e-Learning Technology Review
Authoring | Delivery | Integrated| Portals | TMS |
Synchronous interaction is an increasingly popular delivery system used in many e-learning environments today. Brandon Hall (2000a) defines synchronous delivery as "an instructor or team of instructors [who] will present and be connected by audio or video, while at the same time the student will be online interacting with the online course." One of the appealing powers of synchronous interaction is the continuous, real-time sharing of knowledge and learning on the job (Swider, 2000). Other advantages include the immediate access to instructors and online mentors to ask questions and receive answers, similar to traditional learning environments. The disadvantage is that it requires a set date and time, contradicting the "anytime, anywhere" promise of e-learning (Hall, 2000). Streamed media can be used to deliver audio to multiple learners at one time. Collaborative software packages such as Microsoft NetMeeting can enable live, multi-way interactivity over a dial-up connection where learners can jointly edit documents and collectively solve problems using a shared 'whiteboard' space.Regardless of the technologies used to employ synchronous delivery, it is seen as an important aspect of e-learning. Anderson et al. (2000), working for IDC as a specialist group in the synchronous arena, recently highlighted the importance of synchronous delivery in a report on the future of e-learning; "While traditional brick-and-mortar classrooms will decline in revenue share for corporate education, growth in technology-delivered training must be driven by live e-learning solutions." The authors continue, "IDC believes that this technology has great potential as a method for effective learning, especially when it is combined with both traditional instructor-led training and other delivery mediums."
| General | Trends | Features |
| Contact Information | Partners | Technical Requirements |
|---|---|---|
Centra 99430 Bedford StreetLexington, MA 02420 Phone:(781) 861-7000 URL: www.centra.com Email Address: info@centra.com The Centra 99 product suite offers a comprehensive set of features, options and toolkits in a scalable, extensible and easily deployed enterprise-class, client/server software application. |
Consulting Partners PricewaterhouseCoopers - www.pwcglobal.com American Management Systems, Inc. - www.amsinc.com C3i - www.c3i-inc.com Clarkston Potomac - www.clarkstonpotomac.com DA Consulting Group - www.dacg.com Deloitte Consulting - www.dc.com Dendrite International, Inc. - www.drte.com Quickstart Technologies - www.quickstart.com RWD Technologies - www.rwd.com TIS Worldwide - www.tisworldwide.com UserTech - www.usertech.com. Online Training Partners Learning Management Partners Platform Partners Technology Partners International Sales Partners |
Technical Requirements - Presenter Centra Server) Windows NT 4.0 Server with SP4 or SP5 Pentium 300 MHz 128 MB RAM 250 MB free disk space Dedicated server with static IP address Technical Requirements - Participant Centra Symposium Anyone Sharing an Application |
HorizonLive520 8th Avenue 23rd FloorNew York, NY 10018 Phone:(212) 533-1775 URL: www.horizonlive.com Email Address: info@horizonlive.com HorizonLive's software represents a new standard for delivering live presentations over the Internet that is convenient, simple and 100% Web ready. Whether you're running sessions on a product rollout for sales, turning classroom training intlive online training or holding a presentation across your supply chain, HorizonLive makes it simple, effective and even replayable |
Content Partners Educational Video Conferencing (EVCI) IMS Health InfoWorks ULiveandLearn.com Technology Partners Service Partners |
Technical Requirements - Presenter Windows, Mac or Unix 32 MB RAM 3.0+ Web Browser Intenet access RealEncoderŽ 5.1* Sound card with mic* * Optional with use of the HorizonLive Phone Bridge Technical Requirements - Participant |
InterWise Millennium2334 Walsh AvenueSanta Clara, CA 95051 Phone: URL: www.interwise.com Email Address: contact@interwise.com The InterWise Millennium eLearning platform enables a rich, live learning environment that's natural and effective. InterWise Millennium provides students with all the benefits of a classroom environment, without ever leaving their desks. It lets instructors use the widest range of training methods to facilitate knowledge transfer in the most interesting and appropriate ways. |
