PowerPoint Basics for Computer Tests: Shortcuts, Views and Key Terms
The PowerPoint knowledge clerk and computer operator tests expect: slide show shortcuts, views, transitions vs animations, slide master and file formats.
By the World MCQ Forum Editorial Team · 27 October 2026 · 2 min read
PowerPoint gets fewer questions than Word or Excel in most computer tests, which is exactly why it is worth a short revision. The topic is small and the marks are easy. Everything below applies to Microsoft PowerPoint on Windows.
Essential shortcuts
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| F5 | Start the slide show from the first slide |
| Shift + F5 | Start the slide show from the current slide |
| Ctrl + M | Insert a new slide |
| Esc | End the slide show |
| Ctrl + K | Insert a hyperlink |
| Ctrl + S | Save |
During a slide show you can move forward with the right arrow, Page Down or a mouse click, and back with the left arrow or Page Up.
Transitions vs animations
This distinction is a favourite exam question:
- Transitions are effects that happen between slides, as one slide changes to the next. They are found on the Transitions tab.
- Animations are effects applied to objects within a slide, such as text or pictures appearing one by one. They are found on the Animations tab.
Views
| View | Used for |
|---|---|
| Normal | Editing slides (the default working view) |
| Slide Sorter | Seeing all slides as thumbnails and reordering them |
| Reading View | Viewing the presentation in a window |
| Slide Show | Presenting full-screen to an audience |
| Notes Page | Viewing and editing speaker notes |
Slide Master
The Slide Master controls the overall design of the presentation: fonts, colours, backgrounds and placeholder positions. A change made to the Slide Master applies to every slide based on it. This saves time and keeps the presentation consistent.
Speaker notes
Speaker notes are text attached to each slide that the presenter can see, but the audience does not see during the show. They are added in the notes pane below the slide in Normal view.
File formats
| Extension | Meaning |
|---|---|
| .pptx | Default PowerPoint presentation (2007 and later) |
| .ppt | Older PowerPoint 97–2003 format |
| .potx | PowerPoint template |
| .ppsx | Show format: opens directly as a slide show |
Useful features to know by name
- Layouts: predefined arrangements of placeholders (Title Slide, Title and Content, Two Content, and so on)
- Themes: coordinated sets of colours, fonts and effects
- SmartArt: diagrams such as process flows and hierarchies
- Rehearse Timings: records how long you spend on each slide while practising
Five-minute practice
Open PowerPoint and:
- add three slides with Ctrl + M
- apply a transition to one slide and an animation to a text box on another
- switch to Slide Sorter view and reorder the slides
- start the show with F5, then from slide 2 with Shift + F5
Doing these once is usually enough to answer every common PowerPoint question. Then test yourself with our MS Office MCQs.