Storyline freezes and I lose work

Feb 27, 2015

Hi,

I am working in different modules at different times in Storyline and I have found that it freezes sometimes. (Mostly when Powerpoint is open as well, but this could be coincidence.) 

Every other program is still functioning perfectly fine, it is just Storyline that freezes and no buttons want to function anymore. So I have to get Task Manager to force close it. It is happening on an almost daily basis. I have looked and my PC is still running fine in terms of CPU, RAM, etc. So it isn't due to a slow PC as I use it to work some other heavy programs (not whilst working in SL though) and it handles it perfectly fine.

S.L.

24 Replies
S L

I need to edit the post to add more info, but now I have to wait till the tomorrow before I can edit it. It is all greyed out, anybody know why this is, after all, I am the author of this post? Anyways...

Basically in alignment with the post above, I want to know if everybody has the same issue of everything that one does in Storyline, is delayed by half a second. I don't find this in Powerpoint, Photoshop or Illustrator. And the files that I work on in SL are mostly all under 10mb, whereas I work at times on 150mb files in other programs and they still run super smoothly? If SL is based on Powerpoint, then why is it not also as smooth and instant with zooming, copying, pasting and other reactions? I find that I always have to wait a second before taking my next step, just to make sure that the file has been pasted, or locked, or zoomed in. 

I just want to confirm whether it is just me or if it is a general issue?

Thanks. S.

Ashley Terwilliger-Pollard

Hi SL,

Sorry about the "greyed" out post - it looks like your post was marked as potentially spam and therefore just waiting for a moderator to review. All good now.

In regards to the issues you're having with Storyline, you mentioned it seemed to happen with powerpoint open - are you copying/pasting from Ppt or Importing when you see this behavior or just randomly while working? you'll want to make sure you are working on local project files as described here, that your system adheres to the system requirements and if the behavior persists across all Storyline files we'll want to have you look at conducting the repair steps first.

S L

Hi Ashley,

Thanks for the response. To reply to your points:

Yes, I only work from my local hard drive, yes my laptop is more than double the system requirements and I have done a repair recently, and so I don't think I need to do another one. But I do have a feeling that Powerpoint might be the culprit, as I do copy from Powerpoint into Storyline to do the designs. (The content is set up by a non-e-learning developer, then I copy it across and design and develop it in Storyline.)

Is there anything that you think might be causing this from Powerpoint?

Thanks and kind regards,

S.L.

Ashley Terwilliger-Pollard

Hi SL,

Well you'll be unable to copy/paste when importing from Powerpoint into Storyline as described here - but if you're copying from Powerpoint into Storyline, it may be an element that you're copying that is causing the issues. Does it occur with ever Powerpoint you're working on or just this particular one? Is that file also saved locally? Have you tried importing it in to see if that exhibits a different behavior? 

S L

Hi Ashley,

Mostly, I am just copying an image or some text. I haven't tried importing it yet, as it is mostly just for some info here and there and not the whole presentation. The ppt file is also saved locally and in the same folder as my Storyline file. It is with more than one Powerpoint, though I find it is mostly when I haven't touched the Storyline file for about 10min or more, as I am busy either in Powerpoint preparing or quickly designing an element in Adobe Illustrator. So it only happens if I haven't touched Storyline in a while, but it is still open and running, almost as if "falling asleep" in the background. And upon trying to awaken it, the whole program is completely dead, as if I am clicking on a photo, whereas all the other programs are still running smoothly.

 

And also what about the smoothness of the program, is it just me as described in my first comment above?

Thanks again,

S.L.

Ashley Terwilliger-Pollard

Hi SL, 

You can import individual slides into the Storyline file as described here. 

I don't have Adobe Illustrator to see how this exact scenario would behave on my end, but I haven't run into any issues with Powerpoint or other Microsoft programs open or really any other number of browser/programs open.  I know other users have mentioned the smoothness, and I vaguely remember another thread which I can't find currently, where a user mentioned seeing the behavior with Adobe open too - but again not something I've seen. 

If you have a particular file you'd like us to take a look at and see if it's reproducible in the file you can feel free to share here. 

S L

Hi Ashley,

Okay thanks I will have a look, though the smoothness is the biggest issue for me. If I for example work on a slide with multiple objects, and I then select them, then I have to "select, wait to see if it got selected, click on the next object, wait to see if it got selected", and so on. If I move to quickly with the selection (or at a completely normal pace in other programs) then it deselects them again and selects other objects that aren't even close to my mouse. This has been an issue that I have experienced since the beginning, over multiple versions and repairs over the past 3 months.

Also when working with groups and copy and pasting or undoing, it sometimes goes completely haywire and I lose work or have to redo that section. It's more of the feeling of "uncertainty and double the amount of time" that I am concerned about, as I have become very confident in all the other programs that I have worked on in the past, but I feel like I have to always double check whether the action that I am working on has taken placed or worked correctly.

