Looking Back at the 70+ Articulate 360 Features We Released in 2021
It’s amazing the degree to which new features can empower you to create even better e-learning. That’s one thing I love about Articulate 360 subscriptions—you get access to additional features as soon as we release them. Did you know that in 2021 alone, we released over 70? This list highlights every feature we released or enhanced last year. Browse through each one to discover how much your favorite course creation apps have evolved in just 12 short months. Storyline 360 360° Images Create immersive learning experiences by including 360° images in your Storyline 360 courses. And engage learners as they explore these images by adding interactive elements, such as hotspots and markers. Hotspot Hints for 360° Images Assist learners with finding all the hotspots in your 360° image guided tour interactions by providing on-screen text instructions. Learn more. Tooltips for 360° Images Help learners know what to expect before they click by displaying tooltips when learners hover over markers and hotspots in 360° interactions. Translation for 360° Images Simplify your translation process by exporting the content from your 360° interactions alongside the rest of your course when you export text to XLIFF or Word for translation. Learn more. Additional Accessibility Features for 360° Images Enable all learners to have the same engaging experience with your 360° images with new and enhanced accessibility features. Modern Player Accessible Contrast Meet WCAG accessibility guidelines for visual contrast and color with the updated modern player. These enhancements make it easier for all learners to read the player text, decipher the icons, perceive the controls, and navigate accurately. Learn more. Additional Keyboard Shortcuts for Learners Include more ways for learners to interact with courses with additional keyboard shortcuts, including options for Play/Pause, Previous, Next, and Submit. Plus, learners can now use the ESC key to close the shortcuts screen. “Previous” Button Accessibility Improvements Improve the course experience for learners using screen reader or keyboard navigation with this update to the Previous button. Now the Previous button on the first slide of a course or a lightbox gets disabled and skipped during keyboard navigation. Improved Closed Captioning Button Active State Make the Closed Captioning button active state more noticeable in the modern player. When the Closed Captioning button is enabled in the modern player, it’s now underlined in your chosen accent color Option to Display Accessible Text by Default Ensure your course content is accessible by setting accessible text as the default text for a course. Learn more. Improved Seekbar Accessibility Create a better seekbar experience for learners using screen readers on mobile devices. They can now seek back and forth and the seekbar is visible in high-contrast mode. Two-Color Focus Indicator Make the accessibility focus indicator in the modern player more visible against any background in your course by selecting two colors—one light and one dark—for it. Customize Captions Font Size Improve closed caption readability in the modern player. You can now increase closed caption font size up to 200%. Logo Alt Text Make your course logo accessible to learners using screen readers and other assistive technologies by adding alternative (alt) text to it. Learn more. Custom xAPI Statements Enable advanced tracking options that give you additional data about learner activity by using triggers to define custom xAPI statements. LRS Support Expand your options for collecting learner data by publishing your Storyline 360 courses for a learning record store (LRS). Learn more. xAPI Debug Tool Troubleshoot xAPI statements quickly using the new debugger. Language Identification in xAPI (Tin Can API) Courses Simplify how you identify the language of an xAPI (Tin Can API) course with the Language Code field in the reporting and tracking options. Additional Question Bank Scoring Options Refine how question banks with branching are scored in a course using the new “Only Score Viewed Questions” box. Learn more. Improved Scoring for Combined Result Slides Avoid scoring conflicts when you require learners to pass each quiz in a Combined Result slide. This updated process prevents rare situations where learners could get a minimum passing score for each quiz and still fail the entire course. Learn more. Elapsed Time Variables Create timed interactions and conditional triggers using built-in variables that track the total time a learner spends on a slide, a scene, or an entire course. JavaScript Editor Improvements: Syntax Highlighting and Line Numbers Speed up your workflow in the Storyline 360 JavaScript editor with the help of syntax highlighting and line numbers. Word Translation Improvements Speed up the translation process for you and your translators. Word export options now provide more context for translators, preserve all text formatting, and use the modern DOCX format. Also, basic formatting changes made in the translated Word document are preserved during the Storyline 360 import process. Learn more. SVG Support Help images stay sharp when learners zoom in and out by importing scalable vector graphics (SVGs) to Storyline 360. Increased the Built-in Widescreen (16:9) Slide Size Get more room to work and avoid unexpected scroll bars in text objects with a larger built-in widescreen (16:9) slide size: 960x540. Define Default Slide Size Speed up the start of course development by setting a default slide size for new projects. Learn more. Modern Player Custom Color Customize the modern player to match your course color scheme by selecting your own background color. Course Cover Photo Improve branding and give learners a preview of the subject matter by adding a course cover photo in the modern player. Learn more. Text Overflow Autofit Improvements Refine how on-screen copy is displayed and improve accessibility with more ways to manage and fine-tune course text elements. This update also includes options for how to handle text that doesn’t fit its bounding box. Learn more. Turn on these improvements by simply upgrading your project text. Seekbar Display Improvements on Mobile Devices Improve how your course seekbar looks on mobile devices. In landscape mode, the seekbar now displays below the slide content and no longer overlaps the slide content. Upgraded Microsoft .NET Framework to Version 4.8 Keep everything up to date with this shift to the Microsoft .NET Framework dependency for Storyline 360 to version 4.8. Updates to the Embedded Version of Chromium Stay current with these updates to the embedded version of Chromium. In 2021 it was upgraded to 90.0.4430.93 and then 94.0.4606.81. Classic Trigger Workflow Retired Simplify your choices for working with triggers with this change: the new trigger workflow is now the only trigger workflow. End of Flash Importing and Publishing Modernize your options for importing content and publishing courses with this update. Since Adobe discontinued Flash at the end of 2020, we removed Flash features, including the options to import Flash movies and publish Flash output, from Storyline 360. Rise 360 Section 508 Accessibility Support Feel confident that Rise 360 courses reach all learners now that it supports Section 508 accessibility guidelines. See our conformance report for details. Accessible Block Management While Authoring Improve course navigation accessibility. Screen readers can now see and announce the Move Up, Move Down, and Duplicate buttons. Fully Accessible Labeled Graphic Blocks Enable all learners to access your graphic interactions with improved keyboard navigation, screen reader support, and a color selector for markers. New Image Alignment Options for Interactive Blocks Enjoy even more ways to lay out your images with multiple alignment options in accordion, tabs, timeline, and process blocks. Text Contrast on Cover Photos Set the text contrast on your cover photo to 0% to avoid Rise 360 darkening it further if your course photo is already dark enough to meet accessibility contrast standards. In-progress Audio/Video Playback Position Automatically Bookmarked Automatically bookmark the playback position of in-progress audio or video when learners navigate away from or close a lesson. Video Player Language Support Localize the video player automatically by choosing one of 16 supported languages. Learn more. “Continue” Button Style Options for Quiz Lessons Customize your quiz lesson user interface by choosing what kind of button displays at the end: the standard Next Lesson button or a Continue button. Learn more. New Course Template: Effective Workplace Presentations Use the latest course template to help learners deliver more effective presentations in a workplace setting. Review 360 Manually Upload Storyline 360 Courses Manually upload your courses to Review 360. This feature is helpful when publishing directly from Storyline 360 is blocked by a firewall or the published output needs to be edited before it’s shared with stakeholders. Manually Upload Video Versions Simplify your review process by creating new versions of videos that you’ve manually uploaded to Review 360. Version Management Control which versions of a project stakeholders see in Review 360 by using the hide and restore options. Unfurl Links in Collaboration Apps Make it easier for people to preview a Review 360 link when it’s shared in collaboration apps, like Slack. The link now expands to give your team a preview of the project’s title, author, and thumbnail image. Content Library 360 New Template Sets Synergy templates Vitality templates Essence templates New Characters Renita Craig Dante Pamela Charles Simone Jayla Eric Maya Jada Jamal Replay 360 Digitally Signed Executables Improve security with this update. All executables installed with Replay 360—such as lame.exe and encoder.exe—are digitally signed for better performance in highly secure environments. Studio 360 End of Flash Importing and Publishing Modernize your options for importing content and publishing courses with this update. Since Adobe discontinued Flash at the end of 2020, we removed Flash features, including the options to import Flash movies and publish Flash output, from Studio 360. Articulate 360 Teams Team Member Removal Options Avoid accidental content deletion with simplified options when removing a team member. Removal choices are now limited to transferring that member’s content or doing nothing. Manage Undelivered Invites Make identifying and resending invitation emails that bounce back easy with improvements to the team management console. Learn more. Articulate Training English Closed Captions View our on-demand videos and recorded training webinars with English closed captions. Articulate 360 Desktop App and Dashboard Browser-based Sign-in Experience Align with the latest security best practices by using your default web browser to sign in to the Articulate 360 desktop app. Learn more. Automatic Updates Get access to all the newest features and functions in Articulate 360 with automatic updates. Automatic updates are now enabled by default for all new and existing installations (unless your organization has disabled them). But you can always choose to opt out via your Articulate 360 desktop app preferences. Refreshed Articulate 360 Dashboard Discover helpful Articulate 360 resources—such as Rise 360 templates and Articulate 360 Training videos—with the new dashboard layout. That’s a lot of exciting ways to speed up your workflow and broaden what you can create! So be sure to check out any you might have missed when they launched and let us know in the comments which you’re enjoying most. Want to try out some of these features, but don’t have Articulate 360 just yet? Start a free 30-day trial, and come back to E-Learning Heroes regularly for more helpful advice on everything related to e-learning.How to Decide Which Articulate 360 App to Use for Screen Recording
Since software training is one of the most common types of e-learning, it’s no surprise that Articulate 360 includes not one, not two, but three apps with screen recording features. Each of these apps has a unique feature set and is specifically designed for a different purpose. If you’re wondering which app to use for your project, you’re in the right place! Keep reading to learn more about how screen recording differs in Peek 360, Replay 360, and Storyline 360 and the types of projects best suited for each. Peek 360 Peek 360 is a lightweight app that works natively on both Macs and PCs and lives in your menu bar or system tray, so it’s always just a click away. Once you’ve recorded your screen, it automatically uploads to Review 360, generating a shareable link. You can also download the .MP4 file and insert the video into your Rise 360 or Storyline 360 courses or export it for LMS to use it as a stand-alone asset. Since Peek 360 doesn’t have editing capabilities, it’s best for recording short screencasts to share with team members on the fly or to insert into your courses as is. Check out our tutorials and user guide for more details on how to create and distribute screencasts with Peek 360. Replay 360 If you’re looking to create a longer screencast that could require some editing, Replay 360 might be a better choice. In addition to some lightweight editing options, this Windows-compatible desktop app allows you to record your screen and your webcam simultaneously, creating a cool picture-in-picture effect. You can also insert images, video clips, and lower thirds, making it easy to create a polished tutorial video that you can use on its own or insert into your Rise 360 or Storyline 360 course. For more information on Replay 360, check out our tutorials and user guide. Storyline 360 Storyline 360 also allows you to record your screen, but unlike Peek 360 and Replay 360, that’s not its sole purpose. Storyline 360 is a full-fledged authoring app that not only lets you record screencasts and build software simulations but also lets you add custom interactions, quizzes, and much more. This makes Storyline 360 the ideal choice when you want your software training to be interactive. It’s also a great option if you want to overlay text or objects—like arrows or highlight zones—on top of your video. Storyline 360 has some editing capabilities, allowing you to make adjustments to your recording after the fact. You can also easily add subtitles to your screencast—and your entire course—directly in Storyline 360, which is great for accessibility. When you’re done, you can publish to video, web, or LMS. If you want to take a closer look at the screen recording feature in Storyline 360, check out this tutorial or head on over to the user guide. The Bottom Line Peek 360, Replay 360, and Storyline 360 are all great options for recording your screen. Which app you use depends on your project requirements. If you need to record a screencast super-fast, Peek 360 is the way to go. When you want to edit your screencast or record your webcam along with it, go with Replay 360. And when you want to create an interactive software simulation, overlay additional content, or add subtitles to your screen recording, opt for Storyline 360. To make it super-easy to compare the feature-sets of the different apps, I pulled together this quick-reference guide: Peek 360 Replay 360 Storyline 360 Work natively on Macs X Work natively on PCs X X X Record screen X X X Record mic audio X X X Record webcam X X* Edit recording X X Add interactivity X Add closed captions X Publish to video (.MP4) X X X Publish for LMS X** X** X Publish to Review 360 X X X Once you’ve decided which app to use, you might be wondering how to start building your software training. Here’s an article that’ll help you get off on the right foot: Follow This Process to Create Software Simulations and Systems Training Like a Pro. Want to try out these apps, but don’t have Articulate 360? Start a free 30-day trial. And subscribe to our newsletter to get the latest product updates, e-learning examples, and expert advice directly in your inbox. *Webcam recording must be done separately from screen recording **Publish FoR LMS via Review 360Articulate 360: Using the Desktop-Authoring Apps
The Articulate 360 desktop app makes it easy to install and open desktop-authoring apps, including Storyline 360, Studio 360, Replay 360, and Peek 360. Learn More About the Authoring Apps Install Authoring Apps Launch Authoring Apps Update Authoring Apps Uninstall Authoring Apps Learn More About the Authoring Apps The following desktop-authoring apps are included with your Articulate 360 subscription. Click the product links to learn more about each app. Storyline 360 Build mobile and online courses with any interaction you can imagine. Your course will look beautiful and work great on every device with the new responsive player, which includes touchscreen gesture support and mobile-friendly playback controls. The responsive player dynamically adapts to tablets and smartphones, giving learners the best view of your course on every device. You can even preview how your course will look and behave on different devices in Storyline 360 with new responsive preview features. Note: As of May 2024, 64-bit Storyline 360 is the default Storyline version in the desktop app. That means you get all the benefits with no extra steps. Studio 360 Rapidly transform PowerPoint slides into online and mobile courses with the Studio 360 apps, including: Presenter 360 makes it easy to add narration, annotations, characters, and more to existing PowerPoint content. Engage 360 lets you quickly create form-based interactions. Quizmaker 360 is an intuitive tool for creating any type of assessment or quiz. Studio 360 includes the new responsive player, so your courses look great and work perfectly on every device. Replay 360 Record and edit personalized training videos with Replay 360. Walk learners through on-screen content by capturing screen activity and yourself on webcam—at the same time or separately. Fine-tune your screencasts to flip between video clips, or show two at once with picture-in-picture effects. Separate, trim, and delete sections to tell the best story. And add text to the lower third of the screen to emphasize important information. Publish videos to Review 360 to collect feedback from stakeholders or publish as MP4 videos for your e-learning courses. Peek 360 Easily record brief screencasts with Peek 360. Peek 360 is always a click away in the Windows system tray. Simply select the app you want to record, then drag the recording frame to customize your view. Peek 360 automatically uploads videos to Review 360 with a unique URL, making them easy to share. Install Authoring Apps You can install the current version of any authoring app with a single click, or you can go back to a previous version when there's a design change or new feature that you're not ready to use. How to Install the Latest Version of an App Open the Articulate 360 desktop app by clicking the icon in your computer’s system tray (by the clock), then click the Install button for any of the desktop-authoring apps: Storyline 360, Studio 360, Replay 360, or Peek 360. It’s that easy! You’ll see a progress bar for each app while it’s installing, then the Install button will change to an Open button when the installation is complete. How to Install a Previous Version of an App There might be times when you need to install a previous version of an authoring app. For example, if there’s a new Storyline 360 feature that you’re not ready to use, you can go back to an older version of the app until you have time to learn more about the new feature. Here’s how. Open the Articulate 360 desktop app and mouse-over the app you want to change. Click the drop-down arrow that appears and choose Other Versions. A list of all the versions released in the past six months will appear. Click Install for the version you want to install. An optional "Product Feedback" dialog will appear. After your selection, the dialog will close and your chosen version will automatically install. (Tip: Click any date or version number in the list to see the change log for that release.) When you install a previous version of an app, you’ll see an Updates Paused tag in the Articulate 360 desktop app, as shown below. This is a visual reminder that you’re using an older version of that app. Future updates won’t install for paused apps when you click Update All. To update an app that’s paused, click Updates Paused, choose Other Versions from the menu that appears, and click Install for the most recent version of the app. Launch Authoring Apps One way to launch your authoring apps is to open the Articulate 360 desktop app by clicking the icon in your computer’s system tray (by the clock) and then click the Open button for the app you want to use. (When you click the Open button for Studio 360, you’ll see a menu where you can choose Presenter 360, Quizmaker 360, or Engage 360.) Another way to launch your authoring apps is to go to your computer’s Start menu and click the app you want to use. Peek 360 Tip Peek 360 runs in the background, so the fastest way to start a screen recording is to click the Peek 360 icon in your computer’s system tray (by the clock). Update Authoring Apps One of the benefits of an Articulate 360 subscription is that you get continuous updates when new features are available. If notifications are enabled in your preferences, you’ll get a Windows notification, like the one shown below, when an update is available. And even if notifications are disabled, you’ll always see when an update is available as soon as you open the Articulate 360 desktop app. A blue banner with an update option appears across the top of the app. If you’ve disabled automatic updates, you can snooze this notification. Otherwise, simply click the Update All button to update all your apps at the same time. Or, click Update Available next to any app and choose Install Update to update one app at a time, as shown below. How to Update Paused Apps When you install a previous version of an app, you’ll see an Updates Paused tag for that particular app, as shown below. Clicking the blue Update All button won’t update paused apps. To update an app that’s paused, click Updates Paused, choose Other Versions from the menu that appears, and click Install for the most recent version of the app. Uninstall Authoring Apps Uninstalling apps is just as easy as installing them. Mouse-over an app, click the drop-down arrow that appears, and choose the Uninstall option. (Tip: You can also uninstall Articulate apps via the Windows control panel.)Replay 360: Mixing Media
Replay 360 lets you mix videos and images to control how both tracks in the timeline interact with one another. Flip smoothly between tracks or show both tracks at the same time with a picture-in-picture modes. It's your choice. Adding Media Mixes Changing Media Mixes Adjusting the Timing and Duration of Media Mixes Removing Media Mixes Adding Media Mixes To add a media mix: Click the timeline at the point where you want to add a media mix. The playhead will move to that point on the timeline. Click any of the four mix buttons below the video stage. A+B: This is a picture-in-picture mix that fills the stage with content from track A and also displays content from track B in the corner of the stage. A: This fills the stage with content from track A. Content in track B won't be displayed (though audio from track B will still be heard). B: This fills the stage with content from track B. Content in track A won't be displayed (though audio from track A will still be heard). B+A: This is a picture-in-picture mix that fills the stage with content from track B and also displays content from track A in the corner of the stage. If you chose a picture-in-picture mix in the previous step, select a Picture-in-Picture Quadrant in the panel on the right side of the screen for the smaller of the two videos. Tip: You can add as many media mixes as you like to flip back-and-forth between tracks or switch to a picture-in-picture mode. Changing Media Mixes Need to change an existing media mix to a different one? No problem. Right-click the mix you want to change and select another mix from the context menu. To change the quadrant for a picture-in-picture mix, select the media mix you want to adjust, then click a quadrant in the panel on the right side of the screen. Adjusting the Timing and Duration of Media Mixes To change the timing of a media mix, drag it left or right along the timeline. Dashed vertical lines will appear when objects are aligned to help you with exact placement. To change the duration of a media mix, drag its left or right edge on the timeline. Dashed vertical lines will appear when objects are aligned to help you with exact placement. Removing Media Mixes To remove a media mix, just select it on the timeline, then press the Delete key on your keyboard.
