Macromedia Captivate - 3.0 User Manual

ADOBE CAPTIVATE 3

USER GUIDE

Adobe® Captivate™ 3 User Guide for Windows®

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Microsoft, Windows, Windows Vista , and Internet Explorer are registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Adobe Systems Incorporated, 345 Park Avenue, San Jose, California 95110, USA.

Notic e to U.S. gov ernment end user s. The so ftware a nd docum entation are “Comm ercial It ems,” as that ter m is defi ned at 48 C.F.R . §2.101, consisting of “Commercial Computer Software” and “Commercial Computer Software Documentation,” as such terms are used in 48 C.F.R. §12.212 or 48 C.F.R. §227.7202, as applicable. Consistent with 48 C.F.R..

§12.212 or 48 C.F.R. §§227.7202-1 through 227.7202-4, as applicable, the Commercial Computer Software and Commercial Computer Software Documentation are being licensed to U.S. Government end users (a) only as Commercial items and (b) with only those rights as are granted to all other end users pursuant to the terms and conditions herein. Unpublished-rights reserved under the copyright laws of the United States. Adobe Systems Incorporated, 345 Park Avenue, San Jose, CA 95110-2704, USA. For U.S. Government End Users, Adobe agrees to comply with all applicable equal opportunity laws including, if appropriate, the provisions of Executive Order 11246, as amended, Section 402 of the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974 (38 USC 4212), and Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, and the regulations at 41 CFR Parts 60-1 through 60-60, 60-250 ,and 60-741. The affirmative action clause and regulations contained in the preceding sentence shall be incorporated by reference.

Part Number: 90081719 (07/07)

Chapter 1: Getting started

Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Adobe Help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

What's new . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Chapter 2: Exploring the workspace

About Adobe Captivate views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

About the timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Customizing the work environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Displaying and docking toolbars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Using the filmstrip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Using the library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Displaying confirmation messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Using shortcut keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Magnification shortcuts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Undoing and redoing actions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

About the bandwidth monitor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

iii

Chapter 3: Creating projects

Opening existing projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

About planning projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

About recording and creating new projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Recording software simulations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Re-recording software simulations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Recording scenario simulations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Recording other types of projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

Linking Adobe Captivate projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

About using project templates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Using full motion recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

Creating accessible projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

Localizing Captivate projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

CONTENTS

Chapter 4: Adding text captions

About adding text captions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

Adding plain text to a slide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

Adding text captions automatically . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92

Adding rollover captions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94

Changing the rollover area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

Converting tooltips to rollover captions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

Adding a language for text captions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

Localizing text captions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99

Editing text captions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100

Creating custom text caption styles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100

Moving and resizing text captions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

Copying and pasting text captions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104

Importing text captions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104

Exporting text captions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105

Changing text caption order . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106

Deleting text captions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107

Chapter 5: Adding audio and video

About adding audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

Adding existing audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

Equipment for recording audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

Tips for recording audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111

Setting audio recording options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112

Calibrating microphones for recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115

Recording audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115

Recording audio while creating a project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116

Creating background audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118

Using a custom keyboard tap sound . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119

Adjusting audio volume . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121

Adding existing audio to objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122

Recording audio for objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123

Setting keyboard tap sounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124

Editing audio files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124

Editing audio timing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125

Viewing audio details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127

Adding closed captions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128

Previewing audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129

Exporting audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130

Deleting audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

About adding video . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132

Adding a video file . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

Setting video options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134

Setting audio options for the video . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135

Setting position options for the video . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135

Chapter 6: Adding images and animation

Adding images . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137

Adding rollover images . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139

Inserting images as slides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142

Creating watermark images . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142

Changing JPEG quality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143

Deleting images . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143

About animation in Adobe Captivate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144

Adding animations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144

Adding animated text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147

Adding animation slides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

Chapter 7: Adding boxes and buttons

Highlight boxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151

Click boxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151

Text entry boxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151

Buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151

Adding highlight boxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

Adding click boxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154

Adding text entry boxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157

Adding buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162

Modifying buttons on question slides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166

Adding JavaScript to boxes and buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168

Adding existing audio to boxes and buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169

Deleting buttons and boxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170

CONTENTS

Chapter 8: Editing mouse movement

Changing mouse pointers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171

Changing mouse pointer size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172

Changing mouse click sounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172

Setting mouse click effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173

Changing mouse movements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174

Aligning mouse paths . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175

Using straight and curved mouse paths . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175

Hiding the mouse pointer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176

Enabling the mouse wheel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176

Creating mouse over effects using a rollover slidelet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177

Chapter 9: Changing timing

Customizing timeline appearance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183

Changing the order of object layers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185

Hiding and locking object layers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186

Previewing a slide using the playhead . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187

Changing slide timing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188

Setting caption speed automatically . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188

Changing keystroke speed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189

Changing mouse pointer speed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189

Changing object timing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190

Controlling Adobe Captivate projects with variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191

Chapter 10: Slides

Adding slides to a project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193

Grouping slides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198

Editing slides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199

Changing how a project starts and ends . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212

Adding skins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214

Securing slides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224

Chapter 11: Adding and managing objects

Importing objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228

Using the library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229

Managing objects with the stage toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231

Duplicating objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232

Copying and pasting objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232

Copying and pasting objects from other projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233

Aligning objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234

Aligning objects on the Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235

Changing object display order . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236

Changing the size of multiple objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237

Aligning objects with the grid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238

Adjusting object size and position by pixel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239

Merging objects into a slide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240

Managing interactive objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240

Chapter 12: Editing projects

Determining the size of your project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243

Deleting projects or templates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243

Hiding projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244

Previewing projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244

Renaming projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245

Resizing projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245

Setting the background color . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247

Setting project preferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247

Adding a loading screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251

Setting project properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252

Using a custom keyboard tap sound . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253

Checking spelling in Adobe Captivate projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254

Changing spell check dictionary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256

Searching slides and replacing content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256

vii

Chapter 13: Creating eLearning content

About branching in Adobe Captivate projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259

About editing branching in Adobe Captivate projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260

Going to a slide in the Branching view . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261

Exporting Branching view . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261

Creating question slides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262

Setting eLearning pass rate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 289

Creating question review messages for quizzes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .292

Creating a manifest file . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 294

Creating a PIF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 296

viii

CONTENTS

Organizing quizzes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 296

Chapter 14: Creating a menu of Adobe Captivate projects

About creating MenuBuilder projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303

About using text in MenuBuilder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 309

Using images in MenuBuilder Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 313

About using click boxes in MenuBuilder projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .320

About changing MenuBuilder project options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .324

About exporting MenuBuilder projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331

Chapter 15: Publishing projects

Publishing projects as stand-alone (EXE) files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 335

Publishing projects to Adobe Connect Enterprise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336

Publishing projects as Flash files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 337

Publishing projects as printed Word output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339

Publishing projects to the web using FTP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 344

Sending projects using e-mail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 345

Publishing an AICC content or a SCORM package . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 346

Exporting text captions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 348

Exporting Adobe Captivate project content to XML . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 349

Importing Adobe Captivate project content from XML . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 351

Importing and exporting project preferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 352

Chapter 16: Adobe Captivate and other software applications

Adobe Captivate and Adobe Flash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 355

Adobe Captivate and Adobe Acrobat Connect Professional . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 360

Adobe Captivate and RoboHelp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365

Adobe Captivate and Microsoft PowerPoint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 368

Chapter 17: Troubleshooting

Troubleshooting Adobe Captivate project startup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 373

Troubleshooting animation timing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 373

Troubleshooting application distortion when recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 374

Troubleshooting capturing while recording a web application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 374

Troubleshooting capture of elevated applications in Windows Vista . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 375

Troubleshooting choppy full motion recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .375

Correcting colors in slides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 375

Troubleshooting fonts on transparent captions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .376

Troubleshooting Adobe Captivate output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 377

Troubleshooting video errors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 378

Troubleshooting text viewed in a browser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 378

Troubleshooting font size in text entry boxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 379

Troubleshooting button sizes while resizing projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 379

Troubleshooting the number of slides in a project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .380

Troubleshooting publishing projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 380

Troubleshooting quizzing errors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 380

Troubleshooting exporting projects to Flash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 381

Troubleshooting JavaScript that does not appear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 381

Troubleshooting the Skin Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 382

Uninstalling Adobe Captivate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 382

Security warning with Flash Player 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 383

Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 385

CONTENTS

Chapter 1: Getting started

If you haven't installed your new software, begin by reading some information on installation and other preliminaries. Before you begin working with your software, take a few moments to read an overview of Adobe Help and of the many resources available to users. You have access to plug-ins, templates, user communities, seminars, tutorials, RSS feeds, and much more.

Installation

Requirements

To review complete system requirements and recommendations for your Adobe® Captivate™ software, see the Read Me file on the installation DVD. This file is also copied to the application folder during product installation. Open the file to read important information about the following topics:

• System Requirements

• Installation (including uninstalling the software)

• Activation and registration

• Font installation

• Troubleshooting

• Customer Support

• Legal notices

Install the software

Close any other Adobe applications open on your computer.

2 Insert the installation disc into your DVD drive, and follow the on-screen instructions.

Note: For more information, see the Read Me file on the installation DVD.

Activate the software

If you have a single-user retail license for your Adobe software, you will be asked to activate your software; this is a simple, anonymous process that you must complete within 30 days of starting the software.

CHAPTER 1

Getting started

For more information on product activation, see the Read Me file on your installation DVD, or visit the Adobe website at www.adobe.com/go/activation.

1 If the Activation dialog box isn't already open, choose Help > Activate.

2 Follow the on-screen instructions.

Note: If you want t o insta ll the s oft ware on a diff ere nt comput er, you must first deactivate it on your computer. Choose Help > Deactivate.

To register, follow the on-screen instructions in the Registration dialog box, which appears after you install and activate the software.

If you postpone registration, you can register at any time by choosing Help > Registration.

Adobe Help

Adobe Help resources

Documentation for your Adobe software is available in a variety of formats.

In-product and web Help

In-product Help provides access to all documentation and instructional content available at the time the software ships. It is available through the Help menu in your Adobe software.

