Macromedia Captivate - 4.0 Instruction Manual

Using

Updated 19 May 2009

ADOBE® CAPTIVATE

Updated 19 May 2009

Using Adobe

If this guide is distributed with software that includes an end user agreement, this guide, as well as the software described in it, is furnished under license and may be used or copied only in accordance with the terms of such license. Except as permitted by any such license, no part of this guide may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of Adobe Systems Incorporated. Please note that the content in this guide is protected under copyright law even if it is not distributed with software that includes an end user license agreement.

The content of this guide is furnished for informational use only, is subject to change without notice, and should not be construed as a commitment by Adobe Systems Incorporated. Adobe Systems Incorporated assumes no responsibility or liability for any errors or inaccuracies that may appear in the informational content contained in this guide.

Please remember that existing artwork or images that you may want to include in your project may be protected under copyright law. The unauthorized incorporation of such material into your new work could be a violation of the rights of the copyright owner. Please be sure to obtain any permission required from the copyright owner.

Any references to company names in sample templates are for demonstration purposes only and are not intended to refer to any actual organization.

Adobe, the Adobe logo, Adobe AIR, Adobe Captivate, Acrobat, Acrobat Connect, ActionScript, Fireworks, Flash, Flex, Photoshop, Reader, RoboHelp, RoboScreenCapture, and Soundbooth are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated in the United States and/or other countries.

Microsoft, Windows, and Windows Vista are registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. Macintosh is a trademark of Apple Inc., registered in the United States and other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial 3.0 License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/us/

e_Db is a licensed Product from Simple Software Solutions, Inc.

This product contains either BSAFE and/or TIPEM software by RSA Security, Inc.

Portions include technology used under license from Autonomy, and are copyrighted.

Portions include technology from Gilles Vollant.

This product includes software developed by the Apache Software Foundation (

This Program was written with MacApp EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, REGARDING THIS PRODUCT, INCLUDING WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO ITS MERCHANTABILITY OR ITS FITNESS FOR ANY PARTICULAR PURPOSE. The MacApp software is proprietary to Apple Computer, Inc. and is licensed to Adobe for distribution only for use in combination with Adobe Captivate software.

PANTONE PANTONE

Portions include technology used under license from Focoltone Color Matching System.

Portions include technology used under license from Dainippon Ink and chemical, Inc.

This product includes software developed by the OpenSymphony Group (

Portions include technology used under license from Nellymoser, Inc. (

® Captivate® 4 for Windows®

http://www.apache.org/).

® colors displayed here may not match PANTONE-identified standards. Consult current PANTONE Color Publications for accurate color. ® and other Pantone, Inc. trademarks are the property of Pantone, Inc. © Pantone, Inc., 2008.

http://www.opensymphony.com/).

www.nellymoser.com)

Sorenson Spark

MPEG Layer-3 audio compression technology licensed by Fraunhofer IIS and THOMSON multimedia.

This software uses code from the LAME encoding engine, version 3.96.1. LAME is under the LGPL. A copy of the LAME source can be obtained at www.mp3dev.org.

Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions are met:

Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer.

Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in the documentation and/or other materials provided with the distribution.

Neither the name of the Xiph.org Foundation nor the names of its contributors may be used to endorse or promote products derived from this software without specific prior written permission.

THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED BY THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND CONTRIBUTORS ``AS IS'' AND ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE ARE DISCLAIMED. EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.

This product includes software developed by Fourthought, Inc. (

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

™ video compression and decompression technology licensed from Sorenson Media, Inc.

IN NO EVENT SHALL THE FOUNDATION OR CONTRIBUTORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL,

http://www.fourthought.com).

Notice to U.S. government end users. The software and documentation are “Commercial Items,” as that term is defined at 48 C.F.R. §2.101, consisting of

Updated 19 May 2009

“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.

Updated 19 May 2009

Chapter 1: Getting Started

Resources

Activation and registration

Help and support

Services, downloads, and extras

What's new in Adobe Captivate 4

Chapter 2: Workspace

Adobe Captivate views

Timeline

Toolbars

Panels

Adobe Captivate Library

Grids

Shortcut keys

Undoing and redoing actions

Disable confirmation messages

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Chapter 3: Creating Projects

About Adobe Captivate projects

Create projects

Enable backup file creation

Chapter 4: Recording Projects

Automatic recording

Full motion recording

Manual recording

Hide recording icons and info in the recording window

Record additional slides

Pause while recording projects

Set recording preferences

Automate the recording process

Recording tips

Chapter 5: Slides

Slide properties

Add slides

Delete and edit slides

Lock slides

Hide slides

Group slides

Change slide order

Slide notes

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USING ADOBE CAPTIVATE 4

Updated 19 May 2009

Contents

Slide transitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Tips for introductory slides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Chapter 6: Adding and Managing Objects

Types of objects

Controlling the visibility of objects

Import objects

Manage Library objects

Managing objects with the Stage toolbar

Copy, paste, and duplicate objects

Align objects

Resize and reposition objects by pixel

Change the display order of objects

Merge objects into a slide

Edit object information in the Advanced Interaction dialog box

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Chapter 7: Noninteractive Objects and Media

Text captions

Rollover captions

Highlight boxes

Mouse

Rollover slidelets

Zoom areas

Images and rollover images

Drawing tools

Animations

Video

Set audio for noninteractive objects

Fix size and position of noninteractive objects

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Chapter 8: Interactive Objects

