Toolkit: Five More Lesser-known eLearning Tools by Joe Ganci

These five tools provide a wide range of combinations of ease of use and power, and each one has its particular strength and its peculiar weaknesses. There are open-source and proprietary tools, cloud-based and desktop authoring environments, and offerings that you have not seen the likes of anywhere else.

Thank you to all who responded to my survey asking about lesser-known eLearning development tools. My survey explicitly stated that it was geared towards tools I have not reviewed before, but several respondents requested that I review products like Articulate Storyline and Allen Interactions’ ZebraZapps. Once again, you’ll find all my previous reviews here: http://www.learningsolutionsmag.com/authors/4/joe-ganci.

Last month, I covered these tools, which were your top five at the time:

Articulate Online by Articulatee-Learning Authoring Tool by e-Learning ConsultingnimbleAuthor (was eLearning Course Builder) by eLearning247FlexAuthoring by FlexTrainingUdutu Online Course Authoring by Udutu Online Learning Solutions

This month, the top five (not counting those above) are:

Versal by Versal GroupLearningStone (Open Source)BRAVO! Response by C3 SoftworksuPerform by AncileToolbook by SumTotal

First, it should be noted that Versal is an open and ongoing beta application, and you can join the beta free of charge. It is one of the new crop of cloud-based tools, meaning you create all of your courses online. There are two versions, one of which is currently free. The paid version, called Versal for Teams, upgrades you to professional services, such as author and learner management. The Teams version allows a free 60-day trial and 100 learners, and after that the cost ranges from $250 a month for 250 learners up to $5,000 a month for 100,000 learners.

Using Versal is pretty straightforward. The stage area is called the canvas and the tools you use to assemble a course are called gadgets. All of the gadgets currently available can be seen in Figure 1, though the service may add others from time to time. Each gadget is different, and it is possible to customize each one in various ways.

Figure 1: Versal Gadgets

This tool is unlike any I’ve ever seen. The number and variety of gadgets is fascinating. Some seem most appropriate for academic courses. For instance, the R0 (Figure 2) and the SIR gadgets refer to epidemic models, used in studies of how populations grow and how infectious diseases spread.

Figure 2: The R0 gadget

The 3-D Anatomy gadget lets you rotate and manipulate a skull, with and without skin, in many different ways. While this is not a common need in, say, an accounting course, it would obviously be useful in an anatomy course. See Figure 3.

Figure 3: The 3-D Anatomy gadget

There are also a number of gadgets that are useful in modeling principles in mathematics, physics, computability, biology, and other sciences. These gadgets include Cellular Automaton, Principle of Superposition, Highlightr, 2-D Vector, Sine Wave, Fournier Series, Sketchfab, and Snell’s-law Simulation. Other gadgets allow for the inclusion of audio and video files, quizzes, and one uses an on-screen piano to assist in music lessons. There are also gadgets that allow links to Google Docs and Microsoft OneDrive. As you can see, that’s quite a variety of gadgets. You can even create your own gadgets using JavaScript if you’re so inclined and if you get in touch with Versal.

Drawbacks? Of course, every tool has them. In this case, the biggest one I see is that when you insert a gadget, you place it above or below another gadget. In other words, each gadget stacks on the next vertically and each takes the full width of the screen horizontally, so you can’t, for instance, place two images side by side (unless a gadget is eventually created to allow that). You may not notice that limitation if you’re used to creating top-down websites rather than using a tool that allows for freeform placement of objects on an open stage.

You may find Versal useful to your needs or very limiting, depending on the kinds of courses you need to create. Take a look, though, at https://versal.com/ and in just a few minutes you can get a good feel for the tool and decide for yourself.

Another cloud-based tool, LearningStone is also open-source. It lets you set up a learning site that also acts as a means of communicating with those you invite. Training pros use it in meetings, classrooms, and in blended-learning situations. LearningStone uses the concept of workspaces. Within each workspace, an instructor creates groups and within each group the instructor can invite participants. The instructor sets up a course timeline within the workspace, connected to a calendar, so that participants can see what is expected of them.