Web Help includes all the content from in-product Help, plus updates and links to additional instructional content available on the web. Find web Help for your product in the Adobe Help Resource Center, at

www.adobe.com/go/documentation.

PDF documentation

The in-product Help is also available as a PDF that is optimized for printing.

All PDF documentation is available through the Adobe Help Resource Center, at www.adobe.com/go/documen-

tation.

ADOBE CAPTIVATE 3

User Guide

To see t he PDF documentation included with your soft ware, look in the Documentation folder on the installation or content DVD.

Printed documentation

A printed Getting Started Guide is included with the software.

Using Help in the product

In-product Help is available through the Help menu.

Customer support

Visit the Adobe Support website, at www.adobe.com/support, to find troubleshooting information for your product and to learn about free and paid technical support options. Follow the Training link for access to Adobe Press books, a variety of training resources, Adobe software certification programs, and more.

Downloads

Visit www.adobe.com/go/downloads to find free updates, tryouts, and other useful software. In addition, the Adobe Store (at www.adobe.com/go/store) provides access to thousands of plug-ins from third-party developers, helping you to automate tasks, customize workflows, create specialized professional effects, and more.

Adobe Labs

Adobe Labs gives you the opportunity to experience and evaluate new and emerging technologies and products from Adobe.

At Adobe Labs, you have access to resources such as these:

• Prerelease software and technologies

• Code samples and best practices to accelerate your learning

• Early versions of product and technical documentation

• Forums, wiki-based content, and other collaborative resources to help you interact with like-minded devel-

opers

Adobe Labs fosters a collaborative software development process. In this environment, customers quickly become productive with new products and technologies. Adobe Labs is also a forum for early feedback, which the Adobe development teams use to create software that meets the needs and expectations of the community.

CHAPTER 1

Getting started

Visit Adobe Labs at www.adobe.com/go/labs.

Adobe Design Center

Adobe design center offers articles, inspiration, and instruction from industry experts, top designers, and Adobe publishing partners. New content is added monthly.

You can find hundreds of tutorials for design products, and learn tips and techniques through videos, HTML tutorials, and sample book chapters.

New ideas are the heart of Think Tank, Dialog Box, and Gallery:

Think Tank articles consider how today’s designers engage with technology and what their experiences mean for design, design tools, and society.

In Dialog Box, experts share new ideas in motion graphics and digital design.

The Gallery showcases how artists communicate design in motion.

Visit Adobe Design Center at www.adobe.com/designcenter.

Adobe Developer Center

Adobe Developer Center provides samples, tutorials, articles, and community resources for developers who build rich Internet applications, websites, mobile content, and other projects using Adobe products. The Developer Center also contains resources for developers who develop plug-ins for Adobe products.

In addition to sample code and tutorials, you'll find RSS feeds, online seminars, SDKs, scripting guides, and other technical resources.

Visit Adobe Developer Center at www.adobe.com/go/developer.

User communities

User communities feature forums, blogs, and other avenues for users to share technologies, tools, and information.

Users can ask questions and find out how others are getting the most out of their software. User-to-user forums are available in English, French, German, and Japanese; blogs are posted in a wide range of languages.

To participate in forums or blogs, visit www.adobe.com/communities.

ADOBE CAPTIVATE 3

User Guide

What's new

Top new fe atu res o f Ad obe Captivate 3

Adobe® Captivate™ 3 software enables anyone to rapidly create powerful and engaging simulations, scenario-based training and assessments without programming or multimedia skills. Based on the industry-leading Adobe Flash® platform, Adobe Captivate 3 automatically generates interactive, Flash Player compatible content for easy online distribution and access. Using Adobe Captivate software’s simple point-and-click user interface and automated features, learning professionals, educators, and business and enterprise users can easily record on-screen actions, add eLearning interactions, create complex branching scenarios with feedback options, and include rich media.

Multimode recording Save time and generate robust software simulations with multiple learning modes in a

single recording session, including a demonstration of the procedure, a simulation for practicing the steps, and an assessment.

Randomized quizzing and question pools Improve learner assessments by randomly drawing questions from a

set of question pools. Shuffle the answer options for multiple-choice questions, so that the answers are displayed in a different order each time. Share question pools among multiple Adobe Captivate projects.

Rollover slidelets Provide additional just-in-time information on Adobe Captivate 3 slides by displaying media-

rich content including images, text, audio, and video in a slidelet (a mini-slide within a slide) when the learner moves the mouse over a specified area on the slide.

XML export and import Simplify the localization process of projects; export captions to a text or XML Local-

ization Interchange File Format (XLIFF) file. Import the translated text file into a copy of the original project file.

Automated rerecording Quickly update content and automatically rerecord entire procedures in most web appli-

cations after the user interface is modified or localized (Internet Explorer® 6).

Animation effects Create learning content with support for animated slide transitions and PowerPoint® anima-

tions. Import PowerPoint (PPT) files and retain many animation effects by converting PowerPoint slides to SWF files.

Audio recording with preview Synchronize audio easily with slides and timed objects. Record narration while

previewing slides in real time by going through them one by one or as a complete project.

New question types Increase learning effectiveness with specialized question types, such as sequencing and

hotspots, and matching dropdown lists.

Rich media support Record audio from system or through line-in, in addition to microphone.

CHAPTER 1

Getting started

Full motion recording Record full motion movies in SWF format that show detailed motion such as

drawing/painting features and drag/drop operations.

Streamlined workflow and usability enhancements

Work faster with a wide variety of streamlined workflows and usability enhancements:

• Find and replace

• Enhanced screen recording for capturing screen activity

• Real-time recording mode

• Improved learning management system (LMS) integration

• Reusing quiz slides

• Reducing SWF file size

• Branching view enhancements, such as slide grouping and zooming

• New choices for adding captions and buttons

Microsoft® Windows Vista™ and Microsoft Office 2007 support Install Adobe Captivate 3 on Windows Vista and

import PowerPoint (PPT) files from Office 2007, or create handouts or step-by-step procedures with the Microsoft Word export option.

Chapter 2: Exploring the workspace

Adobe® Captivate™ is designed so that you can create a project easily. The following is an overview of the Adobe Captivate work environment.

About Adobe Captivate views

Adobe Captivate has three main views: Storyboard, Edit (with the Thumbnail), and Branching. Click the view tabs at the top of the project window, or press Control+Tab to navigate between views. Each view features a window at the bottom of the screen where you can view, add, and edit notes about individual slides in your project.

Storyboard view

This view appears when you open a project from the Start page. The project opens with small images representing the slides that constitute the project. Storyboard view provides an easy way to see all of the slides within a project at a glance. It also enables you to see the flow of the project. You can change the properties of multiple slides at the same time: to select multiple slides, hold down the Shift or Control key while clicking on slides; to select all slides, press Control+A.

Edit view

This view appears when you double-click a slide in Storyboard or Branching view. After recording an Adobe Captivate project, you will probably spend most of your time in Edit view because this is the view in which you add objects (such as captions, images, click boxes, video, and audio). Using this view, you can make many changes to a slide, such as altering the mouse movement and changing the mouse pointer.

In Edit view, you can see the Library, which lists media items in a project and lets you view and reuse the images, backgrounds, audio, and animation in your project. Also, Edit view contains the optional Filmstrip, Timeline, and Notes panels.

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Branching view

This view appears when you click the Branching tab. The Branching view gives you a visual representation of all links between the slides in a project, and lets you quickly edit those links. The left pane contains the Properties, Overview, and Legend areas, which are all collapsible. The Properties area shows the link properties of the selected slide or link, and lets you edit the navigation type; the Overview section indicates which portion of the project you’re reviewing in the main Branching pane; and the Legend section defines how each type of link between slides is displayed. The main pane displays the type of link between slides, and lets you find and select the slide you want to review. The bottom pane displays and lets you add notes for the slide selected in the main pane.

The Branching view is particularly helpful when creating instructional materials containing question slides, and specifying different paths for right and wrong answers. For example, you can set one action (such as “Go to the next slide”) when a user supplies a correct answer, and you can set a different action (such as “Open URL or file”) when a user supplies an incorrect answer. Using the Branching view, you can easily make changes to the branching design.

You can export the branching view of an existing Adobe Captivate project into a BMP, JPEG, or JPG file.

About the timeline

The Timeline is a visual representation of all objects on slides. The Timeline provides an easy way to view, at a high level, all objects on a slide and their relationship to each other. With the Timeline, you can organize objects and precisely control the timing of objects. For example, on a slide that contains a caption, an image, and a highlight box, you can display the caption, then the image four seconds later, and then the highlight box two seconds after that. The Timeline also shows any audio associated with the slide or with objects on the slide, letting you easily coordinate the timing of audio with objects.

You can use the Timeline to hide or lock objects easily. This is useful when a slide contains many objects and you need to edit the objects separately.

About toolbars and menus

In all views, the program contains menus and toolbars at the top of the program window. Context (right-click) menus are also available throughout the program.

• Menu bar Click a menu at the top of the program window (for example, File, Insert, or Options) to see the

related menu commands.

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User Guide

• Context menus Place the mouse pointer in the pane in which you want to work. Press the right mouse

button, and select a command from the menu.

• Toolbars Click an icon on any of the program toolbars as a shortcut to dialog boxes and actions. All of the

toolbar options (for example, showing/hiding toolbars, toolbar location, and so on) for a given view are located in the View menu.

Tip:For maximum editing space, open a project and click F11 to display Adobe Captivate in full-screen edit mode.

Customizing the work environment

You can change and customize certain elements of the Adobe Captivate work environment to suit your work style.

To change the size of the Slides panel: 1 Open an Adobe Captivate project.

2 Double-click any slide to open Edit view.

The Slide panel appears on the left side with medium icons that represent the slides in the project.

a To change the size of the slide thumbnail images, drag the splitter bar toward the outside of the program

window to make the thumbnails smaller or toward the inside to make the thumbnails larger.

b To hide the Slides panel completely, select View > Show Thumbnails.

To show or hide the Timeline: 1 Open an Adobe Captivate project.

2 Double-click any slide to open Edit view.

By default, the Timeline appears along the top of the slide.

a If it is not open already, select View > Show Timeline.

