How to create a scrollable Text Box in PowerPoint 2013. Sometimes you have too much text to add in slide and you would rather want it fitted in one slide that continuing the text in other slide. The solution to this problem is Scrollable Text Box. The scrollable text box is also useful if you want to create a webpage effects in your PowerPoint presentation. However, you will need ActiveX controls to add scrollable text box in your PowerPoint presentation. ActiveX is a web designing tool that can be incorporated in Microsoft Office 2013. Let’s learn how to create a scrollable Text Box in PowerPoint 2013 presentation.

1. Launch PowerPoint 2013

2. Open any existing PowerPoint presentation

3. Click on New Slide

4. Locate Developer tab in the Ribbon. If you don’t see Developer tab in the ribbon, you need to activate the option.

(Note: if you see Developer tab in the Ribbon, you can skip the “Steps ot Activate Develoer tab in the Ribbon” section and go to Step 5) 

Steps to activate Developer tab in the Ribbon:

a. Click on File to go to Backstage View

b. Click on Options

scrollable text box - options backstage

An Options dialog box opens

c. Click on Customize Ribbon

scrollable text box - developer

d. Locate the Developer option under Customize the Ribbon-> Main Tabs

e. Check the box besides Developer

f. Click OK to save and close Options dialog box

5. Click on Developer tab

scrollable text box - developer tab ribbon

6. Click on Text Box (ActiveX Control) option to insert text box

7. Click and drag the mouse pointer on the slide to create a text box

scrollable text box created

8. Right click on text box and click Property Sheet

properties text box

A Properties dialog box opens

You are required to change 3 values in Property Sheet in Alphabetic tab

scrollable text box - new text box properties

9. Set MultiLine as True

10. Set ScrollBars as 2fmScrollBarsVertical

11. Set Text as Text

12. Click on “X” in the upper right corner of the dialog box when you’re done

13. Right click on Text box and click on TextBox Object

scrollable text box - textbox object

14. Click on Edit

15. Enter text in Text Box

Note: The side scroll bar appears only if the text entered in the box goes beyond the bottom of the text box. You can resize the textbox to make it bigger or smaller

scrollable text preview 1

16. Click on Slideshow

17 . Click on From Beginning  to see the scrollable text box in Slideshow.

Note: The text in the box does not scroll automatically, you need move the scrollbar to scroll text in the slide during Slideshow.

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