Reuse Slides in PowerPoint 2008 for Mac

Reusing slides that you already have is a good idea as long as you make sure you don't end up using outdated content! We always suggest that you to first create and import an outline so that you have a structured presentation in place. Thereafter, use the option that lets you import slides to add more slides or even replace existing ones. Finally, you can add any new slides that you need to create from scratch.

PowerPoint provides a quick Reuse Slides command that locates specific slides and enables you to add them to the active presentation. While this process works the same way in all versions of PowerPoint, there are small interface changes.

In this tutorial, we'll show you how to reuse slides in PowerPoint 2008 for Mac:

1. Within PowerPoint, open your existing presentation, as shown in Figure 1, below.
2. 
   Figure 1: PowerPoint 2008

   Where are Slides Inserted?

   Copied slides will always be inserted after the selected slide in the active presentation.

2. Browse to the slide after which you want to import new slides. Then, choose the Insert | Slides From | Other Presentation menu option, as shown in Figure 2, below.
3. 
   Figure 2: Slides From Other Presentation
3. Doing so will open the Choose a File dialog box, as shown in Figure 3, below. Locate the presentation file on your computer that contains the slide(s).
4. 
   Figure 3: Choose a File dialog box
4. You need to choose between options to Insert all Slides or Select slides to insert (see bottom left of Figure 3, above). Unless you want to insert all slides into the source presentation, it is advisable to choose the Select slides to insert option, which enables you to preview the slides before inserting them. The rest of this tutorial assumes you chose that option. Click Insert in the dialog to proceed.
5. The selected file will be opened in the Slide Finder dialog box, displaying the slide previews and corresponding slide titles, as shown in Figure 4, below.
6. 
   Figure 4: Slides in Slide Finder dialog box
6. Now you can select slide(s) to insert, as shown in Figure 5, below, and click the Insert button. Alternatively, if you want to insert all the slides in the presentation, click the Insert All button.
7. 
   Figure 5: Insert slides

   Keep Source Formatting

   To retain the slide formatting of the original slide, make sure to check the box beside the option Keep design of original slides located at the bottom left of the Slide Finder dialog box, as shown highlighted in red within Figure 5, above. If you do not check the Keep source formatting box, the copied slide will take on the slide formatting using the design template of the new presentation.

7. The selected slides are added to the new presentation, as shown in Figure 6, below.
8. 
   Figure 6: Added slides
8. Save the presentation often.