MadCap Software

Getting Started Guide
Mimic 8

Copyright 2015 MadCap Software. All rights reserved.
Information in this document is subject to change without notice. The software described in this document
is furnished under a license agreement or nondisclosure agreement. The software may be used or copied
only in accordance with the terms of those agreements. No part of this publication may be reproduced,
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or any means electronic or mechanical, including
photocopying and recording for any purpose other than the purchaser's personal use without the written permission of MadCap Software.
MadCap Software
7777 Fay Avenue
La Jolla, California 92037
858-320-0387
www.madcapsoftware.com
THIS GUIDE WAS CREATED USING MADCAP FLARE.

CONTENTS

CHAPTER 1 Introduction

5

Basic Steps
Additional Help

6
7

CHAPTER 2 Creating a Movie Collection

9

CHAPTER 3 Recording Movies

11

CHAPTER 4 Editing a Movie

19

CHAPTER 5 Building Movie Output

21

CHAPTER 6 Distributing Output

25

Steps for Distributing Output
Publishing Output

26
27

APPENDIX PDF Guides

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iv

CHAPTER 1

Introduction
Welcome to MadCap Mimic—a cutting edge software simulation tool that lets you create
instructional movies easily and quickly, all without needing to have any programming knowledge whatsoever. Using Mimic, you can generate output in Web-based and print-based outputs.
Mimic is part of MadCap Software’s integrated suite of native XML, multi-channel authoring
software. Like the other products in this suite, Mimic is a flexible, open-architecture application that produces XML files with Unicode support for left-to-right (LTR) as well as right-toleft (RTL) languages.
This chapter discusses the following:

Basic Steps
Additional Help

6
7

Basic Steps
Following are the basic steps for creating movies in Mimic:
1. (Optional) Create a Movie Collection Follow this step if you want to create a collection of related
movies. If you want to create a standalone movie, you can skip this step. See "Creating a Movie Collection" on page 9.
2. Create a Movie This can be done by recording your actions on screen, creating a movie with ablank frame, basing a new movie on a still image that you capture, creating a movie from a media
file, or importing a Microsoft PowerPoint presentation. See "Recording Movies" on page 11.
3. Edit a Movie This includes tasks such as adding shapes, buttons, text, actions, effects, and audio.
See "Editing a Movie" on page 19.
4. Build Movie Output You can generate output using HTML5 and Adobe PDF. See "Building Movie
Output" on page 21.
5. Distribute Output Let end users access your movie output. This includes a feature for automatically publishing (i.e., copying) output files to a location you choose, as well as the option of
uploading videos to YouTube or Vimeo. See "Distributing Output" on page 25.

6Additional Help
You can use any of the following resources for additional help not provided in this manual.

Knowledge Base
You can browse the online Knowledge Base for articles covering common support issues.
http://kb.madcapsoftware.com/

Peer-to-Peer Online Forums
You can visit the online forums to learn from other users or share your own expertise.
http://forums.madcapsoftware.com/

Contact Mimic Support
You can contact the Mimic support team and get answers to your specific support issues.
http://madcapsoftware.com/support/

CHAPTER 1│Getting Started Guide

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CHAPTER 2

Creating a Movie Collection
If you want to create a collection with multiple movies, use the following instructions. If you
only want to create a standalone movie, skip to "Recording Movies" on page 11.

HOW TO CREATE A NEW MOVIE COLLECTION
1. Do one of the following:
Select the Collection ribbon. In the File section, select New Collection.
OR
Select File>New. In the New dialog, click Movie Collection.
The Start New Collection Wizard opens.
2. In the Collection name field, type an appropriate name for your collection.
3. By default, a path to the Documents\My Mimic Movies folder on your hard drive is entered in the Collection folder field. (Mimic creates the My Mimic Projects folder for you when you install the program.) All subfolders and files related to your collection will be placed in this folder as you work on
your collection. Continue with the next step, unless you want to have your collection files placed in adifferent folder. If so, do the following.
a. Click. The Browse For Folder dialog opens.

b. Navigate to the folder you want, select it, and click OK.
4. In the Start New Collection Wizard, click Next. The next page of the wizard opens.
5. Select the language to use for spell checking. For more information see the online Help.
6. Click Next. The next page of the wizard opens.
On this page, you select a template, which is simply a collection containing initial settings for you.
By default, there are two template folders (Factory Templates and My Templates). The Factory Templates folder already contains some pre-designed templates for you. The My Templates folder canbe used to store and open your own custom templates. For more information see the online Help.
7. In the Template Folders area, select one of the folders. The Templates section to the right displays
the templates contained in the folder you selected.
8. In the Templates area on the right, select a template.
9. Click Finish. The movie collection opens in the Collection Editor.