Defining project navigation

Click boxes

Text entry boxes

Buttons

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. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

Chapter 9: Widgets

About widgets

Create widgets

Defining visibility mode for widgets

Using XML in widgets

Using variables in widgets

Using ActionScript 3.0 in widgets

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. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122

Accessing Adobe Captivate movie properties

Question widgets

Add widgets

Troubleshooting widgets

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125

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Contents

Chapter 10: Audio

Adding audio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128

Recording in sync

Insert audio

Preview audio

Edit audio

View audio details

Export audio

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. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135

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. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142

Chapter 11: Variables and Advanced Actions

Variables

Advanced actions

Tutorial on scripting

ActionScript

Assign multiple actions to an event

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151

Chapter 12: Creating a Quiz

Preferences

General workflow for question slides

Create question slides

Question pools and random questions

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

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. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157

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Chapter 13: Advanced Editing and Project Reviews

Projects and project preferences

Edit FMR files

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169

Create design templates

Skins

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172

Table of contents (TOC)

Preview projects

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. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179

Combining multiple SWF files with aggregator

Combining multiple SCOs with aggregator

Resize projects

Spelling and search

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. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183

Link Adobe Captivate projects

View bandwidth utilization

Creating accessible projects

Localizing Adobe Captivate projects

Import, export, and delete content

Using the AIR Review application

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Chapter 14: Publishing Projects

Change the default location of published files

Set publishing preferences

Publish a project as a SWF file

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Publish the project as an executable file or AVI file

Publish projects to the web using FTP

Send projects using e-mail

Get reports by e-mail

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. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203

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Contents

Chapter 15: Using Adobe Captivate with Other Applications

Microsoft PowerPoint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208

Microsoft Word

Learning management system (LMS)

Adobe Acrobat Connect Pro

Questionmark Perception

Adobe Flash

RoboHelp

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213

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. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224

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Chapter 16: Troubleshooting

Adobe Captivate project startup

Animation timing

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229

Application distortion when recording

Capturing while recording a web application

Capture of elevated applications in Windows Vista

Choppy full motion recording

Correcting colors in slides

Fonts on transparent captions

Adobe Captivate output

Video errors

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Text viewed in a browser

Font size in text entry boxes

Button sizes while resizing projects

The number of slides in a project

Publishing projects

Quizzing errors

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Exporting projects to Flash

JavaScript that does not appear

The Skin Editor

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235

Uninstalling Adobe Captivate

Security warning with Flash Player 8

Recording audio produces recording(Clip).wav file

Slide Notes

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236

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Chapter 1: Getting Started

Updated 19 May 2009

Resources

Before you begin working with your software, take a few moments to read an overview of activation and the many resources available to you. You have access to instructional videos, plug-ins, templates, user communities, seminars, tutorials, RSS feeds, and much more.

Activation and registration

To review complete system requirements and recommendations for your Adobe® Captivate® software, see the ReadMe file on the installation disc.

Install the software

1 Close any other Adobe applications open on your computer.

2 Insert the installation disc into your hard drive, and follow the onscreen instructions.

Note: For more information, see the ReadMe file on the installation disc.

Help with installation

For help with installation issues, see the Installation Support Center at www.adobe.com/go/learn_cp_install_en.

License activation

During the installation process, your Adobe software contacts an Adobe server to complete the license activation process. No personal data is transmitted. For more information on product activation, visit the Adobe website at

www.adobe.com/go/activation.

A single-user retail license activation supports two computers. For example, you can install the product on a desktop computer at work and on a laptop computer at home. If you want to install the software on a third computer, first deactivate it on one of the other two computers. Choose Help > Deactivate.

Register

• To register, follow the onscreen instructions in the Registration dialog box, which appears after you install the

software.

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

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Getting Started

ReadMe

A ReadMe file for your software is available online and on the installation disc. Open the file to read important information about topics such as the following:

• System requirements

• Installation (including removing the software)

• Activation and registration

• Troubleshooting

• Customer support

Help and support

Community Help

Community Help is an integrated environment on Adobe.com that gives you access to community-generated content moderated by Adobe and industry experts. Comments from users help guide you to an answer. Search Community Help to find the best content on the web about Adobe products and technologies, including these resources:

• Videos, tutorials, tips and techniques, blogs, articles, and examples for designers and developers.

• Complete online Help, which is updated regularly and is more complete than the Help delivered with your product.

If you are connected to the Internet when you access Help, you automatically see the latest online Help rather than the set delivered with your product.

• All other content on Adobe.com, including knowledgebase articles, downloads and updates, Adobe Developer

Connection, and more.

Use the Help search field in your product’s user interface to access Community Help. You can search for content within the Adobe.com site and also in websites that have useful information about your product. Moderators continue to identify the most relevant web content for your product. You can add comments to online Help and view comments added by other users. For a video of Community Help, see www.adobe.com/go/learn_community_help_en.

Adobe Help Viewer 2

Adobe Help Viewer 2 is an Adobe® AIR™ application that seamlessly merges the online and offline experience. When online, you get the most recently updated product Help on the web. You can also access an Adobe PDF version of Help. When offline, you access Help installed with the product on your system. Adobe Help Viewer 2 has a user-friendly interface that supports advanced navigation features. For example, you can get overviews of topics through mini TOCs and bookmark local and online content.