PSINet Consulting Solutions | Technical Requirements - Participant Windows 9x or Windows NT4 Pentium 133 MHz or up Standard sound card with a speaker and microphone 16 MB RAM or up 15 inch Monitor with 800x600 resolution Headset or microphone and earphones TCP/IP intranet access or modem (>=28K) Internet access (>=33.6Kfor application sharing) A browser such as Internet Explorer or Netscape 3 or higher (4 or higher recommended 100 MB of disk space set aside for learning materials (configurable) Technical Requirements - Presenter Campus InterWise Millenium Server |
Mentergy LearnLinc385 Jordan Road TroyNew York, NY 12180 Phone:(518) 286-7000 URL: www.mentergy.com Email Address: info@learnlinc.com LearnLinc is a company and a product. It is a real-time, cost-effective, online training environment that enables corporations and universities to deliver live eLearning courseware to employees or students via the Internet, corporate or university intranet, or wide area network. What distinguishes LearnLinc from other solution providers is our ability to provide a real-time, interactive, virtual classroom environment, at a distance. LearnLinc makes live teaching possible for students separated by time and/or geography. Traditional instructor-led classrooms have been fundamental to effective learning for thousands of years. LearnLinc combines all the instructor control and student interaction of the traditional classroom with the eLearning technology. |
Business Partners ExecuTrain - www.executrain.com New Horizons - www.newhorizons.com Teletraining Institure - www.teletrain.com Intel - www.intel.com Macromedia Inc - www.macromedia.com Click2Learn - www.click2learn.com InSync Training Synergy - www.insynctraining.com Andrea - www.andreaelectronics.com D'Innocenzo - Cullen & Associates - www.dcandassoc.com |
Technical Requirements - Server For Windows NT: (For up to 25 concurrent users on a single server) A dedicated Intel Pentium 200 processor or faster 64 MB RAM Windows NT Server 4.0 with Service Pack 3 At least 100 MB hard disk space Network interface card (supporting TCP/IP) For Windows 2000: Technical Requirements - Client with Unicast Audioconferencing Under Windows 2000: Supported Third-Party Products: Microsoft Internet Explorer:
4.01 SP1, 4.01 SP2, 5.0, 5.01 (5.0 included with the LearnLinc client)
LearnLinc Communication Options |
PlaceWare Conference Center 2000295 N. Bernardo Ave.Mountain View, CA 94043 Phone:(888) 526-6170 URL: www.placeware.com Email Address: sales@placeware.com Conference Center 2000 is the first Web conferencing E-service designed specifically to enable businesses to hold live interactive meetings and presentations over the Internet, avoiding the hassels and costs of business travel. You can readily schedule, present, record and play-back any meeting from a single URL. |
Service Provider Partners Sprint - www.sprint.com/icc MCIWorldCom - e-meetings.wcom.com Global Crossing - www.themeetingson.com Envoy - www.envoyglobal.com Conference Plus, inc -www.cpiconf.com Hewlett Packard - www.itresourcecenter.hp.com KRM - www.krm.com Mobilize - www.mobilize.com 365 media - www.365media.com ASP-One - www.asp-one.com RWD Technologies, Inc. - www.rwd.com Magnifi - www.magnifi.com Portal Partners |
Technical Requirements for Presenters and Audience Members
Browser Netscape Navigator 3.01 or later Microsoft Internet Explorer 3.02 or later Computer Internet Connection Speed Display Optional Conference Center Server Pentium-based PC with Windows NT 4.x Sun SPARCstation with Solaris 2.x Web Server |
WebEx Meeting Center100 Rose Orchard WaySan Jose, CA 95134 Phone: (408) 435-7000 URL: www.webex.com Email Address: info@webex.com Meeting Center virtual meetings match the productivity of face-to-face meetings by incorporating audio, data and video in a full-featured on-line meeting room. |
Service Partners: Global Crossing Deutsche Telekom MindSpring V-Span ConferenceCallService encanto networks Technology Partners: |
Native Windows client: Intel Pentium Processor, 166Mhz with Windows 95, 98 or NT MS Internet Explorer 4.x or Netscape Communicator 4.x 56kbps Internet connection or better JavaScript and Cookies enabled Java client on Windows: Java on Mac OS: For Java on Solaris and Linux: |