Set the properties of widgets with Adobe Captivate

Last updated on Jan 13, 2022

Learn how to use and modify widgets and create exciting e-Learning projects.

In addition to the parameters defined by the widget developer, Adobe Captivate allows you to set properties for widgets. You can modify the properties of a widget using its Property Inspector (Window > Properties).

Widgets

Name

Enter a unique name for the object. You can use this name when defining the visibility conditions for the object.

Visible

Deselect this option if you want the object to be invisible on the slide by default. Use the Show action to make the widget visible. For more information, see Controlling the visibility of objects.

Animation

Object Name

Name of the animation object.

Linkage

Provides the link to the associated SWF file.

Update

Click to reflect the modifications to the source file (if edited externally).

Source

Link to the source FLA file of the animation SWF file.

Edit

Click to edit the FLA file using Adobe Animate from within Adobe Captivate.

Alpha

The transparency of the widget. At 0% transparency, the widget is opaque, and at 100%, transparency, it is invisible.

Widget Properties

Click to display the Widget Properties dialog box that shows the parameters that you can use to customize the widget. These parameters are available only if the developer creating the widget has made provisions for customizing the widget. A snapshot of the widget may be displayed in this dialog box.

Timing

Display For [Time]

Specifies how long the widget appears on the slide.

Appear After [#] Seconds

Specifies the delay between the first appearance of the slide and the first appearance of the widget.

Transition

Effect

Transition effect for the widget. You can apply a fade in or fade out effect, and set the time for the fading effects.

Action

On Success

The options available if the user successfully fulfills the criteria specified in the widget. For more information, see Project navigation using interactive objects.

Attempts

Define the number of attempts.

Infinite

The user can attempt infinite number of times.

Last Attempt

The options available if the user fails to fulfill the criteria specified in the widget in the defined number of attempts. For more information, see Project navigation using interactive objects.

Options

Select the appropriate options from the following:

Success

The caption displayed when the user successfully completes the task assigned by the widget.

Failure

The caption displayed when the user does not provide the input required by the widget.

Hint

The caption providing a hint to the user. The hint is displayed when the user moves the pointer over the widget.

Pause For Success/Failure Captions

Pauses the project until all success and failure captions are displayed.

Transform

To define the exact size or location of the widget in terms of pixels, or to rotate the widget, click the Transform tab. Select from the following options:

Position of the X coordinate of the object.

Position of the Y coordinate of the object.

The width of the object.

The height of the object.

Constrain Proportions

Maintains the height-to-width ratio when the object is resized.

Angle

Angle of rotation of the widget.

Reporting

If you want to keep score for the widget or coordinate the score with a learning management system (LMS), use the Reporting tab.

Include in Quiz

The points assigned to the widget are added to the score results for the current quiz.

Points

Points assigned to a correct answer. The maximum is 100 points; minimum is 0.

Add to Total

The score of the button is added to the quiz total.

Report Answers

Sends the score to the learning management system (LMS).

Interaction ID

Sends tracking information to the LMS based on the interaction ID specified by the LMS.

Set audio for widgets

You can add an audio file to noninteractive objects. The audio file is played when the object appears on the slide.

To add audio, go to the Audio area in the Property Inspector and then click Add Audio.

The Object Audio dialog box appears.
In the Add/Replace tab, use the following options:

Record Audio

Opens the Record Audio dialog box. (Recording audio requires some basic equipment.)

Stop

Stops playing the audio file.

Play

Plays the audio file.
In the Edit tab, to edit the audio file in various ways, such as inserting silent periods and adjusting the volume.
Click Settings to open the Audio Settings dialog box. You can change audio settings such as input source, quality level, and calibration. Click the Settings button to make your selections.
Click Import to display the Import Audio dialog box. This dialog box lets you browse to an audio file and import it.
Click Library to open the Library. The Library lists all audio files that are already part of the currently open Adobe Captivate project.

Using and editing widgets

Here's how you can create the following widgets. Click the links for more instructions.

Example 01 - Using the Bookmark widget

To use the Bookmark widget in your slide, click Insert > Widget and choose Bookmark, or click Interactions > Learning Interactions and choose Bookmark from the list.

Bookmark widget
Modify the properties of the widget. If you have question slides in your project and want to bookmark all question slides, select the check-box Allow only question slides to be bookmarked.

Customize the bookmark icon appropriately and also assign theme colors to the bookmark. On a question slide, a bookmark widget is shown below:

Widget on a question slide
Make the quiz SCORM-compliant and enable reporting of the quiz in any LMS.

Click Edit > Preferences > Quiz > Reporting and select the check-box Enable reporting for this project.

Now, publish the project as a zip file somewhere in your computer.

