Loading external content (HTML, PDF) from a course in an LMS

I have created previous courses using Storyline where I used the Web Object to load in external content, such as PDFs and HTML pages. I’d done this to avoid SL’s default importing abilities, and liked that I could make as many updates to these external files as I needed without needing to re-import them into SL.  It also avoided needing to reload a SL project into the LMS, since these files were outside of the LMS/SCORM package. It was really nice file independence and developer convenience.

Needing  to be at an absolute URL to be shown in the Web Objects, that was easy for me to do since this client gave me full access to their web server. I’d create a directory, upload the necessary files, and then would have the absolute URLS to link to the WebObjects. The SL course itself was loaded into their simple LMS, and would have no trouble pulling in the external content. However, for an upcoming project, this setup might not exist: I’ll be working with a larger company that may not allow me to put files on their server (that’s for their IT dept. to allow or deny I’m sure), and I won’t have access to their 3rd party LMS. So I’m unsure how or if I’ll be able to display external content on SL slides like I’ve done before.

Lastly, another big benefit I’ve gotten from this is in the avoiding of bloating my SL project with dozens of PDF files and sometimes hundreds of video files (which were video embedded in the HTML files), so it’s a big swing for me to  no longer do that if everything needs to be in the Storyline ecosystem (which I understand is intended to ensure ease of loading courses into an LMS as well as prevent browser security problems).

If others have experienced loading external content that you’re responsible for, and putting courses into LMSs, I’d be curious to hear your thoughts or feedback.