I apologise if I sound difficult, I am just giving my honest experience and feedback, in case it might help you or other users with the same issues.

Thanks,

S.L.

Ashley Terwilliger-Pollard

Hi SL,

You don't sound difficult at all - and I certainly understand your concerns and frustrations. I haven't run into these same issues myself, and have heard sporadically from other users of similar issues with slow files. If you'd like to share some examples of this slowness and the impact it's having on your course development it may be best to use the options here to conduct a screen recording in the form of a support case and then you can also share the file with our team.

Please let me know if there is anything else I can do to assist. 

S L

Hi Ashley,

Thanks again for the reply, but the problem with my files are that they are for internal use only and contains sensitive company information, so I'm not able to post it to anyone outside unfortunately. Perhaps I can try do a generic test version and I will then let you know.

Thanks again and I will let you know if I can try a test later on.

S.L.

S L

Hi Ashley,

I thought I'd just give more feedback on the above-mentioned topic. This morning Storyline froze on me again, and I wasn't working in Powerpoint as I mentioned previously. (I just started up my computer.)

So it seems the freezing is unrelated to Powerpoint, but just a random event? I don't know if this helps.

Thanks and kind regards,

S.L.

S L

Hi Ashley,

An update regarding Storyline freezing on me. I have noticed a distinct pattern lately in the 3 weeks since we last communicated on the topic.

I have been experimenting to see what it might be and how it will react and I found the following:

1. If I open Powerpoint and copy text, a photo or anything else and then paste it into Storyline, then it is still fine. (I copy and paste instead of import, as it is a number of duplicate slides, with just the text and a photo being different each time, so it's just much quicker.) But as soon as I close the Powerpoint file that I have been copying from, then the Storyline file freezes. Then I lose any work since my last saving point as I have to do a force close with Windows Task Manager. (I have also waited to see if it might come back to life, but it is dead as a doornail.)

2. If I save and close the Storyline file and Storyline each time before closing the Powerpoint file, then it never crashes. So I have been resorting to this option and it has been fine, apart from when I forget to close Storyline first.

I hope that this might shed some more light on the topic/bug?

Kind regards,

Shaun

Ashley Terwilliger-Pollard

Hi Shaun,

Thanks for following up and sharing those steps. I tested the steps you shared here and copied a bunch of text boxes and images from a Powerpoint I had handy and just pasted them into new and existing Storyline slides. I then closed Powerpoint, and I could see the little blue spinning circle on my arrow within Storyline for about 2 seconds, and then I was able to proceed normally. 

It sounds like you're able to replicate this consistently and if I remember correctly reviewing what we did before, you already confirmed you're working with local project files (the .story and the .ppt file) and went through the repair documented here, so I would like you to connect with our Support engineers so that they can take a look at the behavior and determine some next steps. 

Once you connect with them, let me know so that I can follow along. 

S L

Hi Ashley,

Thanks, I will do so. Though you did make me think of something that I came across last week. The Powerpoint files are built by others in the company, which then gets mailed to me. Some of them I've had to import into Storyline, and when doing so, it gave me the "boolean error" of sorts, which took me to the "Save and work from your local C: and not a network and/or flash drive.

So I am starting to wonder whether maybe the error lies in the Powerpoint files that have been created by others and sent to me. I save them myself on my C: after receiving them via mail, but some of them still give the import error as if I am working from a network drive.

Does this ring any bells or maybe help a bit more? (Just thought I should mention it before going to Support?)

Thanks in advance,

Shaun

Ashley Terwilliger-Pollard

Hi Shaun,

It could be playing a role, especially if the files within the Powerpoint were not linked locally either - say the images you're trying to copy and they're carrying over an element of corruption into the Storyline project hence the freeze and eventual crash. If you're able to share a copy or even a portion of the Powerpoint file with our Support team they can try importing and copy/paste as well to see how it behaves on our end too. If you can share it publicly I'm also happy to give it a try here from the forums as well! 

S L

Hi Ashley,

Thanks again for the prompt reply, but unfortunately due to sensitive proprietary company information, I am unable to do so. I am however, notifying everyone that plays a role in the input of the modules that I work on and how they need to work and present them to me to be able to use.

Hopefully that solves the issue. Apologies, I realise that I am probably not being of much help, but I try to report what I can. :)

Kind regards,

S.L.

Ashley Terwilliger-Pollard

Hi Shaun,

No apologies necessary! We're able to sign an NDA if you'd like to send it along to our Support engineers, but also understand if you can't. Maybe as an additional test, you could have a colleague do a sample powerpoint file linking to images and elements on a local drive and a network drive, and then try importing that one. 

In the meantime, sharing some ideas and best practices in terms of working on project files will hopefully help ensure they send you what you need and how you need it! 

Let us know if you need anything else! 

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