{"id":20315,"date":"2023-02-17T17:30:23","date_gmt":"2023-02-17T22:30:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/biws\/kb\/%kb_category%\/powerpoint-connector-lines-for-hierarchy-charts-2613\/"},"modified":"2024-09-25T17:53:36","modified_gmt":"2024-09-25T22:53:36","slug":"powerpoint-connector-lines","status":"publish","type":"biws_kb","link":"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/kb\/powerpoint\/powerpoint-connector-lines\/","title":{"rendered":"The PowerPoint Connector: How to Connect Lines in PowerPoint to Create Diagrams"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_81 counter-flat ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">The PowerPoint Connector: How to Connect Lines in PowerPoint to Create Diagrams<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/kb\/powerpoint\/powerpoint-connector-lines\/#Inserting_PowerPoint_Connectors_on_Slides\">Inserting PowerPoint Connectors on Slides<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/kb\/powerpoint\/powerpoint-connector-lines\/#PowerPoint_Connectors_Practice_Exercise\">PowerPoint Connectors: Practice Exercise<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/kb\/powerpoint\/powerpoint-connector-lines\/#Beyond_the_PowerPoint_Connector\">Beyond the PowerPoint Connector<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<br \/>\nConnector lines let you create <strong>hierarchies <\/strong>in PowerPoint for corporate structures, deal structures, and client\/investment recommendations.<\/p>\n<p>Unlike normal lines, they <strong>\u201csnap\u201d<\/strong> into place and move as you move around shapes connected to them.<\/p>\n<p>For example, with PowerPoint connectors, you can create a slide that looks like this:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25535 size-full\" title=\"PowerPoint Connector Lines on a Slide\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074847\/PPT-05-06-Image-01.jpg\" alt=\"PowerPoint Connector Lines on a Slide\" width=\"1008\" height=\"760\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074847\/PPT-05-06-Image-01.jpg 1008w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074847\/PPT-05-06-Image-01-300x226.jpg 300w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074847\/PPT-05-06-Image-01-768x579.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1008px) 100vw, 1008px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Then, if you change the shapes\u2019 positions on the slide, the <strong>connector lines will move with the shapes<\/strong> <strong>if you have linked them properly<\/strong>:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25536 size-full\" title=\"PowerPoint Connector Lines Moving with Shapes\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074846\/PPT-05-06-Image-02.jpg\" alt=\"PowerPoint Connector Lines Moving with Shapes\" width=\"1009\" height=\"760\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074846\/PPT-05-06-Image-02.jpg 1009w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074846\/PPT-05-06-Image-02-300x226.jpg 300w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074846\/PPT-05-06-Image-02-768x578.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1009px) 100vw, 1009px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>This feature is a huge time-saver because many slides include shapes that are connected by lines, and your slides should be as easy as possible to modify.<\/p>\n<div class='code-block code-block-6' style='margin: 8px 0; clear: both;'>\n<div class=\"kb-adinsert-modal\">\n    <div class=\"kb-adinsert-top\">\n      <div class=\"media\">\n          <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-28448\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/22172833\/Power-Point-Pro.png\" alt=\"PowerPoint Pro\" width=\"128\" height=\"128\" \/>\n      <\/div>\n      <div class=\"content\">\n          <h3>Become a PowerPoint Pro With the <strong>BIWS PowerPoint & VBA Course<\/strong><\/h3>\n      <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n    \n    <div class=\"full_text\">\n    \t<ul>\n        \t<li>\n            \t<h4>Become a presentation machine<\/h4>\n              <p>Master the key shortcuts and commands for \u201cwarp speed\u201d slide creation<\/p>\n\t\t\t    <\/li>\n          <li>\n          \t<h4>Acquire the skills with dozens of practice exercises<\/h4>\n            <p>Learn by doing \u2013 and check your work against the solutions<\/p>\n\t\t\t    <\/li>\n          <li>\n          \t<h4>Save hours with our full macro package (25+ macros)<\/h4>\n            <p>Automate formatting, tables, alignment, drawing guides, and more\n\n<\/p>\n\t\t\t  <\/li>\n      <\/ul>\n        \n      <a class=\"cta-link orange-button-medium\" href=\"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/powerpoint-pro\/\" target=\"_blank\">Full Details<\/a>\n      \n      <a class=\"cta-link orange-button-medium bg-blue\" href=\"https:\/\/biws-support.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/Course-Outlines\/PowerPoint-Pro-Course-Outline.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Short Outline<\/a>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<h3><strong>Video Table of Contents:<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><strong>3:04:<\/strong>\u00a0Connector Line Setup and Demonstration<\/p>\n<p><strong>7:57:<\/strong>\u00a0Exercise, Part 1: The First Grouping<\/p>\n<p><strong>15:13:<\/strong>\u00a0Exercise, Part 2: Duplicating the Grouping<\/p>\n<p><strong>20:06:\u00a0<\/strong>Recap and Summary<\/p>\n<p>[Click the <strong>&#8220;Files &amp; Resources&#8221; tab<\/strong> to get all the PowerPoint files for this lesson.]