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With Adobe planning to discontinue Flash in 2020, your Flash-based eLearning courses will stop running in all browsers. It is a sound business decision to convert Flash courses developed in old or obsolete authoring tools into HTML5 so that they run on multiple devices. When opting for Flash to HTML5 conversions, you can also take the opportunity to redesign or rebuild courses that need content updates or improvement in instructional approach.
Main Reasons to Convert Your Flash Courses
Converting your Flash courses to HTML5 courses will also give you the opportunity to enhance your online training content in the following ways:
Make your courses compatible with multiple devices and platforms
Overcome the compatibility issues of your Flash-based courses by republishing them using new authoring tools such as Articulate Storyline 360 and Adobe Captivate 10. Use the responsive templates and HTML5 output offered by these tools to ensure your courses reach learners on their preferred devices, anytime, anywhere.
Update content and branding
Your learners need up-to-date content to meet dynamic business demands head-on. Revamp your converted courses with CARE – make them Current, Application-oriented, Relevant, Engaging – also build an instant connect with your employees by offering courses that reflect your corporate branding.
Reconfigure to microlearning
A lot changes over time, including learner preferences. You don’t expect your Gen Y learners to sit at their desks and take one-hour courses, right? Deliver short learning nuggets that’ll help your learners focus on accomplishing individual tasks, thereby improving performance.
Reinforce with latest learning strategies
If your Flash-based courses are not instructionally sound, they will fail to engage and educate. Enhance your courses instructionally based on your learner profile and training need. For example, if you need to train sales reps on negotiation skills, think of scenario-based learning. Use visual elements to reduce text overload and assessments to measure learning.
Translate to reach global audiences
Unwieldly Flash courses are not translation-friendly. Converting legacy courses using authoring tools makes them ready for translation and rolling out to your international employees – even languages that use right-to-left scripts or double byte character sets. Offer your global learners consistent training that’s technically accurate.
What are the Possible Flash to HTML5 Conversion Strategies?
All Flash courses are not the same, and no common conversion strategy can be applied. Based on the importance of training, technical complexity, required engagement, and the availability of source files of your Flash-based courses, you can choose from the 4 ‘R’s:
Don’t Let the Absence of Source Files Stop You
If your Flash-based courses are pretty straightforward, easy to learn, at the first 2 levels of Bloom’s taxonomy (Remembering and Understanding), and don’t require high user interaction, you can record them to MP4 format.
Record your Flash courses using screen recording software such as Camtasia, SmartPixel, or iSpring Free Cam. MP4 format is SCORM/AICC/Tin Can compatible and can be hosted on all learning management systems.
So, the ‘Record’ method is perfect when your existing courses are self-running and your main objective is to help learners remember and recall basic facts and understand concepts.
Upgrade Your Courses to the Latest Versions of Authoring Tools
When you have courses developed in older versions of authoring tools with both Flash and HTML5 output, you can quickly upgrade them to the newer version of the same tool.
Take the opportunity to go through your Flash courses to enhance them instructionally or reconfigure longer courses as a curriculum of microlearning assets. Realign the onscreen elements and you are good to go – republish the Flash-based courses in HTML5 and ensure SCORM compatibility.
The Republish conversion methodology is all about quickly upgrading content developed in older versions of an authoring tool to a newer version of the same tool, to make courses compatible with multiple devices and browsers.
Use Flash Assets to Build Courses in HTML5
If you have courses developed in obsolete software, but still have usable media elements, reuse the content in those Flash-based courses along with the raw assets to rebuild courses in a new authoring tool for HTML5 output.
The Rebuild methodology involves redeveloping courses created in obsolete software or older versions of authoring tools using a new authoring tool, which can provide HTML5 output – for cross-platform cross-device compatibility.
Before you start rebuilding, gather all Flash-based assets and decide on the authoring tool you want to use, based on your training need and level of interaction needed.
Design and Develop Learner-Centric Courses with HTML5 Output
When you realize the content in your Flash courses has become obsolete and needs significant edits, or maybe if source files are unavailable, you can choose to Redesign the courses from scratch using a new authoring tool.
You might want to include new information in the courses, use new-age interactions available in modern authoring tools, or leverage new approaches such as microlearning. In all these cases, Redesign is the optimal choice.
Your 5-Step Pre-Conversion Checklist
Now that you know the best conversion strategy for your Flash-based courses, let’s find out what you can do next.
GATHER RESOURCES
Go through all your online learning resources and gather all your Flash-based courses and courses with Flash assets. For example, you can identify Flash courses by their extension .swf or .flv.
ORGANIZE COURSES
Once you have all assets in a single location, organize them based on the availability of source files, whether you have complete courses to be converted or just have the media elements.
EVALUATE COURSES
Not all your Flash-based courses will need to be converted, as some might have outlived their usefulness or might not be relevant anymore due to changes in your business. So, choose the courses you want converted and archive the rest.
PRIORITIZE COURSES
Not all learning needs have the same urgency. Maybe you have a course for your new hires that has to be converted immediately, whereas your course on Emotional Intelligence can be done a little later. Prioritize your conversions so that you have a clear action plan.
SELECT STRATEGY
Once the preceding steps are done, choose the best Flash to HTML5 conversion strategy – record, republish, rebuild, or redesign.
Here’s How Everything Fell in Place for One of Our Clients
We converted a large repository of Flash-based courses to responsive e-learning (HTML5) that runs on multiple devices for a US-based telecommunications leader.
Success Mantra: Standardization, communication, and process adherence by both parties.
A bird's eye view of the conversion process we used:
Getting
Started
Templates
Designing
Courses
Development
Project Lead
Review
Client
Review
Feedback
Updation
Device
Compatibility
Testing
Why Choose CommLab India for Your Flash-based Conversions?
Our team of authoring tool experts
Our developers are adept in all the latest authoring tools such as Articulate Storyline and Rise, Lectora Inspire and Online, Adobe Captivate, iSpring and many more. All of your courses can be published to HTML5 for mobile compatibility, and will satisfy SCORM or other any other LMS requirements.
Stringent processes for development, quality and project management
We follow streamlined processes for Flash to HTML5 conversions, that involve you at every step. This ensures courses meet your expectations and are ready within your stipulated timelines. Enjoy minimal rework and quickest speed to launch!
Strong instructional and visual design expertise
We redesign your Flash courses based on robust instructional and visual design strategies. We also reconfigure the courses into latest formats that appeal to your employees.
"> CommLab India has been a valuable extension of our learning organization.
Working with the team is an enjoyable and very easy experience. They are responsive, knowledgeable, and very supportive.
Working with the team is an enjoyable and very easy experience. They are responsive, knowledgeable, and very supportive.