Articulate Storyline – Page 5

June 10, 2015

Articulate Storyline: Glossaries Made Easy

by Kevin Siegel

I had a client recently who needed to include a Glossary in their Storyline eLearning course. Fortunately, this kind of functionality is simple to add to any Storyline project.

To begin, open or create a Storyline project. Click Player (located in the Publish group on the Ribbon). From the Data area of the Properties, click Glossary and then from the bottom left of the dialog box, click Add.

Storyline Player

Glossary

Add

In the Glossary Term dialog box, type a Term and Definition. When finished, click the Save button. Repeat the process as necessary.

Term and Definition

The final step is telling Storyline that you want the Glossary to appear in the published lesson. From the top of the Player dialog box, select Features. From the list of Player Tabs, select Glossary.

Enabling Glossary

Preview or publish the project to see the Glossary. In the image below, you can see the finished Glossary as a tab beside Menu that can easily be accessed by the learner.

Finished Glossary

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If you'd like to learn more about eLearning, come hang out in my next eLearning basics mini course. And if you'd like to learn more Captivate, Presenter, or Storyline, we've got a great collection of live, online classes for you.

June 4, 2015

Adobe Captivate & Articulate Storyline: Round-Tripping With Microsoft Word

by Kevin Siegel

How do you collaborate with Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) who aren't Adobe Captivate or Articulate Storyline developers? Specifically I'm talking about text content. How many times have you gone back and forth (and back and forth again) with your SMEs, changing a word on a slide here, removing a comma there. Maddening, right?

Wouldn't it be great if you could export the text from your eLearning projects into Word, get your SMEs to make their changes in the document (using Word), and then import those changes back into your project? That kind of workflow is a dream, right? Nope. The workflow exists today in both Captivate and Storyline and the process is simple.

Adobe Captivate

Open or create a Captivate project and choose File > Import/Export > Export project captions and closed captions.

In the Open dialog box, name the resulting document, specify a save destination, and click the Save button. (You will be notified when the captions have been exported.)

Click Yes to open the document in Word.

The captions will appear in a Word table. There will be five columns: Slide ID, Item ID, Original Text Caption Data, Updated Text Caption Data, and Slide. You can make any changes you want to the Updated Text Caption Data, but you should not change any of the other information. The Slide ID identifies which slide your edited captions go to. The Item ID identifies which caption goes with which caption data.

Make your editorial changes; then save and close the Word document.

The final step is to to import the edited text back into Captivate. Choose File > Import/Export > Import project captions and closed captions. Find and open the document you edited in Word. A dialog box will appear confirming the number of captions that were imported. Not only will the edited content be imported, but formatting changes made to the Word document, such as making text bold or italic, are also retained.

Articulate Storyline

The process of round-tripping between Articulate Storyline and Microsoft Word is just about the same as it is in Adobe Captivate.

Open or create a Storyline project and then choose File > Translation > Export. In the Open dialog box, name the resulting document, specify a save destination, and click the Save button.

In the resulting Word document, SMEs can make any needed content changes in the Translate this column area of the document and then return the edited document to you.

The final step is to simply choose File > Translation > Import and open the edited Word document.

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May 12, 2015

eLearning: Sync/Align With the Playhead in Captivate or Storyline

by Kevin Siegel

You're developing an eLearning module in Adobe Captivate or Articulate Storyline. There's a slide that plays for 45 seconds. As you're listening to the audio, you'd like a screen object to appear in sync with the voiceover audio or some other screen action.

If the object in question is already on the slide, you can certainly select the object on the Timeline and drag it until its left edge gets to the desired part of the Timeline. Of course, if the slide is playing for a significant amount of time, that's going to require a lot of dragging.

One technique that I use when I want to match screen actions to voiceover audio is called Sync with Playhead (in Captivate) or Align with Playhead (in Storyline).

In the image below, I've positioned the Captivate Playhead on the Timeline by clicking at the top of the Timeline.

The technique is identical in Storyline (except as you'll see in the image below, the Playhead looks a bit different).

On the Timeline in either program, I can then right-click an object that I'd like to automatically move to the Playhead position and choose Sync with Playhead (Captivate) or Align with Playhead (Storyline).