The search feature supports both online and offline modes. Adobe Help Viewer 2 searches content in Community Help when you are online and the Help installed with the product when you are offline. Online search suggestions offer relevant results from product Help, Adobe.com, and other websites. Offline search uses indexes to return preferred topics for key terms.

You can use the commenting feature to post your comments to Adobe.com or add notes for your own reference. Your feedback on Help content is welcome.

Note: For a video of Adobe Help Viewer, see www.adobe.com/go/learn_air_viewer2_en.

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Getting Started

Other resources

Online Help also includes a link to the complete, updated PDF version of Help.

Visit the Adobe Support website at www.adobe.com/support to learn about free and paid technical support options.

Services, downloads, and extras

You can enhance your product by integrating various services, plug-ins, and extensions in your product. You can also download samples and other assets to help you get your work done.

Adobe Exchange

Visit the Adobe Exchange at www.adobe.com/go/exchange to download samples as well as plug-ins and extensions from Adobe and third-party developers. The plug-ins and extensions can help you automate tasks, customize workflows, create specialized professional effects, and more.

Adobe downloads

Visit www.adobe.com/go/downloads to find free updates, trials, and other useful software.

Adobe Labs

Adobe Labs at www.adobe.com/go/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 users

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. The Adobe development teams use this feedback to create software that meets the needs and expectations of the community.

Adobe TV

Visit Adobe TV at http://tv.adobe.com to view instructional and inspirational videos.

What's new in Adobe Captivate 4

Adobe® Captivate® 4 software is packed with new features that help you work faster, collaborate more effectively, and create more realistic and engaging e-Learning content with advanced interactivity, software and scenario simulations, quizzes, tables of contents, widgets, and more—all without programming or multimedia skills.

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Here are the top new features of Adobe Captivate 4:

SWF commenting Accelerate content creation cycles with real-time reviews in Adobe Captivate Reviewer, an Adobe

AIR™ application. Reviewers can add comments to your SWF files while playing them without having Adobe Captivate installed, and comments will be imported to the appropriate slides in your project.

Project templates Use enhanced project templates that make it easy for subject-matter experts to contribute

instructionally sound content without compromising structure.

Customizable widgets Create more compelling learning experiences by including widgets such as games, question

types, and more. Create widgets in Adobe Flash® Professional software, easily share them via Adobe Exchange®, and customize them to meet your content needs.

Round-trip PowerPoint workflow Leverage existing Microsoft® PowerPoint® 2007 (PPTX format) slides in your

projects. Import slides with audio and interactivity, and easily update the imported content from Adobe Captivate, keeping your PowerPoint and Adobe Captivate files in sync with the linked import option.

Table of Contents and Aggregator Enable learners to easily navigate through content and track their progress with a

multilevel Table of Contents. Also, use the Aggregator to combine multiple content modules to create a complete eLearning course.

Text-to-speech functionality Keep learners tuned in to your content thanks to automatic voice-over functionality that

turns text to high-quality speech.

Variables and Advanced Actions Use Variables to personalize the learning experience by using learner-provided data,

such as the learner’s name, throughout a scenario. Use Advanced Actions to further configure and modify the experience by enabling conditional actions, or more than one action in an interaction.

Expanded output options Embed Adobe Captivate movies in Adobe PDF files to enliven text-based instructional

content, or embed your movies in Adobe® Flex® content using Adobe® ActionScript® 3.0 publishing. Output AVI files for streaming on the web or publishing to YouTube™.

Adobe Photoshop layer support Preserve layers in imported Adobe® Photoshop® (PSD) files so you can easily edit or

animate individual image areas for the effect you want.

Streamlined workflows and enhanced usability Use workflow and usability enhancements, including inline editing of

text captions, templates to standardize the look and feel of projects, panning to optimize viewing on small screens and devices, support for right-clicking in simulations, drawing tools and image editing, and improved accessibility features.

Chapter 2: Workspace

Updated 19 May 2009

The Adobe Captivate workspace is designed to help you create a movie in the shortest possible time.

Adobe Captivate views

Adobe Captivate has three main views: Storyboard, Edit, and Branching. Use the view menu, 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. The notes are visible to viewers viewing the source files. They do not appear in the published output.

Storyboard view

This view appears when you open a project from the Start page. In Storyboard view, you can see all the slides and slide groups in the project. The slides are arranged in the order in which they are displayed in the movie. The storyboard view is made of four panels:

Slide Tasks You can use the various options in this panel to change the properties of selected slides in the slide panel.

Information Provides details about the project. The following information is available in the panel:

• Size Size of the SWF file that is generated using the project. The size does not take into account the compression

techniques used before publishing the file. So, there could be a difference between the mentioned size and the size of the SWF file generated after publishing. The time taken for the SWF file to download at the specified streaming is also displayed in kilobits per second.

• Time Time, in seconds, required to play the movie completely. The total number of frames that are displayed in

this interval is also displayed.

• Audio The combined size of the audio files in the movie. The download speed of the audio file at the specified

streaming is also displayed in kilobits per second.

• Video The size of the SWF file excluding the size of the audio files in the project. The download speed of the audio

file at the specified streaming is also displayed in kilobits per second.

• Lowest Stream The value used to calculate the download speed of the audio and SWF files. For example,

Broadband indicates that broadband speed is being used to calculate the download time.

• Resolution Dimensions of the project, in pixels.

• Slides Number of slides in the project including hidden slides.

Slides Displays the slides in the project. You can use this panel to move slides to their desired locations in the project.

