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Document format

POTM converter

A .potm file is a PowerPoint template that is allowed to carry VBA macros, so every deck created from it inherits both the design and the macro project. It is the rarest of the Office macro-enabled formats and the one most likely to be unexpected.

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Convert supported files

Runs on your device

Drop POTM files here

Batch files can each use a different output. Nothing uploads for local conversions.

Working inputs include camera RAW, browser-local audio/video, PDF, CBZ/CBR comics, office documents, ebooks, markup, 3D models, structured text, images, and archives.

Where POTM comes from

Introduced with the rest of the OOXML family in PowerPoint 2007, .potm completed the pattern of pairing each macro-free format with a macro-capable sibling. Because presentation automation is uncommon, a .potm arriving from outside an organization is usually treated as a red flag rather than a convenience.

How POTM works

  • Same package as .potx: masters, layouts, theme, optional example slides, and media in a ZIP.
  • Adds ppt/vbaProject.bin carrying the compiled VBA project.
  • Decks created from the template receive their own copy of the macro project.
  • Novus Convert deletes ppt/vbaProject.bin before parsing, so the macro is never read, never interpreted, and never executed.
  • Slide text extraction behaves exactly as it does for .potx and .pptx.

When to use POTM

  • Internal templates that automate deck assembly from a data source.
  • Kiosk or classroom templates with built-in navigation behaviour.
  • Safely inspecting the content of a macro template received from outside.
  • Migrating an automated template to a macro-free design.

Strengths and limitations

Strengths

  • Bundles design and automation into one distributable file.
  • Extension declares macro capability so policy can act before opening.
  • Open package format keeps slide text recoverable without PowerPoint.

Limitations

  • Almost always blocked by mail and collaboration security policy.
  • Presentation macros rarely justify the risk they carry.
  • Automation is fragile across PowerPoint versions and platforms.

Compatibility

PowerPoint 2007 onward on Windows and macOS opens .potm with a macro prompt; LibreOffice Impress and Google Slides read the slides and ignore the macros. Mobile PowerPoint never executes them. Conversion here extracts slide text only.

Standard docProps core and app metadata rides in the package and is dropped by any text export.

Convert POTM to another format