August 2023 – The Logical Blog

August 24, 2023

Adobe Captivate Classic: Using the CSV Questions Creation Macro

Adding quiz questions to an Adobe Captivate Classic project is easy. Go to the Quiz menu and choose Question Slide. Select your question type, number of questions, and click OK.

Like I said, it's easy.

Oh, wait. Now, you need to add the content to the quiz question and set the point value… and the feedback for right and wrong answers. If there are more than a few quiz questions, that will take time.

Pssst… come closer. I've got a secret for you. You can import the quiz questions… you know, get a subject matter expert to write up the content and you just import the quiz question.

What's that you say? You knew about CSV importing because you attended IconLogic's vILT Captivate classes. Okay, okay, sorry.

But… pssst… come closer, and I'll give you another secret. This one is epic. There' a CSV Questions Creation wizard that will make it so easy to create the quiz data that you're SME will truly thank you.

First, find the CSV Questions Creation Macro. Note that the file is typically located wherever you've installed Captivate Classic on your computer, then in Gallery > Quiz > CSVQuestionsCreationMacro.xlsm.

Open CSVQuestionsCreationMacro.xlsm with Microsoft Excel.

Select the CSVInputForm tab.

Select the question type from the drop-down menu and fill out the stem and the answer as appropriate.

Type an asterisk (*) in front of the correct answer.

Click the Add Question button to add the question to the Question CSV Sheet.

Back on the CSVInputForm tab, click the Clear Form button, and add more and more questions as appropriate. When done, click the Export to CSV button on the CSVInputForm tab. Then click the Export to CSV button.

Back in Captivate Classic, choose Quiz > Import CSV Format File and open the CSV you just created.

And… and… BAM! The quiz question appears, like magic, in your Captivate project.

Not convinced that this process is the bomb.com? Check out my video that shows the CSV creation process in action.

August 21, 2023

eLearning and Copyright: Are You at Risk?

Online training is more popular than ever. With powerful development tools such as Articulate Storyline, Articulate Rise, TechSmith Camtasia, Adobe Captivate, and Lectora, it’s never been easier to create relevant, highly interactive, and visually stunning eLearning.

Regarding the visually stunning part of eLearning… adding compelling images and videos to your training is a great idea. But where are you going to get those assets? A quick search on the internet finds this great image of Mickey Mouse. Another search finds a cute cat video that will add the perfect amount of humor to your module. The online options are endless, and the assets are easy to download and import into your project.

You publish and upload the project to your web server or Learning Management System. Along with the kudos from your learners comes a cease-and-desist letter from the lawyers at Disney. Worse, that cat video gets you sued for significant money. Even worse? You have to pay the fine, and it's painful.

According to copyright.gov, “anyone found to have infringed a copyrighted work may be liable for statutory damages up to $30,000 for each work infringed and, if willful infringement is proven by the copyright owner, that amount may be increased up to $150,000 for each work infringed.”

Let those numbers sink in for a moment… $30,000… $150,000…

As the boundaries between traditional and online education continue to blur, educators and institutions face unique challenges and opportunities to ensure that their eLearning content is effective and legally compliant. This course is designed to equip you with the knowledge necessary to navigate the complexities of copyright law within the context of eLearning, enabling you to confidently create, distribute, and use digital educational materials while respecting the rights of content creators.

Give us 90 minutes, and we've got you covered!

Learn more about copyright as it pertains to training and eLearning during this 90-minute, live, instructor-led course. Throughout the course, we will explore key copyright concepts such as the fundamentals, fair use and its application in eLearning, open educational resources, licensing models, and strategies for obtaining proper permissions. We will also delve into real-world scenarios and case studies, providing practical insights to inform your eLearning endeavors.

Who Should Attend?

eLearning developers
Technical communicators
Educators
Instructional designers
Training managers
Trainers
Administrators

August 15, 2023

TechSmith Camtasia: Get Certified as an IconLogic Camtasia Developer

Get certified by the people who wrote the book on Camtasia via our popular “TechSmith Camtasia 2023: The Essentials.”

The ideal path to certification starts with TechSmith Camtasia training through our virtual instructor-led courses. After completing all three classes, you will be well-positioned for the exam.

If you feel like you already have extensive experience with eLearning and TechSmith Camtasia, you can bypass the classes and head straight for the certification exam.

August 9, 2023

Adobe Captivate 12: Update 12.1 Released Today

Adobe released an update to Captivate 12 today. Here's a link to download the update: https://helpx.adobe.com/captivate/help/captivate-downloads.html

According to Adobe, here's what's changed in the 12.1 update.

Captivate doesn't allow you to select any file on macOS while using the Open URL or file action.
Captivate behaves unexpectedly when you select the Text tab of Success or Failure caption of a click box in a simulation project.
A valid numeric input in an input field produces an error.
Added a retry state for a Drag and Drop interaction when the number of attempts exceeds one.
When you try to apply an image filter on a cropped image, the filter isn't applied as expected.
Captivate behaves unexpectedly while creating a project on macOS. This happens when Captivate is installed with one user account and another user tries to launch Captivate.
Captivate may behave unexpectedly on Windows if you select the following fonts in a text object.
- Lucida Bright Demibold
- Lucida Fax Demibold

If you need Adobe Captivate training, mentoring, or eLearning development, check out our vILT courses: https://www.iconlogic.com/instructor-led-training/software-title/captivate.html. And, yes, we are still offering training on Adobe Captivate 2019… now known as Adobe Captivate Classic.