The slides are displayed in the movie in the order of their slide numbers. It is always a good idea to name slides because their numbers change when they are moved to another location.

Slide Notes If you want to add additional information about the selected slide for yourself or for other people viewing

the source files, add slide notes. The notes are not displayed when the movie is played. For more information, see “Slide

notes” on page 48.

You can do the following in Storyboard view:

• Move slides to other locations. The numbering of the slides automatically changes when you move the slides.

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• Group slides.

• View project information.

• Set various properties for the slides using the Slide Tasks menu.

.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 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. You can close any panel in the Edit View using the Window menu. The panel containing the slide however, cannot be hidden.

The Edit view consists of the following panels:

Menu bar Lists all the options that you can use when working with Adobe Captivate. Adobe Captivate has a dynamic

menu bar in that the options in the menu change according to the selected object.

Menu bar

Toolbar The toolbar displays icons that act as a shortcut to the options available in the menu bar.

Tool bar

Filmstrip Displays a thumbnail view of the slides in the movie in the order of their appearance. You can use this view

to move slides as you can in Storyboard view. When you select a slide in the Filmstrip, the corresponding slide appears in the Slides panel.

Filmstrip

You can increase the size of the Slides panel by reducing the size of the Filmstrip. To change the size of the Filmstrip, drag the splitter bar toward the outside of the program window.

• 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.)

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

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

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• 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.

Slide with audio

• 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.

Locked slide

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

Slide with mouse movement

• When the display for the Question Pool tab has been turned on, you can change the view in the Filmstrip between

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

Slides Displays the slide that has been selected in the Filmstrip. You can edit the slide by adding, deleting, or modifying

objects in this view.

For maximum editing space, open a project and press F11 to display Adobe Captivate in full-screen edit view.

Timeline Displays the Timeline for the specified slide. The slide and its objects appear as different layers in the

Timeline. You can do the following using the Timeline:

• Change the time during which the object or slide plays during the movie.

• Change the order of appearance of the objects on the slide.

• Hide objects on the slide.

• Lock objects on the slide that you do not want edited.

Timeline

Slide Notes Similar in appearance and functionality to the slide notes in Storyboard view. For more information, see

“Slide notes” on page 48.

Object Toolbar Displays shortcuts to the various objects that you can add to the slide.

Library Displays the list of images, audio, and video files that you have previously inserted into the project. You can

drag objects from the Library to the slide instead of inserting them.

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In addition to the above panels, the Edit view might also contain other windows that you have opened.

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 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.

Properties The Properties panel shows the link properties of the selected slide or link, and lets you edit the navigation

type. Click a slide or the arrow between slides to view and edit the properties of the link. When you’ve made changes to that link, click Apply. Links between interactive objects (such as a button to send e-mail or open JavaScript) have icons between slides instead of arrows. The Legend panel shows the various arrows and icons and their meanings.

Overview The Overview panel indicates which portion of the project you’re reviewing in the main Branching pane.

Legend The Legend panel defines how each type of link between slides is displayed in the main Branching pane.

Tools The Tools panel has icons that act as shortcuts for the various actions you can perform in the Branching view:

• Edit Slide Opens the selected slide in Edit view.

• Expand Slide Path All the slides are opened up for display. Use the same icon to toggle between the expanded

and collapsed views.

• Create Slide Group Combines the selected slides into a single group.

• Edit Slide Group Opens a dialog box that you can use to name the group and assign a border color for the slides

in that group.

• Expand Displays all the slides belonging to the group. The slides in a group are usually in a collapsed state.

• Remove Slide Group Ungroups the grouped slides.

• Zoom In /Zoom Out Displays a magnified view of the branching when zoomed in.

• Zoom Left/Zoom Right/Zoom Up/Zoom Down , , , Moves the slides in the specified direction.

• Browse Forward Branching view displays slides starting from the selected slide.

• Browse Back Slides from the previous view are displayed. For example, if you had browsed into slide number

12 earlier, the Branching view now displays slides starting with slide number 1.

• Export Branching View Export the Branching view as a JPEG or BMP file using the dialog box that appears.

Slide Notes Similar in appearance and functionality to the slide notes in Storyboard view.

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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 4 seconds later, and then the highlight box 2 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.

Timeline

The Timeline header shows time, in seconds (1s for 1 second, 2s for 2 seconds, and so on), so you see exactly when objects appear.

The major components of the Timeline are objects, the header, and the playhead. The objects on a slide are displayed as stacked bars in the right pane of the Timeline. The header at the top of the Timeline indicates time in seconds (and parts of seconds). The playhead shows the point in time in which the slide is being viewed.

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.

Rest the mouse pointer over any bar in the Timeline and use the hint message that appears to view details about the timing of that object.

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 Window > 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 Window > Timeline again.

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

again.

Change the location of the Timeline

By default, the Timeline appears docked at the top of the slide in Edit view. To customize it, first open a project and double-click any slide to open Edit view.

Note: Adobe Captivate remembers the position of the Timeline (location and size). If the Timeline is displayed when Adobe Captivate closes, the Timeline appears in the same location the next time Adobe Captivate is opened.

• To dock the window Timeline, click the title bar of the Timeline and drag the Timeline to the top or bottom edge

of the slide.

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• To place a Timeline that is docked at the top of a window at the bottom (or vice versa), move the mouse over the

four vertical dots to the left of the Timeline display arrow until a four-pointed arrow appears. Then drag the Timeline to a new location (either the top or bottom of the slide).

