I need help projecting Powerpoint slides onto an LG TV

[Big Byte]

Hi,

An organization I volunteer at has recently bought an LG TV, which we intend to use to project text and pictures onto from our MBP (2020 M1 model). I've managed to connect the organization's MBP to the TV using "screen mirroring", but I have not been able to progress any further than that. At this time, the TV only displays the MBP desktop pic. So, I have a few questions that I'm hoping some of you will be able to help me with.

1) What program should I use to project text onto the TV? Ideally, I'd like to use software that's already on the MBP, and to not have to purchase any other software. The MBP has Microsoft Office installed on it, so I'm hoping that I can use Powerpoint to do this. Is this a suitable app to do so?

2) Assuming I can use Powerpoint, a) how do I actually go about projecting a Powerpoint presentation onto the TV?, and b) how do I do that without projecting everything I view in the app that is on the screen (ie. I only want to project one slide at a time, and not the toolbar, sidebar, etc.)?

3) Can I do this all from the MBP? To clarify, while I'm projecting slides onto the TV, I'll also be recording audio and video from the MBP as well. Does this newer MBP have a "split screen" function similar to the new iPads where I can view and use two applications side-by-side (in this case, Photo Booth to record audio and video and Powerpoint to project)? There's a bit of camera panning during the recording, so I'll need to use and view Photo Booth while I do simultaneously project the slides onto the TV. If this can be done, how do I do that? If not, will we need another device to handle both applications at once (eg. an iPad)?

4) Can all of this be done wirelessly? The MBP and the TV are too far apart to connect via cable... it could be done, but it would be unsightly. Can I use wifi, Bluetooth, or any other wireless connection to project Powerpoint slides onto the TV? The last person who did this used a wired connection, but they sat next to the TV with their own laptop; the desk where I'm sitting is a good distance (maybe 30') from the TV.

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[Raz0rEdge]

If you're screen mirroring from your MBP, you don't have to do anything else, just open the app you want and drag it to the other screen.

Go to Sys Prefs->Displays and you should ideally see 2 screens, one is the MBP and the other is the LG TV. Based on the orientation, you either have to drag left or right.

To make it easy, you should put the LG TV into mirror mode as opposed to extended mode so that it just shows you what's on the MBP's screen.

 

[MacInWin]

You can also try using the Powerpoint Presentation mode. That way you can have the slide controls on the MBP and the slide display on the LG TV screen. The screens need to be two separate displays, and Raz0rEdge suggested. But don't use Mirror mode, as that just shows the same as what is on the MBP where the Presentation Mode will use one screen for the presentation and the other for the controls. I do that all the time and it works well.

 

[krs]

I have used the PowerPoint presentation mode and found it a bit confusing especially if one has not used it for a while.
I would suggest you try it first and play around with the options, maybe even take some notes on how to set things up.

As to wireless onnetivity - which model LG TV is it and what capabilities does it have for wireless connectivity?

 

[Slydude]

Check the documentation for the specific LG model that you have. Some of there models have wireless AirPlay capability. You might need to update the software. IIRC they added that feature to some model after the TV was originally sold. If the TV was bought before about 2019 - 20 the website may have the most accurate information

 

[Big Byte]

If you're screen mirroring from your MBP, you don't have to do anything else, just open the app you want and drag it to the other screen.

Go to Sys Prefs->Displays and you should ideally see 2 screens, one is the MBP and the other is the LG TV. Based on the orientation, you either have to drag left or right.

To make it easy, you should put the LG TV into mirror mode as opposed to extended mode so that it just shows you what's on the MBP's screen.

Well, that worked! Thanks!

One question, though. Where is the option for "extended mode"? I can't seem to find it.

You can also try using the Powerpoint Presentation mode. That way you can have the slide controls on the MBP and the slide display on the LG TV screen. The screens need to be two separate displays, and Raz0rEdge suggested. But don't use Mirror mode, as that just shows the same as what is on the MBP where the Presentation Mode will use one screen for the presentation and the other for the controls. I do that all the time and it works well.

Great tip!