If you are not able to see the timeline even after doing this, click the splitter bar arrow.

b To close the Timeline, select View > Show Timeline again.

c To expand the Timeline, click the small, black display arrow. To close the Timeline, click the display arrow

again.

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Exploring the workspace

To show or hide the Library:

Open an Adobe Captivate project.

2 Double-click any slide to open Edit view.

3 Select View > Show Library.

To show or hide the Question Pool:

Open an Adobe Captivate project.

2 Double-click any slide to open Edit view.

3 Select View > Show Question Pool.

To show or hide the left pane in Storyboard view: 1 Open an Adobe Captivate project.

By default, the pane appears along the left side of the program window in Storyboard view.

a To change the size of the left pane, drag the splitter bar toward the outside of the program window to make it

smaller or toward the inside to make it larger.

b To hide the left pane completely, click the splitter bar arrow.

Displaying and docking toolbars

Adobe Captivate contains many toolbars that provide easy access to commonly used features. You have a great deal of flexibility in selecting which toolbars are displayed and where they are located in the Adobe Captivate program window.

Enabling and disabling docking of toolbars

This option lets you select toolbars, drag them within the program window, and place (“dock”) them in new locations. The option is enabled by default, but you can disable it at any time.

To enable and disable docking of toolbars:

Select Edit > Preferences.

2 In the Category panel, select Global.

3 In the Docking toolbars area, select or deselect Enable Docking.

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User Guide

Showing and hiding toolbars

By default, the main, object, and alignment toolbars appear.

Note: These menu items are available in the Edit view only.

To show or hide a toolbar: 1 Open an Adobe Captivate project.

2 Select View > Toolbars, and select or clear Main, Alignment, Object, or Advanced.

Showing or hiding captions on the main toolbar

Captions are text that appear next to the icons on the main toolbar. The main toolbar is displayed, by default, along the top of the program window, just below the menu bar.

To show or hide captions on the main toolbar: 1 Open an Adobe Captivate project.

2 Select View > Toolbars, and select or clear Labels on Toolbar.

Restoring default settings for text captions

If you made changes to the appearance of text captions, you can restore all text caption settings to their defaults. (F or e xamp le, you cha nge the fo nt f or t ext c apt ions to Ti mes New R oman and the fo nt c olor to g reen. C lick Re stor e to default to change the font back to the default font Arial and the color to the default blue.)

To restore default settings for text captions: 1 Open an Adobe Captivate project.

2 Select Edit > Preferences.

The Preferences dialog box appears.

3 In the Category panel, select Global.

4 In the Text Caption settings area, click Restore to Default.

Moving toolbars to a different location

You can dock toolbars on any edge of the program window or you can disconnect a toolbar from the Adobe Captivate program window and have the toolbar float in its own separate window.

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To move a toolbar:

Open an Adobe Captivate project.

2 Click the left or top edge of a toolbar until a four-point arrow appears.

3 Drag the toolbar to an edge of the program window where it can dock, or to the middle of the program window

where it can float. (If you want, you can always drag toolbars back to their original locations.)

Using the filmstrip

Edit view contains the optional Filmstrip, which lets you see all of the slides in a project and work with them while editing an individual slide in Edit view. Using Edit view and the Filmstrip together is a fast and productive way to work in Adobe Captivate.

Note: The Filmstrip also appears in the Advanced Interaction dialog box (Project > Advanced Interaction).

To view the Fil m s trip: 1 Open an Adobe Captivate project.

2 Double-click any slide to open the slide in Edit view.

The Filmstrip appears.

a The Filmstrip displays all of the slides in your project in viewing order. You can change the slide order by

dragging a slide to a new location within the project. (To select multiple slides, hold down the Shift or Control key when clicking on slides; to select all slides, press Control+A.)

b If a slide has a label (short title) assigned, the label appears under the slide. It can be easier to move slides and

jump to a specific slide if you have assigned labels instead of just using the slide number.

c If a slide has an audio file associated with it, the audio icon appears in the lower right corner of the slide. You

can click the sound icon to show a menu with sound options such a Play, Import, and Edit.

d If a slide is locked, the lock icon appears in the lower right corner of the slide. You can click the lock icon to

unlock the slide.

e If a slide contains mouse movement, the mouse icon appears in the lower right corner of the slide.

f By default, the Slides panel shows slides in a medium thumbnail view. You can change the size of the slides, if

necessary, by selecting View > Thumbnail Size, and then selecting Small, Medium, or Large.

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User Guide

g When the display for Question Pool tab has been turned on, you can change the view in the film strip between

the main project and the question pools by clicking the appropriate tabs.

Using the library

The Library, which is available in Edit view, lists media items in a project, and lets you easily view and reuse the images, backgrounds, audio, and animation in your project.

You can also open items for edit from the Library. For example, you can right-click an image in the Library, select Edit With from the menu, and browse to your favorite image editing program. The image opens in the program, and you can edit and save the updated image in the project.

You can float the Library outside the program window, or move it to a different location in the window. To do so, rest the pointer over the top left corner of the Library pane until a four-point arrow appears; then drag the Library to an edge of the program window where it can dock, or to the middle of the program window where it can float. (If you want, you can always drag the Library back.)

For each item, the Library displays the following columns: Name, Type, Size (in kilobytes), Use Count, and Date Modified. (Use Count is the number of times the item is used in the project.) Click the title of any of these columns to sort the list of items within each item category folder.

You can only see the Library location when you’re in Edit view. If you switch to a different view, you cannot see the Library. When you move back to Edit view, the Library reappears in the same location.

New items appear in the Library whenever you add an item to the project. An item remains in the Library and is available for reuse even if you delete the slide in which that item was originally located.

If you use an item in one slide and then drag it from the Library to another slide, you can alter the item properties in the subsequent slide without affecting the first instance of the item.

Library toolbar

The Library toolbar appears at the top of the main Library pane, below the Library preview pane. Use the following toolbar options to perform their corresponding actions.

• Open Library Opens another Adobe Captivate project’s Library. This allows you to reuse any item from that

project’s Library in your current project.

• Import Imports a copy of an item from the Library of another project.

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• Export Saves a copy of an item to a location outside of the project.

• Edit Opens an item in the editing application you previously selected for the file type. This option is not

enabled until you select an editing application for the specific file type through the Edit with option in a Library item’s right-click menu.

• Properties Opens the Properties dialog box for the selected item.

• Usage Displays the list of slides on which the selected item is used.

• Update Updates Library items that have been edited outside of the project.

• Select Unused Items Highlights all items in the Library that are not currently used in the project.

• Delete Deletes selected item(s) from the project.

Note: If you do not see the Library toolbar, select View > Show Library.

Displaying confirmation messages

Confirmation messages appear when you perform important, and often permanent, actions in Adobe Captivate. The confi rmation mess ages g ive y ou an oppor tunity to change your m ind when delet ing in formation or ch anging key attributes. If you find that certain messages are not necessary for the way you work or are slowing down your development time, you might want to disable confirmation messages for actions that you perform frequently.

To display or not display confirmation messages: 1 Open an Adobe Captivate project.

2 Select Edit >Preferences.

The Preferences dialog box appears.

3 In the Category panel, select Global.

4 In the Confirmation messages area, select the actions for which you want confirmation messages to display.

• Delete object Displays a message before an object is removed.

• Delete slide Displays a message before a slide is removed.

• Delete Question Pool Displays a message before a question pool is removed. The same message is displayed

when a question is deleted from within the Question Pools Manager.

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User Guide

• Project resize Displays a message before a project is resized. (Resizing a project is an action that cannot be

“undone,” so it is a good idea to display a confirmation message for this action.)

• Video quality change Displays a message before the quality of a slide is changed.

• Remove audio Displays a message before audio is deleted.

• Cancel audio changes Displays a message before canceling any audio changes (for example, adjusting volume,

cutting and pasting sections, and so on).

• Check audio input levels Displays a message before changing audio input levels (for microphones or recording

devices).

• Publish to New Folder

• Frame rate change Select this option to have a confirmation message appear before changing the frame rate.

• FLA export instructions Select this option to have a confirmation message appear when exporting an Adobe

Captivate project into Flash.

• Publish overwrite files Select this option to have a confirmation message appear when publishing files to the

same location more than once. (For example, you publish to Flash and create a SWF file stored in a particular location. If you publish to Flash again, creating a SWF file and saving it to the same location, a confirmation message will display asking if you want to overwrite the existing file.)

• Change audio Displays a message while recording, importing, or adding new audio to a slide with existing

audio.

• Extend item Displays a message if you add audio to an object when the audio’s duration is longer than the

object’s duration.

• Remove item from Library Displays a message when you delete an item from the Library.

• Sharing of audio Displays a message when you change an audio that is used on another slide.

• Duplicating audio Displays a message when you add an audio that is already on another slide.

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Using shortcut keys

Shortcut keys provide an easier and quicker way to navigate and use Adobe Captivate. They let you use keyboard key combinations instead of a mouse or program menu. Shortcut keys are commonly accessed by using a keyboard function key, Alt, Control, and Shift in conjunction with a single letter or number.

Shortcut key Action

F1 Open Adobe Captivate Help (To access dialog-level help, click the Help button on individual

F3 Test view current slide (Edit view only)

F4 Preview project

F5 Record audio

F6 Import audio

F7 Spelling and grammar check

F8 Preview project from current slide

F9 Show the Advanced Interaction dialog box

F10 Preview current slide and following ‘n’ slides

F11 View Adobe Captivate in full screen

F12 Preview project in web browser

Control+A Select all

Control+C Copy (slide in Storyboard view or Filmstrip, and selected object in Edit view)

Control+D Duplicate (slide in Storyboard view or Filmstrip, and selected object in Edit view)

Control+E Extend length of object display time to end of slide on Timeline (Edit view only)

Control+F Open the Find and Replace dialog box

Control+G Change slide to optimized quality

Control+H Change slide to high quality

Control+I Increase indent (selected object in Edit view)

Control+J Change slide to JPEG quality

Control+K Lock the slide

Control+L Sync selected object to the playhead

Control+M Merge the selected object with background

dialog boxes.)