• To display the Timeline in a new window, move the mouse over the four vertical dots to the left of the Timeline

display arrow until a four-pointed arrow appears and drag the Timeline slightly to the left. Release the mouse. The Timeline should appear in a new window above the main Adobe Captivate application window.

• To hide the Timeline, select Window > Timeline.

• To resize the Timeline if the Timeline is docked to the main application window, drag the bar separating the

Timeline from the application window. If the Timeline is not docked to the main application window, drag the lower-right corner.

• To increase or decrease the zoom level, click in the Timeline ruler and spin the mouse wheel. (Alternatively, click

the ruler then press Control+] or Control+[.)

Magnify the time layer

You can adjust the zoom level of the Timeline easily. Click the ruler and then press Control+[ to decrease the zoom level, or Control+] to increase the zoom level.

Change the order of object layers

The Timeline shows all the objects that you have placed on the slide. The objects on a slide are displayed as stacked bars in the right pane of the Timeline. If any objects on the slide overlap other objects on the slide, it is important to set their stacking order on the Timeline to control what objects appear in front of others.

1 In an open project, double-click a slide that contains objects.

2 Move the mouse over one of the objects on the Timeline until the hand icon appears and drag the object up or down

to reposition it.

3 If you have two objects that overlap on the slide, you need to select the object you want to appear in front by setting

the stacking order. Changing the stacking order consists of moving objects to the back and front of the slide Stage. The key point to remember is that objects at the back of the Stage appear behind other objects. Use one of the following methods to set the stacking order:

• In Edit view, right-click an object on the slide and select one of the object order options. If necessary, right-click

other objects on the slide and adjust their order.

Bring To Front This option brings the selected object to the top. When the project plays, the object appears on

top of all others.

Send To Back This option sends the selected object to the background. When the project plays, the object

appears behind all others.

Bring Forward This option moves the object one layer forward.

Send Backward This option moves the object one layer back.

• In Edit view, on the Timeline, move the mouse over an object until the hand appears and drag the object up or

down to change its position in the stacking order. Moving an object higher in the stacking order moves it to the front of the Stage, while moving an object lower moves it to the back of the Stage.

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Hide objects during editing

❖ In the Timeline, click the dot below the eye icon in the layer that you want to hide.

The object disappears from the slide and an X icon appears in the column. To display the object on the slide, click the X icon.

When you hide an object layer, it is hidden only on the Stage. You can still view the layer when it is previewed or published.

Timeline for slidelets

A slidelet is a slide within a slide. A slidelet has its own Timeline. All the objects in the slidelet are displayed in its Timeline. When you select a slidelet, the Timeline changes automatically to that for the slidelet. To display the Timeline for the slide containing the slidelet, click anywhere outside the slidelet. For more information on slidelets, see “Rollover slidelets” on page 79.

Lock objects

❖ In the Timeline, click the dot below the lock icon in the layer that you want to hide.

The layer and its corresponding object cannot be edited or moved until you unlock the layer. To unlock the layer, click the lock icon.

Set time for objects and slides using the Timeline

You can change the amount of time an object or slide appears in the movie using its Properties dialog box or by using the Timeline. You may find this feature useful in several situations. For example, you may want to set exact object timing when coordinating a voice-over with a highlight box; you might want the highlight box to appear only when the voice-over says, “Enter the date here.”

• Move the mouse over the left or right edge of the slide or object on the Timeline until the resize pointer appears.

Click and drag the edge to the required position in the Timeline.

• To set two objects to appear at the same time, align their left and right edges. For example, you can set a highlight

box to appear at the same time as an image so that the highlight box can appear over the image.

• To adjust the display time of interactive objects (such as text entry boxes, click boxes, and buttons) rest the pointer

over the line between Active and Inactive in the bar until the slider handle appears. Drag the slider to adjust the display time.

You can select multiple objects and move them at the same time. Hold down the Shift key and click objects to select consecutive stacked objects in the Timeline, or to select nonconsecutive objects, hold down the Control key and click the objects to move.

You can determine whether keystrokes are played slowly or quickly in a project. If the project has many keystrokes, increasing the speed will make the pace of the project faster. However, if keystrokes are critical in the project, you may want them to play slowly so users can view them clearly. Use the Timeline to change keystroke speed. Keystrokes are contained in a Timeline object named Typing.

You determine the speed at which the mouse moves on any individual slide in a project. A high mouse speed increases the pace at which the project plays. However, if mouse movements are complicated, you may want to decrease the mouse speed so users can view all movements. Mouse movement is contained in a Timeline object named Mouse. To shorten the amount of time it takes for the mouse movement to play, move the mouse pointer over the left edge of the Mouse object until the resize pointer appears. Click and drag the edge to the left.

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Preview a slide using the playhead

The playhead moves through the Timeline to indicate how the currently displayed slide appears in the project. It is a quick and efficient way to preview a single slide and check object timing. To see how the playhead functions, press F3. The red line that moves across the Timeline is the playhead. You can stop a playhead when it is playing by clicking it. To drag the playhead to a required position, move the mouse over its “head” in the area displaying the time. When the pointer appears, drag the playhead to the required position.

❖ Do one of the following:

• “Scrub” the slide by dragging the playhead to the left or right. As you move the playhead, objects appear and fade

as they will when users view the slide. Scrubbing gives you the ability to control the pace and view the slide at any speed from very slowly to very quickly.

