How can I make a video play automatically in PowerPoint?

Setting a video to play automatically in PowerPoint is a straightforward process that can be easily achieved by following these steps:

  1. Start by opening your PowerPoint presentation and navigate to the slide where you want to add the video.
  2. Click on the ‘Insert’ tab in the Microsoft PowerPoint toolbar and select the ‘Video’ option.
  3. Choose ‘Video on My PC’ if you have the video file on your computer. A dialog box will appear for you to locate and select your video file. Click ‘Insert’ when you have chosen the video.
  4. Once your video is inserted into your slide, click on the video to select it. This will bring up two new tabs at the top of PowerPoint under ‘Video Tools’: ‘Format’ and ‘Playback’.
  5. Click on the ‘Playback’ tab, and in the ‘Video Options’ group, select ‘Automatically’ from the ‘Start’ dropdown list.

Doing this will ensure that your video plays automatically during the PowerPoint slideshow. However, remember to check if the sound volume is appropriate and adjust it as needed in the ‘Playback’ tab, under ‘Video Tools’.

If you want your video to play across multiple slides or play continuously throughout a presentation, tick ‘Play Across Slides’ and ‘Loop until Stopped’ options in the ‘Video Options’ group under the ‘Playback’ tab.

Lastly, it’s always a good idea to preview your slideshow to make sure that the video plays correctly and at the right time. To do this, navigate to the ‘Slide Show’ tab and click on ‘From Current Slide’ or ‘From Beginning’ to start the slideshow.

Note: These instructions are based on PowerPoint 2016, 2019, and Office 365 versions. Steps may vary slightly in other versions of PowerPoint.

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