<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Inserting_PowerPoint_Connectors_on_Slides\"><\/span><strong>Inserting PowerPoint Connectors on Slides<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>The key shortcuts here are <strong>Alt, 08<\/strong> to insert \u201cnormal lines\u201d (i.e., straight lines) and <strong>Alt, 09<\/strong> to insert lines with arrows, elbow connectors, \u201csquiggly\u201d portions, etc.<\/p>\n<p>Both these shortcuts require <a href=\"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/kb\/powerpoint\/powerpoint-quick-access-toolbar\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">our Quick Access Toolbar<\/a>, so we recommend downloading and installing it if you haven\u2019t already done so (click the link and follow the instructions).<\/p>\n<p>If you don\u2019t want to use our QAT, you could also use the Alt, N, S, H shortcut to insert shapes, but it\u2019s slower to type (there is no shortcut on Mac, so you&#8217;ll have to go to the &#8220;Insert&#8221; tab on the ribbon menu manually).<\/p>\n<p>In any case, insert a straight line with Alt, 08 or Alt, N, S, H or Insert &#8211;&gt; Shapes.<\/p>\n<p>These commands let you &#8220;draw&#8221; the line in the position you want.<\/p>\n<p>You can start drawing this line on the <strong>right edge<\/strong> of the \u201cSale \/ Merger\u201d shape near the bottom, and extend it to the <strong>left edge<\/strong> of the \u201cMerger \/ Combination with Strategic\u201d shape:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25537 size-full\" title=\"PowerPoint Slide with Shapes\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074846\/PPT-05-06-Image-03.jpg\" alt=\"PowerPoint Slide with Shapes\" width=\"1007\" height=\"762\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074846\/PPT-05-06-Image-03.jpg 1007w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074846\/PPT-05-06-Image-03-300x227.jpg 300w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074846\/PPT-05-06-Image-03-768x581.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1007px) 100vw, 1007px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>You should ensure the line <u>starts<\/u> on the left shape\u2019s <strong>grey dot<\/strong> and <u>ends<\/u> on the right shape\u2019s <strong>grey dot<\/strong>, as shown above.<\/p>\n<p>Once you\u2019ve done this, you should see <strong>green dots<\/strong> at the ends of the line, which indicate that it\u2019s \u201clinked\u201d to the two shapes:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25538 size-full\" title=\"Inserting a PowerPoint Connector Line\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074845\/PPT-05-06-Image-04.jpg\" alt=\"Inserting a PowerPoint Connector Line\" width=\"478\" height=\"264\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074845\/PPT-05-06-Image-04.jpg 478w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074845\/PPT-05-06-Image-04-300x166.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 478px) 100vw, 478px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>To set up the other connectors, you\u2019ll need <strong>\u201celbow lines\u201d<\/strong> that bend around the corners of shapes and create branches.<\/p>\n<p>You can use Alt, 09 to insert these:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25539 size-full\" title=\"PowerPoint Line with Elbow\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074845\/PPT-05-06-Image-05.jpg\" alt=\"PowerPoint Line with Elbow\" width=\"352\" height=\"243\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074845\/PPT-05-06-Image-05.jpg 352w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074845\/PPT-05-06-Image-05-300x207.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 352px) 100vw, 352px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Once again, always <strong>start drawing the line on an existing shape\u2019s &#8220;grey dot&#8221;<\/strong>\u00a0and make sure it ends on another shape\u2019s &#8220;grey dot&#8221;:<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25540 size-full\" title=\"PowerPoint Connector Line with an Elbow\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074845\/PPT-05-06-Image-06.jpg\" alt=\"PowerPoint Connector Line with an Elbow\" width=\"540\" height=\"404\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074845\/PPT-05-06-Image-06.jpg 540w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074845\/PPT-05-06-Image-06-300x224.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 540px) 100vw, 540px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>If you have <strong>not<\/strong> done this correctly, <strong>you will<\/strong> <strong>not see the<\/strong> <strong>green dot<\/strong> on the connection point:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25541 size-full\" title=\"PowerPoint Connector Line Without the Correct Links\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074844\/PPT-05-06-Image-07.jpg\" alt=\"PowerPoint Connector Line Without the Correct Links\" width=\"1344\" height=\"644\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074844\/PPT-05-06-Image-07.jpg 1344w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074844\/PPT-05-06-Image-07-300x144.jpg 300w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074844\/PPT-05-06-Image-07-1024x491.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074844\/PPT-05-06-Image-07-768x368.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1344px) 100vw, 1344px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>You can fix this issue by left-clicking the line and dragging it with the mouse until it \u201csnaps\u201d into place on this shape\u2019s grey dot on its right edge:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25542 size-full\" title=\"Fixing a PowerPoint Connector Line with the Mouse\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074844\/PPT-05-06-Image-08.jpg\" alt=\"Fixing a PowerPoint Connector Line with the Mouse\" width=\"1336\" height=\"640\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074844\/PPT-05-06-Image-08.jpg 1336w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074844\/PPT-05-06-Image-08-300x144.jpg 300w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074844\/PPT-05-06-Image-08-1024x491.