Easy to use
User-friendly navigation UI
Work natively with Microsoft PowerPoint
Changes, updates, modifications on PowerPoint slides after publishing are simple
Add audio, video, flash and quiz functionality to a PowerPoint presentation in quick
Tracking and reporting to internal server

Cons:

Not a standalone software, but just a simple plugin on Microsoft PowerPoint
Focus on PowerPoint presentation only, limited features when authoring courses that are based on other contents such as video
Lack in advanced features (e.g. lack widgets, no advanced quizzing features, variables)
Published in SWF only

Adobe Captivate 7

Price:
USD $899.00

Platform:
Windows / Mac

Pros:

Powerful, precise, full of features and options, more advanced tools comparing to others
A round trip workflow with PowerPoint and other Adobe application
Aim building varied interactive e-learning content with different multimedia elements, rather than just focusing on PowerPoint
Rich library to create interactive contents, such as interactive widgets, drag-and-drop components, advanced quizzing features (Advance quizzing features: pre-tests, partial scoring, remediation, skip and return)
Advanced features such as variables, advanced actions, robust animations
Export and import XML files for quick content localization
Tracking and reporting to internal server
Professional output options

Cons:

Great features but sophisticated
A substantial learning curve for inexperienced users
Custom variables and advanced actions cannot be reuse in another projects (Similar things need to create every times)

Articulate Storyline

Price:
USD $1398.00

Platform:
Windows

Pros:

Easy to use (a straight-forward workflow)
Intuitive interface
Aims for inexperienced users to build a dynamic and interactive e-learning content with useful components such as quizzes, assessments and drag-and-drop options
Advanced features such as variables, trigger, object states
Scenarios are reusable, meaning the entire structures, triggers, states can be preserved in new projects, which reduce the effort in creating new courses
Easy to maintain and evaluate published courses
Tracking and reporting to internal server by self-implementation using Javascript and server-side language
Has a large online community for finding support

Cons:

The most expensive one among all
Screen capture and software simulation capabilities are not as mature as Adobe Captivate (eg. It can not swap out screenshots for an alternate language version of the simulation)
Less features and advanced options comparing to Adobe Captivate, such as no widgets, advanced actions, simpler tracking and reporting functions
Limited video editing features (eg. Slides and quizes cannot be inserted within a video, video need to be split into clips using other video editing software before importing to Storyline)
Course can not be published as a sequential video clip, but a slide-by-slide presentation (eg. as shown in the demo)

General Tools