It seems we could all use 30 hours in a day to help get everything done, but there’s no use in hoping that dream will come true—we’re left to our own devices to make everything fit into our busy schedules. Keyboard shortcuts are one way to do that.  Back in March, Diane wrote a post about keyboard shortcuts that work in most software. And be sure to check out our reference guides for keyboard shortcuts for Storyline , Lectora , and Captivate. I’ve spent most of my time lately in Storyline. Insert Cue Point. Favorite Keyboard Shortcuts. Format Painter for States. MORE >>

Many people have been asking about what Articulate Storyline can do for you and how it compares to Articulate Studio, Captivate, and Lectora. In this podcast , Diane Elkins and Desirée Pinder share their perspective on Storyline. They introduce you to the tool, discuss some of the features, and explain the differences between Storyline and some of the other authoring tools they use. Hear who they think is winning the authoring tool race between Storyline, Captivate, and Lectora for the following categories: Ease of Use. Power. Graphics. Mobile Publishing. Price. Listen now. MORE >>

Do you use music in your courses? ve found time and time again that a little bit of well-placed music can add a surprising amount of polish and – more importantly – set the tone of the overall experience. Music can take a shortcut through people’s brains and tap into their emotions in a way that’s uncommon with spoken or written words. Take this promo I showed as part of the ID Challenge session at DevLearn a few weeks ago. The impact came from timing the verbal and visual elements to a music track that perfectly captured the mood I wanted to create. Show restraint. Of course not. Just do it. MORE >>

Multiple-choice questions are often maligned by instructional designers. I’ve heard I’ve heard the following at conferences. Multiple-choice questions don’t measure anything.”. It’s too easy to guess them.”. Real life doesn’t have multiple-choice questions, so why should our course?”. So are they truly that evil? No, they aren’t if they are used properly. The problem is that it is quick and easy to write and program bad multiple-choice questions.  An unskilled instructional designer can look for simple facts in the content and ask simple questions about it.  You aren’t. MORE >>

Once we have established the business need and learning objectives for a project, our next big task is to gather the content. We often start with existing instructor-led materials (which usually only contain about 30-50% of what is actually communicated to the students) or a group of various documents that have been created over time (such as a PowerPoint for a meeting, a PDF describing part of a process, a manual that outlines procedures, etc.) It is then our challenge to turn this often rough information into effective e-learning. What are some of the areas that cause the most confusion? MORE >>