10CHAPTER 3

Recording Movies
One of the ways to create a movie in Mimic is to simulate (record) your actions in a specified
application or area, creating a movie with multiple frames. The following steps show you
how to do this. For information on the other methods for creating movies, see the online Helpor the Mimic Movie Creation Guide.

HOW TO RECORD A MOVIE
1. Prepare your screen or workspace for recording. This includes opening the application window(s)that you want to record and/or arranging your desktop exactly as needed.
2. (Optional) If you want the movie to be part of a collection, create the movie collection in Mimic andmake sure it is open (see "Creating a Movie Collection" on page 9). If you do not open a collection, astandalone movie will be created after you record it.
3. Do one of the following:
Select the Movie ribbon. Select Record.
Select File>New. In the New dialog, select Record Movie
Mimic minimizes and a rectangle with a red border appears on your screen, along with a task bar.

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4. (Optional) Rearrange the recording area. You can use several methods and features to do this.
DRAG EDGE
You can resize the recording area manually by clicking any of the handles (small squares) aroundthe edge of the rectangle and dragging them to resize the width and/or height.
MOVE ENTIRE RECORDING AREA
You can move the entire recording area by clicking the size-all icon in the center of the area

anddragging the area to a new location on your screen.
TYPE WIDTH OR HEIGHTYou can click in the number fields in the task bar to manually change the width and/or height of therecording window in pixels.
MAINTAIN ASPECT RATIOYou can click the chain button in the task bar to maintain the aspect ratio when you change thewidth or height of the recording area.
When this feature is disabled, the button displays as an broken chain image. If you then change one
dimension of the recording window, the other dimension will not be resized automatically. For
example, if you drag the window border to the left (to increase the width), the height will remain thesame size.
When this feature is enabled, the button displays as a chain image. If you then change one dimension of the recording window, the other side will be resized automatically. For example, if you dragthe window border to the left (to increase the width), the height will automatically be resized accordingly.
CHOOSE PRE-SET SIZE
You can click the drop-down in the task bar and choose one of the pre-set window sizes.

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SNAP/MOVE INTO RECTANGLE
If you have a particular application or window open, and you want to capture it, you can choose an
option to snap the recording window around that element, or you can choose to move the element
into your recording window. When you use one of these options, the Select Window dialog opens.
You can then choose any of the applications or windows that you have open.
Note: If you are using a newer operating system, you may need to enable window-based
recording optimization.

5. (Optional) To capture narration during the recording session, click the microphone button on the task
bar to enable your microphone. You can click the button again to disable the microphone. You canalso use the Recording Options dialog to select a specific audio input source (see the next step).
6. (Optional) You can set various options for the recording session. To do this, clickon the task bar,and specify the settings in the Recording Options dialog.
Select the appropriate options, as described below. When you are finished, click OK.
Recording Mode You can select a specific recording mode to determine what happens when
you record the movie.

Automatic Select this if you want Mimic to automatically capture images as you perform
actions in the recording area. If you perform a dragging action in this recording mode, asingle full-motion video (FMV) frame is created at that spot in the movie to capture that
action.
FMV may also used whenever you perform a typing action, depending on whether you
select the Add typing box shapes (see below).
Note: The automatic recording mode may not capture all of the changes happening on your screen. You can press the PRINT SCREEN key on your keyboard to manually create additional frames while recording.

