Macromedia Captivate enables anyone to create software simulations

Macromedia has announced the release of Macromedia Captivate, a solution that enables anyone to easily record onscreen activity and create software demonstrations and interactive simulations. Macromedia Captivate will be available from local Macromedia distributor and Web enablement specialist, Dax Data, later this month.

Demonstrations visually show the steps required to complete a task, instead of forcing users to learn by reading step-by-step text-based instructions. Simulations provide an interactive learning experience that requires user input. Both content types can be automatically created with Captivate, and can include audio, animation and scored interaction. For more information on Macromedia Captivate, visit http://www.daxdata.co.za/htm/captivate.html.

"As more organisations invest in software as a critical component of their infrastructure, Captivate enables them to train users rapidly and more efficiently," says Jeremy Matthews, MD of Dax Data. "Instead of the time investment and cost of training users in person, Captivate lets anyone record actions, add annotation and voice, and create an experience as rich as having an instructor in the room."

Captivate goes beyond basic screen recording by letting users create customisable software simulations with scored interactivity and instructional feedback. The simulations and demonstrations can also be easily edited, which increases the productivity of content creators and training organisations.

Like Macromedia Breeze, Captivate automatically delivers engaging Macromedia Flash content that can be immediately viewed by more than a half billion Web users. Used together, Breeze and Captivate provide a robust technology solution to bring understanding and retention to the end-users of rapid training and e-learning solutions.

"Solutions that optimise business process are playing an increasingly critical role throughout the enterprise," says Matthews. "Interactive simulations and demonstrations can provide a rich learning experience by integrating varied content and mediums to promote better understanding of real-world scenarios and workflows."

With Captivate, trainers and teachers can provide a hands-on experience for learners by building interactive simulations that don`t require programming or multimedia skills to develop. Support representatives can enhance customer satisfaction and reduce costs by delivering visual tutorials 24/7. Marketing and sales professionals can enrich the customer experiences they deliver through high-quality, low-bandwidth product demonstrations.

Macromedia Captivate is a key component of the Macromedia rapid training solution. The tool creates content that supports learning standards such as AICC and SCORM to ensure that content can be tracked by standards-compliant learning management systems, and it integrates with the Questionmark Perception assessment system. Performance can be scored based on mouse clicks, keyboard shortcuts, data entry, buttons and quizzes.

E-learning professionals benefit as they can have learners practise an actual procedure hands-on using a simulation developed with Captivate, without having to manually code the interaction. Captivate projects can either be exported directly to Macromedia Flash MX 2004 for further enhancement, or be used as an asset within training content and applications created with Director and Authorware. Captivate simulations and demonstrations can be incorporated into Breeze presentations and meetings, enhancing the Breeze experience by allowing every participant to interact with the content. Captivate outputs printable handouts and Section 508 compliant content, ensuring accessibility for people with disabilities.