Using multi-state objects and "jump to next state" across different slides

[matthiask87589522]

Hey there!

I have a question regarding changing the status of multi-state objects across different slides which I can't get to work. Maybe someone has an Idea, I couldn't find something familiar on the forums or the blogs.

On my main slide have a "SmartObject1" with 3+ different states (user specified). I want to get this to work with a progress bar later aswell.

On other slides I have several buttons which, once clicked, are supposed to advance the state of "SmartObject1" on the main slide by one status. Right now I can't get this to work with the "jump to next state" which seems to be the only suitable choice for me. This option is only available via advanced actions and greyed out as a simple action and doesn't work across diferent slides only if its on the same slide. Creating a "Change the status of" to "2" or "3" does work across different slides, however that doesn't suit my needs as I need it to advance in states regardless of the sequence the different buttons are pressed.

I also tried jumping to that main slide, jumping to the next status [option: retain status] and jumping back to the current slide which didn't work.

I hope you understand what a mean!

What am I overlooking?

Thanks in advance!

Greetings

[Lilybiri]

It is pretty simple. It is not possible to use the command 'Go to Next State' as a simple command, when the multistate object is on another slide, but it can be done when you use an advanced or dhared action. Moreover you have to check the option 'Retain state when returning to slide on the main slide. Have plenty of examples on my blog.

[matthiask87589522]

Dear Lilybiri,

thanks so much for the quick response. Still I can not find a way to make it work. In your Blog I read about toggle buttons and states as well as different conditional actions which are close but not excactly what I am looking for. I need the Button to advance the state on another object on another slide by one status every time its clicked.  I checked all the parameters in my project and everything is as you describe with an advanced action ["jump to next status" "multistateobject main slide"] and the retain state option is checked aswell. Still it only works if the button is on the same slide but not when its on a different slide. Here, the only action that works from a different slide is "change status of" "multistateobject main slide" "to specific status"  which doesn't help me with this scenario. The goal is to show the development progess on the multi state object on the main page regardless of the order or the total amount the button(s) are clicked.

I can't explain why it's not working since I set it up as you described. Do I need a conditional variable on this or what could be the solution?

Thanks

Greetings!

[Lilybiri]

My bad.  Normally I always double-check. The commands 'Go to Next/Previous State' were only added (logged several feature requests) in a later version. I have to check if those can be used from another slide. Please be patient, have a lot on my plate today. Can you tell me the exact version number you are using?  Are those buttons to be clicked on other slides, Back buttons to the main slide? If indeed those commands are ot able to be used from another slide you'll need indeed a tracking variable but have to understand exactly the structure in that case. Maybe a simple Boolean variable could do the trick, but I am not sure.

[matthiask87589522]

Dear Lilybiri,

thanks, at least I know now that I need another solution. Right now I am using the latest Version 11.0.1 2019. These buttons that are supposed to be clicked are no back buttons to the main slide but might lead to another slide. They are mainly intended to change the status of the object on the main slide (progress or visuals for example) which can be seen once the user eventually returns to the main site. So the user is more or less exploring somewhere else on his own and when finished returns to the main site to check his overall progress.

If not yet implemented, maybe we can even suggest the Adobe Team to try to programm this feature, I think it has a lot of potential and might increase the overall power of Adobe Captivate a lot! Do you know in what way this is done best?

Thanks already, looking forward for your answer when you find the time!

Greetings!

[Lilybiri · Accepted solution]

I have an idea, but want to test it fully, and will blog about it. Before it happened that 'experts' just steal my answers here and present them publicly as a workflow they invented. This is not correct IMO, but I live in old Europe which has other ethical norms.

The solution works, I wrote a blog on the portal, but it is waiting moderation, will also post on my personal blog. I'm using a variabele counting the number of actions, and a While loop on Enter of the slide with the progress multistate objet. I will post the link when the blog is approved.

Blog is publishefd on the portal:

States and State Commands - eLearning

Or if you prefer on my personal blog:

About State Commands and a Progress Bar - Captivate blog

If you have more questions, you can ask them in a comment on the blog.

[matthiask87589522]

Hi Lieve,

thanks a lot, I was busy doing my current project so I wasn't able to come back to this post. I've read the post and it looks really good, nice Ideas you have there! It looks like it will work for me and do what I intend to do. I'll keep you updated as soon as I cant try it out on the project which is coming up!

Thanks a lot for the support, much appreciated!

Greetings Matthias

[Lilybiri]

Since multistate objects appeared, I am using them all the time. For a fluid boxes project, they may be even the only possible solution in many situations?