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April 16, 2015

eLearning: Become a Pedagogical Agent

by Jennie Ruby

If you've taken any of our Adobe Captivate, Adobe Presenter, or Articulate Storyline classes, you are probably aware that these programs provide a selection of screen characters–cut-out pictures of professional actors in business, medical, or business-casual clothing posed as if they are talking to you. They are intended for use as a kind of avatar of the trainer.

There is research that shows that using a screen character as a pedagogical agent or learning coach, who speaks informally and appears to be giving the lesson, increases learning. (My reference for this is Ruth Colvin Clark and Richard E. Mayer, eLearning and the Science of Instruction.)

Over the past few weeks, I've had multiple students ask how hard it would be to use themselves as the learning coach. Believe it or not, becoming a pedagogical agent is easier than you think.

Put Your Picture into the Lesson. Place a professional head shot of yourself, your trainer, or expert on the introductory slide (including job title, credentials, etc.), and then have that individual record the audio narration for the project.

Create your own screen characters. Photograph your expert on a green screen background for a full set of screen characters in various poses. The IconLogic Blog has a whole series of articles on how to do this:

Green Screen Part I

Green Screen Part II

Green Screen Part III

Green Screen Part IV

Create cartoons of yourself or your in-house experts. You can use the images over and over in on-going training videos. Here is one article to get you started: Using Bitstrips Characters.

If you don't have specific, known individuals in your company to act as your learning coaches, you are not stuck with the same four or five actors that come with your software. You can purchase additional screen characters from The eLearning Brothers. Or you can just make good use of some inexpensive clip art. By trimming out the background in ordinary office photographs, you can get some nice effects.

Whether you use generic actors or your own home-grown experts, screen characters are an excellent way to add the personalization, engagement, and local feel that will bring your eLearning to the next level.

Once you have your screen characters, how do you know what to make them say? Join me for an afternoon mini course on writing voiceovers to find out.

February 12, 2015

Articulate Storyline: Recolor Art

by Sally Cox

One of my favorite hidden gems in Storyline 2 is an obscure feature called Recolor Art. It allows you to alter the color of an object within Storyline-not affecting the original art, but merely "recoloring" it within the project.

In my workflow as an Instructional Designer, I create my own artwork in Adobe Illustrator and export as transparent PNGs. This works out nicely, but there are times when I need to create rollovers from icons or buttons. I want to avoid returning to Illustrator to create separate versions. Enter "Recolor Art."

In the image below there are a few examples of icons you might use in your eLearning project. I'll demonstrate how to use Storyline's Recolor Art feature to alter the Hover state, creating a rollover.

To begin, select your artwork (remember, transparent PNGs work best) and open the States panel by selecting the word "States" at the bottom of the Storyline window.

Click Edit States, click New State, choose Hover from the drop-down menu, and then click Add.

You've created the Hover state; now you'll alter the appearance. With the Hover state still open, select the object on your slide. Then right-click and choose Format Picture.

Choose Picture from the menu at the left and then click the arrow next to Preset.

You'll find a number of options for recoloring your art, and you'll see the categories listed above the icons. No Recolor means you see your original image. Color Modes and Dark Variations are the ones that give the best result, for me. Experiment with Brightness, Contrast, and Transparency for different effects.

These are limiting however, so if you want more, go to Blend.

Choose a Color from the Blend section and apply a Blend Mode. These behave just like Photoshop Blend Modes and give you a variety of effects based on the color you choose.

If you don't like what you've done, you can click Reset Picture, or use Storyline's Undo command.

When you're done with Recolor, click Close. Lastly, and most importantly, click Done Editing States in the States panel to save the changes.

Here are examples of before (left) and after (right) applying the Recolor feature to an icon. It can always be removed later, and edited as needed. Any way you cut it, it's a real timesaver!

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Looking for training on Articulate Storyline? Check out our live, online instructor-led Storyline classes.

February 3, 2015

Now Shipping: “Articulate Storyline 2: The Essentials” Workbook

Articulate Storyline is one of the hottest eLearning development tools in the world. We are proud to announce that our newest book, "Articulate Storyline 2: The Essentials" is now shipping.

