As it is very difficult to find proper contents from continuous media objects such as videos and audios, we need to develop appropriate indexing methods. In this paper we will discuss methods utilizing “action history views” for retrieving proper contents from continuous media objects. Histories of users’ actions shown on a screen are recorded as lists called ⇂tion history” in a symbolic form and each element of an action history is marked by a time stamp. The action history view mechanism deals with such histories of actions observed on screens. When continuous media objects are generated synchronizing with action histories, we can use them to search proper portions of continuous media objects. Recorded sequences of actions satisfying specified conditions can be selected and played back together with the corresponding continuous media objects synchronously. In this paper we will discuss basic mechanisms and their applications to distance education.