The Logical Blog by IconLogic

ARTICULATE RISE: Rise to the Challenge with Tables

Articulate 360 Rise allows you to create beautiful, responsive eLearning courses using just your web browser and the Articulate 360 Rise application. Since its launch in late 2016, Articulate has been slowly but surely adding amazing new features to Rise. One of the latest is the ability to display data and structured information in tables.    If you’ve worked with Rise, you know that everything is created in “blocks.” There are text blocks and image blocks and multimedia blocks–and now, there is the new table block. Here’s how it works:   Inserting a Rise Table In Rise, choose All Blocks from the Blocks Shortcut Bar. Choose Text from the Block Library. Choose Table from the list.

The table that is added defaults to 5 columns and 3 rows and, like other Rise blocks, contains dummy text in each cell. You can modify the cell contents by selecting the dummy text in the cell and typing over it.   Formatting Rise Table Text    Formatting table text works the same way as formatting any other text in Rise. If you select text in a single cell (or select text in multiple tables) a floating formatting toolbar (pictured below) appears to let you change fonts, size, styles, colors, and alignment.

Modifying the Structure of a Rise Table   The Table Toolbar is easy to use. Begin by selecting the cells, rows, or columns you want to work with and then: Click Table Header to toggle the colored top row on or off. Click Delete to delete the entire table. Click Row to insert or delete a row. Click Column to insert or delete a column. Click Table Style to add a dashed border or to have every other row sport a colored background. Click Cell to merge two or more cells together or to split a single cell into multiple cells. Click Cell Background to assign a color to the background of the selected cell(s). Click Vertical Alignment to align text to the top, middle, or bottom of the cell(s). Click Horizontal Alignment to align text to be left, center, right, or justified. Click Cell Style to call attention to the selected cell(s) with highlighting or a thicker border.

Table Tricks To add a new row at the bottom of a table, click in the bottom right cell of the table and tap the Tab key. (This is how it works in most other programs that allow you to create tables.) To add a line break above or below a table, hover your mouse pointer along the top line of the top row or the bottom line of the bottom row. When you are in the right place, the Break arrow icon appears (pictured below). Click the icon to insert the break. To delete a break, place your cursor on the line below your table and use the keyboard shortcut or place your cursor in front of your table and tap Backspace.

To change the width of a column, position your mouse on the right side of the column. When you are in the right place a double-headed arrow icon appears, which will allow you to click and drag to change the column width. (This is how it works in most other programs that allow you to create tables)   Ready to learn more about Rise? Sign up for my 3-hour Rapid eLearning Development with Articulate 360 Rise program July 17. You will come away from this program being able to use Rise like a pro!

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Geeky Girl Karin Rex is an online learning pioneer and infographic evangelist. Since 1989, Karin has owned Geeky Girl, LLC, a boutique learning organization, where she devotes her time to writing, course development (instructor led and eLearning), and teaching. Karin has authored several technology books, including: "Office 2010 Demystified" (McGraw-Hill) and hundreds of user guides, reference manuals, and tutorials. She’s also developed an extensive number of learning programs for a wide variety of global clients. Karin is a certified synchronous facilitator, designer, and producer, with a master’s degree in professional writing. Additionally, Karin teaches undergraduate writing courses for Penn State University and is the Instructional Design Lead for InSync Training.

ADOBE CAPTIVATE 2019 11.5: Alert Messages When Updating

Adobe recently updated Captivate 2019 from 11.0 to 11.5. While much of the look and feel between versions 11 and 11.5 remain unchanged, there are some feature enhancements that I'll be addressing in future posts (if you scroll down you'll see a recent post on the new Assets).

Legacy versions of Captivate upgrade to version 11.5 nearly seamlessly. I say "nearly" because there are a few dialog boxes you'll come across during the upgrade process.

First, you'll likely get a message about missing fonts (even if you weren't using the missing fonts in your project... it seems those pesky missing fonts were being using behind your back by default styles, etc.)

Clicking the Replace Fonts button has not altered the look of any of my slide objects in any projects I've upgraded so far (nor has replacing the fonts messed about this my object styles). Nevertheless, you should go from slide to slide and ensure all is well with your upgraded projects.