• With the playhead in any location on the Timeline, press the Spacebar or F3 to begin playing the slide.

• With the playhead in any location on the Timeline, press Play in the lower-left corner of the Timeline. (To end

playback, press Stop, or to wait, press Pause.)

Toolbars

Toolbars provide you an easier way of adding projects or performing a procedure. Click the various buttons on the toolbar instead of navigating the menu to perform the desired task. You can choose to display or hide toolbars according to your requirements.

The following toolbars are available in Adobe Captivate. Select Window > Toolbars, and select the corresponding option to display the toolbar for that option.

Main Shortcuts to frequently performed actions like Save, Record, Preview, and so on.

Object Shortcuts for adding Adobe Captivate objects.

Advanced Shortcuts for the following:

• Opening the skin editor

• Setting project preferences

• Setting audio properties for mouse-clicks

• Setting mouse options.

Drawing Shortcuts for creating drawing objects.

Workspace Shortcut for displaying the menu that helps you switch between different views.

Alignment Shortcuts for aligning the different objects on the slide. For more information, see “Align objects” on

page 56.

Text Edit Shortcuts for editing the properties of the selected text on the slide.

Labels On Toolbar Clear this option if you are familiar with the Adobe Captivate icons on the toolbar, and do not

require the labels. You can optimize the space on your toolbar using this option.

Show and hide toolbars

• In an open project, select Window > Toolbars, and select or clear the toolbar that you want to display or hide.

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Move toolbars and panels to a different location

You can dock toolbars or panels into a single stack, or you can disconnect a toolbar from the stack, and have the toolbar float in its own separate window.

1 In an open project, move the mouse over the left or top edge of a toolbar or panel until a four-point arrow appears.

2 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.)

Panels

Adobe Captivate consists of the following types of dockable panels:

Library The library panel consists of reusable objects that are organized in different folders. You can drag objects from

the library panel to the slide. For more information, see “Adobe Captivate Library” on page 13.

Comments The comments provided by reviewers are displayed in this panel. You can filter comments using the

options in the panel. For more information, see “View or sort comments in the Adobe Captivate project” on page 198.

Design Template Consists of design templates that you can apply to individual slides or to your entire project. For

more information, see “Create design templates” on page 170.

Widget Displays widgets available in the widget gallery that you can add to the slide. For more information, see “About

widgets” on page 113.

Image Edit Consists of various options to edit the selected image on the slide. The options are disabled if you have not

selected the image. For more information, see “Properties of images and rollover images” on page 84.

Adobe Captivate Library

Library overview

The Adobe Captivate 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.

To open the library, select Window > Library.

You can also open items for editing 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.

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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.

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.

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 context 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 the selected item or items from the project.

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

Import objects to a Library

You can import objects from other Adobe Captivate projects or templates into the Library of your current project.

1 Select File > Import > External Library.

2 In the Open dialog box, navigate to and select the Adobe Captivate project or project template from which you want

to import objects.

3 Click Open.

The objects in the project or project template are added to the Library of your current project.

Grids

The Snap To Grid option helps you position objects accurately on a page. A grid is a set of lines to which the objects “stick” when the Snap To Grid feature is enabled. When you bring an object close to a grid line, the object snaps to the line much in the same way as iron sticks to a magnet. For example, you can stack objects accurately one above the other using a grid.

Work with grids

• Select View > Show Grid. The grid is displayed as a matrix of dots on the slide.

• Select View > Snap To Grid.

Try moving the objects on the slide, and see how they snap to the grid.

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Change the dimensions of a grid

1 Select Edit > Preferences.

2 In the Preferences dialog box, select General Settings from the Global menu.

3 Change the value for the grid size in the Global panel. The smaller the value, the smaller is the gap between the dots

in the grid.

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. The common shortcut keys are listed in the table.

Shortcut key Action

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

F3 Test view the current slide (Edit view only)

F4 Preview the project

F5 Record audio

F6 Import audio

F7 Perform a spelling and grammar check

F8 Preview project from current slide

F9 Show the Advanced Interaction dialog box

F10 Preview the current slide and the following “N” slides

F11 View Adobe Captivate in full screen

F12 Preview the project in a web browser

Alt+Up, Down, Left, Right Arrows Click the object, click a resize handle, and use these options to resize the object in the selected

Control+A Select all

Control+B Find audio in the Library

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)

individual dialog boxes.)

direction

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

only)

Control+F Open the Find And Replace dialog box

Control+F Find/replace a particular object in the project Library

Control+G Change the slide to optimized quality

Control+H Change the slide to high quality

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

Control+J Change the slide to JPEG quality

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Shortcut key Action

Control+K Lock the slide

Control+L Sync the selected object to the playhead

Control+M Merge the selected object with the background

Control+N Move to the Slide Notes pane

Control+O Open the project

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

Control+Q Insert a random question slide

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

Control+S Save

Control+T Change the slide to standard quality

Control+U Edit with (in project Library)

Control+V Paste what is on the clipboard (for example, slide, image, object, and so on)

Control+W Close the project

Workspace

Control+X Cut (selected object in Edit view)

Control+Y Redo

Control+Z Undo

Control + = Zoom in

Control + - Zoom out

Control + Up Shift the object upward in the grid

Control+Tab Shift between Storyboard, Edit, and Branching views

Control+Alt+A Export PowerPoint slides as animation

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

Control+Alt+C Show the Closed Captioning dialog box

Control+Alt+D Update the Library

Control+Alt+E Edit the slide group and edit points of polygon drawing object

Control+Alt+F Find in the Library

Control+Alt+G Create a slide group and autoadjust the rollover area

Control+Alt+H Hide the selected object

Control+Alt+I Find PowerPoint slides in the Library

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

Control+Alt+M Show/hide the Image Edit pane

Control+Alt+N Show slide notes (Edit view only)

Control+Alt+O Record additional slides

Control+Alt+P Remove a slide group.

