Publishing Captivate Courses to Meridian LMS

[ctudor]

Is anyone using Captivate 4 with the Meridian Global LMS? We're implementing this LMS and we are unable to upload them.  We receive the error that the courses are invalid.  We suspect that it has something to do with the SCORM 2004 and 1.2 edition.  Apparently Meridian supports SCORM 2004 edition 3 and Captivate published SCORM 2004 edition 2.  If you have been successful in publishing Captivate 3 or 4 to Meridian, please help.

Thanks.

[Guest]

Our organization is just getting started using Meridian and Captivate 4.  We thought the issues we have encountered were due to user error.  We talked with our Meridian trainer and she suggested that we download a SCORM testing application from www.adl.net.gov.  I would be very interested in learning more about this issue as well.  My apologies that I don't have an answer for you.

[Rickard_Robbins]

I am aware of a few issues with some Adobe products (Captivate and or Presenter).

1. Some products only seem to publish as 2nd edition and not 3rd.  We have found that changing the <Schema> tag to reflect 3rd edition solves most if not all problems with Captivate 2004 and MG.

2. Presenter (I haven't checked Captivate 2004 publishing) has a problem with the manifest it publishes as it can leave the <imsss:minNormalizedMeasure></imsss:minNormalizedMeasure> blank. There needs to be a value included if the tag is present.

3. Captivate publishing to SCORM 1.2

Up to this point, all Captivate courses I have looked at have had a problem with the API detection routine that captivate uses if the course was published to 2004.  Even though you publish the course as 1.2 the detection routine used by Captivate attempts to detect if the 2004 API is there and then the 1.2 API.  It is this part of the detection that is failing.

There is a very simple fix.  Go into the \scorm_support folder and open the scorm_support.js file.

Find this line (typically the 2nd line):

var g_nAPI = 0;    // type of API to start searching for; allowable values: 0 - SCORM 2004; 1 - SCORM 1.2 (or 1.1)

Change the 0 to a 1:

var g_nAPI = 1;    // type of API to start searching for; allowable values: 0 - SCORM 2004; 1 - SCORM 1.2 (or 1.1)

Save the file, rezip the course and you should no longer have issues with 1.2 courses published by Captivate in Meridian Global.

This same issue seems present with Presenter 1.2 courses as well.  The same fix works for those courses as well.

As a general rule, I would use SCORM 1.2 unless there is a business/instructional need to use 2004.  2004 includes additonal overhead associated with the sequencing and navigation that 1.2 does not.

[davidjmcclelland_com]

I am working on a project using Captivate 3. It won't upload to the client's Meridian LMS - no error messages or feedback.

Meridian won't help client until course passes ADL Test Suite. ADL Test Suite is a very tricky program to set up for non-technical people, and can be unreliable if not set correctly. I can get the content to pass but so far client cannot. Apparently Meridian wants the client to get this, not the developer.

Meanwhile Adobe introduced bugs in the wrapper files for Captivate SCORM content which have yet to be fixed, which are described elsewhere in this thread. These bugs affect Meridian integration. A case of customer service not extending far enough from either direction to bridge the gap.

I recommend creating a very simple, representative Captivate Course that is designed to exercise all the functions planned for the content. Run it though the integration process with Meridian before authoring any content. Use it as a template. Get a test machine set up to run ADL TestSuite, since it has to run in a virtual time capsule because it is very old, the underlying technology is no longer supported, and it is easy to break auto-updating Java or installing Toolbook.

[Guest]

Hi there,

As an alternative to the ADL Test Suite - which as you have rightly stated can be difficult to work with - I would also suggest taking a look at SCORM Test Track from Rustici Software. This is a free online service that has complete support for SCORM 1.2 and SCORM 2004 there is also some support  AICC.

Just thought I'd mention it.

Best - Mark

<a href="http://macrofireball.blogspot.com/"><strong>Visit the macrofireball blog</strong></a>

[davidjmcclelland_com]

I suggested this. LMS vendor insists on ADL tool. We can pass on any other tool, and pass on ADL except at client's computer.

[Mary1810]

Hi, We had the same issue with not being able to get files to upload. What we eventually found out was that the Meridian system does not like file names beginning with a number. If your file name begins with a number, try changing the file name and see if that works. It worked for us.

[Rickard_Robbins]

If we are talking SCORM 1.2 the test suite from the ADL identifies many spots where starting an "identifier" with a number is not allowed.  Often what is happens is you save your course with some number and that then gets propogated into the manifest.

Here is a sample output from the test suite on a course with numbers to start the name.

ERROR:   Datatype error: Value '6789_XX_XX_ID' is not a valid ID(NCName).
ERROR:   Datatype error: Value '6789_XX_XX_ID_ORG' is not a valid IDREF(NCName).
ERROR:   Datatype error: Value '6789_XX_XX_ID_ORG' is not a valid ID(NCName).
ERROR:   Datatype error: Value '6789_XX_XX_SCO' is not a valid ID(NCName).
ERROR:   Datatype error: Value '6789_XX_XX_ID_SCO_RES' is not a valid ID(NCName).

So, the above posters advice is correct but it isn't based on some arbitrary decision on Meridians part but based on what the ADL wants.

Peace,

   Rickard

[Rickard_Robbins]

I have found a cleaner solution, and possibly the root, of the SCORM 1.2 API detection problem with Captivate I mentioned above.

Whe captivate packages courses as 1.2 or 2004 is adds support files.  These are found here:

C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe Captivate 4\Templates\Publish

in the 1_2\scorm_support and 2004\scorm_support folders.  The problem is that the scorm_support.js file is the same for both versions.  If you open the verion in the 1_2\scorm_support directory you can see that "g_nAPI" set to 0 (like in the 2004 version) instead of 1 as it should be.  If you change this file it will then get added to all your published 1.2 courses and you wont have to unzipe, change and rezip them.

Hope that helps someone.

peace,

   Rickard