Shortcut key Action

Control+N Move to Slide Notes pane

Control+O Open project

Control+P Align selected object with playhead on Timeline (Edit view only)

Control+Q Insert Random Question Slide

Control+R Print the project (through the Publish dialog box)

Control+S Save

Control+T Change slide to standard quality

Control+U Edit with (in project Library)

Control+V Paste what is on the clipboard (e.g., slide, image, object, etc.)

Control+X Cut (selected object in Edit view)

Control+Y Redo

Control+Z Undo

Control + = zoom in

Control + - zoom out

Control+Tab To shift between storyboard, edit, and branching view

Control+Alt+B Show Thumbnails (Edit view only)

Control+Alt+D Update Library

Control+Alt+F Find in Library

Control+Alt+L Show Library (Edit view only)

Control+Alt+N Show Slide Notes (Edit view only)

Control+Alt+O Record additional slides

Control+Alt+R Reset to original size

Control+Alt+T Show Timeline (Edit view only)

Control+Alt+U Library usage

Shift+Control+A Add animation object (Edit and Storyboard views only)

Shift+Control+B Add new button (Edit and Storyboard views only)

Shift+Control+C Add new text caption (Edit and Storyboard views only)

Shift+Control+D View slide properties

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User Guide

CHAPTER 2

Exploring the workspace

Shortcut key Action

Shift+Control+E Insert new zoom area (Edit and Storyboard views only)

Shift+Control+F Insert Flash Video (Edit and Storyboard views only)

Shift+Control+G Show the Go to Slide dialog box

Shift+Control+H Hide/Show slide

Shift+Control+I Decrease indent (selected object in Edit view)

Shift+Control+J Insert blank slide (Edit and Storyboard views only)

Shift+Control+K Add new click box (Edit and Storyboard views only)

Shift+Control+M Add new image

Shift+Control+N Add new animation slide

Shift+Control+O Add new rollover image

Shift+Control+P Publish file

Shift+Control+Q Insert question slide

Shift+Control+R Insert rollover caption

Shift+Control+S Insert image slide

Shift+Control+T Insert text entry box

Shift+Control+U Insert mouse

Shift+Control+V Paste as background

Shift+Control+W Insert PowerPoint slide

Shift+Control+X Insert text animation

Shift+Control+Y Copy background

Shift+Control+Z Insert rollover slidelet

Magnification shortcuts

Shortcut key Magnification level

Control+1 100%

Control+2 200%

Control+3 300%

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User Guide

Shortcut key Magnification level

Control+4 400%

Control+= Zoom in

Control+- Zoom out

Undoing and redoing actions

You can reverse the previous action by using the Undo command. You can also reverse the action of the Undo command by using the Redo command.

To undo an action:

• From the Edit menu, select Undo or press Control+Z.

Each click reverses one more action. Continue clicking Undo (or pressing Control+Z) to remove as many of the previous changes as necessary.

Tip:When the Undo command is unavailable (dimmed), you cannot undo the previous action.

Tip:Adobe Captivate tracks actions from the time you open a project until the time you close the project. Therefore, you can undo as many times as you need to, as long as the project remains open.

To redo an action:

• After you have used the Undo command, from the Edit menu, select Redo or press Control+Y.

Changing capture keys

Adobe Captivate has default keys for starting and ending the recording process (both standard Flash recording and full motion recording). You can change these keys as you like.

Note: You cannot use the Escape, Enter, Tab, Spacebar, Shift (without Control or Alt), F1, or Backspace key in a key combination.

To change recording capture keys:

Do one of the following:

a Open Adobe Captivate. Select Edit > Preferences. In the Category panel of the Preferences dialog box, select

Recording.

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b Open an Adobe Captivate project. Select Edit > Preferences. In the Category panel of the Preferences dialog

box, expand Recording in the Category panel, and select Keys.

2 To change keys, click once in one of text boxes and, on the keyboard, press the key or key combination you want

to use. For example, click inside the stop recording text box and then press Shift+Alt+4. The key combination you entered now appears in the stop recording text box. You can use almost any key, including the Control, Alt, Shift+Control, and Shift+Alt keys. For example, you could change the stop recording key to Alt+R.

3 When you finish, click OK.

About the bandwidth monitor

Adobe Captivate allows you to view how much bandwidth a selected project requires. You can see how much bandwidth each slide requires and how well the slides stream over a variety of connections. With this knowledge, you can make project adjustments as necessary.

To analyze project bandwidth: 1 Open an Adobe Captivate project.

2 Select Project > Bandwidth Analysis.

3 Adobe Captivate generates the slides and the Bandwidth Monitor dialog box appears.

4 This dialog box contains three tabs: Slide Summary, Graph, and Project Summary. Navigate through the tabs

as necessary.

5 The Slide Summary displays information about each slide.

Slide Summary tab This tab provides information about the speed and size related information of the slide.

• Slide Displays the slide number.

• KB per sec (Kilobytes per second) As a general rule, any frame with less than 3 KB per second streams well

over a modem Internet connection. Frames with larger amounts of bandwidth might, depending upon several factors, cause playback to pause. If previous frames require lower bandwidth, the higher bandwidth frame might download at an acceptable speed. Note that the first frame in a project always has a higher KB per second value, because it is the first frame to load and additional project information must load with it.

• Seconds The frame duration, in seconds.

• Video (KB) The size of any included video.

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User Guide

• Audio (KB) The size of any included audio.

Graph This tab reveals how the project streams across time for different modem and broadband speeds. You

can view high-bandwidth frames and note how they appear on common connection types.

Project Summary This tab displays project summary information. Both the size and KB per second are listed

for each project item. Size is much less significant than KB per second. For example, a 500 KB project running for 60 seconds streams at 8.3 KB per second; this requires a broadband connection. On the other hand, a 2000 KB project running for 10 minutes streams at 3.3 KB per second, and this will stream well even on a low-speed modem connection.

6 (Optional) Click Print to print the information displayed.

7 Click OK.

Note: After you have identified the frames that require high bandwidth, you can reduce their impact on the project by extending the timing for the high-bandwidth frame or the preceding frame(s). You need to do this only if bandwidth is limited and you notice distracting pauses during playback over the Internet.

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Chapter 3: Creating projects

You can create new projects in Adobe ®Captivate™ by importing existing files, altering or copying existing Adobe Captivate projects, working from templates, following the Project wizard, or opening a blank project. Adobe Captivate allows you to specify a wide array of project settings and options so you can completely customize each project to your exact needs.

You can use Adobe Captivate to generate projects in the Demonstration, Training, or Assessment modes. Create a project in the Demonstration mode to capture screenshots of operations performed in a software application. You can use this presentation to demonstrate the working of a software application to your audience. If you generate a project in the Training Simulation mode, you can include training content for your trainees. You can record an Adobe Captivate project in the Assessment Simulation mode to assess the training provided to your audience.

Opening existing projects

Adobe Captivate stores projects in a folder named My Adobe Captivate Projects, which is placed in the My Documents folder when Adobe Captivate is installed. When you start Adobe Captivate, projects stored in the My Adobe Captivate Projects folder are automatically listed on the Start page under Open a recent project. All Adobe Captivate projects use the .cp file extension.

To open a project: 1 Open Adobe Captivate.

2 Under Open a recent project, click the project you want to open. If the project is not listed, click Open and

navigate to the project. The default storage location for projects is My Documents\My Adobe Captivate Projects.

Important: When opening an Adobe Captivate project created with a previous version of Adobe Captivate or with RoboDemo, Adobe Captivate prompts you to upgrade Adobe Captivate, or convert the project to an Adobe Captivate project. You can overwrite the existing project or create a new project; you cannot open the new Adobe Captivate project with an older version of Adobe Captivate. RoboDemo 5 projects use the .rd or .fcz file extension. When you open RoboDemo projects in Adobe Captivate, Adobe Captivate automatically converts them and gives them the new Adobe Captivate .cp file extension. Adobe Captivate does not support projects created with RoboDemo versions prior to version 5.

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Creating projects

About planning projects

You can start recording Adobe Captivate projects right away using the default settings, but it may be helpful to do a little planning and customize some recording settings.

Using Adobe Captivate, you can create a simple project quickly or you can create a more sophisticated project with images, background music, animation, Flash Videos, voice-over narration (with closed captioning), and detailed captions.

No matter what kind of project you want to create, it is helpful to do some planni ng before you start taking screenshots. Consider first what you want the user to do, learn, or achieve as a result of viewing your project. Defining this goal allows you to create a comprehensive plan for success. Once you have defined the action you want the audience to take, you can create the “core” of the project.

When you are ready to begin drafting project content, you can do so using storyboards or scripts.

Storyboards are rough sketches that show the contents of each slide in your project. If you rely heavily on pure screenshots in your project (without many captions or explanatory text), a storyboard may be the best foundation for your project.

You can use Adobe Captivate to create storyboards. Record a “rough” version of your project, add some blank slides where appropriate, and then publish the project as handouts. You can include from one to nine slides per page and add blank lines for notes.

Scripts use text-based pages. They are similar to pages in a book: logical, sequential, and containing as much detail as you care to provide. If your project includes a great deal of text (captions), a script may be the best place to begin.

When planning projects, remember to consider adding the following elements:

• Title page

• Credits page

• Copyright page

• Opening/closing graphic or splash screen

• Sound, including narration, music, or sound effects

• Images

• Animated text

• Interactive boxes

ADOBE CAPTIVATE 3

• If appropriate, quizzing functionality

User Guide

Recording elevated applications in Windows Vista

You will have to set administrator permissions for the AdobeCaptivate.exe file to record or capture applications running in elevated or administrator mode.

To set administrator permissions for AdobeCaptivate.exe:

Locate AdobeCaptivate.exe in your installation directory. If you have not changed any setting during instal-

lation, you can locate this in the C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe Captivate 3 folder.

2 Right-click the file, and select Run as Administrator. The User Account Control (UAC) dialog box appears.

3 Click Allow.

Recording tricks and tips

The following tips and tricks can help you create Adobe Captivate projects quickly and easily, while also giving you professional, high-quality results.

Tip 1 - Consider auto-recording

Adobe Captivate lets you create projects in two ways.