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Manual Select this if you do not want Mimic to automatically capture the images.
Instead, you must press the PRINT SCREEN key on your keyboard whenever you wanta new image to be captured during a recording session.
Video Select this if you want to record FMV in a single frame. For example, you might
use this option if you have an actual video running on your desktop and you want to capture its action.
Audio Input Source You can select an audio input source and record narration while creatinga movie. This allows you to create audio that is perfectly in sync with a movie, rather thanadding sound to the movie afterward. Mimic automatically includes in the drop-down the audio
input sources that are available on your computer. Depending on the type of input source, you
may need to attach a microphone to your computer. Then, as you record a movie, you canspeak into the computer or microphone and this audio is automatically added to the movie
frames.
Note: If you are recording a new movie, one audio file will be created for the entire
movie. If you are recording new frames for an existing movie, one audio file will be created for just those frames.

Show magnifier when selecting record region When you record a region, a large squaredisplays on your screen, showing a close-up of the area where your cursor is located. This
helps you to more accurately select a specific area of the screen to record. You can deselectthis option if you do not want to see the magnifier.
Play sound effects When you record a movie, sounds are made when you perform actions(e.g., clicking). If necessary, you can disable or re-enable the sounds for movie recordings byclicking this check box.
Add callouts When you record a movie, bubble callouts are automatically added to areas
where you click. You can use these callouts in your movie to provide information or instructions at each location where you clicked. However, by clicking this check box, you can
exclude the automatic addition of these callouts from movie recordings.
Record cursor movements When you record a movie, Mimic automatically captures yourmouse movements. In your movie frames, this is reflected by the addition of a cursor with akeyframe to show its path. The cursor object is indicated by a Cursor row in the Timeline's

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Frame View. The movement of the cursor is indicated by a Position row directly beneath the
Cursor row. When the movie is generated and played, the cursor moves just as you moved it
when creating the movie. However, by clicking this check box, you can exclude the automatic
addition of these cursor movements from movie recordings.
Add typing box shapes If you select this option, Mimic inserts a typing box object when you
type during a recording session. If you disable this option and type during a recording session,
the frame in question becomes an FMV frame.
Optimize record region If you are using a newer operating system (e.g., Microsoft Windows
10 or higher), you may find that windows are cut off when using the "Snap to Window" or"Move Window into Rectangle" recording options. This can be remedied the Optimize record
region feature. This feature is only recommended if you are using a newer operating system.
Enabling this feature while using an earlier operating system may cause issues when recording..
Callout Style: Pick Style This opens the Select Shape Style dialog, where you can choose
the style for bubble callouts if they are automatically added when you record a movie. You canselect a factory style or select a style from any of your palettes.
Cursor Style: Pick Style This opens the Select Shape Style dialog, where you can choose
the style for cursor shapes if they are automatically added when you record a movie. You canselect a factory style or select a style from any of your palettes.
7. Click the red record button on the task bar.
You will see a countdown—3, 2, 1—before the recording session begins.
8. After the countdown finishes, perform the actions that you want to record.

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9. You can use the task bar or the keyboard shortcuts to end, pause, or cancel the recording.
TASK BAR
The task bar is located near the recording area.

KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS
Here are the keyboard shortcuts available.
END Stop recording
SHIFT+END Abort (movie recording is canceled)
PAUSE Stop recording
SHIFT+PAUSE Pause recording
PRINT SCREEN New frames (when recording in manual mode)
10. If you recorded a movie for a collection, enter a file name for the movie in the Accept Recorded
Movie dialog and click OK.
If you recorded a standalone movie, navigate in the dialog to a location to store the movie, in the Filename field type a name for the movie, and click Save.
The movie is loaded into Mimic.

CHAPTER 3│Getting Started Guide17

If the movie was added to a collection, a rectangle containing the movie name and a small image ofthe first movie frame is displayed in the Movies window pane (by default on the left side of the workspace).
The first frame (full size) is displayed in the Frame Editor (by default in the middle of the workspace).
All frames of the movie are displayed (in order) in the Frames window pane (by default on the rightside of the workspace).

Tip: If you are re-recording a movie that you've previously finished, you might find it helpful tobuild the output of the old movie in Adobe PDF format before you begin. That way, you can print
the frames and text of the old movie and refer to it when recording the new movie.

Note: You can also record new frames, inserting them into an existing movie. For more information see the online Help.

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CHAPTER 4

Editing a Movie
After you create a movie, you will likely want to make modifications before it is consideredfinished. This can mean anything from adjusting movie frames and objects (e.g., buttons,
cursors) to adding audio or slide transitions. Following are some of the many ways that you
can modify a movie. For more information about each, please refer to the online Help or the
Mimic Movie Editing Guide.

