How Can I Use Lightboxes?

While covering lightboxes in a recent Storyline 2 training session, someone commented, “I really like the way lightboxes look…how would I use them in my courses?” This question is always one of my favorites because it’s also one of my favorite Storyline features–lightboxes!

Well, if you’ve been to one of our classes, you’ll know a common theme is “There’s never any one way to do something in Storyline.” The same goes for this feature. While there are numerous possibilities, let’s take a look at three common uses of lightboxes.

1. Review/Recall Previously-Covered Information

Maybe you want to give your learner a hint before they answer a quiz question. Simply add a button to your slide and trigger it to lightbox the slide with the previously-covered information.

2. Provide Snippets of Additional Information

Perhaps you need to reference additional information that has not been covered in your course yet. In this case, we find it easiest to create a separate scene in the course labeled Lightboxes. Then, all the necessary information is arranged neatly in the Story View and it’s easier to trigger when it’s time to display that information. Once those Lightbox slides are built, it’s simple to reference them as needed throughout the course.

(Tip: You don’t have to use a button with a lightbox trigger. You can trigger lightboxes from shapes, images, or hotspots too!)

3. Display Valuable Information You Want Available Throughout a Course

Thanks to custom player tabs, you can use lightboxes to display information you want available globally throughout the course. A few examples of when you might use this include Navigation Help, Contact Us, Course Objectives, Progress Meters, and the like.

To create this effect, go to Player Properties>Features>Add Player Tab and and create a custom tab that lightboxes the slide you want to make available.

These are just a few of our favorite ways to utilize Storyline’s lightbox feature. What are some of the ways you use lightboxes in your courses? Share your ideas below, or feel free to ask any questions you may have.

“We’re all stories in the end. Just make it a good one, eh?” ~The Doctor

~Raye

Update: Please note that the interface of the faster new trigger workflow (in Storyline 360 update 3.33.20625.0 or later) will appear slightly different! While the process is the same, this article uses screen captures from the classic trigger workflow.