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074844\/PPT-05-06-Image-08-768x368.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1336px) 100vw, 1336px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>If you want to insert the same PowerPoint connector repeatedly, you can right-click the line type via the Alt, 09 menu and select \u201cLock Drawing Mode\u201d:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25543 size-full\" title=\"&quot;Lock Drawing Mode&quot; for Lines in PowerPoint\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074844\/PPT-05-06-Image-09.jpg\" alt=\"&quot;Lock Drawing Mode&quot; for Lines in PowerPoint\" width=\"523\" height=\"289\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074844\/PPT-05-06-Image-09.jpg 523w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074844\/PPT-05-06-Image-09-300x166.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 523px) 100vw, 523px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>When you do this, PowerPoint will insert the same connector each time you click the mouse, so you can add many identical connectors by clicking the slide repeatedly:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25544 size-full\" title=\"Adding Multiple Connector Lines with &quot;Lock Drawing Mode&quot;\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074843\/PPT-05-06-Image-10.jpg\" alt=\"Adding Multiple Connector Lines with &quot;Lock Drawing Mode&quot;\" width=\"1337\" height=\"672\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074843\/PPT-05-06-Image-10.jpg 1337w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074843\/PPT-05-06-Image-10-300x151.jpg 300w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074843\/PPT-05-06-Image-10-1024x515.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074843\/PPT-05-06-Image-10-768x386.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1337px) 100vw, 1337px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>You can press the <strong>Escape key (Esc)<\/strong> when you&#8217;re done to exit the \u201cLock Drawing Mode.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Once you\u2019ve exited, clicking on the slide will no longer add the PowerPoint connectors.<\/p>\n<p>These connectors are in the incorrect positions, but now that they\u2019re all on the same slide, you can move them around and connect them to each pair of shapes:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25545 size-full\" title=\"Fully Connected Lines and Shapes on a PowerPoint Slide\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074842\/PPT-05-06-Image-11.jpg\" alt=\"Fully Connected Lines and Shapes on a PowerPoint Slide\" width=\"1003\" height=\"757\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074842\/PPT-05-06-Image-11.jpg 1003w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074842\/PPT-05-06-Image-11-300x226.jpg 300w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074842\/PPT-05-06-Image-11-768x580.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1003px) 100vw, 1003px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><strong>To check your work<\/strong>, you can press the Ctrl + A shortcut (\u2318 + A on Mac) and make sure each PowerPoint connector has green dots at its ends.<\/p>\n<p>You can see there\u2019s one problem here:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25546 size-full\" title=\"Detecting a Problem with PowerPoint Connector Lines\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074841\/PPT-05-06-Image-12.jpg\" alt=\"Detecting a Problem with PowerPoint Connector Lines\" width=\"904\" height=\"712\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074841\/PPT-05-06-Image-12.jpg 904w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074841\/PPT-05-06-Image-12-300x236.jpg 300w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074841\/PPT-05-06-Image-12-768x605.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 904px) 100vw, 904px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>You can fix this issue by going to this connector line in the top-right corner and snapping it into place on these shapes&#8217; &#8220;grey dots&#8221; on the left and right edges.<\/p>\n<p>There\u2019s no keyboard shortcut required \u2013 left-click the connector and drag its left and right ends into the proper positions.<\/p>\n<p>Another issue is that the connector lines&#8217; colors and styles are incorrect.<\/p>\n<p>Right now, the lines are all blue, and most of them have arrowheads \u2013 but we just want normal black connector lines with no arrows, <a href=\"https:\/\/samples-breakingintowallstreet-com.s3.amazonaws.com\/PPT-3\/PPT-05-06-Potential-Strategic-Alternatives-After.pptx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">per the finished version in the &#8220;After&#8221; file<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>To fix the colors, select all the connector lines (Shift + Click) and use the <strong>Alt, 4<\/strong> shortcut from <a href=\"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/kb\/powerpoint\/powerpoint-quick-access-toolbar\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">our QAT<\/a> to change everything to black:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25547 size-full\" title=\"Changing the Colors of the Connector Lines\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074841\/PPT-05-06-Image-13.jpg\" alt=\"Changing the Colors of the Connector Lines\" width=\"1161\" height=\"417\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074841\/PPT-05-06-Image-13.jpg 1161w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074841\/PPT-05-06-Image-13-300x108.jpg 300w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074841\/PPT-05-06-Image-13-1024x368.