By Ryan Johnson, technology training coordinator

This week’s tech tip will highlight some of the changes in PowerPoint in Office 13.

Instead of opening with a blank presentation, PowerPoint 2013 gives you several ways to start your next presentation using a template, a theme, a recent presentation, a not-so-recent presentation, or a blank one.

Improved Video and Audio Support

PowerPoint now supports more multimedia formats, such as .mp4 and .mov with H.264 video and Advanced Audio Coding (AAC) audio, and more high-definition content. PowerPoint 2013 includes more built-in codecs so you don’t have to install them for certain file formats to work.

PowerPoint has changed its default to a 16:9 wide screen format that is great for viewing on wide screen TVs, laptops and projectors. The standard 4:3 ratio is still an option for older setups. Incidentally, 16:9 is available in 2010, it’s just that it has been enabled by default in 2013.

Finally, you can use the Play in Background feature to play music while people view your slide show.

Line-up and Space Objects Equally

No more eyeballing objects on your slides to see if they’re lined up. Smart Guides automatically appear when your objects, such as pictures, shapes, and more, are close to even, and they also tell you when objects are spaced evenly.

Theme Variations

Themes now come with a set of variations, like different color palettes and font families. And, PowerPoint 2013 provides new widescreen themes along with standard sizes. Choose a theme and variant from the start screen or from the Design tab.