You can record onscreen action manually. This means that each time you want to capture what is displayed on your screen, you press the Print Screen key (or another designated key) on the keyboard. Then you make a change on your screen (such as moving your mouse, clicking an icon, or selecting a menu) and press Print Screen again.

You can also let Adobe Captivate automatically record screen action (auto-recording). This option automatically captures screenshots during the recording process each time you click the mouse, change the focus of your application or web page, or press a key.

Another efficient way to create projects is to use auto-recording and manual recording together. Set the autorecord option, but press Print Screen whenever you need to take an extra screenshot. This method is particularly effective if you are recording a website that contains many pop-ups, frames, and special effects. If you have the feature turned on, Adobe Captivate will play a camera shutter sound each time a screenshot is automatically captured. If you see a special effect take place on the website you are recording, but do not hear the camera shutter sound, press Print Screen to manually take a screenshot.

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Tip 2 - Go slowly when recording, particularly when recording websites in Internet Explorer

When y ou record on screen actio n, it is bes t to per for m ac tio n mo re slo wly tha n you wo uld normal ly. For exa mple, if you are recording keyboard action, type text slowly.

It is especially important to go slowly when capturing a website in Internet Explorer. If you are manually recording, make sure each web page is completely loaded before capturing a screenshot. If you are auto-recording, you will hear the camera shutter sound and see the system tray icon (in the lower right corner of your computer) flash when a web page is fully loaded and Adobe Captivate takes a screenshot. Wait for the shutter sound before moving the mouse and taking another action. (If necessary, while you are auto-recording, you can take a screenshot manually at any time by pressing Print Screen. This is effective if you see that the web page changed, but you did not hear the camera shutter sound so you know that a screenshot was not automatically captured.)

Tip 3 - Capturing screenshots efficiently

It is important to know exactly when Adobe Captivate is capturing screenshots. Adobe Captivate contains a feature that plays a “camera shutter” sound each time a screenshot is taken. This feature is enabled by default, but if you do not hear the sound, open the Preferences dialog box (Edit > Preferences), and select Recording, and make sure the Hear camera sounds during recording option is selected.

If you are automatically recording, Adobe Captivate captures a screenshot each time you perform an action such as moving the mouse, selecting a menu, or typing information into a text box. The camera shutter sound plays each time an action takes place.

If you are manually recording, Adobe Captivate captures screenshots each time you press a designated key or key combination. The default capture key is the Print Screen key. Each time you want to capture a screenshot, press the Print Screen key; you'll hear the camera shutter sound.

You can also use both recording methods together. Simply turn on the auto-recording option; while Adobe Captivate captures screenshots, you can use the Print Screen key to manually capture a screen when necessary. For example, if you are recording Microsoft Internet Explorer, there may be dynamic HTML or Flash menus that appear only when the mouse rolls over them. Adobe Captivate does not automatically capture the change that occurs on mouse rollover (you will know this because the camera shutter sound does not play), but you can press the Print Screen key and manually capture the change.

Tip 4 - Set an appropriate screen resolution

Select an appropriate screen resolution before capturing screenshots. When making a decision about resolution, consider your audience.

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If your demonstration will be viewed by general web users, remember that their monitors may be set as low as 640 x 480, with some of that screen space occupied by the web browser user interface. For these users, a good lowresolution setting for capturing projects is 512 x 384.

Another option is Full Screen mode using a 640 x 480 or 800 x 600 setting. This slightly higher resolution may be a good choice if you are displaying projects on an intranet or to broadband users.

If you are producing projects for a CD or other high-bandwidth media, set the project size to 1024 x 768 or 800 x

600.

Tip 5 - Turn off wallpaper

Desktop wallpaper is a distraction in a finished project because the user may view the wallpaper instead of your project. Also, colorful wallpaper increases the size of your project (especially photographic backgrounds) and reduces the color accuracy because many colors are required to display the wallpaper.

The best choice for a background is a plain color. For a professional end result, set the background to the same color as the web page on which the project will be displayed.

Tip 6 - Turn off icons

Icons, like wallpaper, are a distraction. Reduce the number of icons by moving them to a toolbar. You can also reduce the number of icons on the quick launch section of your Taskbar. You can completely hide the Taskbar by clicking Start >Control Panel, and double-clicking Taskbar and Start Menu in the Control Panel window. Then select Auto-hide the Taskbar.

Tip 7 - Remove themes and nonstandard colors

Themes and color schemes are based on personal taste and may not look good in a finished project. For best results, set your theme to a standard Windows theme and your color scheme to the default.(The steps you should take may vary, depending on your operating system.)

Tip 8 - Remove color gradients

Color gradients on the title bars of windows increase the file size of your projects. To turn off color gradients on title bars, click Start > Control Panel, and double click Display. Click the Appearance tab, click Advanced, and locate the Item pop-up menu. Select Active Title Bar and set Color and Color 2 to the same color. (The steps you should take may vary, depending on your operating system.)

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Recording and re-recording techniques

Adobe Captivate gives you a variety of options that help you create a new project. You can have many processes take place automatically, use a combination of automatic and manual options, or retain greater control by recording manually.

Often, the decision to have a task take place automatically or do the task manually is based on the purpose of the project and how much time you have. If you need to create a short project quickly, have Adobe Captivate do recording tasks automatically. If you are creating a longer, more detailed project, try a combination of automatic and manual recording options. Experiment with the different recording options to find the combinations that work best for you.

In Adobe Captivate, you can define a key to pause and resume the recording process, thus letting you switch between automatic and manual recording of a software simulation.

Capturing screenshots

When you are recording a project, you can set Adobe Captivate to automatically capture screenshots or you can capture them manually. If you decide to record automatically, Adobe Captivate snaps a screenshot every time you take an action such as clicking a button or menu. (Adobe Captivate contains a feature that plays a camera shutter sound each time a screenshot is taken to help you determine exactly when shots are captured.) If you choose to record manually, press the designated capture key (the default key is the Print Screen button on the keyboard) each time you want to take a screenshot.

You can also use both techniques together; simply select the auto-record option and let Adobe Captivate take screenshots, but if you need a screenshot during the process, press Print Screen as necessary.

In Adobe Captivate, while creating a new software simulation, you can select the option to use a re-recording script file. The script automatically takes screenshots of the software application and generates a new Adobe Captivate project. You can define a key to pause and resume the re-recording process, thus letting you switch between automatic and manual re-recording of a software simulation.

Additional slides

If you are capturing additional slides to add in or at the end of a project, the same options are available as the ones you use for recording a project. You can have Adobe Captivate capture the slides automatically, you can capture manually, or you can use a combination of both.

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Capturing screenshots in full motion

If you are recording a project or additional slides that contain drag-and-drop movement, mouse wheel scrolling or drawing (for example, in a graphics program), Adobe Captivate can record those special actions at a higher frame rate so the actions flow smoothly and look realistic. This is called full motion recording.

If you are automatically recording a project or slides, you can have Adobe Captivate automatically capture any mouse wheel action, drag-and-drop motions or drawing in full motion. Adobe Captivate will automatically start to capture frames at a higher rate any time you click on an object and drag the object or start drawing. When you stop dragging or finish drawing, full motion recording ends and regular recording begins again.

If you are recording manually, you can control when full motion recording begins and ends. To start recording in full motion at any time, press F9 and to end full motion recording, press F10.

Tex t c aptions

Text captions are text created during recording in the Demonstration and Custom modes. Text captions appear on a slide within a project. Text captions are a way of “talking” to viewers and are frequently used to point out certain areas on a slide, explain concepts, or give viewers more information (e.g., a phone number or website address). As with recording, text captions can be created automatically or manually.

If you are auto-recording a project or additional slides, you can have Adobe Captivate automatically create text captions at the same time. Text captions are generated for various actions such as selecting a menu or pressing a button . For example, if you record t he acti on of selec ting th e Fil e menu, Adob e Captiv ate automati cally adds a text caption that reads “Select File menu” on the same slide. After the text captions are created and placed on slides, you can edit the text or change formatting at any time.

If you create a project manually, you can add text captions as necessary.

Click boxes

Click boxes are interactive boxes created during recording in the Assessment Simulation, Training Simulation, and Custom modes. Click boxes appear on slides and give project viewers a chance to actually “use” an application or website. After viewers click a click box, you can have the project perform different actions such as continue to play, open a new project, or go to a specific website.

If you automatically record a project or slides, Adobe Captivate can add click boxes automatically. If you have an existing project, you can add click boxes at any time.

Auto text entry boxes

Auto text entry boxes are interactive boxes created during recording in the Assessment Simulation, Training mode, and Custom modes. Auto text entry boxes are created when you type text during recording.

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During recording, the text in the Auto text entry box is stopped when you press Enter or Tab to complete the text box.

To enable auto text entry boxes during recording:

Open an Adobe Captivate project. Select Edit > Preferences. In the Category panel of the Preferences dialog

box, expand Recording, and select Mode(s).

2 In Mode, select a simulation type. The available options are Demonstration, Assessment Simulation, Training

Simulation, and Custom.

3 In the Text Entry Boxes section, select Automatically add text entry boxes for text fields, and select from the

following options:

Hint caption Automatically adds a caption with a hint for the user.

Success caption Automatically adds a caption with a success message for the user. For example, a success

caption may read, “Yes, that is correct.”

Failure caption Automatically adds a caption with a failure message for the user. For example, a failure caption

may read, “Sorry, that is incorrect. Please try again.”

Limit attempts to [#] Specifies the number of times a user may attempt to enter text correctly in a text entry box.

Type a number or use the up and down arrows to select a number.

Note: This option is unavailable if you have chosen Demonstration mode.

4 Click OK.

Note: An auto text entry box cannot be created on applications such as Java, JavaScript, Flash, and DOS.

Tip:While typing characters that require the use of the Shift key, ensure that you hold the Shift key down until you press the required character key. For example, to include the “!” character in the text, hold the Shift key down, and simultaneously press the “!” key.

Highlight boxes

Highlight boxes are created during recording in the Demonstration and Custom modes. Highlight boxes are transparent, colored squares that can be placed over areas on a slide to draw attention to the area, just like a highlighter pen spotlights an area on a printed page. You have complete control over the formatting, color, transparency, and size of all highlight boxes.

