Newbie questions about Captivate

[Jessetr]

Hello!

If I create a video or an interactive lesson in AC, can I upload it as is and expect it to be fully functional and interactive?  If so, what is the resulting file format?  Do I have a choice of .AVI, or .mp4, or is it something else completely?

OR, do I have to plug it into something else like Adobe Premiere?  I know from there I can make it .avi, etc.

[RodWard]

Captivate's main two outputs now are either HTML5 (which is for any time you must have interactivity) or MP4 video (which is not interactive).  Either one can be uploaded to a web server and played by end users in their web browser.  

You need to know that an HTML5 output is not a single file but a collection of dozens or even hundreds of files that must all be uploaded to the web server for end users to view, even though it is just one of these files that you link to (index.html)

You do not need Adobe Premier unless you intend to take the MP4 output and edit it in some way.  AVI video is almost never used nowadays. MP4 is always preferable,

[Jessetr]

"Either one can be uploaded to a web server and played by end users in their web browser.  You need to know that an HTML5 output is not a single file but a collection of dozens or even hundreds of files that must all be uploaded to the web server for end users to view."

I asked the IT crew at my non-profit about using eLearning.  They said: "We currently don't have an eLearning environment for Adobe Captivate projects to be published on."

What can stand-in as a web server so my team can interact with eLearning?  (I really want to learn to make projects in Captivate!)  Is a SquareSpace account enough?

And in the end, if the interactive elements of eLearning are simply not in the cards, then I assume that Captivate can make videos for tutorial purposes anyway, so I might as well use it?

[RodWard]

Ask your IT crew whether or not your non-profit has a website and whether they can allocate a folder somewhere on the web server for you to upload your Captivate courses.  That's all you really need to have users SEE your courses.  However, if you want their interaction with the modules to be tracked and recorded then that requires an LMS, which is somewhat more complicated.

If you publish to MP4 video, you can upload for free to YouTube but then your users will be seeing adverts in front of (and in the middle of) your content.

[Lilybiri]

To add to Rod's overview, if you need to convert vidoe formats, use the Adobe Media Encoder, which is packaged with CC but also with Captivate.

MP4 or any other video format is NEVER interactive.At least if you nnderstand interactivity the way I do. Maybe have a look at:

http://blog.lilybiri.com/interactivity-in-captivate-back-to-basics