Microsoft Sway is software enabling users to create a document or presentation for viewing online; sort of a cross between PowerPoint, Word and a webpage designer. It is an easy way of creating a quick multimedia presentation for users of Office 365.
Sway presentations – or ‘Sways’ – are conceived as storyboards which can mix text, graphics and video which are then automatically knitted together by the software to produce a high-quality visualisation. It can be used directly as part of the Office 365 suite of programs online; or there is a downloadable Windows app. Once created, Sways are automatically saved in your Office 365 cloud account. From here they can be distributed:
It is an online service only; even the downloadable Windows app acts in conjunction with the online service and doesn’t work in a standalone setting. For general presentation purposes, PowerPoint can be used offline and online, is more powerful and is more generally familiar for the average user.
From a Roehampton point of view, the main limitation is that Sways created with a university login can’t be viewed and shared with people without a university account e.g external research collaborators.