If you automatically record a project or slides, Adobe Captivate can automatically create a highlight box for any area on which a mouse click is performed. If you have an existing project, you can add highlight boxes manually.

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Setting recording options

In general, you should set recording options before recording a new project, so the most appropriate options are in place. This can save you valuable time by reducing the amount of editing you must do to make your Adobe Captivate projects sound great.

Even though it is best to set options before you record, you can change recording options from within an open Adobe Captivate project at any time. This is useful if you have a project open and want to record additional slides.

To set recording options:

Open Adobe Captivate, then do one of the following:

• Click Record or create a new project, and select the type of recording in the New Project Options dialog box.

Click Settings in the recording window that appears.

• Open an Adobe Captivate project. Select Edit > Preferences.

The Preferences dialog box appears.

2 In the Category panel, expand Recording, select Settings, and choose from the following options:

Auto recording Automatically takes screenshots during the recording process. This option is set as the default.

Actions that generate slides include clicking the mouse, changing the focus within an application or web page, clicking a capture key, opening a menu, opening a dialog box, clicking a toolbar button, dragging and dropping, and clicking buttons.

Manual Recording Manually take screenshots using the Print Screen key.

Record Narration Records audio as you record the project.

Note: You cannot select both Record narration and Hear camera sounds during recording or re-recording. When you select one, the other option is automatically disabled.

Hear camera sounds during recording Plays a “camera shutter” sound whenever a screenshot is captured

during recording. It is helpful to turn this sound on so you know exactly when a screenshot is captured. The camera sound is not included in the finished project.

Record keystrokes Records keyboard actions. Adobe

Captivate records keyboard input but does not capture screenshots for every character. The keystrokes appear in the finished project.

Hear keyboard tap sounds Makes keyboard tap sounds audible during recording. The keyboard tap sounds are

included in the recorded project.

Audio Settings Click Audio Settings to set the audio preferences for recording your project. Refer to “Setting

audio recording options” for more information.

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Hide recording window Hides the red rectangle that is displayed during recording.

Hide Adobe Captivate task icon Hides the task icon during recording. (When you record with the full-screen

options, you typically see that Adobe Captivate is an open application. If this interferes with what you are recording, you can hide Adobe Captivate with this option.)

Hide Adobe Captivate system tray icon Hides the system tray icon during recording. (This icon is the small

Adobe Captivate icon that is displayed in the system tray in the lower-right corner of the computer screen. If you need to record that area of the computer screen, but do not want the Adobe Captivate icon to be displayed in your project, this option lets you hide the icon.)

Move new windows inside recording area Adobe Captivate automatically takes any windows that open while

you are recording and moves them into the red capture window. This is particularly useful if you are recording an application in which many dialog boxes open as you use the application.

3 If you selected the Enable auto recording option (previously), select Defaults to specify a default text caption

style to be used for captions.

4 Select Mode(s). In the Mode menu, select each recording mode from the list and specify the relevant object

settings.

Automatically add text captions Automatically creates captions based on the actions you carry out while auto-

recording. Actions that generate captions include the following: selecting menus and menu items; pressing buttons; changing values in lists, combo boxes, or check boxes; and opening child windows. For example, if you select the File menu, Adobe Captivate adds a caption that reads “Select File Menu” on the same slide. By default, this option is selected in the Demonstration mode. You can select this option for other recording modes.

Convert tooltips to rollover caption Automatically converts any tooltips (small floating text windows that

appear when the user's mouse hovers over buttons) on the screens you are capturing to rollover captions. This option is not selected by default for any of the recording modes. Select this option if it is required.

Show mouse location and movement Displays any mouse movement that occurs while you are auto-recording.

By default, this option is selected only in the Demonstration mode. You can select this option while recording in the other modes.

Automatically add highlight boxes when the mouse is clicked Automatically creates highlight boxes whenever

you click on screens you are auto-recording. By default, this option is selected only in the Demonstration mode. You can select this option while recording in the other modes.

Automatically add click boxes when the mouse is clicked Automatically creates click boxes whenever you click

on screens you are auto-recording. By default, this option is selected for the Assessment Simulation and Training Simulation modes. You can select it while recording in other modes.

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• Hint caption Automatically adds a caption with a hint for the user. By default, this option is selected only in

the Training Simulation mode.

• Success caption Automatically adds a caption with a success message for the user. For example, a success

caption may read, “Yes, that is correct.” This option is not selected by default for any mode.

• Failure caption Automatically adds a caption with a failure message for the user. For example, a failure

caption may read, “Sorry, that is incorrect. Please try again.” By default, this option is selected in the Assessment Simulation and Training Simulation modes.

• Limit attempts to [#] Specifies the number of times a user may attempt to enter text correctly in a text entry

box. Type a number or use the up and down arrows to select a number. This option is not selected by default for any mode.

• Show hand cursor when mouse is over the click box Shows the hand cursor when the trainee moves the

mouse over the click box. This option is not selected by default for any mode.

Automatically add text entry boxes for text fields Automatically creates text boxes whenever you click on text

boxes you are auto-recording. By default, this option is selected for the Assessment Simulation and Training Simulation modes. You can select it while recording in other modes.

• Hint caption Automatically adds a caption with a hint for the user. By default, this option is selected only in

the Training Simulation mode.

• Success caption Automatically adds a caption with a success message for the user. For example, a success

caption may read, “Yes, that is correct.” This option is not selected by default for any mode.

• Failure caption Automatically adds a caption with a failure message for the user. For example, a failure

caption may read, “Sorry, that is incorrect. Please try again.” By default, this option is selected in the Assessment Simulation and Training Simulation modes.

• Limit attempts to [#] Specifies the number of times a user may attempt to enter text correctly in a text entry

box. Type a number or use the up and down arrows to select a number. This option is not selected by default for any mode.

5 To set full motion recording preferences, select Full Motion Recording, and select from the following options

in the Options area:

Automatically use full motion capture for drag-and-drop actions Automatically records any drag-and-drop

actions (for example, selecting a file or image and dragging it to another area of the application or screen).

Automatically use full motion capture for mouse wheel actions Automatically records any mouse wheel

activity.

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Show mouse in full motion capture mode Includes mouse movements in your full motion recording.

Disable hardware acceleration Creates a smoother project (in particular, better mouse movement) by disabling

hardware acceleration. When hardware acceleration is turned on, it can use a great deal of system resources and resu lt in “ch oppy” fu ll mot ion recordi ng. Turn ing hardware ac celer atio n off results in b etter full motion reco rding quality. If you select this option, your computer screen will briefly flicker when you begin and end full motion recording.This screen flicker does not harm your computer and does not appear in the final project.

Work ing folder The folder where temporary files are stored on your local hard disk. To change the default path,

click Browse.

The following option is in the SWF conversion area:

Video color mode Sets your video color to 16 bit or 32 bit. Selecting 16 bit results in a smaller file size, but also

a smaller range of colors. Selecting 32 bit creates a larger file with a wider range of colors.

6 Select Keys to set the following options for the recording keys:

To stop recording press Specifies the key that should be used to end a recording session. The default key is the

End key.

To pause/resume recording press Specifies the key that should be used to pause a recording session. The default

key is the Pause key.

To resume re-recording press Specifies the key that should be used to pause a re-recording session. The default

key is F8.

To manually capture a screenshot press Specifies the key to be pressed to capture a screenshot. The default key

is the Print Screen key.

To start full motion recording press Specifies the key to be used to start full motion recording. The default key

is F9.

To stop full motion recording press Specifies the key to be pressed to end a full motion recording session. The

default key is F10.

7 Click OK to return to the recording window.

Configuring object settings for different recording modes

After selecting multiple modes for generating an Adobe Captivate project, you can also configure the objects that you want to automatically add to the project during the capture.

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To configure object settings for different recording modes:

Do one of the following:

a Open Adobe Captivate. Select Edit > Preferences. The Preferences dialog box appears. In the Category panel,

User Guide

expand Recording.

b Open Adobe Captivate. Open an Adobe Captivate project. Select Edit > Preferences. The Preferences dialog

box appears. In the Category panel, expand Recording.

2 Select Mode(s), and choose a simulation mode from the Mode menu.

3 Select or clear the following options in the Captions area depending on your requirements.

Automatically add text captions Automatically creates captions based on the actions you carry out while auto-

Convert tooltips to rollover caption Automatically converts any tooltips (small floating text windows that

4 Select or clear the following options in the mouse area depending on your requirements.

Show mouse location and movement Displays any mouse movement that occurs while you are auto-recording.

By default, this option is selected only in the Demonstration mode. You can select this option while recording in the other modes.

Automatically add highlight boxes when the mouse is clicked Automatically creates highlight boxes whenever

you click on screens you are auto-recording. By default, this option is selected only in the Demonstration mode. You can select this option while recording in the other modes.

5 Select or clear the following options in the Click Boxes area depending on your requirements.

Automatically add click boxes when the mouse is clicked Automatically creates click boxes whenever you click

on screens you are auto-recording. By default, this option is selected for the Assessment Simulation and Training Simulation modes. You can select it while recording in other modes.

• Hint caption Automatically adds a caption with a hint for the user. By default, this option is selected only in

the Training Simulation mode.

• Success caption Automatically adds a caption with a success message for the user. For example, a success

caption may read, “Yes, that is correct.” This option is not selected by default for any mode.

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• Failure caption Automatically adds a caption with a failure message for the user. For example, a failure

caption may read, “Sorry, that is incorrect. Please try again.” By default, this option is selected in the Assessment Simulation and Training Simulation modes.

• Limit attempts to [#] Specifies the number of times a user may attempt to enter text correctly in a text entry

box. Type a number or use the up and down arrows to select a number. This option is not selected by default for any mode.

• Show hand cursor when mouse is over the click box Shows the hand cursor when the trainee moves the

mouse over the click box. This option is not selected by default for any mode.

6 Select or clear the following options in the Text Entry Boxes area depending on your requirements.

Automatically add text entry boxes for text fields Automatically creates text boxes whenever you click on text

boxes you are auto-recording. By default, this option is selected for the Assessment Simulation and Training Simulation modes. You can select it while recording in other modes.

• Hint caption Automatically adds a caption with a hint for the user. By default, this option is selected only in

the Training Simulation mode.