Upon saving your upgraded project for the first time, you'll be warned that saving the project as the newer version means you will no longer be able to open that project in an older version of Captivate. For that reason, it's a good idea to make a backup of your legacy projects prior to upgrading.

I'm currently updating all of the data assets that are used in my Captivate Essentials and Beyond Essentials books so students won't get hit with either of the messages shown below.

And of course, if you need Captivate training, we've got you covered with a huge selection of instructor-led courses.

ADOBE CAPTIVATE 2019: Three Cheers for Improved Assets in Version 11.5

Adobe recently released a significant, and free, update to Captivate 2019, its flagship eLearning development tool. The updated version of the software is 11.5 (11.5.0.476 to be precise).   Over the coming weeks, I'll highlight the biggest improvements/enhancements. This time, it's all about the awesome new assets.   If you're a veteran Captivate developer, you'll see that the interface remains mostly unchanged. However, notice that the Assets tool has been moved to the right (and is now grouped with Library and Properties).

In the previous version of Captivate, clicking Assets opened a dialog box where you'd find find some free Characters and other assets (most of the cool stuff was provided by the eLearning Brothers).   In Captivate 2019 (11.5), clicking Assets still opens the Assets dialog box, but wow-oh-wow will you find some wonderful new stuff here.

There are still Characters, and lots of them, so definitely check them out. However, what I'm loving is the addition of Icons, more 360 Assets, Images, Videos, Audio, and Buttons.   In the image below, I searched for "checkmark" and was presented with two options.

I selected the image I wanted, clicked the Insert button and the image appeared on my slide. All of the images are SVGs so you can scale them up or down without fear of losing any quality. I love that. And if you double-click the SVGs you can change the color on the Properties Inspector. (Note that it will actually take three clicks to change the icon's color. Two clicks to get to edit mode, one more click on the existing color to modify it.)

Back with the Assets dialog box, I played around with the Videos and Audio options and found plenty of potential here. Keep in mind that after inserting these assets, you can still edit them within Captivate just like always.

Speaking of buttons (were we speaking about buttons?), I think we can all agree that the buttons provided in every version of Captivate, back to the beginning of time, left much to be desired. It's time to rejoice. To be clear, if you add a button to a slide via the Interactions tool you'll end up with the same boring button as always. And if you switch to an Image button the same ghastly images are available (all the more reason to use Shapes as buttons). Nevertheless, the button Assets in Captivate 11.5 can be added to your project in seconds and are a welcome upgrade.   In the image below, I've selected the Play button.

After inserting the button Asset onto a slide, the button behaves like any button (you'll find Actions you can modify on the Properties inspector). What I'd love to see down the road are either buttons as Shapes available in the Assets area or some way to modify the button images that are currently available without having to leave Captivate.   Note: If you'd like to see a video where I demonstrate the concepts detailed in this article, visit the IconLogic YouTube channel.   Next time: Project and Slide Assets (both of which are game changers and worth a deep dive). ***   Looking for Captivate training? Check out these live, instructor-led classes.

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Kevin Siegel is the founder and president of IconLogic, Inc. He has written hundreds of step-by-step computer training books on applications such as Adobe Captivate, Articulate Storyline, Adobe RoboHelp, Adobe Presenter, and TechSmith Camtasia. Kevin spent five years in the U.S. Coast Guard as an award-winning photojournalist and has three decades’ experience as a trainer, publisher, technical writer, and eLearning developer. Kevin is a Certified Master Trainer (CMT), Certified Technical Trainer (CTT+), Certified Online Professional Trainer (COTP), and a frequent speaker at trade shows and conventions.