The workspace site also has a social timeline that allows participants to communicate with each other and their instructor by commenting, uploading files of various types and more. The social timeline can continue to operate even after a course has ended. See Figure 4. As you can see, participants can access the site on mobile devices as well as desktop computers.

Figure 4: An example of LearningStone’s appearance

You can use LearningStone free. This grants you one concurrent course with full functionality, with up to 20 members in the group and two gigabytes of web space. The Pro version ranges from $165 a month for five concurrent groups to $866 a month for up to 35 concurrent groups. Each group in the Pro version can include up to 50 members and Pro comes with 20 gigabytes of web space and additional benefits. Finally, there is an Enterprise version that allows for up to 60 groups for $1,294 a month, 100 concurrent groups, with 200 members per group, and 100 gigabytes of web space. See more at https://www.learningstone.com/.

Not strictly an authoring tool, Bravo! Response lets you create eLearning games that you use in classroom and meeting situations. Attendees are then separated into teams and each team member is able to answer questions using wireless keypads from Turning Technologies, or alternatively an app installed on cell phones, or online virtual keypads. There are also wireless “slammers” that are like those on TV game shows, letting you know who chimes in first. See Figure 5.

Figure 5: An example of BRAVO!’s appearance 

You can install BRAVO! Response in Windows or in MacOS 10.6 or later. Games include QuizShow, Billionaire, and SpinOff. Answers can include multiple-choice, true/false, and be open ended. You can create your own avatars, using a built-in avatar editor, as on-screen players, and choose to embed your own images, videos (SWF and FLV), and audio as well.

You can use BRAVO Response free for 30 days. Pricing is not listed so you’ll need to request a price quote from the site. Learn more at http://c3softworks.com/products/classroom/bravo-response/.

In this case, I base Power on the fact that this tool is limited to what it does and is not a full-fledged authoring tool.

uPerform is cloud-based and includes several tools, which together make for quite a bit of power.

You can record software simulations and publish them in several different formats simultaneously. For instance, you can save the simulation as a Watch It, a Try It, a Practice Test, and an Assessment in HTML format. A feature I really like during playback mode is a step-by-step guide that flows down as each step is shown or completed. In addition, you can also save to several PDF file formats, including a step guide, an exercise sheet, and more.

If you wish to create a course, you start by choosing one of several templates, called stencils, after which you insert lessons, pages, assessments, and hotspots. You can also import PowerPoint files or import from courses you have already created. Each page can have a separate stencil.

In addition, you can create context-sensitive help, eLearning assessments, and you can provide collaboration tools for subject-matter experts and others. uPerform also lets you translate all of the standard menus and dialogs into over 30 languages. A project management section also allows you to track and report all the content you’ve created. You can choose to use Google Analytics, Dashboard Reporting, and third-party applications. An admin dashboard, part of which you’ll see in Figure 6, is included.

Figure 6: The uPerform admin dashboard

Learn more at http://ancile.com/index.php/products. Contact Ancile for pricing.

ToolBook has been around since 1990, so it is certainly no spring chicken, especially when compared to the other tools mentioned here. It was originally the brainchild of Paul Allen (of Microsoft fame) when he helmed Asymetrix. It is a Windows product loosely based on Apple’s HyperCard. It has its own programing language, OpenScript, based originally on Apple’s HyperTalk. You can say it was Windows’s response to Apple in providing an eLearning platform, though of course both Macintosh and Windows already had other tools at the time, the most famous of which was Authorware. Currently, it is in version 11.5, which was released last year.

As indicated by its title, ToolBook uses the metaphor of a book and of pages. The interface uses palettes of tools, which you can move or hide. In addition, you access properties for different objects through dialog boxes. It has built-in templates and it makes a catalog of objects available to you. See Figure 7.

Figure 7: The Toolbook catalog 

ToolBook is all about power, and while it has some features that are easy to use, if you want to take advantage of its power, you will need to take some time to learn its Action Editor and its OpenScript programming language. However, depending on how you will use ToolBook, you will want to focus on some features and avoid others. For instance, if you publish to the Web or for mobile, the result will be DHTML, which is a combination of HTML, JavaScript, and CSS, and you will need to avoid OpenScript and use the Actions Editor instead.