"Articulate Storyline 2: The Essentials" is a step-by-step workbook that teaches you the top Storyline features and will have you creating interactive eLearning projects in as little as two days.

There are tons of activities supported by a mountain of screen shots. As you work through the lessons, there are challenge exercises (Confidence Checks) that will immediately put your new-found skills to the test and reinforce what you've learned.

You'll use Storyline to create projects from scratch. You'll work with slides, learn how to add text, images, characters, and shapes. There are lessons that will teach you how to add interactivity to your slides via buttons, Triggers, text entry areas, and hotspots. And you'll learn how to create quizzes, and how to publish your eLearning projects for the widest possible audience.

Click here for more information or to order.

January 28, 2015

Articulate Storyline: Trim Videos

by Kevin Siegel

You can easily insert videos into Storyline from just about any video format. All you need to do is click the Insert tab on the Ribbon. From the Media group, click Video drop-down menu and choose Video From File.

Articulate Storyline: Video from File.

I was working on a project recently and inserted a video onto one of my Storyline slides using the step above. Upon previewing the slide, I saw that a portion of the video needed to be trimmed. Fortunately, trimming a portion of a video is just as easy as inserting a video… and you don't have to leave the Storyline application.

First, select the video on the slide. Next, click the Video Tools Options tab on the Ribbon.

At the left of the Ribbon, click Edit Video to open the Articulate Video Editor.

Articulate Storyline: Edit Video.

Once you're in the Video Editor, click Trim.

By default, the first and last half-second of the video is selected for Trimming. All that you need to do now is extend or reduce the Trim Start and/or Trim End markers as needed to specify the areas of the video that need to be trimmed.

Articulate Storyline: Extending the trim area.

When you're done, click Save & Close and the video is trimmed. It can't get much easier than that.

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If you'd like to learn more about eLearning, come hang out in my next eLearning basics mini course. And if you'd like to learn more Adobe Captivate, Adobe Presenter, or Articulate Storyline, we've got a great collection of live, online classes for you.

January 15, 2015

Articulate Storyline 2 Mini Course: Come Learn What’s New!

The Articulate folks have done it again… they've added some new and amazing features that we think will put a smile on the face of existing Storyline users and the eLearning development community in general.

Attend this mini 3-hour course and get up to speed on Storyline 2's hottest new features and their practical uses. You will learn new ways to bring content to life, fine-tune the way your course looks and feels, and learn how to get your work done faster than ever before.

Using hands-on exercises focus on Storyline's new features, you will walk away ready to take full advantage of this awesome update.

Learn more and sign up here!

January 6, 2015

Articulate Storyline: Adding Buttons

by Kevin Siegel

Buttons are the most common form of interactivity that you'll find in just about any Storyline project. Using Triggers, you can control what happens should the learner successfully click a button (such as Go to the next slide or Show Layers).

Over the next few weeks I'm going to teach you how easy it is to add buttons to any Storyline slide, how to add Triggers, and how to control Button states.

Add a Button to a Slide

Open or create a Storyline project and then open a slide.
Select the Insert tab on the Ribbon.
From the Interactive Objects group, select Controls and then select Button 1.
Draw a button on the slide as you would any shape.

Label and Name a Button

With the button you just drew selected, label the button by typing directly into the button. (The text should be short and sweet and clearly indicate the button's action to the learner.)
On the Timeline, double-click the name Button1 and give the button a common-sense name. (In the image below, I'm working on a slide containing multiple buttons. Each has been labeled and named.)

The Label will be seen by your learners when they work through your lesson. The Name is never seen by the learner and serves as a development tool for you when you begin working with Triggers.

Note: If you are not happy with the appearance of the button, you can always change the way a button looks just like any other shape in Storyline.

Add a Trigger to a Button

When you add a button to a slide, it's begging to do something… anything. You can add a Trigger to a button easily via the Triggers panel. The Trigger can result in any number of actions. For instance, a Trigger can jump a learner to a different slide, open a web page, show or hide a layer, or change the state of an object.

