Great guide.
It's my first time knowing your solution. I used to use PowerPoint to make photo album.
1. insert a photo per slide.
2. save the presentation.
3. convert ppt to swf.
4. embed the swf into my blog.
I use handle_url_tag('http://www.sameshow.com/powerpoint-to-flash-pro.html', 'PPT to SWF converter'). It solves the slide duration issue you mentioned. I mean you can adjust the duration time of every slide it appears.
Screen recording software might be another good solution. You record the whole process of playing presentation and save it as video, then post it on YouTube. That's easy.