Import Slides/Objects in Captivate 5

[Guest]

I just installed Captivate 5 on my Mac and can not for the life of me find a way to import Slides/Objects like I could in Captivate 4. I create tutorials for work and they are similar, except the background. I know that might sound odd but we have 3 sister companies and the layout of the tools are the same, just the branding is differnt. So I have grown accustomed to just importing the objects from one "master" tutorial into the others.

Am I missing something or was this option removed from Captivate 5?

[Captiv8r]

Hi there

I believe this option disappeared in Captivate 5. If memory serves, the dev team felt that it is simple now that we may open more than one project simultaneously to have both source and destination projects open. Then copy slides and objects from the source to the destination.

If you disagree with this, please file a Wish Form/Bug Report to alert the team. (link for doing this is in my sig line)

Cheers... Rick

Helpful and Handy Links Captivate Wish Form/Bug Reporting Form Adobe Certified Captivate Training SorcererStone Blog Captivate eBooks

[Lilybiri]

Hello,

Rick's answer is totally correct. There was a discussion about dropping this feature in the development process, and with the use of MDI (Multiple Documents Interface) the copy/paste from one project to another seems to be indeed a more intuitive and quicker workflow. And the former limits on filesize and number of slides are (almost) no more there, so you can open several projects without fear. Importing took quite a lot of waiting and keystrokes especially if you wanted only to import certain slides from another project.

But of course, if you disagree, feel free to introduce a feature request.

Lilybiri

[Guest]

Thanks guys for the quick replies, I have no problem learning a new way of working, but I wonder if I am missing something. I have over 60 slides in the current project and I have not seen a way to copy all the Text Captions and Highlight Boxes from one project and paste them into the other. I can go slide by slide, but it seems like it will only copy the Text Caption, not the Text Caption and the Highlight Boxes as well.

[Guest]

OK, found a way to do it, Copy the Backgrounds from one project, paste them in the other project and Save As a different name. If there is another way I would like to hear about it, but this seems to work.

Spoke to soon, that only pastes the background from first slide to all the slides.

[Lilybiri]

Hello,

You can copy entire slides, just select them in the Filmstrip, copy (CTRL-C), go to the other project and paste in the wanted place. Normally background and all objects on the slides will be copied. This is the same workflow as in previous CP-versions, but you do not have to open 2 instances of Captivate since you now have the MDI and can open multiple projects in one program window.

Lilybiri

[Guest]

Thanks, I am aware of this, its just that the only thing that changes between the different projects are the backgrounds, so the same steps and instructions are given, its just for 3 different brands.

So before I was creating one project, then capturing the same steps, importing the objects from the first project into the other projects and then changing the color scheme for the two other brands.

[Lilybiri]

Hello,

Of course I do not know what precisely you have to change to the backgrounds, do not even know if those backgrounds are the result of a capture or if you created them yourselves? You are talking about a 'color scheme', but am unsure what you mean by this.

Just a couple of ideas: is nothing possible with Master slides (if not all the backgrounds are unique), or with 'Edit background' via the Library? If you create the backgrounds yourself for the different brands, which software do you use?

Lilybiri

[Guest]

Sorry, I guess I have been sort of vague, I work for a webhosting company and we create the tutorials on how to use the cPanel software that we use. So what I would do in Captivate 4 is create a new project, record the steps needed to, for example, create an email account. Then add the captions to it explaining what to do. I would then capture the same steps for the other two brands, import the objects from the first project and change the colros of the caption and highlight boxes.

Yesterday I copied and pasted the backgrounds for all, 60, individual slides, while this worked it took  a while. I think that I might just avoid any branding and avoid all logos and references to the different companies so I can create just one set of slides.

[Lilybiri]

Hello,

What about adding some 'branded' things on three different Master slides? And apply the right one just before publishing? Of course you'll have to make place for it if they take up some space.

Lilybiri

[Guest]

I will try it out and tell you how it goes.

[ML021469]

Well, actually, I DO have a problem with having to work in a new way. The "dev team felt it was..." I am sorry but I use this tool TO MAKE MY LIVING and this version is a whole lotta glitz and not a whole lotta substance. Import slides and objects worked and was a valuable time saver. NOW, because the dev team felt, I have to open another project. And no, this is not an old dog bitching about learning a new trick. There is some good (the file size for one) but I'm unimpressed with this version.

[Guest]

Thanks ML021469, I do agree. While I am changing the way that I work to take advantage of running Captivate nativily on a Mac, I to enjoyed using Captivate 4 more. Maybe I am missing things, but other than Specail Affects I have yet to find a way to apply a change to multiple objects. The Hilghlight boxes for example, if I want to change the color I have to manually change them for all of the slides, instead of applying the changes to all of the highlight boxes. And dont get me started on trying out new captions.....I think I am going to have to uninstall and reinstall Captivate once I finally find a look I really like.

[vishhere · Accepted solution]

Hello JCHands,

For changing the property for multiple instances of an object, we could use Object Styles. For Ex: for changing Highlight boxes in all the slides, you can use the object styles, if you modify any property in the Object Style Manager, it get changed in all the instances. Please let me know if this works for you.

Thanks,

Vish

[Guest]

Wow it worked! I tried this before, but it did not work. The only difference now is that I am using the full copy of Captivate instead of the trial. I know I tried this multiple times before, thanks for suggesting it again.

Do you know if there is a way to change multiple Highlinght Boxes?

Message was edited by: JCsHands

[jhartmannj]

I've exported my captions and made changes in the table created by Captivate (a Word table).  I have been unable to import the changes.  Is your question at all related to this?

If you know of any workaround please let me know.

Thanks,

J Hartmann

[Lilybiri]

Hello,

I do think that you are talking about something different: you did export Project Captions and Closed Captions to Word, and reimporting doesn't work. Just want to give you some tips, because I do use this quite a lot for localisation of tutorials. Be sure to keep the name of the exported Word-file, not to change it before re-importing. The format has to stay 'doc' (so the old Word 2003-format). I also had the experience that it is better to close the Word-file before re-importing it into Captivate, but this can be due to a strange combination of languages for apps on my PC. It is the text in the right column that has to be changed in the Word-document, the left column is meant as a reference. If you change colors in text, this will be also the case when reimported. FYI: I do use Word 2010, not in English but in Dutch.

Lilybiri