How to add a Shockwave Flash control to a slide in PowerPoint

This step-by-step article describes how to add a Macromedia Shockwave Flash ActiveX control to a slide to play a Flash file (*.swf) during a slide show. The Flash file plays automatically without any user interaction.

NOTE: Neither the PowerPoint viewer nor the Macintosh versions of PowerPoint support the use of ActiveX controls. Only Microsoft PowerPoint 97 and later can use ActiveX controls.

PowerPoint 2010 now has direct support for Flash (*.swf) and inserting videos from websites that make use of embed code, such as YouTube. You need to have Adobe Flash Player installed and this is only supported on 32-bit version of Office 2010 and PowerPoint 2010.

PowerPoint 2003, PowerPoint 2002, and PowerPoint 2000

Add a Shockwave Flash Object ActiveX Control to a Slide or Form

To add a Shockwave Flash Object control to a slide, follow these steps:

1. Start PowerPoint, and then locate the slide that you want to insert the control into.
2. If the Control Toolbox is not already visible, point to Toolbars on the View menu, and then click Control Toolbox.
3. In the Control Toolbox, click More Controls, and then click Shockwave Flash Object.
   
   NOTE: Shockwave Flash must be installed on your computer for the Shockwave Flash Object to be listed in the Control Toolbox.
4. Draw the control on your slide.
   
   The Shockwave Flash Object ActiveX control now appears on your slide.

Connect to the Shockwave Flash Animation File

To make the Shockwave Flash control play back your Flash animation file, follow these steps:

1. Right-click the inserted Shockwave Flash control, and then click Properties.
2. Click the Movie property. In the Value box, type the full Uniform Resource Locator (URL) or drive path to the *.swf file that you want to play.
3. Make sure that the Playing property is set to True.
   
   NOTE: Because of this link in the ActiveX control, Pack and Go cannot pack the Flash animation file. If you plan to use this animation on another computer, use either of the following methods:
   
   
   • Make the animation file available on a common network share or Web server. -or-
     
     
   • Move the animation file separately, and then update the path to the file in the properties of the control.

PowerPoint 2007

Make sure that the Flash Player is installed on the computer. Then, follow these steps:

1. In PowerPoint, display in normal view the slide on which you want to play the animation.
2. Click the Microsoft Office Button, and then click PowerPoint Options.
3. Click Popular, and then click to select the Show Developer tab in the Ribbon check box under Top options for working with PowerPoint, and then click OK.
4. On the Developer tab, click More Controls in the Controls group.
5. In the list of controls, click Shockwave Flash Object, click OK, and then drag on the slide to draw the control.
6. Resize the control by dragging the sizing handles.
7. Right-click the Shockwave Flash Object, and then click Properties.
8. On the Alphabetic tab, click the Movie property.
9. In the value column (the blank cell next to Movie), type the full drive path, including the file name (for example, C\:MyFile.swf) or uniform resource locator (URL) to the Flash file that you want to play.

PowerPoint 2010

Make sure that the Flash Player is installed on the computer. Then, follow these steps:

1. In PowerPoint, display in normal view the slide on which you want to play the animation.
2. Click File, and then click Options.  
3. Click Customize Ribbon, and then check the check box labeled Developer in the right list, and then click OK.
4. On the Developer tab, click the More Controls button in the Controls group.
5. In the list of controls, click Shockwave Flash Object, click OK, and then drag on the slide to draw the control.
6. Resize the control by dragging the sizing handles.
7. Right-click the Shockwave Flash Object, and then click Properties.
8. On the Alphabetic tab, click the Movie property.
9. In the value column (the blank cell next to Movie), type the full drive path, including the file name (for example, C\:MyFile.swf) or uniform resource locator (URL) to the Flash file that you want to play.

PowerPoint 2010, 32-bit edition, now supports Flash. You can insert Flash (*.swf) files into PowerPoint or you can insert a Flash video from a website such as YouTube. You must have the Adobe Flash Player installed and this only works with PowerPoint 2010 32-bit. You cannot insert a Flash or Flash video in a presentation by using PowerPoint 2010 64-bit, as Adobe has not released a native 64-bit Flash Player.

For information about how to obtain Shockwave Flash, visit the following Shockwave Web site: Microsoft provides third-party contact information to help you find technical support. This contact information may change without notice. Microsoft does not guarantee the accuracy of this third-party contact information.

The third-party products that this article discusses are manufactured by companies that are independent of Microsoft. Microsoft makes no warranty, implied or otherwise, regarding the performance or reliability of these products.