ToolBook has seen a decline in popularity over the years, not surprising for a tool that is now 24 years old, though it still has its die-hard fans and is still in production, so there’s no reason not to consider it. ToolBook costs about $2,795. Check out http://tb.sumtotalsystems.com/index.html for more information.

I hope you’ve enjoyed last month’s and this month’s overview of ten not-as-well-known eLearning development tools. If you find yourself falling in love with one of these tools, write below which one and how it has helped you. Thank you!

View the original article here

Toolkit: Five Lesser-known eLearning Tools by Joe Ganci

“The tool itself uses a metaphor of folders and screens. Each folder is a group which is flexible in nature. You can call it a topic, module, chapter, or anything else you like. The folders can be expanded and collapsed and form a tree view on the left. A screen can be one of several basic layouts, such as text and image combinations, a more-info slide, or a short PDF document.”

A word of thanks to those of you who have responded to my survey for those lesser-known eLearning tools that you either use or you would like me to review. This month, I’ll review the top five vote getters.

There were a good number of responses but there is still time to vote because Part 2 will be next month. Vote before March 31 at https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/W57Y8HP.

The Serious eLearning Manifesto was announced on March 13. The brainchild of Clark Quinn, Michael Allen, Julie Dirksen, and Will Thalheimer, it is a real attempt to change the eLearning world for the better. I am one of the trustees of the manifesto and hope to see many of you sign up and contribute to improving our industry. Go to http://elearningmanifesto.org/.

Raptivity, the cool interaction builder, got a sporting new interface recently. Even more interesting, a public beta version of Raptivity Linker opened on March 19. Up until now, Raptivity interactions were built individually and then typically inserted into a tool like Captivate or Storyline or placed on websites by themselves. With Linker, you can string together Raptivity interactions into sequences or learning arcs. Check out the beta at www.raptivity.com.

easyGenerator has introduced a Starter edition for $19 a month and the first month is free. A cloud-based tool, easyGenerator is worth checking out. It uses a 1-2-3 process: 1. Define your objectives, 2. Create your questions, and 3. Add your learning content. Sign up at http://live.easygenerator.com/try.

You’ve probably heard of the Oppia beta by now. This is a free tool for creating “bite-sized learning journeys” and so it might be considered an authoring tool, though one unlike any other you’ve seen. It was written as an open-source project by a group of Google engineers in their 20 percent time, but it’s not an official Google product. Be aware that anything you create on the site becomes open source for all, so it’s not a tool you’ll want to use for proprietary content. It is mainly meant for teachers and students. See more at https://www.oppia.org/. 

Here is the list of the Top Five that you said you wanted to know more about. Note that these have now been removed from the Survey. For four of these tools, I’ve provided a short review of the features and a bar graph showing my rating of the tool’s power and ease of use. (Since Articulate Online is an LMS and fundamentally not the same kind of tool as the other four, rating it for power and ease of use wasn’t appropriate.)

Articulate Online by Articulatee-Learning Authoring Tool by e-Learning ConsultingnimbleAuthor (was eLearning Course Builder) by eLearning247FlexAuthoring by FlexTrainingUdutu Online Course Authoring by Udutu Online Learning Solutions

Articulate Online complements both Articulate Storyline and Articulate Studio; Studio includes Presenter, Quizmaker, and Engage. It takes the place of a learning management system and works only with Articulate tools to gather the data from learner sessions, data that you can then use to generate reports within Articulate Online.

The data you can view range from an individual’s response to a specific question up to discovering group trends for specific questions. You can give learners access to their personal histories so they can generate their own reports. You can organize learners into different groups (create your own if you like) and assign different permission levels to each group.

I find all the interfaces easy to understand and to use. All that data your learners generate need not stay trapped within Articulate Online because there are options to export to CSV (comma delimited files, easy to import into Microsoft Excel) or to XML files, and finally to PDF files as well.

