Fine tuning Motion Paths

Jan 22, 2018

Hi, are there any shortcut keys to help with fine tuning the start and end positions of motion paths? So for example how to keep the motion path end point completing horizontally aligned with the start point. Once I have dragged the end point to a different position/length (after it is initially generated) it seems to lose its perfect horizontal or vertical alignment. I then have to up to about 400% view to get the fine control. I have tried holding the crtl and alt keys to see if that would keep the end point snapped to horizontal or vertical (which did not work).

I have seen some really advanced motion path animations which are always exactly aligned but don't seem able to match that accuracy.

10 Replies
Trevor White-Miller

Thanks for the reply Christian. I'm still on SL2 so still stuck with the old solution. I have been waiting for more features before changing to SL360 or SL3.

Can anyone tell me if the same motion path coordinate feature has been added to SL3? It's not listed in the release notes for SL360 or SL3. My trial version of SL3 has ended.

Trevor White-Miller

Hi Alyssa, thanks for the info regarding new feature in 360 only. I did however find the answer to my SL2 issue in another thread. When the end point of the motion path is highlighted press Crtl+Shift+Enter and Size/Position box appears. Strangely it is 'Size' which controls the end point position (relative to the start point). But it works very well. I have been able to accurately setup the motion paths as required.

Sandra Whitford

Alyssa, I have read the Fine Tune Motion Paths and actually got some help from the technical staff (thanks) but am still having some difficulty with grabbing one of my motion paths to align it or change it.  I have two motion paths - one curved and one straight.  Seems I can grab and move the straight one but not the curved path without moving the start of that path.

So my questions: 

1. The two paths are on top of each other at the end of their paths. How do you grab the bottom of two paths at the end point to do something with it? They both have different path names - can they be brought up somehow by name? (if not that would be one way for the tech guys to program this fix)

2. Can you grab a curved path and move just the endpoint (without moving the start point) or is that not possible because of all the in-between click points? 

Ashley Terwilliger-Pollard

Hi Sandra,

I took a quick look to see if I could recreate what you're having trouble with, and you'll find below that if both paths have the same start/end point all you need to do is click on the actual object or path and that'll bring the endpoint to the front so that you could move it: 

You'll also see that I grabbed the end of the curved path and could still move it, but I didn't have any in between points. It sounds like that is where our set up differs? Could you share a sample with me so I can look at your example? 

Ashley Terwilliger-Pollard

Hi David, 

We’re continuing to support Storyline 3 with bug fixes, but we aren’t adding any major new features to Storyline 3 or sharing a release schedule. We’ll announce any major updates in the Storyline forum.

Our current focus is delivering a continuous stream of new features and content to Articulate 360. 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 the case for Articulate 360, let us know. We’re happy to help. 

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