Layer questions from a noob
Jul 06, 2018
I am brand new to StoryLine 360 (or any other version) and have a couple of questions about layers.
First, animating one. I've seen a couple references to being able to apply an animation to an entire layer but can't figure out how to do it. When I select a layer, with no object selected, the animation controls are grayed out. When I select all the objects in a layer and apply an animation, the objects move relative to each other during the animation. I want the whole layer to fly in looking like a single object. What am I missing?
And second, layers on a master slide. I have a button on a master slide that should show a layer when clicked. The layer is also on the master slide, but the layer does not seem to be inherited by slides with that master assigned. Unless I copy the layer from the master to each slide, the button doesn't work. Suggestions?
6 Replies
The second problem turned out to be a little inattention on my part; had the wrong master applied. So that's fixed. Any help animating a layer, though?
Hi Stan,
I'd start by going through this tutorial on adding transitions to slides and layers. So keep in mind, animations are for objects, transitions are for slides or layers.
Let us know if you need anything else!
Ashley, thanks, but I am indeed hoping for an animation, not a transition. And I see https://community.articulate.com/series/74/articles/articulate-storyline-360-user-guide-how-to-work-with-slide-layers, for instance, which says in part, "You add content to layers just like slides, including animations and transitions. "
I believe that quote is referencing that you can add animations and transitions to objects on a layer. If you have a picture of a child that is on a layer instead of the base slide, you can still add an entrance and an exit animation to it, it isn't just static.
In order to get the objects to "fly in together" you can use a transition for the layer. Here's what I did while experimenting. Click on the layer you want to apply the transition to, go to the transitions menu on the top bar. I chose the effect "Cover" and under effect options on the right selected "From Left" to get the effect I desired. When I previewed I could see the content "fly in" when the layer was activated.
This was very interesting to learn, and I'm glad I explored it. I will definitely be using transitions in my future modules!
Broderick, thanks; that's kinda what I was afraid of. The "Cover" transition isn't horrible, but it's slower than I would like and appears from the edge of the screen instead of from the edge of the canvas.
Grouping the objects on the layer and animating the group gives me the effect I want, but one of the layers I want this on includes a table, and StoryLine won't let me group the table with the other objects.
I don't know if I can offer advice on where the content appears from, but I do know that next to the effect options if you change the duration it will change the speed of the transition. That might help with the speed of the transition that you're looking for. I'm glad you found a solution for the other slides, but that is frustrating with the table. I know this might not be ideal, but it is possible to have that object fade in after the other content or enter in another fashion? That isn't ideal, but it may disguise the fact that it isn't moving with them. If it's adjusted along the timeline a bit, that way it wouldn't look completely off as long as it doesn't detract from anything else.
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