Most learning management systems are very expensive, but Articulate Online ranges from $199 a month for up to 50 users, up to $499 a month for 500 users. You can cancel at any time. Learn more at http://www.articulate.com/products/ao-plans.php.

This tool’s name couldn’t be more generic, and the tool itself is easy to use. It does not have a ton of features. The interface uses a tree view menu to create pages and uses mostly dialog boxes for you to lay out Pages, Quizzes, and Tests. Figure 1 shows the types of pages you can create.

Figure 1: eLearning Authoring Tool’s page choices

You can choose to have learners freely navigate to the next page or be forced to visit, complete, or pass the current page (assuming it’s a question). The learner can use the tree view to jump to any page and you can have standard Previous and Next buttons, along with options for Glossary, Resources, Help, and Close or Open Menu. You can also provide a Progress button that will let learners pop up a window at any time to see what they have accomplished and what they have left to do.

The editor uses ribbons along the top, now familiar to anyone who has used Office applications in the last few years. It contains an HTML editor and you can create cascading style sheets as well.

The tool is installed on your hard drive and the courses you create with it will work with SCORM. It publishes to HTML/DHTML.

The regular retail price for e-Learning Authoring Tool is $799. See more at http://www.e-learningconsulting.com/products/authoring/authoring.html.

This tool was originally called eLearning Course Builder but now has the less generic (and niftier) name nimbleAuthor, probably to avoid confusion with Adobe Dreamweaver Course Builder extensions and with Google Course Builder (now called Open edX).

nimbleAuthor also uses the page metaphor—when you add a new page you are given a choice of 10 page templates, as seen in Figure 2. They include presentation, interaction, question pages, and a blank page so that you can construct your own.

Figure 2: nimbleAuthor provides 10 page templates

When you edit a template page or start with a blank one, you have the flexibility of adding different content types by clicking an Add button and moving objects around after clicking a Drag button. There are also branding options that let you change more global aspects of your lesson. You can also add an Assessment at the end of your lesson.

The tool is cloud-based and publishes to SCORM 1.2. However it does appear that you are highly encouraged to couple nimbleAuthor with nimbleLMS. As a cloud-based tool, nimbleAuthor fits right into nimbleLMS. A library of royalty-free images is included and all courses work across desktops and mobile devices.

eLearning247 is an English vendor, so its pricing is in pounds sterling. If you wish to use nimbleAuthor separately and deploy resulting courses into your own SCORM 1.2 LMS, the cost is £850.00 a year. If you use nimbleLMS along with nimbleAuthor, the cost is a per-learner registration. Check out the tool and the payment options at www.elearning247.com.

FlexAuthoring is a cloud-based tool (part of the “Total e-Learning Solution”) that lets you build lessons that contain what are called Learning Screens. Each Learning Screen is based on a template, and you can add text, audio, video, etc. In any case, you are not working in a WYSWIG environment here. Rather, you fill in dialogs to load each screen element. Tests are set up the same way. You add questions and answers to tests through wizard-like dialogs. It works directly with the FlexTraining LMS, therefore everything is integrated and you do not use your own LMS. (People usually call this combination an LCMS.)  

You can sign up for a trial, but it will cost you $500 to do so, though it is reimbursed if you sign up for a full license. A full license starts at $495 per month using the self-service kit provided, which will let you deliver an unlimited number of courses to a maximum of 100 students. You will have to contact the company to obtain license pricing for 250, 1000, 5000, or unlimited students. See more at http://www.flextraining.com/.

Udutu Online Course Authoring is a completely free online authoring tool that uses a WYSIWYG environment. Udutu is a services company and so also has its own LMS (called Udutu Guru) and other services to which you can purchase licenses. The tool itself, though, is not limited to the Udutu LMS. You can export your courses and host them on your own server or in your LMS, publish to Udutu’s Facebook page at no cost, and more.

The tool itself uses a metaphor of folders and screens. Each folder is a group that is flexible in nature. You can call it a topic, module, chapter, or anything else you like. The folders can be expanded and collapsed and form a tree view on the left. A screen can be one of several basic layouts, such as text and/or image combinations, a more-info slide, or a short PDF document.