Frames Each movie can be composed of one or many frames (or slides). Various modifications can be made at the frame level.
Objects There are many different types of objects that you can add to frames, such as
buttons, bubble callouts, cursors, shapes, lines, and typing boxes.
Actions You can apply actions to various objects in order to make the movie react(e.g., go to next frame, pause, go to a specific frame) when the user performs a specific event on the object (e.g., clicking on a button).
Text If you want to explain parts of a frame or provide instructions for end users, you
can incorporate text into your movies.
Variables When you have text that you plan to reuse throughout your movies, you cansave time by creating and inserting variables.
Keyframes You can add keyframes to an object that show transitions from one state
to the next, including position keyframes (trajectories).
Timing Sometimes it is necessary to speed up, slow down, or pause the timing of aframe or object. Timing refers to the number of seconds that a frame or object is displayed, as well as the specific moment when it comes into view.

Transitions You can control the way that frames and objects appear and disappear in a movie (e.g.,fade in, fade out).
Audio There are several ways to add audio to your movies, including recording your own narration.
Appearance of Frames and Objects Modifying the look and feel of movies, frames, and objects canbe accomplished using a variety of methods.
Palettes A palette is a handy, time-saving tool for storing objects for later reuse. You can create
palettes locally or link to external palettes.
Conditions Condition tags are a way to mark movies, frames, or objects that you want to include insome outputs, but exclude from other outputs. They work in conjunction with targets, which are separate instances of an output type.
Effects You can enhance objects by applying different kinds of special effects to them.
Grids A grid is simply a series of dots displayed a certain distance apart on a frame, with each dot
representing a specific location on that frame. They help you more accurately place objects on aframe.
Previewing Much of the process of enhancing a movie involves previewing the movie as you makechanges. You can do this at any time by pressing the play button on the preview bar at the bottom of
the Frame Editor.

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CHAPTER 5

Building Movie Output
When you are ready to build your output, use one of the following sets of steps, dependingon whether you are building output for a collection, a standalone movie, or targets (i.e., multiple collections or movies at once). For more information, please refer to the online Help or
the Mimic Movie Generation Guide.
OUTPUT TYPES AVAILABLE
Following are the output types available in Mimic. For more information about each, please
see the online Help.
HTML5 HTML5 is a movie format that uses the <video> element instead of <object>and can be viewed on any browser that supports HTML5 content. Most newer
browsers support the <video> element, including Internet Explorer 9, Firefox, Opera,
Chrome, and Safari. Older browsers such as Internet Explorer 8 do not. HTML5 canalso be used to generate a standalone video file to play your movies on an iPhone or
upload them to YouTube or Vimeo.
PDF Short for "Portable Document Format," PDF is an open standard format for electronic documentation exchange invented by Adobe. PDF files are used to represent a
two-dimensional document in an device- and resolution-independent fixed-layout
format. If you select this option, you can also click the Page Setup button. This opens
the Page Setup dialog, which lets you choose settings such as page size, orientation,and margins.

HOW TO BUILD OUTPUT FOR A COLLECTION OR STANDALONE MOVIE
1. Open the collection or movie.
2. (Optional) You can perform preliminary tasks related to the output, such as the following:
Organize the Order of the Movies You can include multiple movies in a Mimic collection.
After you build the movie collection, you can view the output. The first movie listed in the Collection Editor plays first, followed by the other movies in order. If you create browser-based output (HTML5), similar navigation is created based on the order of the movies in the Collection
Editor.
Select the Default Movie Output Format You can generate output in HTML5 or PDF
formats. Using the Movie Properties dialog, you can select an output format for a standalone
movie. Using the Collection Editor, you can select an output format for a collection of movies.
There are two main reasons for selecting an output type in these locations: (1) It allows you toedit the settings for a specific output type; and (2) It sets the default output type, which will be
used if you click the Build, View, or Publish button in the Movie or Collection Ribbon. In otherwords, it's a way to create a shortcut. As an alternative to the shortcut, you can click the downarrow on the Build, View, or Publish button to select either output format from the menu.
Select Single Files for Output (HTML5 Only) When you build output for HTML5 movies,
you can select an option to generate single output files. This option generates a single MP4
and/or WebM file, in addition to the many other browser-related files. These single MP4 andWebM files can be used to play movies in a standalone player, such as Windows Media Playeror QuickTime. Single MP4 files can be used to view movies on the iPhone. You can play single
MP4 or WebM files on YouTube or Vimeo.
Specify HTML5 Options If you are generating HTML5 output, there are a few options that you
can set in order to affect the output. You can select the video formats to be used. These dictate
which browsers will be able to display your movie(s). You can also select an option to create
single video files (MP4 and WebM). Single MP4 files can be used to view movies on the
iPhone.You can play single MP4 or WebM files on YouTube.

