Activate Captivate

Each Captivate license allows one person to use Captivate on one computer at a time. This article describes how to activate Captivate for the first time and how to reactivate Captivate on a different computer.

• Activate Captivate online or offline
• Deactivate Captivate and reactivate it on a different computer

Troubleshooting Tip: If you have downloaded Captivate successfully but are unable to locate the application, and you are on an M1, M2, or Mac Studio, you will need to install Rosetta 2 on your system.  Please refer to this article for instructions on how to Install Rosetta Manually.

Activate Captivate online or offline

If you purchased Captivate and it is not currently active on any computer, complete the steps in one of the following sections to activate your license on a computer that is or isn't connected to the Internet.

• Online activation
• Offline activation

Online activation

Follow these steps if you want to use Captivate on a computer that is connected to the Internet.

1. If you haven't already done so, install Captivate on a computer that is connected to the internet. The NewBlueFX Application Manager opens after Captivate is installed.
   
   

   Note: To open the Application Manager at any time, launch NewBlue Application Manager from the Start menu on Windows or the Applications folder on Mac.

2. If you don't already have a NewBlueFX account, click the Create Account button in the Application Manager, complete the Create Account form, and click Create.
3. To sign in to your NewBlueFX account in the Application Manager, enter your email address, if it's not already entered, and password and click Sign In.
   
   

   

   After you sign in, the NewBlueFX Application Manager lists the products you own or have installed.

   Captivate is automatically activated if you signed in to the same account that was used to buy Captivate.

   If you signed in to an account that is different from the account that was used to buy Captivate, complete the following steps to activate Captivate.

4. Click Enter Serial Number for Captivate.
5. Enter the serial number in the Serial Number field.
   
   

   

6. Click OK to activate Captivate. Activated, up-to-date products are described as current in the Application Manager.

Need help activating Captivate? See our Activation FAQs.

Tips

• In the future, if you want to use Captivate on a different computer, see the Deactivate Captivate and reactivate it on a different computer section in this article.
• To create graphics for a video production, see Create graphics in Captivate and other articles in our help center.

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Offline activation

You can use Captivate on a computer that is not connected to the Internet. To do so, you need access to a different computer that is connected to the Internet and a portable memory stick or other storage device to transfer an activation key to the offline computer. See the following steps for details.

1. If you haven't already done so, install Captivate on a computer that is not connected to the internet. After Captivate is installed, the NewBlueFX Application Manager opens which lists all NewBlueFX products that are installed.
   
   

   Note: To open the Application Manager at any time, launch NewBlue Application Manager from the Start menu on Windows or the Applications folder on Mac.

2. In the Application Manager, click Enter Serial Number for Captivate.
3. Enter the serial number in the Serial Number field.
   
   

   

4. Click OK.
5. In the Manual Activation form, enter your First Name, Last Name, and E-mail address. (If you already have a NewBlueFX account, enter the email address that is associated with your NewBlueFX account.)
   
   

   A unique URL appears.

   

6. Copy the URL and paste it into a web browser on a computer that is connected to the internet, as described in the following steps.
1. Copy the URL and paste it into a text file or other type of electronic document.
2. Copy the electronic document that contains the URL onto a USB memory stick or other type of portable storage device.
3. Open the portable storage device and the electronic document on a computer that is connected to the internet.
4. Copy the URL, paste it into a web browser's address bar, and press ENTER.
   
   

   Note: If the email address you entered is not associated with a NewBlueFX account, you'll be asked to enter a password and create an account.

   A web page opens that includes a text string that you will use to activate Captivate.

   

7. Copy the activation text string and paste it into the Manual Activation form on the computer where you installed Captivate, as described in the following steps.
   1. Copy the activation text and paste it into a text file or other type of electronic document.
   2. Copy the electronic document that contains the activation text onto a USB memory stick or other type of portable storage device.
   3. Open the portable storage device and the electronic document on the computer where you installed Captivate.
   4. Copy the activation text and paste it into the Manual Activation form.
      
      

      

8. Click Activate. Your new product is now activated. Activated, up-to-date products are labeled as current in the Application Manager.

Need help activating Captivate? See our Activation FAQs.

Tips

• In the future, if you want to use Captivate on a different computer, see the Deactivate Captivate and reactivate it on a different computer section in this article.
• To start creating graphics for your video production, see Create graphics in Captivate and other articles in our help center.

Deactivate Captivate and reactivate it on a different computer

If you've already installed and activated Captivate, follow the steps in this section to deactivate a Captivate license on a computer and reactivate the license on a different computer.

1. Deactivate Captivate on a computer.
   
   

   When you deactivate a license, all NewBlueFX products will be deactivated on that computer. You can still use your NewBlueFX products on that computer, but all outputs you create on that computer will have a watermark until you reactivate your license on that computer.

   1. On the computer where Captivate is currently active, open NewBlue Application Manager from the Start menu on Windows or from the Applications folder on Mac. (The NewBlueFX Application Manager was automatically installed with Captivate.)
   2. In the NewBlueFX Application Manager, click Settings  and choose Deactivate.
   3. Click Deactivate to confirm you want to deactivate all NewBlueFX products on the current computer.
   4. Close the NewBlueFX Application Manager.
2. Activate Captivate on a different computer.
   1. If you haven't already installed Captivate on a different computer, install it now.
   2. Open NewBlueFX Application Manager from the Start menu on Windows or from the Applications folder on Mac. (The NewBlueFX Application Manager was automatically installed with Captivate.)
   3. In the NewBlueFX Application Manager, click Settings  and choose Activate.
   4. In the Welcome screen, enter the same email address and password that you used to log in to Captivate on the other computer and click Sign In. For complete details, see Activate Captivate section.
      
      

      Captivate and all NewBlueFX products installed on this computer are automatically activated after you sign in.

      Need help signing in to your NewBlueFX account? See our Activation FAQs.

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