Conclusions
Overall, Slide:ology does an admirable job of offering an alternative to text-heavy, boring slides. Duarte shows readers the possibility of visually compelling, thought-provoking presentations as well as clues on where to start. Though the examples that clearly require the skills of a trained designer to execute may create a perceived barrier for the entry-level practitioner, much of the advice transcends technical design skills and can be used to develop a more rhetorically situated understanding on the presentation genre. The book could have benefitted from going a bit more in-depth on practical application for those who would like to create better presentations but do not have the ability to hire in a team of designers to work on the projects.
I would highly recommend that anyone wanting to improve their ability to create compelling presentations pick up a copy of this book – preferably physical over digital (it was clear in accessing the digital copy of the book that some of the visual layout elements meant to extend across multiple pages did not translate well to the digital format). While some of the advice can be daunting to those who do not have a background in design or the ability to hire a desire, there is enough universally applicable advice to make it an excellent source for guidance and inspiration.
I would highly recommend that anyone wanting to improve their ability to create compelling presentations pick up a copy of this book – preferably physical over digital (it was clear in accessing the digital copy of the book that some of the visual layout elements meant to extend across multiple pages did not translate well to the digital format). While some of the advice can be daunting to those who do not have a background in design or the ability to hire a desire, there is enough universally applicable advice to make it an excellent source for guidance and inspiration.