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3. If working in a collection, select the Collection ribbon. In the Collection Output section, do one of
the following:
Click the Build button to generate the output type that is selected as the default.
Click the down arrow on the Build button and from the drop-down menu, select one of the output types.
4. If working in a standalone movie, select the Movie ribbon. In the Movie Output section, do one of
the following:
Click the Build button to generate the output type that is selected as the default.
Click the down arrow on the Build button and from the drop-down menu, select one of the output types.
5. After the output files finish generating, a message asks if you want to view the output. Click either
Yes or No. If you select Yes, the generated movie collection opens.

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HOW TO BUILD OUTPUT FOR TARGETS (MULTIPLE COLLECTIONS OR MOVIES)
1. Open the Mimic collection or standalone movie.
2. If you have not done so already, create the target(s) to be used with your collection or standalone
movie. For more information see the online Help.
3. (Optional) If you are working in a collection, you can organize the order of the movies. For more
information see the online Help.
4. Select the Movie ribbon. In the Movie Output section, select Build Targets.
The Build Targets dialog opens.
5. Make sure a check mark is next to each target that you want to build.
6. Click Build.
7. After the output files finish generating, you can click Open Output Folder to open the window
where the output files are located. Otherwise, you can click Close.

Note: When you build movies, Mimic creates output files and copies them to the Output folder
where your movie or collection is stored.

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CHAPTER 6Distributing Output
After you have finished building movie output, you are ready to distribute the output to yourend users. How you distribute the output to your users depends on what you are trying toaccomplish.
This chapter discusses the following:

Steps for Distributing Output
Publishing Output

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Steps for Distributing Output
Following are steps for placing the output in a specific location (e.g., website, folder), as well as for incorporating your collection or movies into a MadCap Flare Help system. As an alternative to these steps, you
can upload non-interactive output to YouTube or Vimeo.
HOW TO PLACE MIMIC OUTPUT IN A FOLDER OR ON A WEBSITE
If you plan to upload your output files to a location such as a website, you should generate HTML5.
1. Do one of the following:
Publish the Output Files Automatically For steps, see "Publishing Output" on the next
page.
Copy and Paste the Output Files to the Destination Manually To access your output files
from Mimic, do one of the following:
Select the Collection ribbon. In the Collection Output section, select Open Output
Folder.
Select the Movie ribbon. In the Movie Output section, select Open Output Folder.
Copy and paste the "html5" folder to the required destination. If you generated single video files(MP4 and/or WebM) and want to distribute them alone, you can open the "videos" subfolder tocopy them.
2. Inform your users about the location of the movie entry file, or provide a link to the appropriate entry
file for the collection or standalone movie. When end users double-click the entry file or click a link toit, the movie or collection output opens. For information about all of the output files generated, including entry files, see the online Help.
HOW TO INCORPORATE MIMIC OUTPUT INTO A MADCAP FLARE HELP SYSTEM
1. In your MadCap Flare Help project, use the Mimic movie link option to create a link from a topic,
table of contents, or browse sequence. Simply point the link to the appropriate movie file (e.g.,
MIPRJ, MIMOV).
Note: See the online Help provided with MadCap Flare for more specific steps about inserting Mimic movie links.

