Starbuck on PowerPoint

Starbuck, who writes at Wings Over Iraq and frequently contributes to Small Wars Journal, has a great piece up about the deleterious consequences of PowerPoint's proliferation in the military. If you haven't worked in or around DoD, just trust me when I say that this is right on the money. Elsewhere, thinking people write papers; at the Pentagon, you get slide presentations.

This essay aggregates the thoughts of some others who have tackled the subject (notably T.X. Hammes in an excellent article for Armed Forces Journal) and also offers some unique analysis. It's likely to ring true for all the grudging, reluctant PowerPoint Rangers out there (at least two of whom contribute to this blog).

Also, don't miss this hilarious and awesome contribution from Schmedlap: A PowerPoint Briefing About Why PowerPoint Is Bad For Briefing (just in case anyone needs the slides for this).