At first, the whole app (including the sidebar, etc.) was displayed on the LG TV. Once I found out how to switch to Presentation mode, only the "slide" I picked was displayed on the TV... with one caveat (which I'll explain in a bit).

I have used the PowerPoint presentation mode and found it a bit confusing especially if one has not used it for a while.
I would suggest you try it first and play around with the options, maybe even take some notes on how to set things up.

As to wireless onnetivity - which model LG TV is it and what capabilities does it have for wireless connectivity?

Yeah, it's my first time using Powerpoint, and there's a bit of a learning curve. It may take some time to get it down.

No issue with the wireless connectivity so far. The LG TV was bought new just a few months ago, so it seems like it must have all the firmware/hardware/software already included to make a wireless connection pretty straightforward.

Check the documentation for the specific LG model that you have. Some of there models have wireless AirPlay capability. You might need to update the software. IIRC they added that feature to some model after the TV was originally sold. If the TV was bought before about 2019 - 20 the website may have the most accurate information

It's a new TV, that was bought a few months ago. Your AirPlay suggestion has me intrigued. Is there any benefit to it over using "screen mirroring"?



So, I've managed to progress a bit so far, but there are a couple of hiccups I'm encountering.

First, although I can project one slide at a time onto the TV (without seeing everything else in the app on the screen), I'm still seeing the "toolbar" and "menu bar" on the TV with the slides. I don't want to see those on the TV, just the slides themselves. Is there anyway to do that?

Second, it's awkward switching between the laptop and the TV using the trackpad. Partly because the TV is so far from the laptop and so I can't really see the cursor on the TV, and partly because there seems to be some "lag" involved (maybe it's a lot of strain on the laptop, particularly because we're also recording audio and video at the same time). Plus, I don't know how to "return" everything to the laptop, which leaves me with the only option of having to close Powerpoint if I want to move the "slides" back to the laptop. I'm wondering if buying an iPad would solve this problem (and the next one I describe), insofar as we could use the iPad to project the slides onto the TV. Question is, can an iPad connect to the TV the way the laptop can (ie. "screen mirroring").

Third, and this is probably the biggest issue so far, is that we're having a tough time not being able to view both the Powerpoint app (on the laptop, which has all the slides for projecting onto the TV), and PhotoBooth (which we use to record audio and video) at the same time. Is our MBP capable of "split-screening" two apps, the way an iPad can, so that we can view and use both Powerpoint and PhotoBooth at the same time?

Again, thanks for everyone's help, it's much appreciated!

 

[Slydude]

I don't use PowerPoint a lot I won't be a lot of help there until I have played with it a bit more. I think there are some simple fixes to most of the issues you are having.

In your current situation AirPlay would essentially be doing the wireless mirroring that you are already doing so not much to gain there. AirPlay will be helpful if you want to mirror something from an iPhone to the TV wirelessly.

If you suspect that recording at the same time as presenting the PowerPoint slides is causing some lag, There might be a simple solution if you have a relatively recent iPhone or know someone who does. Since there is a version of PowerPoint for the iPhone, it should be possible to use the PowerPoint iPhone app to play the slides and let AirPlay mirror them to the TV. This would free up the laptop to handle audio/video recording.

I have used an iPone and AirPlay to mirror some content to a 55' LG TV. The only real problem I have noticed is that some content does not seem to want to display full screen when I do that. This may or may not be an issue for you. The content I remember having this issue with was from an website and it might have been something they were doing.

Edited to correct typos.

 

[Big Byte]

I don't use PowerPoint a lost I won't be a lot of help there until I have played with it a bit more. I think there are some simple fixes to most of the issues you are having.

In your current situation AirPlay would essentially be doing the wireless mirroring that you are already doing so not much to gain there. AirPlay will be helpful if you want to mirror something from an iPhone to the TV wirelessly.

If you suspect that recording at the same time as presenting the PowerPoint slides is causing some lag. There might be a simple solution if you have a relatively recent iPhone or know someone who does. Since there is a version of PowerPoint for the iPhone, it should be possible to use the PowerPoint iPhone app to play the slides and let AirPlay mirror them to the TV. This would free up the laptop to handle audio/video recording.

