Powerbacks released as free download
updated 11:15 am EDT, Mon October 2, 2006
Powerbacks set free
The man who created Powerbacks, one of the original four template collections for Microsoft PowerPoint, has made it available for free as a public download after a decade of success. Gary Blue conceived Powerbacks while sitting dismayed backstage during a corporate show in the spring of 1996, looking at the selection of templates that had shipped in Microsoft Office 95 which were being used in almost every presentation. Powerbacks comes in 18 categories that include Business, Creative, Education, Finance, Holidays, Humor, Inspirational, Religion, Social, Sports, Science, Technology, Abstracts, Edges, Frames, Gradients, and Perspectives & Textures. Each Download contains 30 presentation templates, and all works are featured in both .pot and .jpg formats for universal compatibility. Powerbacks works with Microsoft PowerPoint 2000-2007 for both Mac OS and Microsoft Windows.
Ugly
10/02, 11:24am reply
Is it just me or would these have been ugly in 1995
srobhall
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Apr 2005
re: ugly
10/02, 11:29am reply
No, sadly, I think in 1995 they may have been acceptable.
Philip J. Fry
Mac Enthusiast
Joined: Jul 2005
hey
10/02, 11:51am reply
Look, you might find them ugly -- I think most Mac users would -- but they're a GIFT. Say thank you and move on.
Some of them I think could be quite acceptable to certain groups. It was nice of Mr. Blue to make them available again.
chas_m
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Aug 2001
some ok
10/02, 12:57pm reply
Yeah, many of these are ugly, but he saw a need at the time and put these together, and they were better than what was available then. Things have moved on but so what?
I actually think some of them aren't so horrible, like his perspective series. Also some of the abstract and textures series aren't so bad. For some corporate types that don't have a creative bone in their body, these can be handy.
nativeNYer
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Apr 2005
re: hey
10/02, 12:57pm reply
Generally, I would agree with that - however, there is a point at which even well-meant gifts are not something that need to be accepted. Free California spinach anyone?
EmpNorton
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Oct 2006
ugly...?
10/02, 01:00pm reply
I saw someone posted that some of them are ugly. That's a shame, I would have to say you have excluded the others from the ugly roundup.
Ugly, and tasteless.
dwoodruff
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Jul 2006
They're dated
10/02, 03:30pm reply
That's all. Look at the mac OS pre-8.1 desktop patterns, the endless kittens desktop, the computer circuit board desktop, the thatch desktop. We've just evolved from these things, that's all. Yeah, they're a little um over the top and they show off what a stoned individual with photoshop, a bag of cheetos and insomnia can do, but still it's a freaking GIFT. I've seen MUCH WORSE than this at meetings, this isn't the worst of the worst. For the worst of the worst Mac software, try perversiontracker.com!
ibugv4
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Jun 2003