2. Generate and distribute your Flare output.

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Publishing Output
One way to distribute your movies is to publish the output (i.e., send the movie output files to a predetermined destination).
HOW TO PUBLISH MOVIES
1. Do one of the following:
IF YOU ARE PUBLISHING A COLLECTION
a. Open the collection.
b. Select the Collection ribbon. In the Collection Output section, do one of the following:
Click the Publish button to publish the output type that is selected as the default.
Click the down arrow on the Publish button and from the drop-down menu, select one of theoutput types.
The Publish Movie dialog opens.
IF YOU ARE PUBLISHING A STANDALONE MOVIE
a. Open the movie.
b. Do one of the following, depending on the part of the user interface you are using:RibbonSelect the Movie ribbon. In the Movie Output section, do one of the following.
Click the face of the Publish button to publish the output type that is selected as thedefault.
Click the down arrow on the Publish button and from the drop-down menu, selectone of the output types.
Keyboard Shortcut Press CTRL+F6 on the keyboard.
The Publish Movie dialog opens.
2. In the Type field, select the method you want to use to publish your movie.
FTP (File Transfer Protocol) Select this FTP (file transfer protocol) option if you want topublish output files to another computer over a TCP/IP network.
File System Select this option if you want to publish the output to a location on your computer or to another drive on a network.

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YouTube or Vimeo Select one of these options if you want to publish your output to asocial media channel.
3. Complete the rest of the fields in the dialog.
IF YOU ARE PUBLISHING USING FTP OR FILE SYSTEMHOST NAMEEnter the name of the remote server or the computer where the output files will be published. If you
use the FTP type, the host name will look something like this: ftp.mycompany.com. If you use theFile System type, this field is disabled.
DIRECTORYEnter the exact location where the output files will be published. If you use the FTP type, you mightenter something like this:public_html/VideoTutorials
You can also leave the default setting of "public_html" if you are publishing to the root directory on
the server.
If you use the File System type, you can click

to select a location. The Directory field will thenpopulate automatically for you. This button is disabled if you use the FTP type.
ANONYMOUS LOGIN
Select this check box if you want to publish to the server without being required to enter a user nameor password. (You may need to check with your network administrator to determine if this isallowed.) This option is disabled if you use the File System type.
LOGIN CREDENTIALS
Select this button to open the Log On As dialog. You can then enter the username and password
required for accessing the server to which you are publishing. If you do not enter the user name andpassword at this time, a dialog will open later when you actually publish the output, asking for theuser name and password. This option is disabled if you use the File System type.

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PORT
Select the port that you will use to connect to the remote server. Typically, you can obtain the port
from your network administrator. This option is disabled if you use the File System type.
VIEW URL
You can enter an .http address in this field to be used for viewing the published files. This field is
optional and is for your own internal purposes.
OPEN URL IN DEFAULT BROWSER
Select this button if you want to open the optional URL in your Internet browser window.
UPLOAD ONLY CHANGED FILES
Select this option if you want Mimic to republish only the files that have changed. This can save significant time.
REMOVE STALE FILES
Select this option if you want Mimic to identify files that were previously published but are no longer
needed. Mimic will then remove such files from the destination.
VIEW LAST LOG
Opens the most recent publishing log.
IF YOU ARE PUBLISHING TO YOUTUBE OR VIMEO
You can also publish to YouTube and Vimeo.
VIDEO
Click

to select the video you want to publish to YouTube or Vimeo.

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TITLEEnter a name for your video. This will help users find your video.
DESCRIPTIONEnter a brief description of your video.
TAGSEnter tags describing your video. These keywords will help users search for your video.
CATEGORY
Select a category for your video. These categories are defined by YouTube or Vimeo and help users
find your video.
PRIVATE
Select whether or not your video will be private. Making the video private prevents other users fromsearching for your video.

Note: You must log in to a video service via the Video Services window pane before you
can publish a video to YouTube or Vimeo.

Note: If you want to upload videos from a collection to YouTube or Vimeo, you mustupload each video in the collection separately.

4. Click Start Publishing.
5. If a user name and password are required and you have not already provided them, enter them in the
dialog that opens.
6. After the files are successfully published, a dialog opens, asking if you want to view the log (whichlists the files that have been uploaded). Click Yes if you want to see it, and close the log when you
are finished.

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APPENDIXPDF Guides
The following PDF guides are available for download from the online Help.
Getting Started Guide
Key Features Guide
Movie Creation Guide
Movie Editing Guide
Movie Generation Guide
Shortcuts Guide
Touring the Workspace Guide
What's New Guide