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074841\/PPT-05-06-Image-13-768x276.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1161px) 100vw, 1161px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Unfortunately, there\u2019s no built-in way to change all the lines with arrows into lines with no arrows.<\/p>\n<p>You could use the \u201cMatch All Attributes\u201d macro from the package in <a href=\"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/powerpoint-pro\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">our full PowerPoint course<\/a>, but that doesn\u2019t solve the problem completely because it removes the \u201celbows\u201d from these lines to match the simple horizontal line:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-25548 size-full\" title=\"&quot;Match All Attributes&quot; PowerPoint Macro to Fix the Line Types\" src=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074840\/PPT-05-06-Image-14.jpg\" alt=\"&quot;Match All Attributes&quot; PowerPoint Macro to Fix the Line Types\" width=\"1587\" height=\"938\" srcset=\"https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074840\/PPT-05-06-Image-14.jpg 1587w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074840\/PPT-05-06-Image-14-300x177.jpg 300w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074840\/PPT-05-06-Image-14-1024x605.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074840\/PPT-05-06-Image-14-768x454.jpg 768w, https:\/\/biwsuploads-assest.s3.amazonaws.com\/biws\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/19074840\/PPT-05-06-Image-14-1536x908.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1587px) 100vw, 1587px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>So, in this case, it&#8217;s most efficient to delete all the lines with arrows, start over, and insert and link <em>the properly formatted connector lines<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>This point illustrates one major downside of PowerPoint connectors: <strong>they\u2019re easy to insert and \u201csnap\u201d into place, but they\u2019re difficult to change once you\u2019ve set them up<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"PowerPoint_Connectors_Practice_Exercise\"><\/span><strong>PowerPoint Connectors: Practice Exercise<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>The practice exercise demonstrated in this video walks you through the process of creating the entire slide shown above (&#8220;Potential Alternatives for Jaguar&#8221;).<\/p>\n<p>We&#8217;ve described above how to put the connectors in place, so we\u2019re not going to repeat all of that to summarize this exercise.<\/p>\n<p>The main difference in the video tutorial is that you must <strong>insert, align, distribute, and format the shapes<\/strong> properly, which takes more time than just inserting and linking the connectors.<\/p>\n<p>We also use <a href=\"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/kb\/powerpoint\/macros-in-powerpoint\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">macros in PowerPoint<\/a>, available only within the full course, plus some shortcuts not explicitly taught in this tutorial.<\/p>\n<p>So, you probably won\u2019t be able to \u201cfollow along\u201d with everything demonstrated, but if you want to watch anyway, you can skip to 7:57 for Part 1 and 15:14 for Part 2.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Beyond_the_PowerPoint_Connector\"><\/span><strong>Beyond the PowerPoint Connector<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>PowerPoint connectors are easy to use if you remember the key principles and shortcuts (Alt, 08 and Alt, 09; always connect the line to the grey dots on the edges of shapes; and use Ctrl + A to check the connections for green dots to indicate links).<\/p>\n<p>The <strong>challenge<\/strong> is not how to insert connectors, but how to them in the context of <em>entire slides<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>For example, how do you complete tricky alignments and distributions?<\/p>\n<p>What if you need to get shapes with connectors distributed perfectly in a small area?<\/p>\n<p>And how do you replicate groups of shapes with connector lines while maintaining the proper spacing?<\/p>\n<p>You can use the built-in alignment and distribution commands (Alt, 1, A in our QAT) for some of these; for others, the BIWS macro package will be helpful.<\/p>\n<p>You can get the full training and access to all our macros and customizations once you sign up for <a href=\"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/powerpoint-pro\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">PowerPoint Pro<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In this tutorial, you&#8217;ll learn how to insert the PowerPoint connector line and use it to link shapes; you&#8217;ll also learn how to check for and fix common problems with these connectors.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":29355,"template":"","class_list":["post-20315","biws_kb","type-biws_kb","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","kb_category-powerpoint"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/biws_kb\/20315","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/biws_kb"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/biws_kb"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/29355"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/breakingintowallstreet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20315"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}