Shortcut key Action

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Control+Alt+Q Show the Question Pools Manager dialog box

Control+Alt+R Reset to the original size

Control+Alt+S Edit PowerPoint slide

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

Control+Alt+U Library usage

Control+Alt+V Show/hide the Design Templates panel

Control+Alt+W Redraw the shape of the rollover slidelet

Control+Alt+X Show/hide the SWF-Commenting pane

Control+Alt+Z Show/hide the Widget panel

Shift+F8 Preferences dialog box

Shift+F9 Actions dialog box

Shift+F10 Table of contents

Shift+F11 Skin Editor dialog box

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Shift+F12 Publish the file

Shift+Up Shift the object upwards by 10 pixels

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

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

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

Shift+Control+D View slide properties

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

Shift+Control+F Insert an FLV file (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 the indent (selected object in Edit view)

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

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

Shift+Control+L Insert a highlight box

Shift+Control+M Add a new image

Shift+Control+N Add a new animation slide

Shift+Control+O Add a new rollover image

Shift+Control+P Import PPT

Shift+Control+Q Insert a question slide

Shift+Control+R Insert a rollover caption

Shift+Control+S Insert an image slide

Shortcut key Action

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Shift+Control+T Insert a text entry box

Shift+Control+U Insert the mouse

Shift+Control+V Paste as background

Shift+Control+W Insert a widget

Shift+Control+X Insert a text animation

Shift+Control+Y Copy the background

Shift+Control+Z Insert a rollover slidelet

Magnification shortcuts

Shortcut key Magnification level

Control+1 100%

Control+2 200%

Control+3 300%

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Control+4 400%

Control+= Zoom in

Control+- Zoom out

Shortcut keys for recording

The following table lists the default shortcut keys used during recording. These shortcuts should be used only after you start the recording process. The same keys function differently when you are editing a project.

Shortcut key Action

End Stop recording

Pause Pause or resume recording

F8 Resume rerecording

Print Screen Capture a screenshot manually

F9 Start full motion recording

F10 Stop full motion recording

F4 Automatic panning

F3 Manual panning

F7 Stop panning

F11 Snap the recording window to the mouse

F12 Toggle mouse capture in full motion recording

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Change shortcut keys for recording

1 Select Edit > Preferences.

2 In the Preferences dialog box, select Keys from the Recording menu.

3 To change keys, click once in one of the 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.

Change shortcut key for an object

Use the Shortcut Key dialog box to select a new shortcut key combination. The dialog box appears when you click the Select Keys button available for some of the objects in their Properties dialog box. Using the check boxes, key list, and pop-up menus in this dialog box, you can set almost any key combination that is possible on a standard computer keyboard as a shortcut key. Examples include Control+Shift+K, Control+Right Arrow, or Backspace+M.

Allow Mouse Clicks Select this option to allow users to click in the control.

Attach A Shortcut Select this option to add a shortcut to the selected key.

Include Numeric Keypad (0–9) Keys Select this option to include the numeric keypad keys as part of the shortcut key

combination.

CTRL Select this option to include the Control key as part of the shortcut key combination.

SHIFT Select this option to include the Shift key as part of the shortcut key combination.

ALT Select this option to include the Alt key as part of the shortcut key combination.

Key List Select any key from the list to include as part of the shortcut key combination. Use the scroll bar on the right

to view the entire list of keys.

Letter Or Number Click the pop-up menu to select any letter or number as part of the shortcut key combination.

Note: The Control, Shift, and Alt keys map to the relevant Macintosh® keys.

Current Shortcut This item lists the current shortcut key combination assigned to the task. As you make selections in

the dialog box, this item automatically updates so you can view the complete combination you have created.

Note: If your Adobe Captivate movie will be displayed in a browser, set shortcut keys that do not conflict with common browser shortcuts. For example, F1 is frequently used as a keyboard shortcut to display Help.

Undoing and redoing actions

You can reverse the previous action by using the Undo command.

• 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.

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

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.

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

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

Disable confirmation messages

Confirmation messages appear when you perform important, and often permanent, actions in Adobe Captivate. The confirmation messages give you an opportunity to change your mind when deleting information or changing 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.

1 In an open project, select Edit > Preferences.

2 In the Category panel, select General Settings from the Global menu.

3 Click Confirmation Messages in the General Settings panel.

4 In the Confirmation Messages dialog box, deselect the options for which you do not require confirmation messages.

Chapter 3: Creating Projects

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About Adobe Captivate projects

An Adobe Captivate project is a set of slides that are played in a desired sequence as a movie.

Start creating an Adobe Captivate project from one of the following:

Software simulation Record events in an application or a screen area on your computer screen using Adobe Captivate.

A series of screenshots is captured and placed sequentially in separate slides. A mouse, keyboard, or system event is the usual trigger for a new slide. During recording, use the application or website you want to demonstrate as you would normally—by moving the mouse, using the keyboard, and navigating through menus.

