6 Replies Latest reply: Sep 10, 2014 6:18 PM by Russ_E

Is there a way to show/hide a group of objects that will work in html5?

Ian C ADC Sep 10, 2014 7:49 AM

I consider myself to have a fairly decent understanding of captivate and its functions but this recent issue has stumped me.

I have a button with javascript attached to it that runs a typical if loop: (pseudo code to follow)

if(variable = 1){
show "group" and variable = 0;

} else{

hide "group" and variable = 1;

}

Now normally, I would do this with single images, etc, and it would work fine. You click the button (the image being unticked where it says "visible in output") and the image shows itself, then you click the button, and it hides. Very standard stuff.

My issue, is that captivate seems to let you name a group you make....but they have not given you any control of that group.

Problem:
I want a way to show and hide a group of objects by only clicking one button (when published to html5).
I want to only have to reference the group and dont want to need to write a separate line of code for every single component that makes up that group (assuming the solution has to be coded).

Is it even possible to control groups like this within captivate?

Thanks!

1. Re: Is there a way to show/hide a group of objects that will work in html5?

Lilybiri Sep 10, 2014 7:52 AM (in response to Ian C ADC)

Within Captivate with advanced and shared actions you can perfectly control groups. I'm using that feature all the time since it appeared with Captivate 6. This is my first talk about it: Advanced Actions in Captivate 6 - YouTube
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2. Re: Is there a way to show/hide a group of objects that will work in html5?

Ian C ADC Sep 10, 2014 7:59 AM (in response to Lilybiri)

sorry, i watched the video, but all it did was confuse me

I know about advanced actions and variables, but i seriously didn't follow the video. I don't suppose you could explain it for me in lamens terms?

(it was actually a post a while ago that you made that set me on this path of trying to figure out how to do this funnily enough )
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3. Re: Is there a way to show/hide a group of objects that will work in html5?

Lilybiri Sep 10, 2014 8:02 AM (in response to Ian C ADC)

Fine, that means that my explanations are not meant for you, that happens.
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4. Re: Is there a way to show/hide a group of objects that will work in html5?

RodWard Sep 10, 2014 8:04 AM (in response to Ian C ADC)

Your issue with not being able to manipulate groups at runtime via code is due to the way Captivate is designed I'm afraid.

The groups don't actually exist at runtime in the same way that the objects that make up the groups do. You should still be able to use JS or AS3 code at runtime to manipulate the objects themselves by Item Name, but the groups are more just for Edit mode.

If you use Advanced Actions to SHOW or HIDE groups, Captivate takes care of the details under the hood at runtime for all the objects in those groups.
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5. Re: Is there a way to show/hide a group of objects that will work in html5?

Ian C ADC Sep 10, 2014 8:41 AM (in response to RodWard)

this was my fear. Looks like i will have to look into advanced actions more thoroughly. thanks (both of you).

if i get it working, ill post here with how i did it, in my own words, as me saying i didnt understand you doesnt really help future people

(tho you have both obviously pointed me in right direction and saved me a lot of trouble trying to code it)
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6. Re: Is there a way to show/hide a group of objects that will work in html5?

Russ_E Sep 10, 2014 6:18 PM (in response to Ian C ADC)

There is an adobe video that I think shows how to do exactly what you are asking.
This is the video link:
Lightbox-style Menu in Adobe Captivate 6 - YouTube

At about 10min 50sec, it goes over creating a group from a number of single elements.
At about 12min 30sec, it shows creating an action that turns the whole group on and another to turn the group off.

When I did this myself, I used just one action that toggled the group on or off, but they show it as two actions. The idea is the same.
I hope that helps. Apologies if I mis-understood the issue.
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