index cards.
@matt There's something almost cache about whipping out a deck from your purse or pocket and tapping them into order. And then, totally ignoring them while waffling off the cuff. 😉
@Mtt Ulysses to draft. Pages to print. Full manuscript.
I don't wind up blindly reading the manuscript, but having a full written manuscript gives me a baseline confidence that I don't have when I am entirely unscripted. Bullet points or outlines almost certainly mean I will go over time.
@Mtt I have layout and font combination set up in Word, which when I'm done, I send to either a reMarkable (which I will probably sell) or Scribe, and read from that. My speaking is always done at a lectern, so I have it up there beforehand.
@frjon I’m very similar to that in regards to the manuscript. Too many people read it, but if you can use it as more of an aid, it’s the most effective IMO.
@jonah I have a template in Pages with the correct styles/fonts. Makes it easy to add in notes for production/stage teams. I also like to format quotes from different sources in different ways. For example, I want to be able to see at a glance if it’s from the Bible vs a traditional quote. I also like to be able to put citations before sources which is more effective in speech.
@Mtt I use Word mostly because it synchronize as well with mobile apps in live use as an alternative to Google Docs. I feel like I should look into Pages as Word has become increasingly frustrating as time has gone on, especially since mine has consistently been broken in export function since always.
@jonah I haven't used office in years and years and years - and people I share docs with rarely pick up that I use Pages, Keynote and Numbers ... rarely - because sometimes the translations aren't always entirely glitch free. The PLEASURE of using them over the Office world more than makes up for it - and they are all free to me.
@JohnPhilpin I've tried this, it works fine for just sending faux Word documents, but if something comes back from a commercial client for complex editing I run into problems.
@billbennettnz yes - definitely at the high end the exvchnage can get problematic - i find the issues for me occur in numbers/excel - but yes 100 - mileage will vary and use cases are different.
@JohnPhilpin office is free on my nonprofit account; otherwise I don't think it worth it, especially if I could get our weekly booklets to work better in another app. But Kyocera printers don't like Macs so Office becomes the go-between
@jonah one reason I love pages is its layout controls - simple and intuitive for a non designer - export to pdf and print wherever you like
@Mtt I’ve always considered the slides to be my notes. The slides are not for my audience (students), they are for me.
@Mtt depends on the length of the spot. A short address I usually have printed sheets.
10-20miles I would probably go with notes in keynote.
Anything longer I’d go with a teleprompter with help from someone to control scrolling.
@Jonah If you're Apple-only, Pages sync works perfectly. I typically write on a Mac, reference on an iPhone, and present from an iPad. All work seamlessly together.
@gregmorris When I use a teleprompter, I don't read word-for-word from it. Because of that, I use a remote to control it myself. A small Logitech something.
@Mtt Yes i know what you mean, I want a small toggle like device to slow and speed up the scroll. I usualyl just have outline points on mine, not full text to read otherwise i don't sound natural
@Mtt with an iPad now I am more able to do Apple ecosystem, so I might give it a try. Before it was Linux, Android, iOS, and MacOS. Now using OneDrive for work (which could have been GDocs if not for stunted features); Nextcloud & iCloud_ADP for personal.
@gregmorris An 8bitdo Micro Bluetooth controller is small and fits in one hand, cheap (~$20), and has a lot of buttons you can bind to keys in Keyboard mode, works pretty well for presentations even though it’s originally designed as a video game controller.