MICROSOFT POWERPOINT 365: Meet the Shape Union and Shape Subtract Tools

Nine years ago I wrote some articles about the Shape Union and Shape Subtract tools, but, friends, it’s been a while. And can you believe these tools are still lying dormant in secrecy, waiting for you to discover them?    First, I’ll show you what you can do with these tools. Then I’ll show you where to find them. And then I’ll show you how to use them.   If you’re using PowerPoint 365, you have access to a limited (but decent) selection of icons by choosing Insert > Icons from the ribbon.   Let’s say you’re looking for a flower. PowerPoint’s got you covered with the free icon below:

But what if you want other flowers to match, and with a bit of variation? Not a ton of flower options readily accessible here. Using some basic shapes and the shape union and subtract tool, you could easily create your own that mimic the original with a cut-out, transparent circle center:

Here’s How to Add the Tools to Your Ribbon First, you’ll need to add the Shape Union and Shape Subtract tools to your ribbon, as they are not there by default.  Choose where you’d like the tools to live. I put mine on the Home tab of the ribbon. Right-click the ribbon of your selected tab and choose Customize the Ribbon. (The PowerPoint Options dialog box will appear.) On the right-hand side of the dialog box, you’ll find the Customize the Ribbon area. With your desired tab selected (I’m going to put these on my Home tab), click the New Group button.

A group called New Group (Custom) will be added for that tab. Right-click the New Group, choose Rename, and give the new group a relevant name. I’m going to call mine Shape Editing. From the Choose Commands From drop-down menu on the left, choose All Commands. Click within the list of commands and hit the [M] key on your keyboard. Scroll until you find the Merge Shapes command and select it. Ensure your new, custom group is selected on the right and click the Add button to add the command to your new group.

This will add the Merge Shapes command to your ribbon which includes the Union, Subtract, Fragment, Intersect, and Combine tools. I'll cover the last three in future articles.    Here’s How to Use the Shape Union Tool   To make my second flower pictured above, I combined four Heart shapes.  Choose Insert > Shapes and from the Basic Shapes area, choose the heart.  Draw one heart and then press [Ctrl] [D] to duplicate it. Select the second heart and from the Drawing Tools Format tab, choose Rotate > FlipVertical. (Now you have two hearts, one of which is upside down. ) Select the second heart and press [Ctrl] [D] to duplicate it.  Select the third heart and from the Drawing Tools Format tab, choose Rotate > Rotate Right 90 degrees.  Select the third heart and press [Ctrl] [D] to duplicate it.  Select the fourth heart and from the Drawing Tools Format tab, choose Rotate > Flip Horizontal. (You now have four identical hearts rotated in four different directions.) Align them like this:

With all four hearts selected, but not grouped, navigate to your new custom group on your ribbon and choose Merge Shapes > Union to turn the four shapes into one united shape.

Here’s How to Use the Shape Subtract Tool Insert a circle by choosing Insert > Shapes > Oval. Hold down the [Shift] key as you draw to create a perfect circle instead of an oval. Duplicate your circle so you can use the exact circle for your next flower (if you are creating more than one) and put it to the side. Align the circle to the center and the middle of your heart-shape creation by holding the [Ctrl] key and selecting both shapes. From the ribbon, choose Drawing Tools Format > Align > Align Center and then Align Middle.

Click to deselect both shapes. Select the outer shape, hold down the [Ctrl] key, and then select the circle. Yes, the order matters.  From your Merge Shapes tool, choose Subtract.

You’ll be left a flower similar to the PowerPoint icon with a cutout circle center. For the third flower I used this same process but used the Teardrop shape for the flower petals.

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We've added a new PowerPoint class to our catalog: PowerPoint for eLearning 301: Bring Your Project to Class. Bring your existing presentation to this open-forum style live, online workshop where AJ will help get you moving toward a fresh and modern design for your presentation.

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AJ Walther, COTP, is IconLogic's Chief Creative Officer (CCO), a seasoned online trainer, eLearning graphic designer, and author of both "PowerPoint 2007: The Essentials" and "PowerPoint 2008 for the Macintosh: The Essentials." AJ made her own interdisciplinary studies major, focusing on writing and art. Her combined expertise in PowerPoint, graphic design, and writing allows her to bring a unique skillset to the eLearning community.

ADOBE CAPTIVATE: Why Are Smart Shapes So Smart? Let Me Count The (6) Ways

ONE. You can change the shape.   Smart Shapes in Captivate are similar to some shapes in PowerPoint: you draw the shape, and then you locate the special yellow handle to change not the size, but the actual shape of the arrow.   In the image of the Captivate arrow shape below, left, notice the yellow handle. The handle allowed me to adjust the pointiness of the point and the thickness of the stem. (As shown in the second image.)

