5 Responses

1. Back to Basics
   Why not use the tools you already have?

   You could offer a correspondence-type course built with word processing and/or desktop publishing software, and delivered via email.

   Alternatively, you could use a simple HTML editor to build some web pages, if you would rather have the students access the content via the Web instead of via email. Indeed your word processor may already enable you to develop Web pages.

   You could keep track of your students by using any decent spreadsheet or database.

   That’s all you need to be able to offer a basic no-frills set of tutorials.

2. Succesful training doesn’t always come cheap
   “Cheap and cheerful” is a bit of a worrying decription – it tends to lead to uninspired and uniform e-learning material that actually disengages your learners.

   I agreed with the comment already posted that you can make some very effective material for distance learning with what you already have.

   But developing e-learning material takes time and specialist skills to make it effective and that more than anything else is likely to put your costs up high.

   Theoretically you could design e-learning material with nothing more than Notepad (used as an HTML editor) but to get something effective is going to take a bit more work.

   I would suggest that if you decide e-learning is for you, that you look at multiple vendors look for ease of use as your criteria for choosing a package and factor out the development time against increased initial outlay,

3. Moodle & Articulate
   Hi Alan,
   I would suggest you look at Articulate as your development tool, or possibly eXe which is a free open source tool. You can see reviews of both on our site http://www.kineo.co.uk.

   I would also strongly suggest you look at Moodle to deliver these. It is a free open source LMS which provides tracking and assessment in addition to course delivery including discussion forums etc. A review also on our site or see our demo moodle at http://www.kineolearning.com/demo

   I am very happy to set you up a Moodle for you to play with it if it is of interest.

   Good luck.

4. E-authoring tools – what do you want to do?
   We are currently using Macromedia’s Captivate here. It can be made to do simple overviews, demonstrations or learning that involves Q&A. We use it because it works a bit like PowerPoint – so the novices in my team could use it -, it can be used with our bespoke systems (it takes screen grabs that you can manipulate), and was pound for pound cheaper (although we’re an organisation of 6000+ employees).
   We did test drive a number of other apps, each with a plus and a minus somewhere along the line.
   Captivate’s thorn was that you need an LMS as it doesn’t come with one (we were lucky in that we’d already got one!).

5. Free stuff
   I agree with Steve (Rayson) regarding Moodle, Captivate and exe. I also recommend Etomite or Exponent for your content. Easy to learn for the designers and easy to use for the learners.