Prezi (Thing 7)

Good afternoon, friends! I'm glad you stopped by.

My "thing"for today is Prezi--"the zooming presentation maker".  Until early June, during my tour of UF's Map and Imagery Library, I had no idea that Prezi even existed--let alone how it could be used to improve a library's services.

I've mentioned here before that during my tour of the Map and Imagery Library, I interviewed Carol McAuliffe. During our interview, she mentioned her commitment to raising awareness within the greater Gainesville community of the presence and usefulness of the map library at the University of Florida.  In an attempt to raise locals' awareness of the resources available to them at her library, Carol sometimes visits local elementary or secondary schools or gives presentations at conferences.  One tool she uses to promote the map library (especially during conferences) is Prezi.  She shared a Prezi she had made during my library tour.  I was impressed with Carol's presentation, and wanted to know more about the technology for myself.

Thing 7: Prezi
www.prezi.com

Prezi is a website that allows people to make, store, and use presentations.  Basic accounts are free, and include presentation templates (with some ready-made content), tutorials,  and 100 MB of online storage.  If a user needs more storage or advanced features, they can opt to upgrade their account for a cost of $59 annually.

As with Pinterest (which I discussed at length in my post for Thing 5), people can create accounts with Prezi then login with a Facebook account.  I think this login structure makes the site more user friendly, and manageable as one means of social media available.

The main website of Prezi is divided into three different tabs. It is stylistically reminiscent of a set of file folders. On the main "Create" tab people can login or sign up for an account.  There, people first learn about the features included with basic membership with the site.

The "Learn" tab is where people find detailed videos explaining the various features of Prezi from basics like "Get Started" all the way through "Share your Prezi".  Each video is succinct, running about 5 minutes long. Prezi also provides subject-specific "cheat sheets" for ready reference under each video.  Beyond these options, people can also register for a 1 hour webinar on how to use Prezi in English or Spanish!

What makes Prezi stand out above applications like PowerPoint is that its presentations zoom--literally. To see what I mean check out these screen shots of Prezi in action.

Or this: 

Text and images can be set to rotate throughout one's Prezi presentation.  I enjoy this feature of Prezi. I think it allows the information being shared to make a bigger impact on the minds of its audience.  I know however, that Prezi's critics have often criticized this feature of a Prezi, claiming it may cause motion sickness in viewers.  


I think Carol's use of Prezi to promote UF's Map and Imagery Library shows one way of using Prezi in the context of an academic library.  Beyond this, I think it's important for all academic librarians to familiarize themselves with Prezi because one segment of the community an academic librarian serves is graduate teaching assistants.  I think Prezi could be a real asset in any college classroom!


~J