TWO. You can add text.   Double-click a Smart Shape, and you can type text on it. And you can format the text any way you like

THREE. You can use a Smart Shape as a button.   Select your Smart Shape, and in the Properties inspector, just below the Style Name drop-down, select the Use as Button checkbox.

After you check the Use as Button checkbox, the Actions tab becomes available, where you can assign an action such as Go to the next slide.

FOUR. You can use them as multi-state objects.   Once your Smart Shape has been turned into a button, it automatically has different “states”: a state is a different appearance that the Smart Shape assumes under certain conditions on screen: when a mouse pointer hovers over it, it assumes its “RollOver” state. Once it has been clicked, it assumes its “Down” state during the click, and then returns to its “Normal” state after the click is completed.

You can format each state however you like. And even when a Smart Shape is not being used as button, you can create states for it and then program in events in your eLearning that cause the shape to change states.

FIVE. You can use Smart Shapes as Captions.   Sure, I already mentioned that you can type text onto a Smart Shape. But the caption functionality goes way beyond that. When setting up to record a software simulation, you can ask Captivate to generate Smart Shape captions instead of Text Captions—automatically.

In the Preferences dialog box (Edit > Preferences on Windows; Adobe Captivate > Preferences on the Mac), in the Recording Modes category, Under Captions, select the Use Smart Shapes instead of captions checkbox, and choose your Smart Shape Type.

Why would you want to use Smart Shapes instead of Text Captions? Because you can more fully format Smart Shapes. Let’s say you want your captions to mimic the colors in your company’s logo. Use the Fill and Stroke color pickers, and you’ve got fully branded training.

Take a look at these examples:   Text caption (not the right shade of green; limited choices):

Smart Shape used as caption (that’s much better, but still…):

Smart Shape formatted to match your logo (THAT’s what I’m talking about!):

SIX. Use as SFH Captions.   Wait, what? You know, SFH Captions—Success, Failure, and Hint captions that appear automatically when your viewers try to click through your eLearning lesson correctly. Often, these are connected with Click Boxes and other interactive elements. To ensure that your SFH captions come out as Smart Shapes, you have to go to the Preferences dialog box, Defaults category, and deselect—that’s right, UNcheck—the Use Text Captions for SFH Captions instead of Smart-Shapes checkbox.

And there you have it. Six ways Smart Shapes are, well, smart. (If you'd like to see a video of smart shapes in action, here you go.)   Learn more about states, and Smart Shapes, and many other nifty things about Captivate, in our Advanced Captivate class.

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Jennie Ruby, CTT, COTP, is a veteran eLearning developer, master trainer (CMT), and author. Jennie has an M.A. from George Washington University and is a Certified Technical Trainer and Certified Online Training Professional. She teaches both classroom and online courses, and has authored courseware, published training books, and developed content for countless eLearning projects. She is also a publishing professional with more than 30 years of experience in writing, editing, print publishing, and eLearning.

ARTICULATE STORYLINE: Master Slides vs Layouts: What's the Difference?

When it comes to working efficiently in Articulate Storyline, few things top the proper use of Slide Masters. When I teach my beginner Storyline class, students are always surprised to learn that Storyline supports masters and, even better, that master slides are so easy to use.   One of the more common misunderstandings when it comes to slide masters is the difference between a slide master and layout slides.   Consider the relationship between a parent and child. The parent might have one child or several. And while a child might look and behave very differently from the parent and his or her siblings, each child inherits all sorts of attributes from their parent. None of a child's attributes are passed on to the siblings, nor are any of a child's attributes passed up to the parent.   Think of a slide master as a single parent. The layouts are the children.   In the image below, I've created a new Storyline project and accessed Master View by choosing View > Slide Master. By default, there is one Slide Master (parent) in every new project and five Layouts (children).

The easiest and most visual way to show the relationship between a Slide Master and its layouts is by adding a shape to the Slide Master. In the image below, I've drawn a simple star on the Slide Master by choosing Insert > Shape.

Notice how the star automatically appears on the Slide Master and all of the child-layouts.

Next, I drew a circle on the first layout slide in the list (its default name is Title and Content).

Notice that the circle does not appear on any of the other layouts or the Slide Master.

Back in Story View, notice that my lone slide already has the star because, by default, all slides use the contents found on the Slide Master.

