August 2012 – Page 2 – The Logical Blog

August 7, 2012

Adobe RoboHelp 10: Multiscreen HTML5

by Kevin Siegel

Adobe recently released Adobe RoboHelp 10. There is plenty to love in this new release, and I'll be covering some of my favorite new features in the coming weeks.

First up, Multiscreen HTML5. Create a new project in RoboHelp 10 and check out the Single Source Layouts pod. You'll find a new layout named Multiscreen HTML5. Generate this layout and your content can be consumed by just about any computer or mobile device (even the Apple mobile devices).

Show the Properties of the layout (right-click > Properties), expand the Screen Profiles group at the left, and you'll see that there are already settings for several devices including iPad, iPhone, Kindle and the desktop. If the device you need isn't listed, you can use the Add Screen Profile(s) button to add as many as you need.

Multiscreen HTML5 settings

As you are working on your Help System, you can get a feel for how your content will look on each device by right-clicking the layout on the Single Source Layouts pod and choosing View with Screen Profile.

Preview Multiscreen.

In the image below, I wanted to see how my RoboHelp project would look when consumed via an Apple iPad. I used RoboHelp to convert my FrameMaker content to HTML5. Shown below is how my new Adobe Captivate 6: The Essentials book looks on an iPad via HTML5 (the book will be available as an ePub soon).

Multiscreen output via an iPad.

The ability to output content for just about any kind of display is a huge deal, and I commend Adobe for implementing the feature so elegantly. In my opinion, this feature alone makes RoboHelp 10 a mandatory upgrade for those of you running legacy versions of RoboHelp… and a must-buy for all of you tire-kickers out there.

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Looking to learn RoboHelp 10 quickly? We will begin offering RoboHelp 10 classes in September.

August 2, 2012

Adobe Robohelp 10 Now Available

Adobe's Ankur Jain has written a quick overview of some of the new features found in Adobe RoboHelp 10.

Some of the highlights: Publish to multiple screens/devices using Multiscreen HTML5, End-to-end workflow with SharePoint, improved eBooks workflow and several enhancements to existing features.

Windows Troubleshooting: The Case of the Missing Task Manager Tabs

by AJ George

Here's a potentially scary situation: an application has crashed and is frozen on your screen. It looks like you are going to have to end the process. Most Windows users know that one way to end a process is to press [Ctrl] [Alt] [Del] on the keyboard to open the Windows Task Manager. On the Processes tab, select the crashed application and click the End Process button.

When an application recently crashed on my computer, I followed these very steps. However, to my horror, my Task Manager was missing its usual tabs and looked similar to the image below (the crashed application isn't shown of course, to protect the innocent):

Depending on your version of Windows, there could be a half-dozen tabs including Applications, Processes, Services, and Performance. I had no idea why my tabs were missing, but I tried to right-click the crashed application and end the task, but that wasn't working. If I could have accessed the Processes tab, I could have used it to quickly end the process.

While stressful, the fix was easy. All that I had to do was double-click the space to the left of the End Taskbutton and my tabs appeared. I also found that double-clicking the space again returned me to a tab-less view.

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AJ teaches a live, 3-hour class that offers tips/tricks for improving the look and feel of your PowerPoint presentations: Slide Sprucing: Remodeling Lackluster PowerPoint Slides for eLearning and Presentations.

August 1, 2012

Adobe Captivate 6: Smart Shapes

by Kevin Siegel

If you're a PowerPoint user, you've long appreciated the ability to draw just about any kind of shape you need on your slides using AutoShapes. In Captivate 6, you now have nearly the same ability via the Smart Shapes feature. You'll find plenty of shapes from which to choose, including Callouts, Banners and other wacky shapes.

To insert a Smart Shape, choose Insert > Standard Objects > Smart Shape. From the Smart Shape window, you'll find that the shapes are segregated into groups. In the image below, I've selected Cloud Callout from the Basic group.

Cloud Callout selected from among Captivate's Smart Shapes.

In the image below, I've drawn the callout to the left of one of my slide images. Notice, however, that the cloud is pointing in the wrong direction.

Cloud Callout added to a slide.

Similar to PowerPoint's AutoShapes, all I needed to do was drag the yellow handle on the bottom of the callout left to change the direction of the callout.

Cloud Callout pointer repositioned.

And I love the fact that you can add text to a Smart Shape just like you can with a Text Caption. Since you can also assign an Object Style to Smart Shapes, I see Smart Shapes as a possible replacement for Text Captions in some of my new projects.

Text add to a Smart Shape.

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Looking to learn Captivate quickly? We offer two live, online Captivate 5 classes. Adobe Captivate Essentials and Adobe Captivate Beyond the Essentials (Advanced). Our Captivate 6 classes will ramp up in August.