what are the basics for doing a powerpoint presentation

All Microsoft Office programs have very good "Help" sites, and if you have Office 2003 or later, you'll be able to get help online, too.

In addition, if you click on File and then on New, you will find links to many templates you can use.

Once you have each "slide" set up, just press the F5 key to see the presentation. Then you can edit as needed until you get it the way you want.

http://www.google.com/search?q=office+powerpoint&rls=com.microsoft:en-us:IE-SearchBox&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=ie7&rlz=1I7SUNA
There are several sites here that can help give you ideas and direction, too.

=)