Col Day, AKA Colday213 (User Forums) asked if there was a list of Effects (in Captivate 5.0 and 5.5) available somewhere (http://forums.adobe.com/thread/858775?tstart=30). The answer was negative and promptly he proposed to add his 2 cents to the Captivate Community by the redaction of such a list. The list is ready, and he asked me to spread its access in our Community, which of course I accepted. The list is stored on acrobat.com, either you watch it online, or you download a copy.  The format is Excel (xls). In the list you will find a short description of each effect, the standard duration of the effect and some additional (personal) notes (see screenshot).

For the motion effects, where you'll often find 'customising the motion path' in the additional notes, if you are a newbie to Effects, check out this blog post: