NVDA Storyline 360 Software Simulation Issue
Hello all, I have been working on a software training course for a while, but I cannot share the product file, so I have tried my best to replicate the issue with a brief PowerPoint activity. My current project file has 6 scenes and 452 slides. I am looking for the easiest fix to the issue at this point, while avoiding backtracking on work. Any assistance would be GREATLY appreciated as I am close to my wits' end. Below is a synopsis of the issue, the fixes I have tried, and the attached PowerPoint Activity project file. Build Background: I used the screen recording features in Storyline 360 to create both Try Mode Steps and Test Mode Steps for scenes in the course. I turned off Show Animation in the Capture Action Fine Turning. I have ensured that hotspot and text entry interactions are at the top of the timeline, above all other elements. I have deleted triggers where possible, but some of the Play Video Screen Recording Action When the User Clicks Hotspot 1 remain, as the program won't allow them to be deleted even after turning off the animations, so I have disabled them. I had to make additional cover-ups to hide employee IDs and information, as I did not have a fake user account. The cover-ups have been hidden from accessibility tools. Issue: When navigating the course with NVDA and Microsoft Narrator, the Try Again layer keeps deploying as the user selects the hotspot button for a second and announces "Incorrect," which will lead to annoyance and confusion for the learner. The Try Again layer does not deploy in the Test Mode Steps scenes, but it does in the Try Mode Steps scenes. The Try Again layer does not deploy when using keyboard navigation without a screen reader enabled. I do not want to remove the Try Again feedback, as it is important for sighted users. Triggers on Base Layer: When the user clicks outside Hotspot 1 - Show layer Try Again When the user clicks Hotspot 1 - Jump to slide next slide (Disabled) When the user clicks Hotspot 1 - Play video Screen Recording Action Triggers on Try Again Layer: When user clicks Try Again - Hide layer this layer Solutions Tried But No Success: Running the file as a published SCORM in test environment, Review 360, and in preview mode- Try Again layer still deploys in all environments. Expanding the hotspot area beyond the identified bounds. Changing the order of the user clicks outside Hotspot 1 and the user clicks Hotspot 1 triggers on the base layer but Storyline 360 does not allow me to change the position of these triggers under Hotspot 1 in the trigger menu. Adding back in the correct layers of the screen recording as shown in scene two of my attached example.Accessible systems training
Hi all, I was wondering what people's thoughts are on best practice of making systems training in Articulate Storyline360 accessible, targeting WCAG 2.2 AA. Presumably the system being recorded itself needs to be accessible to this standard for users. How does the built in screen recording show me/try me type content behave with screen readers and key board navigation? Any experiences from end users that use assistive technologies, that have been through systems training? Thanks in advanceNew Audio Descriptions Resource
We recently published a new article on improving video accessibility with audio descriptions in Storyline 360. If your videos include important visual details, such as on-screen text or charts, audio descriptions help ensure that learners who are blind or have low vision can access key information. In this resource, you’ll learn: When to use audio descriptions Differences between standard and extended descriptions How to add them in Storyline 360 Tips for writing effective descriptions How WCAG guidelines apply Are you using audio descriptions in your courses? Are there other accessibility topics we should cover? We want to hear from you!Accessibility Checker Results Export?
Is there a way to export the full results of the accessibility checker? Our Accessibility office is trying to work with us on changes necessary and they don't have a license to access the software. We want to be able to easily share the results with them. I am also registered for the Yukon Learning Accessibility course in Feb. 2026.(loading) speed of Storyline 360 slides
Hi all, Does anyone know what influences the loading time of storyline 360 slides? We are creating educational games with storyline, and are trying to figure out how we can decrease the amount of loading (with the three loading dots) between slides. I have a few ideas on what impacts the slide loading time, for example: Amount of layers on a slide Amount of objects on a slide Amount of images in a slide The length of javascript functions The amount of audio files The size of audio files The amount of video files And maybe other that I haven't thought of yet.. And a few questions: Does it matter if you put objects / images / video / audio on timeline start, or after let's say 1 second? How does Storyline internal "pre-load" slide work? I have read somewhere it makes an educated guess which slide comes next, and preloads it. But, as we make a slide selection based on variables, that won't work. Is there any way we can feed storyline information about the upcoming slide, so it can preload it already? I'm very curious to your insights. I will also do some research myself the next few months, and share the outcome, but it will help to gather some input and thoughts from other users before diving in further!New Tutorial! Build Dynamic Animated Bar Charts In Storyline Using JavaScript
Hi Heroes, I’m excited to share the latest episode of my Storyline Magic Series with you all! In this episode, I'll be showing you how to create dynamic animated bar charts in Articulate Storyline 360, using standard Storyline shapes, variables, and a touch of JavaScript magic. 📊✨ One of the highlights of this technique is that your chart animations are controlled using Storyline number variables, and bar shapes will adjust their height beautifully across all screen sizes, ensuring consistent results for all users. By the end of the tutorial, you’ll have a reusable template that you can apply to any bar chart designs you want to bring to life in Storyline! Check out the full tutorial below, along with a link to all previous episodes in the series: Watch the full series here - https://lnkd.in/dNvyD7wv --- My name's Chris Hodgson, an eLearning developer and software trainer based in the UK. I enjoy creating fun, unique, and engaging online experiences using Articulate software! Connect with me on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrishodgson44/
Always on top
I just set myself the challenge of having elements that are "always on top". I've worked on a handful of courses in the past, that had an irregular shaped header graphic (sometimes with drop shadow), where it would have been great to be able to set some elements in the Master Template to appears always on top of other elements within the module. For those courses, I had to create a slice of the header (the irregular shaped part) and paste on each slide, where the header appeared over another element on the slide. I have had some success, and of course it is a JavaScript implementation. This is very much an ALPHA release. Here's the implementation if interested in having a play with it or extending it. I'm sure there will be some elements, that I haven't played with, that may need some extra logic in the JS. For each element you would like to appear always on top, add the string "{AOT}" in the "Alternative text" field. If the element is decorative, you can just add "{AOT}". This will be taken care of during processing (removed, and set to aria-hidden=true). If the element is non-decorative, for example an exit button, you would just add "{AOT}Exit" to the alternative text. This would also be process, and "{AOT}" removed and "Exit" retained in the ALT text. Add the following script to the "timeline starts" on the SLIDE MASTER. This ensures that the script will process on every slide. const init = () => { // inititial value for z-index let z = 999; // get all elements with data-acc-text attribute starting with "{AOT}" const elements = document.querySelectorAll('[data-acc-text^="{AOT}"]'); // loop through each element elements.forEach(element => { // get the modelId and accText from the element's dataset const { modelId, accText } = element.dataset; // get the root element with the same modelId const rootElement = document.querySelector(`[data-model-id="${modelId}"]`); // set the z-index of the root element (incrementing by 1 each time) rootElement.style.zIndex = z++; // get the alternative text by removing "{AOT}" from accText and trimming the result const alt = String(accText).replace('{AOT}', '').trim(); // get the alt element with the id "acc-${modelId}" const altElement = document.getElementById(`acc-${modelId}`); // set the alternative text to the element's dataset element.dataset.accText = alt; // re-write the inner text of the alt element altElement.innerText = alt; // if the alternative text is empty (decorative), set the aria-hidden attribute to true and the z-index to -1 if (!alt) { altElement.setAttribute('aria-hidden', 'true'); altElement.style.zIndex = '-1'; } else { if (altElement.hasAttribute('aria-label')) altElement.setAttribute('aria-label', alt); } }); }; requestAnimationFrame(() => { init(); }); I've also including a very simple example file. This just demonstrates that the designated "Always on top" elements will appear over the image on the slide.Return focus to hyper link from layer
This might be a bit of a niche requirement, but it came up a few weeks ago when testing content for a client. If you use a hyperlink (text with a link on it) to show a layer in Storyline, you cannot return the focus to the hyperlink that showed the layer, when closing the layer. Storyline does not return the the focus automatically like it does with other elements such as buttons, nor is it possible to return the focus to a hyperlink using triggers, as the hyperlink is not exposed as an object that you can send focus to. The result is that the focus is returned to the top of the current slide when closing a layer that has been shown using a hyperlink. Maybe the Storyline engineers can fix this up? The solution is a bit of JavaScript. Firstly, we need to add some JavaScript to the Storyline project, to make a function available throughout the project. The best way to do this is to add the following JavaScript to the "When timeline starts on this slide - Execute JavaScript" to the Slide Master. window.RM_focusToLink = function(index) { const arrindex = Number(index) - 1; setTimeout(function(){ var link = document.querySelectorAll('#slide a')[arrindex]; link.focus(); },100); } Then, within the layer, you need to add the following JavaScript to the button (or any other trigger) that is closing the layer: window.RM_focusToLink(1); The number 1 that is placed within the brackets is the argument that needs to be passed to target a specific link on the slide. In this case, it is link number 1 which just means it's the first link on the slide (with regards to the order it appears in the Document Object Model). I did consider targeting the link using the text within the link, but then considered that could be duplicate links with the same name, and so using the index is the safest. For any programmers out there, I'm starting the index at 1 rather than 0 (zero) to make it more user friendly. I have attached a demo file.How To Embed An ElevenLabs Conversational AI Widget Into SL360 Using JS!
Hi Heroes, It feels like something new and exciting is always around the corner in the world of generative AI technology, and this week ElevenLabs put themselves firmly in the driving seat of the agentic AI revolution with their new Conversational AI toolkit. If you haven't heard of this yet, check out this video which explains it all: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-EYzZCLF48&ab_channel=ElevenLabs The interactive, animated widget that this toolkit provided is easy to embed anywhere, including directly within an Articulate Storyline 360 project slide! If you're interested in how to get started, I've written a blog post that includes all the steps, including an Execute JavaScript snippet you can use to effortlessly get your agent loaded into your activity: https://discoverelearninguk.com/how-to-set-up-elevenlabs-conversational-ai-widget-in-articulate-storyline-360/ I'm also currently experimenting with the API for the new Conversational toolkit to understand how I can implement it into my eLearning Magic Toolkit plugin for Storyline + WordPress, potentially opening the door for developing real-time voice activated automation all within a Storyline-built eLearning activity! Much more to come very soon. 🚀 --- My name's Chris Hodgson, an eLearning developer and software trainer based in the UK. I enjoy creating fun, unique, and engaging online experiences using Articulate software! Connect with me on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrishodgson44/
