Blurring/Obscuring background when zooming

[Kopriva]

Hi all,

Thought this would be simple, but can't figure it out.  In a software demonstration using Cap 9 I am applying a zoom area to a certain spot on the screen, and wanted to obscure the background (rest of the software screen) as it zooms.  Ideally, I'd like to BLUR the background - but can't seem to find the blur effect in Cap 9.

I tried using a highlight box the same size/position as my zoom destination and graying out the "outer area" of the highlight box - but I can't get the timing right because I obviously want the obscuring to start as soon as the zoom BEGINS - but the highlight box is in the position of the destination at the END of the zoom - so basically everything grays out except this nice clear empty box just sitting there waiting for the zoom to finish.

Any ideas?

Thanks!  Chris

[Lilybiri · Accepted solution]

Let me first answer the question about the Blur effect. It is still in Captivate 9, but doesn't appear in the Timing Properties panel because it is not (fully) supported for HTML output. You can find the Blur in the Gallery, Other Effects. It can be applied using the Browse (folder) icon in the Timing Properties to the right of the Applied Effects List.

There will not be an easy way to achieve what you want (also wonder why you use software demo simulation instead of Video Demo which has a much better editor for panning/zooming). You could try to apply a Scale effect to the Highlight box, but it will be a lot of trial and error to have the highlight box following the zoom area. Luckily with CP9 you can have a good idea of the effects with the Play button on the Timeline panel.

Tip: use the new Guides to help define the exact size you want the highlight box to zoom to, you can control that with the parameters.

Just tested it out on an example and it works fine. Maybe I'll post the work flow on my blog.

[Kopriva]

Thanks for the response.  Let me know if you get a chance to post it - in the meantime I'll try your suggestions.

I am actually not familiar at all with Video Demo.  I have been using Cap for over a decade and have never tried that approach.  I will explore - is there anything I should know as someone whose experience is pretty much limited to software simulation?  Any significant differences I should be aware of?

Thanks again.

[Lilybiri]

It is more similar to Camtasia: you create one video, or can have several video clips as well. Software simulation is easier to edit, to add VO, but the quality of video, and the panning/zooming options are better in Video Demo. You can also add static objects, and insert a video demo in a cptx-project (CPVC-slide). Here is a link to a Video demo, I made but quite a while ago:

Simple versus Standard Advanced Action in Adobe Captivate - YouTube

Beware: in CP9 you don't have to do that all the time, because there is now the option Continue Playing the Project which can be unchecked.

Which output do you want? I see some issues with SWF and MP4 output with zooming a highlight box, will log a bug. HTML works OK.