August 7, 2023

Adobe Captivate 12: Button Icons

As I continue exploring the all-new Adobe Captivate 12 and its sparkling new interface, "hidden" gems are discovered. One such gem is button icons.

Add a button to a slide by clicking Add interactive components and choosing Button.

On the Canvas, select the button. Then, on the Visual properties panel, Appearance area, click Icon.

Toggle the ICON on; the selected button gets a star icon by default.

Change the icon by clicking the Choose icon folder.

The Assets in the current release of Captivate 12 include nearly 300 icons (I'm hoping the next release has thousands). I used the bell icon and clicked Replace icon.

And then I changed the icon's color.

Check out this video demo on Adobe Captivate 12 and button icons.

If you'd like training, mentoring, or Adobe Captivate development, we're here to help! And if you are still using Adobe Captivate Classic, we've got you covered there too.

August 2, 2023

Adobe Captivate 12: Infinite Slides

Fairly early in our vILT Adobe Captivate 12 classes, we teach learners how to work with slides and blocks. To add blocks, visit the toolbar at the left of the screen and you'll find tools that allow for text, images, videos, and interactive components such as buttons and data entry fields.

One awesome feature in Adobe Captivate 12 is the concept of infinite slides. Because Captivate is now a 100% responsive eLearning development tool, there is no such thing as a slide height. Add as many blocks as you want to a slide, and the slide gets taller and taller.

In the image below, I've added some text blocks, image grid blocks, and a few other items.

Notice that when I switch to mobile preview, the content reflows to fit the device screen size and, as the learner, I simply swipe to move through the content.

Check out my video demonstration of infinite slides.

August 2, 2023

TechSmith Camtasia: JKL Makes Previewing and Editing Even Faster

When I lead my live, virtual TechSmith Camtasia classes, previewing and editing are one of the most important skills that I teach. And a recent update to Camtasia makes previewing a lot faster.

Press the L key on your keyboard to move forward through a preview at normal (1x) speed when previewing. Press L again and you're at double playback speed. Press L a few more times, and you're at 4x speed up to a blazing-fast 8x speed.

Press the J key, and you'll go backward from 1x to 8x speed.

Press the K key to stop.

Check out a video demonstration by Andy at TechSmith here.

August 1, 2023

Adobe Captivate 12: The Interface

With the recent release of the all-new Adobe Captivate 12, I'm beginning a series introducing you to some of my favorite features. This week, let's take a look at the new interface. If you're a veteran Captivate developer, you'll see that much has changed in this new interface, and many of the old standards have been removed (not changed or moved… removed entirely).

There are now two versions of Captivate that you can download from Adobe using one subscription: Adobe Captivate Classic (also known as Captivate 2019) and Adobe Captivate (also known as Captivate 12 and Captivate 2023). The two versions are very different, and we offer training and support for both. You can download both Adobe Captivate Classic and the new Adobe Captivate and have both on your computer at the same time, assuming different installation locations are defined when the applications are installed.

This article focuses on Captivate 12.

When you start Captivate 12, the first thing you'll see is the Home screen.

If you click the New Project button, you'll create a new blank project. Click the Open option and you can retrieve and open existing Captivate 12 projects. This brings me to a warning about using the new Captivate. There is no option for upgrading legacy Captivate projects to Captivate 12. If you elect to work with Captivate 12, do so with the understanding that you're creating new, responsive projects. The big thing about responsive projects is that you aren't asked to define a project's width and height as you create a new project. The Canvas size is fluid, and your content will automatically reflow to fit any screen size.

Adobe has indicated that as Captivate 12 evolves and matures, there will be a workflow for upgrading from legacy projects to the new version. The lack of an upgrade path appears to be the main reason that Adobe will continue to support Captivate Classic until 2027. I expect that it will take a few years to add features to Captivate 12 that are currently in Captivate Classic. For example, in Captivate 12, there aren't any slide masters. Nor is there a Library, virtual reality, or support for importing Microsoft PowerPoint presentations.

The new interface is very clean and modern-looking.

The Filmstrip is now simply the Slides panel.

At the far left is a column of tools that replaces the Captivate 2019 toolbar.

At the right, in place of the Properties inspector, Library, and Timing inspector, there's a cluster of icons that display Visual properties, Interactions, Animations, Audio settings, and Accessibility.

And at the bottom right are two easy-to-overlook icons: TOC and Playbar (which replaces the Skin Editor) and Project Properties.

One awesome feature of the new Captivate is the preview icons at the top of the window.

Using these icons, you can quickly see how your content will look as it reflows on various screen sizes (desktop, tablet, and mobile).

In the coming weeks, I'll show you the project creation process, how the many tools work, and how Captivate 12 compares to Captivate Classic/2019.