I have used an iPone and AirPlay to mirror some content to a 55' LG TV. The only really problem I have noticed is that some content does not seem to want to display full screen when I do that. This may or may not be an issue for you. The content I remember having this issue with was from an website and it might have been something they were doing.

I gave the first PowerPoint presentation today, and it went well.

As you suggested, I used my iPad with Airplay. It was pretty straightforward, I simply used AirDrop to send the file to my iPad, I connected my iPad to the TV via Airplay, I navigated to Presentation View in PowerPoint, and off I went. No problem.

But, as useful as the iPad is, it means that the organization where I gave the presentation would have to get their own tablet. But, that means money, and they have other things they need to get.



The goal is to do everything (ie. give a PowerPoint presentation and simultaneously make an audio/video recording) from the organization's laptop (a 2020 M1 MBP). After the presentation today, I tried doing both from the laptop and, when using Airplay instead of Screen Mirroring, I didn't notice any lag. So, that's good.

I also figured out how to "split screen" the MBP so I that I can view PowerPoint on one side of the screen and Photo Booth on the other. This allows me to view (and move between) both apps at the same time, which is what I was hoping to do.

The problem is, as soon as I enter Presentation View in PowerPoint, I lose the "split screen" (ie. Photo Booth disappears) and PowerPoint ends up taking up the whole screen. That's not good.

Any way to fix that?

 

[Slydude]

Am I understanding correctly that PowerPoint is taking up both screens blocking access to Photo Booth? If that's the case you are mirroring the screen to the LG TV. That's great for many things but leads to the problem that you are having.

You might try this with things set so that screen mirroring is set to extended mode. That would allow you to have different programs open on each screen. The PowerPoint window can be assigned to the TV screen and other programs can be assigned to the laptop screen.

Which version of MacOS are you using? I'll try to experiment a bit in the next day or two and see what I come up with. I bet there is an easy fix that I am missing.

 

[MacInWin]

Am I understanding correctly that PowerPoint is taking up both screens blocking access to Photo Booth? If that's the case you are mirroring the screen to the LG TV. That's great for many things but leads to the problem that you are having.

Sly, what happens with dual monitors is that when you select "Slide show" one monitor shows the current slide in full screen and the other screen shows the controls for the slide show, also in full screen. I have not been able to find a way to make the "controls" screen anything other than full screen. No top bar, no other controls or preferences to change the full screen presentation controls. The screens can be swapped, but both stay full screen. I don't know what happens with three screens, as I don't have a second monitor, but with jus two, that's all that works.

 

[Slydude]

Thanks for clarifying that. I wasn't sure whether there was a workaround or not. If you right about what happens, and I'm pretty sure you are, the idea that I had probably will not work.

 

[MacInWin]

@Big Byte , I did some experimenting and you might try opening the presentation in Keynote on the Mac. (To do that, drag the Powerpoint file to the Keynote icon and drop it there. Keynote will open and import the Powerpoint presentation.) With dual monitors, you can then select "Play" on the top bar and then "In Window" and finally "Play Slideshow" and the presentation will open with two windows, one being the slide show and the other the control window. Now drag the presentation window onto the second screen and then click on the green dot on the top bar of that window on the second screen. it will go full screen, but the window on the original screen will have a mini-controller window with room for you to open other applications, like Photo Booth, in a new window. I just tried that and it worked for me. One caution, the slideshow will need a blank final slide or at the end of the presentation the slideshow will end, the window showing the presentation will collapse and the screen become another Mac desktop. So, with one last slide you can just stop the show there and that image will stay on the screen for you. It's harder to explain than to see for yourself.

One other caution is that I don't know if Keynote can do the transitions that Powerpoint may have in the show. My test presentation was pretty simple, just six slides with no transitions. But it did work and I did open Photo Booth, so at least it is an option.

 

[Slydude]

Interesting solution. That's a cleaner solution than what I was going to test. TBH the last several times I have used presentation software I've used Keynote rather than PowerPoint. I used PowerPoint quite a bit when I taught a university class but since then I've used Keynote unless I was forced to use a PC.

 

[Big Byte]

Am I understanding correctly that PowerPoint is taking up both screens blocking access to Photo Booth? If that's the case you are mirroring the screen to the LG TV. That's great for many things but leads to the problem that you are having.