On the Triggers panel, click Create a new trigger to open the Trigger Wizard.
From within the Trigger Wizard, select the desired options. In the image below, I wanted a Continue button that I added to the slide to take the learner to the next slide when the button is clicked. I selected Jump to slide as the Action, next slide as the Slide, User clicks for When, and the slide's Continue button as the Object.

If you're thinking that the Trigger Wizard looks overly simplistic based on the image above, you'd be correct. However, looks are often very deceiving in Storyline. As you experiment with different actions from the Actions drop-down menu, I think you'll be surprised by how much the options in the Trigger Wizard change to support the selected Action. The Wizard is actually very flexible and powerful and allows you to create some very complex interactions.

Next time: Button States.

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If you'd like to learn more about eLearning, come hang out in my next eLearning basics mini course. And if you'd like to learn more Captivate, Presenter, or Storyline, we've got a great collection of live, online classes for you.

October 28, 2014

eLearning: Add Some Character to Your Lessons

by Kevin Siegel

Let's face it, some of the eLearning content you are required to create is a bit… shall we say, dry? A tad boring? A teeny bit heavy on the text and short on graphics?

One easy way to spruce up your eLearning content is to add characters (or guides). But where do you find quality images to use as guides? The good news is that both Articulate Storyline and Adobe Captivate offer some awesome, and most importantly, free Characters–out of the box.

Let's take a look at the Character features in both programs. While Characters have been around for several years in Captivate, and in both versions of Storyline, the images below are taken from the most recent versions of both programs, Captivate version 8; Storyline version 2.

Articulate Storyline 2

To insert a Character on a Storyline slide, open a slide and from the Insert tab on the Ribbon, click Character. You'll find two choices in the Character drop-down menu: Illustrated Character and Photographic Character.

In the image below, I've selected Illustrated Character, which opened the Characters dialog box. From here, you'll find multiple Characters, Expressions, and Poses.

I found the Expression options particularly cool… plenty from which to choose.

Shown below are Storyline's many poses. And if you look in the lower right of the dialog box, you'll even find three pose directions (Left, Front, Right).

And perhaps my favorite thing about Storyline's Characters is how easy it is to change the appearance of an inserted Character. In the Image below, notice that you can select a Character and totally change it to another character, change its Expression, Pose… even its Perspective. Simply awesome!

If you'd rather work with Photographic Characters, go back to the Character drop-down menu and choose Photographic Characters. As with the Illustrated Characters, you'll find multiple actors and poses.

Adobe Captivate 8

To insert a Character in Adobe Captivate, simply choose Media > Characters.

Similar to Storyline, Captivate's Characters dialog box presents you with several Categories, Characters, and Poses. (In the image below, I've selected a Character and Pose from the Business Category.)

If Captivate's Illustrated Characters work better for you, choose Illustrated from the Category drop-down menu and you'll be presented with four Illustrated Characters and various poses.

If you want to change the Character's pose in Captivate, you'll need to manually delete the Character from the slide and replace it with another (not as cool as Storyline's edit-on-the-fly technique, but perfectly functional).

Note: The Characters shown above aren't limited to Storyline and Captivate. You'll find many of the same Characters in Presenter.

Downloadable eLearning Characters

If you're not happy with the selection of characters that come with those programs, you'll find resources on the web offering thousands of eLearning characters. While you'll need to purchase those characters (typically in groups or packs), you are almost guaranteed to find the perfect character to fit within your scene.

Two companies in particular jumped out when I went on an Internet search for characters: the eLearning Brothers and eLearning Art.

Between the two, the eLearning Brothers is likely the better-known company (orange anyone?). They call their Characters "cutout people," and they've got thousands of them.

Over on the eLearning Art website, characters are referred to as "people cutout images." And like the eLearning Brothers, there are plenty from which to choose.

Another quick Internet search took me to eLearning.net where I found several free characters.

If you'd prefer stock photography for your eLearning projects, the eLearning Coach has compiled a handy list of resources.

Lastly, check out AJ's article on free zombie characters… perfect for the season.

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Looking for instructor-led training on Adobe Captivate? Check out our live, online, instructor-led Captivate classes. If Articulate Storyline is more your style, we've got you covered there too.