• Success caption Automatically adds a caption with a success message for the user. For example, a success

caption may read, “Yes, that is correct.” This option is not selected by default for any mode.

• Failure caption Automatically adds a caption with a failure message for the user. For example, a failure

caption may read, “Sorry, that is incorrect. Please try again.” By default, this option is selected in the Assessment Simulation and Training Simulation modes.

• Limit attempts to [#] Specifies the number of times a user may attempt to enter text correctly in a text entry

box. Type a number or use the up and down arrows to select a number. This option is not selected by default for any mode.

7 Click the Restore Defaults button to reset settings for the selected recording mode to default values.

8 Click the Apply button to save the settings you defined for the selected recording mode.

9 Click OK.

Hearing camera sounds during recording

Adobe Captivate can play a “camera shutter” sound when you take a screenshot while recording. This feature, which tells you exactly when a screenshot is captured, can be especially helpful when you use the auto-recording feature. The camera sound is not included in the finished project.

To hear the camera shutter sound during recording:

Open Adobe Captivate.

2 Select Edit > Preferences.

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The Preferences dialog box appears.

3 In the Category panel, expand Recording, and select Settings.

4 Select Hear camera sounds during recording.

5 Click OK.

Pausing while recording projects

You can pause while recording an Adobe Captivate project. This may be necessary if you are recording a project and need to change the location of the recording area.

To pause while recording a project: 1 Open Adobe Captivate and begin recording a new project or slide.

2 When you want to pause recording, press the Pause/Break key on the keyboard.

When you want to restart recording, press Pause/Break again.

You can move the red recording window to a new location and resume recording in the new area. This shift in area will not be seen in the project.

Note: You can configure recording keys in the Preferences window. Select Edit > Preferences. In the Category panel, expand Recording, and select Keys.

Setting auto-recording

You can set an auto-recording option in Adobe Captivate. When you set this option, Adobe Captivate automatically captures screenshots during the recording process each time you take the following actions:

• Click or press a capture key

• Open a menu or submenu, or select a menu item

• Open a dialog box or a property page

• Click a toolbar button

• Perform a drag-and-drop process

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• Click any mouse button while the cursor is in the capture area

To set auto-recording: 1 Open Adobe Captivate. Select Edit > Preferences.

The Preferences window appears.

2 In the Category panel, expand Recording, and Select Settings.

3 In Recording type, select Auto Recording.

Note: This option is enabled by default.

4 Click OK.

Now that you have turned on the auto-recording option, you can record a project in this mode.

Setting the capture area for recording

When you are recording a project, the screen capture area is the area on your screen that Adobe Captivate uses to create slides. For example, suppose your monitor is set to 1024 x 768 pixels and you select a screen capture area of 800 x 600 pixels. Adobe Captivate captures 800 x 600 pixels of the 1024 x 768 pixels on your screen.

Adobe Captivate uses a default screen capture area of 640 x 480 pixels for all recording options. Adobe Captivate uses this default because projects larger than 800 x 600 pixels may not stream well over dial-up Internet connections. If your users can view larger areas, you can resize the screen capture area in Adobe Captivate. (Once you resize the capture area, the new size becomes the default.)

As a general rule, use these capture settings to provide users with the best performance:

• 28.8K modem: 640 x 480 or lower

• 33.6K modem: 800 x 600 or lower

• 56K modem: 800 x 600 or lower

• Cable/DSL/T1: 1024 x 768 or lower

To set the capture area:

Open Adobe Captivate.

2 On the Start page, click Record or create a new project.

The New project options dialog box appears.

3 In the left pane, click Software Simulation.

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4 From the right pane, select one of the following recording options and click OK:

Application Resize the window by selecting one of the sizing handles on the red frame and drag it to a larger or

smaller size. To change the location of the window, move the mouse over the red frame until a four-point arrow appears, click and drag the entire window to a new position. You can also click Snap to fit to quickly change the size of the recording area to match the size of the application.

Custom size Change the size of the capture window by entering new numbers in the Width and Height text

boxes, or use the arrows to enter new numbers. You can also click the Preset sizes pop-up menu and select a comm only used s ize.C lick Snap to fit to quick ly chang e the s ize of the re cord ing area to match th e size of the appl ication.

Full screen Capture everything on the screen, and you don’t need to change the size of the capture area.

5 Click Record to begin recording a new project in the size you specified.

Note: If you are recording a new project through the Import from Microsoft PowerPoint option, in the Convert PowerPoint Presentations dialog box, you can change the size of the project window by typing new numbers in the Width and Height text boxes, or use the arrows to specify new numbers. You can also select an option from the Preset size pop-up menu. Alternatively, if you start a project by following the Project wizard, you’ll be prompted to select the window size as you follow the steps.

Using full motion recording

Adobe Captivate contains a useful feature called “full motion recording.” When you auto-record a new project or additional slides for an existing project, you can use full motion recording to automatically capture frames at a higher frame rate, particularly when you record any drag-and-drop or mouse wheel scrolling actions. By capturing at a higher rate, drag-and-drop and scrolling actions are displayed more smoothly in the final Adobe Captivate SWF file. This results in a more realistic experience for users.

If you enable the full motion feature, Adobe Captivate starts to capture frames at a higher rate when you click an object or perform mouse wheel actions while auto-recording a new project or slides. You know that full motion recording has begun when you see the Adobe Captivate icon in the system tray (lower-right corner of your computer screen). When you are recording normally, the icon appears as a regular icon. When full motion recording automatically begins, the icon displays with red borders and flashes. To stop full motion recording, stop dragging or scrolling or press an end recording key (defaults are F10 to stop full motion recording or END to stop recording completely).

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When you finish recording, Adobe Captivate generates the slides that comprise the project and displays them in Adobe Captivate Storyboard view. Any drag-and-drop or mouse wheel scrolling actions that you recorded as full motion slides are displayed in Storyboard view with a movie camera icon in the lower-right corner of the slide. Full motion slides are saved and included in projects as animation slides.

Tip:For best capture results, especially with full motion recording, perform actions (dragging, clicks, typing) slowly.

The full motion recording feature is enabled by default. You can disable it, though, at any time.

To disable full motion recording of drag-and-drop or mouse wheel actions:

Open an Adobe Captivate project

2 Select Edit > Preferences.

The Preferences dialog box appears.

3 In the Category panel, expand Recording, and select Full Motion Recording.

4 Clear the Automatically use full motion capture for drag-and-drop actions option or the Automatically use full

motion capture for mouse wheel actions option.

5 Click OK.

Using recording modes

Adobe Captivate not only records projects automatically, but also customizes what objects are added to the projects you automatically create, based on the purpose of your project. This feature is called recording modes. For example, by selecting a recording mode, you can easily create projects that are appropriate to use as simulations or demonstrations. This enables you to create projects quickly because Adobe Captivate does much of the work.

Adobe Captivate lets you record scenario simulations in multiple modes, which you can select in the Recording dialog box.

Note: Recording modes can only be used when you are using Auto Recording. If you record projects manually, the modes are not available.

To select and use a recording mode:

On the Start page, click Record or create a new project.

The New project options dialog box appears.

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User Guide

2 Select Software Simulation from the left panel and choose any of the project types (Application, Custom Size,

or Full Screen). Click OK.

The Recording window appears.

3 Select Recording Mode (s) and select one or more of the following options:

• Demonstration Automatically include captions, highlight boxes, and mouse movement in the auto-recorded

project.

• Assessment Simulation Automatically include click boxes with a failure caption in the auto-recorded project.

You can also choose to automatically create text entry boxes. Mouse movement is not included.

• Training Simulation Automatically include click boxes with hint and failure captions in the project. Mouse

movement is not included.

• Custom Select objects, such as captions, highlight boxes, and click boxes that you want to add automatically

to the project. You can also choose to automatically create text entry boxes.

4 (Optional) No matter which option you select, you can click Settings to edit exactly what you want automati-

cally created when you record a project. For example, after selecting Demonstration, you might decide that you don’t want to include highlight boxes. You can click Settings, and clear the Automatically add highlight boxes when the mouse is clicked option, but retain the other settings.

About recording and creating new projects

You have many options for creating new projects; you can record a project containing almost anything on your computer screen. Adobe Captivate makes it simple to record an application, a specific-sized project, or a full screen project. You can also create a scenario simulation project by using a project template to ensure consistency or by following the Project wizard. Alternatively, you can start from a blank project, or by importing image or PowerPoint files.

Adobe Captivate makes creating a new project easy. When you record an Adobe Captivate project, you use the application or website you want to demonstrate as you would normally—by moving the mouse, using the keyboard, and navigating through menus. As you work, Adobe Captivate captures the onscreen action automatically, or you can capture screenshots manually. When you finish recording, you can set options and add components such as text captions, audio, images, and highlight boxes. In addition to beginning a project by recording, you can create new projects by following the Project wizard, or using a template.

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Adobe Captivate contains a feature called “full motion recording” that automatically captures frames at a higher frame rate when you record any drag-and-drop actions.

About recording software simulation projects

You can create software simulation projects. The recording process has some unique options as shown below:

Application Records all selected action within a single running application.

Custom size Records all selected action within a custom-defined area. If you select this option, set a custom size

in the Width and Height boxes or select a commonly used size from the Preset Size pop-up menu.

Full screen Records all onscreen action. This option is especially useful if you need to capture action taking

place in multiple applications.

Tip:If you need to pause recording, press the Pause/Break key. To restart recording, press Pause/Break again.

About creating scenario simulations

You can easily create scenario-based or interac tion-based training content, such as content for call center training which addresses soft skills as well as software skills. You can follow the Project wizard or choose to create your project from a simulation template.

Project wizard Leads you through the creation of a complete scenario simulation project. The Project wizard

generates placeholders for your scenarios, which you add in after the project is set up.

Create new simulation from a template Prompts you to select a simulation template from which to create a

new project. If you need to create a new simulation that’s similar to a previous project, you can save the previous project as a template and choose this option when you’re ready to begin the new simulation.

About creating other types of projects

In addition to scenario simulations, you can select a new project type that doesn’t start with recording images from your screen. You can also create a project made up of image files, or start from a blank project for more control over all project elements. Each type of project has specific benefits and options.

