Media is where a deck stops being a document and becomes an experience: audio sets tone or carries narration, video shows what a static slide can only describe, and 3D models let you present an object from any angle. RixSlides embeds all three as native .pptx media parts on the high-fidelity canvas — inserted once, embedded in the file, playable in the slideshow without external dependencies.
Insert audio and video
- Choose Insert, Video or Insert, Audio and select the file from your disk.
- The media lands on the slide as a frame; drag to position, handles to size.
- Set playback behavior in the sidebar: start on click for deliberate pacing, or automatically for atmosphere.
- Press F5 and rehearse the moment it plays — timing is part of the content.
Because media is embedded, the deck is self-contained: copy the .pptx to the presentation machine and everything travels with it. No broken links to a video that lives on your laptop.
Media placement habits
- Size video frames to the content, not the slide — a product demo wants to be seen, but a bordered window often reads cleaner than edge-to-edge.
- Keep audio icons small and consistent across slides; the style template's colors keep them quiet.
- Put a text box caption under each clip naming it — future-you in presenter view will be grateful.
3D models on a slide
3D models are native slide elements in RixSlides:
- Choose Insert, 3D model and pick the model file.
- It renders on the canvas as a true three-dimensional object.
- Rotate it to the exact presenting angle — the quarter view of a product, the exploded view of a component.
- Scale and position like any other element; it composes with shapes, text and images.
For hardware pitches, architecture reviews and product design walkthroughs, this replaces the traditional slide cycle of six screenshots with one model the audience mentally rotates itself.
Screen recordings as media
A screen recording is just media once captured, so it slots into the same flow: record your screen to a .webm, then insert it on a slide like any video. This is the natural way to show software — the actual interface, moving, narrated by you in the room. The dedicated screen recording guide covers capture settings, recording to .webm and inserting the result.
Media in the presentation flow
| Media type | Best moment on stage |
|---|---|
| Video clip | The demonstration beat — show, don't describe |
| Audio track | Section transitions or a timed mood shift |
| 3D model | The walkthrough beat — rotate while you explain |
| Screen recording | Feature tours of live software |
| Still image | Everything else |
Rehearsal matters more for media than for any other element: play each clip in SlideShowView, check the audio level, and confirm the click that triggers playback is where you expect in the build sequence. Presenter view shows you the current slide while the audience watches the media — see the presenter view guide for the full dashboard.
Exports and limits to know
Two export behaviors are worth knowing before the big day:
- PDF and PNG exports capture the media frame as it appears on the canvas — a video becomes its poster frame, an audio clip its icon. Media is a live-show element; the exported handout is the still version.
- For a leave-behind that keeps playing, share the .pptx itself — embedded media plays in any compliant viewer.
Plan the deck knowing which slides perform live and which must survive as paper, and place media accordingly.
What to explore next
- Screen recording to capture your screen straight into a slide.
- Presenter view to run media confidently from stage.
- Animations and transitions to time media into the build.