Drag and Drop - Return Item to Start Point Not Working with Custom State Change
Jun 28, 2017
This is a bit of a long explanation, so please bear with me...
I created a drag and drop interaction for a timekeeping software (<--may be familiar to some of you!) where the learner must drag a specific widget onto the drop target. Only one answer is right and if they get it right they jump to the next slide immediately. If they drop the wrong widget, the widget should return to its start point and they should keep trying until they get the right one. So I didn't score it since this is a "you have to get it right to move on" interaction.
Originally I just created the interaction with 8 static images and everything functioned as it should. The correct widget jumps to the next slide and all others snap back to their start position.
Unfortunately for my development timeline, I'm Type A and I wanted the interaction to be realistic (i.e., I wanted it to feel like they were working in the application itself.) In the application, the widget has a hover state and two drag states: a "not allowed to drop it here" drag state and a "drop it here" drag state. So I meticulously recreated 8 images in all of their glorious states and went about updating states for each of the drag images.
Hover is easy. The two drag states also seemed easy. I created two custom states for dragging: one for when the widget is dragged over a hot spot I called Drop Target (Drag Over-AW) and one when it is dragged over a dummy hot spot I called NonTarget (Drag Over-RIP) that sits behind the drag images. The pictures change states beautifully as I dragged them over each hot spot.
But then I realized that the return to start point wasn't working. So I tried using a dummy, off-slide target. I can't get that to work either.
I also tried using the built-in Down and Drag Over states which is simpler and works better for the dragging, but I still can't get the wrong widgets to return to their starting point. I also tried using Drop Incorrect at one point but I couldn't make that work either.
See my attached, simplified file with only three options. If you stayed with me and are up for the challenge, I appreciate your help!
3 Replies
Hi Amy,
as soon as you create your own "change state" trigger the "snapping back to starting point" option doesn´t work anymore. Try deleting the trigger and you can see that the objects are snapping back correctly. So sadly you have to choose either snapping back without changing state while dragged or changing state while dragged and not snapping back. The dummytarget is also needed as a concrete target for the wrong answers.
Or anyone else got an other idea, but as far as I know that´s what possible in SL2.
Susi
Thank you for the reply, Susi!
Based on your response, if I don't create any of my own triggers, but use the SL2 built-in states of "Down" for my first drag over state and "Drag Over" for my second drag over state, which trigger automatically as designed, then the snap back feature should still work, is that right?
I believe I tried that option already and still came up with the same behavior but let me try again, to be sure. :)
Amy
Never mind... I just remembered that the Drag Over state won't work for all the wrong widgets because their target is off slide. That's why I had to create my own trigger. Boo!
I guess I'll simplify and not have the "looks like the real application" state changes as I'd hoped. Thanks again Susi!
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