You might try this with things set so that screen mirroring is set to extended mode. That would allow you to have different programs open on each screen. The PowerPoint window can be assigned to the TV screen and other programs can be assigned to the laptop screen.

Which version of MacOS are you using? I'll try to experiment a bit in the next day or two and see what I come up with. I bet there is an easy fix that I am missing.

What happened is that, while in split screen (eg. PowerPoint on the left side and Photo Booth on the right), once I switch PowerPoint from regular mode to Presentation View, PowerPoint then ends up knocking Photo Booth of the screen and I lose the split screen effect. But, it's kind of moot now, as I ended up using my iPad to project the PowerPoint presentation, and it works great.

Sly, what happens with dual monitors is that when you select "Slide show" one monitor shows the current slide in full screen and the other screen shows the controls for the slide show, also in full screen. I have not been able to find a way to make the "controls" screen anything other than full screen. No top bar, no other controls or preferences to change the full screen presentation controls. The screens can be swapped, but both stay full screen. I don't know what happens with three screens, as I don't have a second monitor, but with jus two, that's all that works.

Yup, that pretty much happened to me, so using the iPad was the solution to this problem.

@Big Byte , I did some experimenting and you might try opening the presentation in Keynote on the Mac. (To do that, drag the Powerpoint file to the Keynote icon and drop it there. Keynote will open and import the Powerpoint presentation.) With dual monitors, you can then select "Play" on the top bar and then "In Window" and finally "Play Slideshow" and the presentation will open with two windows, one being the slide show and the other the control window. Now drag the presentation window onto the second screen and then click on the green dot on the top bar of that window on the second screen. it will go full screen, but the window on the original screen will have a mini-controller window with room for you to open other applications, like Photo Booth, in a new window. I just tried that and it worked for me. One caution, the slideshow will need a blank final slide or at the end of the presentation the slideshow will end, the window showing the presentation will collapse and the screen become another Mac desktop. So, with one last slide you can just stop the show there and that image will stay on the screen for you. It's harder to explain than to see for yourself.

One other caution is that I don't know if Keynote can do the transitions that Powerpoint may have in the show. My test presentation was pretty simple, just six slides with no transitions. But it did work and I did open Photo Booth, so at least it is an option.

I've been using my iPad, which is a new model, along with PowerPoint presentation. Works great, but, it's my iPad, and there's no guarantee that I'll be there every time the presentations are given.

I wanted to gift my old iPad to the organization, so I proceeded to restore it to factory settings. When I set it up again, I noticed there was no Keynote app. I tried to find it on the App Store, but it requires an iOS that my old iPad can't handle. I tried to download a similar app, but one was in an Asian language, and the other wouldn't open.

Is my old iPad (about 10 years old, running iOS 9.3) too old to support Keynote or any similar app? I hope not, because the iPad itself does support both AirDrop and AirPlay, both of which are useful for what I'm doing.

 

[Raz0rEdge]

Well, that worked! Thanks!

One question, though. Where is the option for "extended mode"? I can't seem to find it.

Not sure if you still need this info, but here you go..

Go to Sys Prefs->Displays and click on this button.


On the window that will appear, you'll see two options on the left sidebar. Your MBP monitor should have the Use as set to Main Display, now select the LG TV and you can choose Extended Display or Mirror for <MBP screen> as options here.


In my case, you see my two 27" screen connected to my MBP but since I'm in clamshell mode, the MBP's display isn't available. If I had it open, I'd have a 3rd choice to play with.

 

[Big Byte]

Not sure if you still need this info, but here you go..

Go to Sys Prefs->Displays and click on this button.

View attachment 37094
On the window that will appear, you'll see two options on the left sidebar. Your MBP monitor should have the Use as set to Main Display, now select the LG TV and you can choose Extended Display or Mirror for <MBP screen> as options here.

View attachment 37095
In my case, you see my two 27" screen connected to my MBP but since I'm in clamshell mode, the MBP's display isn't available. If I had it open, I'd have a 3rd choice to play with.

Thanks. Using the iPad has been pretty straightforward, but I'll give that a try.