Publish as zip
Import the zip file to any LMS or SCORM cloud and launch the course. Click the bookmark on any slide and exit the course.
Re-launch the course. You resume from the slide where you had clicked the bookmark. The bookmark is in green, as shown below:

Bookmark on

Click the bookmark again and resume the course.

Boookmark off

Example 02 - Using the Dropdown widget

To use the Dropdown widget in your slide, click Insert > Widget and choose Dropdown, or click Interactions > Learning Interactions and choose Drop Down from the list.

Label	Description
1	List entries. The entries are comma-separated.
2	The Update button allows you to see a preview of how the drop-down list looks after formatting.
3	Formatting panel to choose a font, font style, and attribute.
4	Variable to validate the items in the list. Create the variable in the Variable dialog as well. To create a variable, see Create variables in Captivate.

As an example, when you click on any language, you can see a corresponding translated text.

Insert an ok button in the slide next to the widget. Assign an advanced action to the button, which when clicked, displays the appropriate message.

Drop down advanced action
Similarly, for English and German text, show or hide the appropriate smart shapes.
Preview or publish the project. Depending on the option chosen from the drop-down list and clicking ok, you can see the appropriate translation.

Example 03 - Using the Glossary widget

To use the Glossary widget in your slide, click Insert > Widget and choose 08_Glossary.wdgt, or click Interactions > Learning Interactions and choose Glossary from the list.

Label	Description
1	Give the glossary a name and description.
2	Choose a right theme for the glossary.
3	Preview a glossary term and description.
4	Add or remove a glossary term.
5	Import glossary terms from an XML file.
6	View a sample XML file.

To add a term to the glossary, click +.

Add glossary term

To remove a term, choose the term, and click -.

To import an XML of glossary terms, click IMPORT. Choose the XML file and import the file to the widget. All terms mentioned in the XML are included in the widget.

The following is a sample XML:

<XMLBit>
    <term>
      <label>Asynchronous Learning</label>
      <def>When learners participate in an online learning course at different times, it is known as asynchronous learning.</def>
   </term>
   <term>
      <label>Blended Learning</label>
      <def>Blended learning is an instructional approach that includes a combination of online and in-person learning activities.</def>
   </term>
 <term>
      <label>Courseware</label>
      <def>Courseware refers to any instructional software that is delivered on a computer.</def>
   </term>
 <term>
      <label>E-learning</label>
      <def>eLearning (short for electronic learning) is an umbrella term that refers to all types of training, education and instruction that occurs on a digital medium, like a computer or mobile phone.</def>
   </term>
 <term>
      <label>Webinar</label>
      <def> A webinar is a seminar or workshop in which the facilitator and participants view the same screen at the same time.</def>
   </term>
</XMLBit>

When you import the XML, and if the XML is a well-formed one, you can see the following message:

XML file import successful

The terms you had defined in the XML file appears in the glossary widget, as shown below:

Glossary terms added
Preview or publish the project.

Example 04 - Using the Listbox widget

To use the Listbox widget in your slide, click Insert > Widget and choose Listbox, or click Interactions > Learning Interactions and choose List from the list of widgets.

Label	Description
1	Add list items separated by commas.
2	Update the list preview.
3	Preview the list.
4	Change font style, size, and color.
5	Change button state properties.
6	Assign a variable to the list items.

As an example, create a quiz question where if you choose the right answer from the list, a pop-up appears that displays an appropriate message.

Create two smart shapes that display Incorrect or Correct captions.

Create an advanced action that checks if the variable v_city stores the correct answer. Assign the action to a button.

Depending on the condition, if you click the button, you can see the right response.

The following screenshot shows the Advanced Action.

Listbox Advanced Action
In the ELSE section, display the smart shape with Incorrect caption and hide the smart shape with Correct caption.
Preview or publish the project.

Download

Get file

Demo of Listbox widget

Example 05 - Using the Notes widget

To use the Notes widget in your slide, click Insert > Widget and choose Notes, or click Interactions > Learning Interactions and choose Notes from the list.

Label	Description
1	Set a user-defined or Captivate-default icon for the note.
2	Insert a note for each slide or for the project.
3	Set the note identifier.

For more more information, see Learner notes widget.

To save the changes, click OK. The note widget appears on the slide.

Adobe Captivate : Notes Interaction widget

Creating a text animation

Animated text is text that has applied special effects. Adobe Captivate offers a wide variety of text animation effects that you can experiment with. For example, on the opening slide of a project, you can have text fly-in or fade-in for an eye-catching start.

To insert a text animation in your slide, click Text > Text Animation.

Text animation properties

Modify the text properties according to your requirements.
To add an effect to the text, choose an effect from the Effect drop-down list.

Text animation effects
To save the changes, click OK and start using animated text in your project.

For more information, see Animated text.

Download sample projects

To learn more about Captivate and how you can create engaging learning content, download the following projects:

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