In the Training and Technology SIG's June session, we determined that all things being equal, authorware selection can be based on personal preference. Something you can accomplish in Captivate you can most likely accomplish in Storyline, and vice versa. But it's very seldom that all things are equal, so we consider the following:

• Sophistication of project.
  The project may be a linear "page turner" derived straight from a PowerPoint deck, or be more interactive than a children's science museum.  Is this a Tier 1 project?  Tier 3(the one slide from our session that lists these tiers can be found here)?  You can complete a Tier 1 project in a Tier 3 program, but that will take more time and effort than you typically will be allowed.
  
  
• Client preference.
  In our project's case, our client has a history of using Adobe Captivate. And while the product we produce will not necessarily be downward compatible with their version, OneOC will have options for maintaining the content based upon that existing relationship. 
  Other clients may have previously purchased Articulate-generated content, and become frustrated that your Adobe-generated content doesn't have the same features. That small detail may trigger learner frustration in the long run.
  
  
• How the course is to be delivered.
  Multi-language? Consider Storyline. Mobile? Captivate has been leading the way in responsive learning projects. HTML5?  While both programs boast features that only function in .swf, Adobe historically has fewer HTML5 bugs, and an HTML5 tracker to point out where issues may hamper your course.
  
  
• The graphical components of the course.
  Will we benefit from the hard work of other artists using the stock footage and other curated graphical assets? Storyline's fine. Are we going to rely on user-generated content (including our own) that will require editing?  Adobe works well with the powerful graphical editing tools their folks create on the side.
  
  
• Our own personal preferences.
  Articulate provides a robust template that has been accepted by clients world-wide and can be tweaked to meet branding needs. We can open a project, design, and publish with ease. Captivate's published skin invariably requires scrutiny for even the most basic of projects, but allows the designer to fiddle with the minutiae, allowing unique end results that are specific to both client and project needs.

What do you think? 

Did you just select one eLearning authorware and stick with that?  Or are you like others in the Training and Technology SIG, with multiple authorware software licenses?  

What criteria did you use to make your authorware selections?