Blank Project Creates a blank frame in a size you specify. This option is useful if you want to create an empty

project and then import images or slides from other projects.

Image Project Provides you with an easy way to create an Adobe Captivate project made up of images. When

users view the published project, it looks like a slide show. The selected images are used as background on the slides.

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User Guide

Import from Microsoft PowerPoint Creates a new Adobe Captivate project by importing slides from a Power-

Point project. When you choose this option, you can select all slides in the PowerPoint file or pick and choose individual slides to include.

Create Project from Template Creates a project using a previously saved template.

Recording software simulations

Adobe Captivate lets you record operations performed in a running software application as screenshots, and create slides in Adobe Captivate containing the screenshots of the application’s user interface.

Recording a new application project

You can use Adobe Captivate to record or simulate all actions of a running software application in a scenario simulation project. You can start any type of application such as a word processing program, a graphics program, a spreadsheet program, or any kind of software you have and record the action that takes place within the application.

Adobe Captivate contains a special feature called “full motion recording” that can automatically capture frames at a higher frame rate when you record any drag-and-drop actions.

You can save the recording as a script file. When you run the script in a different project, the actions defined in the file are performed and recorded.

To record a new application project:

Open the application you want to record. (You must do this before recording.)

2 Open Adobe Captivate.

3 On the Start page, click Record or create a new project.

The New project options dialog box appears.

4 In the left pane, click Software Simulation.

The Software Simulation window appears on the right.

5 In the right pane, select Application, and click OK.

The Recording window appears.

6 In the Select the window you’d like to record pop-up menu, select the application you want to record.

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7 Click Snap to fit if you want to quickly change the size of the window you are recording to match the size of the

red capture area.

8 Select Recording Mode(s), and choose one or more of the following options:

• Demonstration Automatically includes captions, mouse movement, and highlight boxes in the auto-

recorded project.

• Assessment Simulation Automatically includes click boxes with a failure caption and text entry boxes for text

fields with a failure caption in the auto-recorded project. Captions and mouse movement are not included.

• Training Simulation Automatically includes click boxes with hint and failure captions and text entry boxes

for text fields with a failure caption in the auto-recorded project. Captions and mouse movement are not included.

• Custom Automatically adds objects such as captions, mouse movement, highlight boxes, click boxes, and

text entry boxes to the auto-recorded project.

You can also select the list of objects to be automatically added to your project by performing the following steps:

a Click Settings.

The Preferences dialog box appears.

b In Recording, select Mode(s), and select a mode from the Mode menu. Select the relevant object settings for

each recording mode.

c Click Apply to save the settings you have specified for the selected recording mode.

d Click Restore Defaults to restore predefined settings.

9 Select Full Motion Recording to create a non-editable movie. All the screen movements from the time of

recording to its completion are captured in the movie without any instructional content being added. Refer to “Using full motion recording” for more information.

10 (Optional) Select Record Narration to record audio as you record the project.

The following options are available in the pop-up menu depending on whether you are recording from a microphone or line in device:

Microphone Record from a microphone attached to your computer.

Line In Record from a line-in wire.

System Audio Record from a file that is playing on your computer.

11 Click Advanced.

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User Guide

12 If you selected the Enable auto recording option (previously), click the Captions In pop-up menu to specify a

language for the text that will automatically be generated for captions and tooltips.

13 Do one of the following:

• (Optional) Select the Re-recording Information option to save the recording as a script file. The re-recording

script is saved as an XML file with a .cprr extension.

• (Optional) Select the Re-recording Script option and click the browse (...) button to navigate to the script that

you want to run. The recording is done per the actions defined in the script that is generated when Re-recording information is chosen.

Note: The Re-recording Script option is available only in the application mode.

14 (Optional) Click Settings to set a wide variety of other recording options, choose full motion recording

settings, and change recording keys.

15 (Optional) If necessary, change the size and position of the window. To do this, move the mouse over the red

frame until a four-point arrow appears, and then drag the entire window to a new position.

16 When you finish setting options, click Record.

Adobe Captivate begins recording the onscreen action.

If you are automatically recording (that is, you selected the Enable auto recording), Adobe Captivate automatically captures a screenshot every time you perform an action, such as selecting a menu, clicking a button, or typing text.

Note: When you are auto-recording, you can take a screenshot manually at any time by pressing the Print Screen key. This is particularly useful if you are capturing a website that contains many pop-ups, frames, and special effects that are sometimes not auto-recorded. If you see a special effect or change take place on a web page you are recording, but do not hear the camera shutter sound, press Print Screen to take a screenshot manually.

17 If you are manually recording (that is, you did not select the Enable auto recording option), press the Print

Screen key (or other designated capture key) to capture screenshots.

Use the application as if you were demonstrating your actions to someone. If you have sound enabled on your computer and the option is activated, you will hear a camera shutter sound when screenshots are captured.

Note: When you record any onscreen action, it is best to perform the action more slowly than you would normally. For example, if you are recording keyboard action, type text slowly.

18 When you finish recording, press the End key (or the designated key) to end the recording.

The Save Project Files dialog box appears.

Project Name Type a name for the new project you are creating.

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This name is prefixed to the values displayed in the Demo Project Name, Assessment Project Name, Training Project Name, or Custom Project Name fields, For example, if the Project name is specified as XXX, the Demo, Assessment, Training, and Custom file names automatically appear as XXX_demo, XXX_assessment, XXX_training, or XXX_custom.

Project Directory Type the name of the directory where the project should be saved. Click Browse to locate the

required directory.

(Optional) Demo Project Name Type a unique name for the Demonstration project you have recorded. This field

is enabled if you selected the option to record the project in the Demonstration mode in the Recording dialog box.

(Optional) Assessment Project Name Type a unique name for the Assessment project you have recorded. This

field is enabled only if you selected the option to record the project in the Assessment Simulation mode in the Recording dialog box.

(Optional) Training Project Name Type a unique name for the Training project you have recorded. This field is

enabled only if you selected the option to record the project in the Training Simulation mode in the Recording dialog box.

(Optional) Custom Project Name Type a unique name for the Custom project you have recorded. This field is

enabled only if you selected the option to record the project in the Custom mode in the Recording dialog box.

Project to Open Select the recording mode in which the project was created. This project is opened automatically

after Adobe Captivate has saved all the project files.

(Optional) Re-recording Script Type a unique name for the script file in Re-recording Script.

19 Click OK.

The slides are generated and your new project appears in the Adobe Captivate Storyboard view. If you recorded any drag-and-drop actions and created any full motion slides, you see the full motion slides displayed in Storyboard view with a movie camera icon in the lower-right corner of the slide.

Recording a new custom-sized project

You can record all selected action within a custom-defined area. This option is especially useful if you have a strict size requirement for your projects. For example, you may need to record a specific size so you can generate an Adobe Captivate SWF file that will be incorporated into a window on a website. If you choose this option, set a custom size in the Width and Height boxes or select a commonly used size from the Preset Size pop-up menu.

Adobe Captivate contains a special recording feature called “full motion recording” that automatically captures frames at a higher frame rate when you record any drag-and-drop actions.

To record a new custom-sized project:

Open Adobe Captivate.

2 On the Start page, click Record or create a new project.

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User Guide

The New project options dialog box appears.

3 In the left pane, click Software Simulation.

The Software Simulation window appears on the right.

4 In the right pane, select Application and click OK.

The Recording window appears.

Adobe Captivate uses a default capture area of 640 x 480 pixels. To change the size, type new numbers into Width and Height or use the arrows to enter new numbers. You can also click Preset sizes and select a commonly used size from the pop-up menu.

Note: In general, projects larger than 800 x 600 pixels might not stream well over dial-up connections.

5 From the Optionally, select a window you’d like to record pop-up menu, select an open window to record.

6 Select Recording Mode(s), and choose one or more of the following options:

• Demonstration Automatically include captions, mouse movement, and highlight boxes in the auto-recorded

project.

• Assessment Simulation Automatically include click boxes with a failure caption and text entry boxes for text

fields with a failure caption in the auto-recorded project. Captions and mouse movement are not included.

• Training Simulation Automatically include click boxes with hint and failure captions and text entry boxes for

text fields with a failure caption in the auto-recorded project. Captions and mouse movement are not included.

• Custom Automatically add objects such as captions, mouse movement, highlight boxes, click boxes, and text

entry boxes to the auto-recorded project.

You can also select the list of objects to be automatically added to your project by performing the following steps:

a Click the Settings button.

The Preferences dialog box appears.

b In Recording, select Mode(s), and select a mode from the Mode menu. Select the relevant object settings for

each recording mode.

c Click Apply to save the settings you have specified for the selected recording mode.

d Click Restore Defaults to restore predefined settings.

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Creating projects

7 (Optional) Select Record Narration to record audio as you record the project.

The following options are available in the pop-up menu depending on whether you are recording from a microphone or line in device:

Microphone Record from a microphone attached to your computer.

Line In Record from a line-in wire.

System Audio Record from a file that is playing on your computer.

8 Click Advanced.

9 If you selected the Enable auto recording option (previously), click the Captions In pop-up menu to specify a

language for the text that will automatically be generated for captions and tooltips.

10 (Optional) Click Settings to set a wide variety of other recording options, full motion recording settings, and

to change recording keys.

11 (Optional) If necessary, change the size and position of the window. To do this, move the mouse over the red

frame until a four-point arrow appears, and then drag the entire window to a new position.

12 When you finish setting options, click Record.

Adobe Captivate begins recording the onscreen action.

a If you are automatically recording (that is, you selected the Enable auto recording), Adobe Captivate automat-

ically captures a screenshot every time you perform an action, such as selecting a menu, clicking a button, or typing text.

b If you are manually recording (that is, you did not select the Enable auto recording option), press the Print

Screen button (or other designated capture key) to capture screenshots.

Use whatever is within the red recording area (for example, an application, a website, and so on) as if you were demonstrating your actions to someone. If you have sound enabled on your computer and the option is activated, you will hear a camera shutter sound when screenshots are captured.

Note: When recording an onscreen action, it is best to perform the action more slowly than you would normally. For example, if you are recording keyboard action, type text slowly.

13 When you finish recording, press the End key (or the designated key) to end the recording.