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pixpusher
pixpusher
Inspiring
March 31, 2011
Question

Adding PDFs to Adobe Captivate SCORM packages

  • March 31, 2011
  • 4 replies
  • 8219 views

For some reason my linked PDFs (For downloads) are not being added to my SCORM zip archive when I publish. This is just a simple "open file" attachment that works well when I publish as HTML only.

When I unzip and manually add the files, my SCORM package isn't recognized by my LMS.

Why won't Captivate package up all the files like it does with flvs.

Please advise. Thanks in advance

    This topic has been closed for replies.

    4 replies

    D
    DupontDC_SPG
    Participant
    November 4, 2015

    Hello!

    This post is SUPER old!


    But...

    On a Mac when you re-package you cannot just right-click and "Compress".  It creates an archive that the LMS cannot unpack.

    I use the Stuffit Archive Manager to create the .zip file and the LMS accepts it.

    Allen_Partridge
    Adobe Employee
    Allen_Partridge
    Adobe Employee
    April 2, 2011

    Thanks for this Pix. I'm filing an Enhancement request to see if Cp can support embedding the linked PDF's automatically the way it does with FLV files.

    W
    www_cpguru_com
    Inspiring
    April 4, 2011

    One thing is embedding the files in the ZIP file, but another more important thing is actually adding the files to the IMSmanifest.xml.

    Captivate does not do this with any assets at all and this is probably why a lot of people are experiencing problems when uploading SCORM packages in their LMS. Most LMS' will accept "undeclared resources" but some won't and that can cause a lot of pain and grief.

    So.. FLV's are not added to the SCORM manifest, any externalized resources (widgets, animations etc.) are not added, PDF's are not added. Actually "standard.js" is not declared either ;o)

    /Michael

    Visit my Captivate blog with tips & tricks, tutorials and Widgets.

    RodWard
    Community Expert
    RodWardCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    April 4, 2011

    Wouldn't it be nice then if there was a screen inside the Publish settings where you could specify any other files that had to be included as part of the output so that Captivate could grab them and dump them inside a Resources folder inside the SCO?

    Then if the Publishing engine sees that SCORM settings are in effect, it could also modify the code inside the imsmanifest it creates so as to list these same resources and thereby satisfy all those finnicky LMSs out there.

    After five versions, Captivate should be almost bulletproof when it comes to SCORM, but it still has some annoying little things that seem to prevent it from enjoying a reputation as a "works right out of the box" solution.

      RodWard
      Community Expert
      RodWardCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      April 1, 2011

      Your LMS may be very picky when it comes to the contents listed in the imsmanifest.xml file being exactly the same as those found in the package.  If so, and you just basically dumped in the PDF without adding it to the imsmanifest, then your LMS might be rejecting your package for that reason.

      pixpusher
      pixpusherAuthor
      Inspiring
      April 1, 2011

      Yes, I was thinking this myself and will crack open the xml file to investigate. I also sent the Src CP files to my LMS tech support to see if they can troubleshoot.  I would hate to have to go back and edit 30 xml files.

      I still don't understand why the PDFs weren't pulled into the SCORM archive like the video files are. Maybe that's something to add to the CP6 wishlist?

      RodWard
      Community Expert
      RodWardCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      April 1, 2011

      Just because you happen to insert a link to a file somewhere in your lesson won't cause Captivate to grap that file and place it in your publish folder.  I agree that might be a nice option, but it's not currently the way the app works.  So you need to place the PDF inside the publish folder yourself.

      Having the file also added automatically to the imsmanifest.xml in the SCORM is a whole other issue.  Aside from the SCORM settings available in the quiz reporting options, you don't have much inside Captivate that allows you to control the way the imsmanifest.xml is coded.

      A
      Anonymous
      March 31, 2011

      Hi,

      You should give the relative path of the pdf file (say x.pdf) in the "Open URL" field. (say enter the pdf name x.pdf)

      Now after publishing the project, you have to place this pdf in the published folder and then zip it. (Make sure zipping does not create one more extra sub-folder)

      Now if you upload this zip file to the LMS then it should work.

      Let me know if it works for you.

      Regards,

      Vikranth.

      pixpusher
      pixpusherAuthor
      Inspiring
      March 31, 2011

      Yes I did do this. The path to the PDFs is correct. It may be either a problem with the LMS not recognizing my zipped file since I am using a MAC. The video files were transferred automatically to the zipped folder from Captivate. Strange that the PDFs didn't.

      I will post my results once I figure this out.
      Thank you.

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