You can also create assessment screens, and these include several types: multiple choice, match labels to images, order the steps, drag and drop, what’s wrong with the picture, phrase matching, order images, and more.

There are also advanced screen types, which include slide shows, rollovers, animated lists, and others.

Most of the screen types are compatible with mobile devices, though some won’t work on iPads (you’ll be told which).

Media can include most types you need, including different image, audio, animation, and video formats.

Several scenario templates are provided, which I think is pretty cool, especially for a free tool. (Figure 3)

Figure 3: Course template categories in Udutu

In short, Udutu offers a pretty impressive cloud-based tool that is free to use. See more at http://www.udutu.com/solutions_udutu.html.

Next month I’ll cover the top five tools that you choose now. Note that the above five tools have been removed from the survey so that we can focus on others. Let me know your thoughts on the above tools, especially if you use them. Finally, be sure to go vote in the survey!

View the original article here

Indecomm Launches New Training Tools at Learning Solutions 2014 by News Editor

“Indecomm understands the importance of mobile learning in these economically challenging times. Mobility is the key to efficiency and a focus in our development program.”

Indecomm Global Services, a leader in business process outsourcing, learning, and technology solutions, announces that its Learning Division will showcase new training offerings—YP Mobile, RapideL, and  P3 Sales Training Framework—at the Learning Solutions 2014 Conference and Expo in Orlando, FL. The theme of the conference is Re-defining Training with Technology.

Indecomm’s YP Mobile is a mobile plug-in for its Yellow Platter Learning Management System (YP LMS), which enables mobile users to access eLearning on the move. Its interface enables seamless access through a mobile application for Android and iOS platforms. YP Mobile can also be integrated with a third party LMS through customization. It is designed to work online or offline, which means learners can download the courses when online and take them when offline.

“Indecomm understands the importance of mobile learning in these economically challenging times,” said Dinesh Poduval, head of the learning division for Indecomm Global Services. “Mobility is the key to efficiency and a focus in our development program.”

RapideL, Indecomm’s web-based online course authoring platform, allows users to create courses in Flash and HTML5 in four easy steps: Setup, Author & Review, Publish, and Package. It offers multiple settings options for course player, course structure, navigation, and assessment. RapideL includes a rich template library and offers features like instant page preview, multiuser authoring, and online review. RapideL reduces course development time by almost 40 percent and the development cost by 40 percent to 60 percent.

“Instructional designers, subject matter experts, and visual designers challenged with keeping content current need to be able to apply rapid and agile development models,” said Poduval. “RapideL is an extremely simple, intuitive, and effective authoring platform that achieves this goal.”

Efficient learning is especially important in sales training. Indecomm has leveraged its wealth of experience in developing sales training for various global clients to create its very own P3—Product—Process—People (Customer)Sales Training Framework. This framework covers three key aspects of sales: what to sell, whom to sell, and how to sell. 

The P3 Framework focuses on teaching core selling techniques, familiarizing the salespeople with products and services, giving them insights into industry trends related to selling strategies, helping them master the sales process, and enabling them to manage their sales target. It also includes a performance support component to provide adequate on the job support. Indecomm’s P3 Sales Training Framework guarantees reduction in time to competency of the newly hired salespeople.

“Optimizing sales training is no longer an option,” said Kapil Bhasin, senior vice president, of the learning division of Indecomm Global Services. “Our P3 sales training framework uses the right blend of learning design, development, and deployment methods to ensure engagement and effectiveness.”

For over a decade, Indecomm Learning has partnered with business and governments across the globe to provide effective learning solutions. It identifies the best solution for its clients through consultative engagement and has a track record of over 30,000 hours of learning content design, development, and deployment. Through its solutions it strives to enhance the performance of an individual and the organization. Its work has been recognized by the 2013 Asian Quality Leadership Award and two Brandon Hall Excellence Awards, as well as by TrainingIndustry.com. For more information, visit www.indecomm.net.

View the original article here