Project templates When working on similar projects or modules within a larger project, you could create projects

from templates. Project templates ensure consistency and improve the efficiency of people working in a collaborative setup. For more information, see“Create project templates” on page 24.

Blank project You can start from a blank project with the selected project dimensions. You could add Adobe

Captivate objects, import Microsoft PowerPoint presentations, images, audio, video, and animations, or even record a software demonstration or simulation. For more information, see “Create a project starting with blank slides” on page 23.

Microsoft PowerPoint Slides You can import an entire PowerPoint presentation, or only selected slides, into an Adobe

Captivate project. You can later edit the PowerPoint presentations from within Adobe Captivate. For more information, see “Microsoft PowerPoint” on page 208.

Image slide show Import a set of images to create an image slideshow. For more information, see “Create a project

from images” on page 23.

Mobile projects (only if Adobe eLearning Suite is installed) Create an Adobe Captivate project for mobile devices by

selecting the target mobile device in Adobe Device Central. Use the screen resolution of the device as the dimensions for your project. Use Adobe Device Central to test the project on the target device.

You can add voice-over during recording, or at the editing stage.

After you create a project, you can edit it by doing the following:

• Edit content on the slides.

• Add Adobe Captivate objects such as text captions, buttons, text entry boxes, rollover captions, rollover slidelets,

highlight boxes and mouse pointers to the project.

• Add different media files, such as images, audio, video, and animations in multiple formats.

• Change the display times of slides and objects.

• Change the order of slides and objects.

• Add different kinds of slides, such as PowerPoint slides, image slides, and slides from other Adobe Captivate

projects to the project

• Add quizzes to your project by adding question slides of different types, including multiple choice, matching, fill in

the blanks and image hot-spots. Randomize the questions to provide an entirely new set of questions to the learners every time they take the course.

• Add narration to the project, either by recording audio or by converting text to speech.

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Creating Projects

To get feedback on the edited file, send it out to one or more reviewers. Reviewers can comment on the SWFs while playing them in the Adobe Captivate Reviewer, an Adobe AIR application. The comments are automatically imported into the project and displayed on the timeline, and in the SWF Commenting panel.

You can make the required changes to the project and publish it in multiple formats, including SWF, PDF and AVI files. You can use the LMS settings in Adobe Captivate to publish a LMS-ready file.

You can do the following to improve efficiency when creating similar Adobe Captivate projects:

• Achieve consistency across projects using project templates.

• Ensure a consistent appearance for projects using design templates.

• Use rerecording scripts to automate the recording process for similar sequences for web applications.

You can enhance the potential of Adobe Captivate by using it with other software such as Adobe® Flash®, Microsoft® PowerPoint®, RoboScreen Capture®, and Acrobat Connect®.

Create projects

Create a project by recording

You can create an Adobe Captivate project by recording events in an application or screen area on your computer. The following modes of recording are available.

Automatic Recording Adobe Captivate captures screenshots automatically and places them in separate slides. For

more information, see “Use autorecording” on page 27.

Full Motion Recording Adobe Captivate records the entire set of events in real time as a video. For more information,

see “Full motion recording” on page 30.

Manual Recording You can manually capture screenshots using this option. The chosen set of screenshots appears

sequentially in separate slides after the recording is complete. For more information, see “Manual recording” on page 31.

For more information, see “Recording Projects” on page 27.

Create a project from PowerPoint presentations

You can import an entire PowerPoint presentation, or only selected slides into an Adobe Captivate project. Each PowerPoint slide is imported as a separate slide in the Adobe Captivate project. You can later edit the PowerPoint presentations from within Adobe Captivate.

Create a project from images

Projects created from images can be viewed as a slideshow. Each image is imported into a separate slide.

1 Select File > New > Project.

2 Select Image Slideshow in the New Project dialog box.

3 Set the dimensions of the project.

4 Click Browse, and select the images that you want to add to your project.

5 If the Resize/Crop image dialog box appears, set the following options:

Note: You see the Crop/Resize dialog box only when an image exceeds the height or width limits of the project. If you are inserting more than one slide, only those images that exceed the dimension limits are displayed in the dialog box .

Fit To Stage Resizes the image to fit the dimensions of the slide.

Crop Displays a bounding box with dimensions corresponding to that of the project. Resize the handles of the box

to select the area that you want displayed on the slide. If you selected Constrain Proportions, Adobe Captivate maintains the height-to-width ratio of the bounding box.

Zoom You can zoom in and zoom out of the image by moving the slider. Alternatively, you can choose from a list

of standard zoom sizes from the menu.

Constrain Proportions Maintains the height-to-width ratio of the bounding box used to crop the image. This

option is enabled only when you choose to crop the image. When you disable this option, resize the bounding box, and enable the option again; the new dimensions are used thereafter to calculate the ratio.

Create a project starting with blank slides

You can start with a blank project, and then import slides or images from PowerPoint presentations, images, or other Adobe Captivate projects. You can also add a software demonstration, or interactive simulation by recording additional slides.

1 Select File > New > Project.

2 In the New Project dialog box, select Blank Project.

3 Set the dimensions of the project.

4 Click OK.

Create template-based projects

Adobe Captivate templates allow you to improve consistency across similar projects or modules of a project and reduce the effort required to create new projects.

Create a storyboard and workflow

No matter what project you want to create, it is helpful to do some planning 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.

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