CD Stutters

Oct 30, 2012

We can't get a Storyline SCORM to run on Moodle since we upgraded to version 2.3. So I decided to burn a CD. It's not usable because it cuts off before the audio on the timeline is finished. Any suggestions?

29 Replies
Andrew Weaver

I need to start by saying that I usually do not post negative comments in forums, but my extreme frustration with specific aspects of Storyline will likely show in my reply. 

I've been using Storyline for several months in FULL production on several really large CD-based projects, and there have always been some sort of lag when played from the CD player.

My two current projects are very large (over 1100 and 1900 slides each) using the software capture functionality broken down into individual slides for a demo format.  Each slide has a different audio attached.

I just published the first project to CD yesterday, and the stuttering and lagging are so bad that the product is unusable.  As John Black states in his post, the audio gets cut off before the slide ends.  My slides are all set up to move to the next slide when the current slide ends, but the delay in the current slide doesn't allow all of the slide components to complete for the slide changes to a new one.

Even worse, the CD player sounds like it's going to burn up it's running so fast trying to keep up with whatever process is trying to be performed.

After about 15 minutes of the CD player screaming, the slides at the beginning start to slow down somewhat where the stuttering and lagging is less severe.

At this point, the hours and money put into these two projects are completely wasted until this issue can be resolved. 

Christine Hendrickson

Hi Andrew,

I'm really sorry for the inconvenience this is causing for you. Do you experience the same problem with the lag if you run the .EXE file from your hard drive, before burning it to the CD? If you don't experience the same problem when running the .EXE file, you might want to try placing the content on a different type of external source (like a USB drive) and see if the same lag occurs. If it doesn't, it may be an issue with the CD ROM. Do you have an additional drive, or another machine where you can test the CD?

If the problem exists when you launch the local .EXE file and from any other external source, please go ahead and submit a support case with us, along with your .story file, so we can take a closer look at the files. 

Thanks Andrew,

Christine

Andrew Weaver

I do not experience the same lag when I run the .EXE file from the hard drive.  I have tested the CD on two different laptops; an HP and a brand new Dell.  The HP was custom built for graphic development, so it has a faster processor and more memory than a normal laptop.  I have the same lag problem with both machines.

I did not test the content on a USB because our product is built to be played on a CD.  By the way, the CDs are both being play on DVD players within the laptops.

Steve Flowers

The EXE essentially wraps the browser in a mechanism that prevents activeX and Flash player security checks from getting in the way and suppresses the typical browser navigation features. It's still running a browser. Sounds like the browser could be running security checks on each object request. Only reason I can figure for the symptoms you're experiencing.

Andrew Weaver

Here is more information.  Once the 547 slides on this one CD finish playing through, the CD/DVD player starts to calm down a bit and the lag problem disappears.  The second time through the CD, there is no lag.

Is there any buffering that occurs when played from the CD?

I can hear the player spinning at top speed and the reader mechanism moving rapidly for the first several minutes.

Andrew Weaver

Jenniffer,

After finally finding a way to upload my files to Articulate for them to take a look at, I have heard nothing from them on a solution.  This seems to be a common theme with Customer Support because I've had a handful of support tickets in for months, and the only time I received action on those tickets is when I tried to contact Justin directly with my laundry list of issues.  Of course, Justin didn't reply himself.

The lastest Storyline update fixed a few of the issues, but I did not see the CD Lagging issue listed in the fixes.  And after the update, I found another issue that didn't exist before.  You can no longer backspace in a text entry box.  Again, a ticket was submitted, files were uploaded, and no response from Articulate.

I had to republish everything for LMS deliver instead of putting the project on hold waiting for an answer from Articulate.  I agree with you that our products would not be acceptable if given to our clients in this manner.  We should hold all software-based companies to the same standards.

Hopefully a solution is found for you and your product can be shipped on time.

Christine Hendrickson

Hi Andrew,

First, I wanted to address the issue you stated about communication with Customer Support. I was able to find one case for the CD issue (00308797 for my reference) and I actually see a lot of communication in this case from Sid. I did notice that you were speaking with Cleo from the messages in this case, I was also able to find that case (00308132) and I see that this case isn't closed, our QA team is currently working on this issue. If you have any updates for either of these cases, please be sure to respond to either Sid or Cleo and I'm sure they'd be happy to work with you. In no way do we wish to leave any case unresolved and customer service is very important to us. 

I am happy to hear that the update fixed a few issues you were experiencing, though. Actually, I've seen quite a few reports of backspace and a few other keys not working with CD published content. We have submitted this issue to our QA team, as well. If you have a case for this issue that hasn't received a response, please share the case number with me and I can check on the status. 

___________________________

Jennifer, 

First, welcome to the forums. Unfortunately, with this type of issue, it's difficult to determine right off the bat if it's exactly the same. There are a lot of factors that come in (hardware, etc.). Do you experience this with a particular course that you publish to CD? If you create a smaller, or even blank course, does the same thing happen? You mentioned that you're wanting to burn to DVD - have you tried burning to a CD, instead, or tested the burned disc on another machine?

If you'd like to have us take a look and test the file for you, you are welcome to submit the file to us. As I mentioned before, it may be related, but until we take a look, that's a little difficult to determine. I totally understand not wanting to distribute the content to a client with it functioning like this, hopefully we'll be able to provide some information that will improve the functionality. 

Thanks, everyone!

Christine

Andrew Weaver

Christine,

The case number for the Backspace issue is # 00309982.

I had uploaded the Storyline file, and the last email I received was from Sid on December 18th asking if I could replicate the issue when I recorded a new file.

For the type of training products that my company creates, the two cases (CD stuttering and the new text entry issue) are complete show stoppers for us.

Christine Hendrickson

Hi Andrew,

Thanks for the information. I was able to find the case. You're correct, the last response was from Sid requesting more information from you. The case was closed, because we never received a response from you. We have no way of knowing the issues are still occurring, if we don't hear back from our customers. Usually, when customers don't respond, it means they've been able to resolve the issue. 

Were you able to try replicating the issue as Sid requested? The best way to continue troubleshooting the issue is to continue communicating with our support staff. If you're able to respond to Sid, I'm sure he'd be more than happy to work with you toward a solution, or some suggestions that may help with your courses. I know this is extremely important for your company, and I do apologize for the trouble, but hopefully we can work with you to clear some of these issues up.

Thanks again!

Christine

Andrew Weaver

Christine,

So let me see if I understand you correctly.  You are saying that the issue is with a lack of communication with your support staff, but I was just now informed that the case was closed.  Not through email or from Sid, but from you in a forum reply after a discussion concerning another case.

This is the first time anyone has brought to my attention that Sid did not receive my reply.  But what you are telling me is that although the support staff has my uploaded file and the original case information, all troubleshooting on a known issue had been halted while waiting for a reply from me wanting to know if this problem could be replicated with a new file.  Does that process sound like moving toward finding a solution?

Justin Wilcox

Hi Andrew. 

I am sorry to hear that you have not been satisfied with your support experience to date. I did receive your email which I did submit as a case for you and Sid followed up with you. A case is never closed with us, just to clarify. If you respond to an email, we will follow up with you. 

Regarding this specific case, what Sid was trying to determine was if the issue was file specific or could be replicated with a new file. I have asked one of my senior support engineers to follow up with you and test your files.

If you do need help with any other case that you have with us, feel free to reply directly to one of the emails or let us know what cases they are and I will escalate them for you.

This discussion is closed. You can start a new discussion or contact Articulate Support.