PPT2000: Cannot Locate Previous Slide from an Embedded Presentation

When viewing slides in an embedded presentation, you cannot navigate back to the slide from which you started the embedded presentation. This problem occurs with both the navigation shortcut menu and action buttons. The only way to return to the slide from which you started the embedded presentation is to complete the embedded presentation, or to press ESC.

PowerPoint does not retain the presentation-specific information which would be required to navigate backward from within an embedded presentation. PowerPoint assumes that you are navigating within the currently active presentation when you click the Back button on the Web toolbar, use the navigation shortcut menu, or use the Back or Previous action button.

To work around this problem, use either of the following methods.

Method 1: Create a Hyperlink

Instead of embedding a presentation within another presentation, you may create a hyperlink to a second presentation. All the navigation arrows then work as expected. To create a hyperlink to a presentation, follow these steps:

1. In PowerPoint, open the primary presentation.
2. On the View menu, click Normal, and then select the slide in which you want to create a hyperlink to another presentation.
3. On the Slide Show menu, point to Action Buttons and click the Action Button: Forward or Next button.
4. Insert the action button on the slide, and click the Mouse Click tab in the Action Settings dialog box.
5. Click Hyperlink to, and select Other PowerPoint Presentation in the Hyperlink to list.
6. Navigate to the presentation that you want; select it, and then click OK.

Method 2: Press ESC

While in the embedded presentation, pressing ESC brings you back to the original presentation.

NOTE: Pressing ESC terminates the embedded presentation.

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed at the beginning of this article.

For more information about creating a slide show, click Microsoft PowerPoint Help on the Help menu, type Create a new presentation in the Office Assistant or the Answer Wizard, and then click Search to view the topic.

For more information about using embedded objects in a presentation, click Microsoft PowerPoint Help on the Help menu, type Set up an OLE object to open during a slide show in the Office Assistant or the Answer Wizard, and then click Search to view the topic.