Forum Discussion
Editing Branching in Storyline is so very difficult. What am I doing wrong?
I have a Storyline course just about completed, and I have to edit the branches by importing new slides. This process is complicated because I already have everything branched out! It takes me hours and hours to edit, because it's so confusing!
What am I missing! I must be doing something wrong. Should I mute all trigger actions before I import the new slides to simplify the branch updates?
This is the most difficult process I've ever had to go through when developing online content! I must be doing something wrong!
I hope someone can help.
Thanks!
9 Replies
Hi, this sounds pretty abstract. Is the situation that you are adding new content and there's no way to fit it on existing slides? If so, I hear you -- that's no fun. In that case, to add one slide, you'd have to change two existing slides to connect to the new slide, and then of course, configure the new slide. This is drudgery, but it doesn't have to be complex.
Another thing you can do is to print out a map of your course, so you know exactly where everything is going, and then you can draw in where the new stuff goes. I find having this helps keep me oriented.Lastly, it sounds like your project is due for some "re-factoring". It's always good to stop and ask if it needs to be as complex as it is. In the worst case, there's no change, but best case, you can make it easier going forward.
Hope this helps.
Thank you for your response. Unfortunately, at least in this case, I have to add new slides. So the drudgery will begin.
What steps should I take to print out a map of the course?
Thanks again. :)
Ah, ok. I understand. I've used Function-Print Screen (Windows), then used a graphics editor to increase the size if it was too small.
If I'm understanding the issue correctly - yes, you will have to adjust triggers. You can replace the slides, but you will need to reset all of the triggers in your branch.
Whenever I'm working with a branching scenario in Storyline I try to title my sides super specifically so it's easier to find them and set the right triggers.Is the branching all staying identical, but you need to replace the existing slides with new ones? Do you need to completely import new slides? You can't modify the existing slides?
Thanks for your response.
I have to add additional slides into scenes with updates slides. So yes, it's important that I keep my slide menu titles specific as I update the triggers.
I hope I can bring up another issue within this thread about branching. Why do I always see a scene going from one slide within a scene to another? I checked the triggers, and I did not see any triggers pointing to the scene. Also, why is one branching arrow red, and another branding arrow gray?
Hi again. The slide you've selected will show the arrow in red. As to why there's a link at all, check the Slide Properties. You may have left the default slide nav buttons in use.
When I started, I was very frustrated that the "previous" button navigates back to the last slide visited rather than the prior slide in the menu order. If I move around slides using the menu, the previous button leads me to all sorts of wonky places similar to using a web browser. In my current workflow, I edit my triggers so that "previous" and "next" target specific slides.
However, I usually reserve that step until the very end. Moving slides around is better with the default previous and next actions.
Oh yes, the previous button going back to the last slide visited caused a lot of frustration for me too.
