Is it practical to continue using Presenter 13?

Oct 24, 2019

About 6 years ago I prepared some technical semiconductor courses in Presenter 13.  I am now 74 and retired.  I am now considering updating those courses and possibly developing a new course.  However, I sell only a very few copies of these courses and not for a lot of money.  I wish I could just buy a copy of Presenter 360 (I do not need all of the other 360 features), but I respect that this is not Articulate's business strategy.  However, I cannot make a business case for a continuing subscription at around $1K/year.  This leaves me with two possibilities.  First, continue using Presenter 13.   I have been out of the loop for quite a while.   I simply do not know if this is practical today.  I make simple courses using PowerPoint 2016 with PowerPoint animations, but do not use web links, quizzes  or other special features.  Second, I might be able to do a one-time, one-year subscription.  Would my users be able to continue using the courses I produce after my license expires?   I appreciate any feedback you might have.

8 Replies
Katie Riggio

Greetings, Theodore. You asked some great questions, I'm happy to answer those for you!

  • Using Studio '13: The main item I would keep in mind is that the major browsers have started to remove Flash as a default, and require individual (or corporate) permissions to run it. All the supported browsers will no longer run Flash at the end of 2020. Studio '13 courses published with HTML5 input included are only supported with Chrome and Safari per the system requirementsThis discussion covers what we're doing to prepare for this change!
  • Course access after Articulate 360 access expires: Like with Studio '13, published courses will continue to function for your learners, even after the access expires. Also, using Studio 360 would allow you to publish with HTML5-only output and have content supported on all the major browsers outlined here

You could always start an Articulate 360 trial here to test out Studio 360 and all the other neat tools it has to offer!

If there's anything else I can answer, I'll be here!

Theodore Dellin

Thanks very much for the reply.

It seems that continuing Presenter 13 is not a robust solution.

It would seem that my only options would be Studio 360 or another authoring tool. 

I see that you offer a 60 day free trail of Studio 360.  I would like to be upfront and ethical.   If I update my old course(s) and/or develop a new course during the trail period am I free to use them even if I don’t buy a license?  I would like to test the waters.  If I sell a course then I would probably have to buy at least a one year license to support the customer. 

Also, does the one year license start at the end of the trail period?

Ren Gomez

Hi Theodore,

You can absolutely develop as much as you'd like during the trial period and use it in a real-life scenario. We feel 30 days gives you plenty of time to see if this is worth your investment and effort moving forward. 

There's no purchase during the trial period, so whenever you do decide to purchase the product, that's when the license starts!

Jon DeMartino

I am in a situation similar to Theodore's, also 74 years old and wanting to update old courses to HTML. I am behind him in versions, though, having used Presenter 09 for all my work. 

In my earlier reading, I saw that Presenter 13 allowed updating to HTML publication but caused some issues with quizzes, templates and some functions/transitions in 09 projects. 

Now I know that Presenter 13 really wouldn't solve my problem anyway but I'm wondering if updating my old courses in 360 will result in the same issues/glitches as occured when updating from 09 to 13. Is that still the case?

I, too, find it difficult to justify paying 999 every year for Articulate 360 and would really like a way to buy a one-time version with the basic features, much like 09. Has Articulate considered that? I suspect there are a number of us "oldies" out there who still love the product but have less business these days and can't afford such a hefty fee each year. 

Thanks in advance for your response(s). I have always appreciated the support and information that's freely given by the experts and my fellow-users on this site. 

Ren Gomez

Hi Jon,

Thanks for reaching out, and I'm glad you get so much value out of the community! To answer your questions:

If I try Studio 360, will my Studio 09' still be on my computer?

Only one version of Studio can be on your computer, so whenever you install an upgraded version, it will overwrite the older one. 

Will I run into the same issues upgrading to Studio 360 as I would Studio 13'?

While there may be some overlap with bugs, you can review the history of bug fixes Studio 360 has made since its initial launch. One major item to note:

Both Studio 09' and Studio 13' rely on Flash to operate, so we will sadly end support for these apps at the end of the year. This article shares more: How the End of Flash Affects Articulate Apps and Courses

Has Articulate considered a perpetual version of Studio 360?

The majority of our customers are using the Articulate 360 suite, so that’s where we’re putting our focus. We know some folks are unable to switch to subscription plans or cloud apps, and if there’s anything we can do to help you make a case for Articulate 360, let us know. We’re happy to help.

Jon DeMartino

Thanks for the reply.

If I download the free trial of 360, I understand it will overwrite my old,
'09 version.
My question is, if I decide not to subscribe to 360 after the free trial,
and it disappears from my
pc, will my old version disappear as well or will it still be there for me
to tinker with?

You might want to pose the question of how many people would be interested
in
buying a simple, non-cloud version of the latest Articulate Presenter, with
a one-
time price, as I am. I think many, but not all, users are working for
companies who
have no problem with the (to me) high cost of the 360 suite, but there are
some of us
who work on a contract basis and have a hard time justifying that cost when
we
have fewer clients. Just an idea.

Thanks-
Jon

Jon DeMartino Writing Services
Writer /Creative Consultant/e-Learning Developer
989 East Street, Dedham, MA 02026-6319
Cell: (319) 321-5721

Lauren Connelly

Hi Jon!

I appreciate the feedback! A backup of your Presenter 09 files will be saved when opening them in Presenter 360. Here's more information on upgrading your projects. Since they're backed up, you can still access and open the project in Presenter 09. 

We've found most of our customers are upgrading their Presenter projects to Storyline 360 to create more interactive content. In that case, we haven't seen a need to offer Presenter as a stand-alone product. If you have any questions about upgrading your projects, please let me know! You can also connect with our Support Team here!

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