If I want to apply one of the master layouts to this slide, it's as simple as right-clicking and choosing Apply Layout.

Notice that slide instantly gets all of the objects added to the layout master.

You'll find all kinds of reasons to format and use both Slide Masters and layout masters. For instance, if you need an image or background color across all slides, change the appearance of the Slide Master. If you want some slides in certain scenes to have alternate colors or background images, use layout masters.   As you get more comfortable with masters, try right-clicking the Slide Master. Notice that you can insert new Slide Masters or layouts (as shown in the image at the right). Each time you create a new Slide Master you get a new family of slides (one parent and some children) giving you unlimited design/layout options you can leverage from slide to slide and throughout your scenes.   I've created a video demonstrating these concepts on the IconLogic YouTube channel.   Looking for Storyline training, development, or mentoring? We've got you covered with these live, instructor-led classes (some for as little as $49). We also offer private group training onsite at your facility or live, online.

DESIGN CENTRAL: Is It Time for a Design Refresh?

Late last year Microsoft announced a design update to their MS Office product line suite, but you may have only recently noticed an update to your icons.    It doesn’t seem like that long ago that they were updated, but did you know that was five years ago already?

Image: https://www.theverge.com/2018/11/29/18117580/microsoft-office-new-icons-2018-design-features

By the looks of things, Microsoft is in a design-y mood and is focusing on updating the look of lots of their product line. Erin Woo, Microsoft’s current Product Designer, also announced brand new file icons for Outlook on her Twitter account this month.

As someone who works heavily in the MS Office suite, particularly in PowerPoint, this of course has me in a refresh mood myself so I thought I would share some brand evolution we’ve had in our online training decks over the years here at IconLogic--including a brand new design I was just inspired to conjure up today!

Shown above, the original PowerPoint slide used the late 1990s. The instructor "designed" the slide using typical bullets and sub-bullets.   Shown below are design evolutions over the years culminating in the use of iconography.

What are you refreshing in your brand? Share it with me and we’ll feature it in an upcoming newsletter!

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We've added a new PowerPoint class to our catalog: PowerPoint for eLearning 301: Bring Your Project to Class. Bring your existing presentation to this open-forum style live, online workshop where AJ Walther, our Chief Creative Officer, will help get you moving toward a fresh and modern design for your presentation.

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AJ Walther, COTP, is IconLogic's Chief Creative Officer (CCO), a seasoned online trainer, eLearning graphic designer, and author of both "PowerPoint 2007: The Essentials" and "PowerPoint 2008 for the Macintosh: The Essentials." AJ made her own interdisciplinary studies major, focusing on writing and art. Her combined expertise in PowerPoint, graphic design, and writing allows her to bring a unique skillset to the eLearning community.

TECHSMITH CAMTASIA: Cursor Smoothing: A Cure For the Over-Caffeinated

Any eLearning developer knows that coffee by the gallon helps get the job done. Of course, too much coffee can lead to the jitters and, by extension, a jittery mouse while recording a video demonstration.   Such was the case for me during a recent project. I was recording a series of clicks in a client's software using Camtasia Recorder. After importing the video in the Camtasia Editor and adding the video to the Timeline, I was dismayed to see that my mouse was all over the screen... not smooth at all.   Under normal circumstances, a herky-jerky cursor in a recording requires a re-record (once the effects of the caffeine have worn off). Fortunately, the recently released Camtasia 2019 has a solution: Cursor Smoothing.   Add your Camtasia recording to the Timeline. From the list of tools at the left of the Camtasia Editor, select Cursor Effects.

There are three options at the top of Cursor Effects: Cursor Effects, Left Click Cursor Effects, and Right Click Cursor Effects. Select Cursor Effects.

With the video on the Timeline selected, right-click Cursor Smoothing and choose Add to Selected Media.

Just like that, you've been decaffeinated. And while you'll likely find that Camtasia's built-in smoothing settings have settled your mouse motions nicely, you can also explore the Cursor Smoothing Properties for some fine-tuning.

Looking for TechSmith Camtasia training or support? Check out these hands-on, instructor-led classes. If you prefer something a little more private, we also offer one-on-one Camtasia mentoring.