WOW! I simply don't know how else to describe the new BETA Skypecast service. It's everything you've come to know and love about Conference calls, and sooooo much more.
I was looking for a cheap conference call service for TrainingCity's new weekly "Free Webinar" series. I considered all the usual PSTN suspects but none of them offered the right "Price Point" for a Free Webinar (ie: none of them were FREE!).
I considered Skype's traditional conference feature that has been built into the application for the past couple of years, but it only allows a maximum of five attendees. Then I discovered the new Skypecast beta service.
This new offering from Skype definitely met my "Price Point" (read: FREE!). It offers a maximum of 100! attendees. Setting up a Skypecast is fairly straightforward, however, there is more work that needs to be done to the Uder Interface.
For example, I set up a "Test Skypecast" and now I can't delete it from my list of Skypecasts. I also found the inteface for attendees to log into a Skypecast to be unnecessarily complex. Finally, there is an option to set your Skypecast as either "Public" or "Hidden". I strongly recommend "Hidden". With my first Skypecast I had 10 attendees who registered through TrainingCity's website, but over 50 logged into the Webcast by finding it as a "Featured Skypecast" on Skype's main page!
Want to see what all the buzz is about? Feel free to log into my next Skypecast, Friday, January 12, 2007 at 12:00 PM EST!
Tuesday, January 09, 2007
Thursday, August 03, 2006
Go to my PC: The Secret Sauce for Virtual Labs
GotoMyPC is the perfect companion to the outstanding GoToMeeting Virtual Classroom solution I reviewed earlier.
GotoMyPC allows the Virtual Trainer to setup real world, hands on labs on servers sitting right in the office. Virtual students use GotoMyPC to "take control" of these "Lab Computers" directly from a browser window on their desktop. When combined with GotoMeeting, these two fantastic tools from Citrix create an amazingly powerful Virtual Classroom that can be directed and control by one instructor from the comfort of his office.
After searching and trying other solutions such as "Access Remote PC" (Review to follow), I found nothing that could meet TrainingCity's long term needs and provide attendees with the assurance that we were using technology from a well established, security conscious, vendor.
At first I passed over GotoMyPC because I (mistakenly) thought it required the student to have access to the GotoMyPC user name and password. Given that this information allows the user to access the assigned credit card information, the idea of "handing over" a user ID & password to every TrainingCity Virtual Class attendee was a non-starter.
Fortunately, just before closing the file on GotoMyPC I decided to call their technical support line to confirm that users would indeed have access to my account information. The call was an eye opener. I was informed that GotoMyPC supports the setup of “Guest” accounts, exactly what I needed to allow TrainingCity students to use the service without being able to access our private account details.
Since setting up a corporate GotoMyPC account a few months ago TrainingCity has saved thousands of dollars in shipping fees. Rather than shipping a laptop to everyone who registers to attend a Virtual Class, we can now simply ask them if their existing hardware supports GoToMeeting and GoToMyPC.
In conclusion, I continue to be more and more impressed with the Citrix product line. My only complaint is their lack of support for the Apple Mac platform.
Thursday, May 25, 2006
Goto GotoMeeting Right Now!
Wow! I continue to the more and more impressed with GoToMeeting as the ideal Virtual Classroom tool.
Top Ten things I LOVE about GoToMeeting:
10. Super Simple to use for the Instructor and the Attendee.
9. Ease of installation.
8. Functions flawlessly through every Firewall we've encountered to date.
7. The instructor can EASILY Write over ANY screen using a Wacom writing pad.
6. The attendees can “take over” the instructor’s keyboard and mouse with ease.
5. “On Air” indication is clear and ensures the instructor always knows what the attendees are seeing.
4. The Chat window works like a charm.
3. The instructor can instantly switch between full screen view, application view, or open window view modes.
2. The “Learning Curve” for mastering GoToMeeting is almost straight up! You can go from newbie to master in less than 15 minutes, try that with the competition.
1. It’s CHEAP!!! For less than $50.00 per month you can be hosting Virtual Classes with up to 10 attendees 24/7.
Top Ten things I LOVE about GoToMeeting:
10. Super Simple to use for the Instructor and the Attendee.
9. Ease of installation.
8. Functions flawlessly through every Firewall we've encountered to date.
7. The instructor can EASILY Write over ANY screen using a Wacom writing pad.
6. The attendees can “take over” the instructor’s keyboard and mouse with ease.
5. “On Air” indication is clear and ensures the instructor always knows what the attendees are seeing.
4. The Chat window works like a charm.
3. The instructor can instantly switch between full screen view, application view, or open window view modes.
2. The “Learning Curve” for mastering GoToMeeting is almost straight up! You can go from newbie to master in less than 15 minutes, try that with the competition.
1. It’s CHEAP!!! For less than $50.00 per month you can be hosting Virtual Classes with up to 10 attendees 24/7.
Tuesday, August 30, 2005
Fed Ex: The Virtual Classroom's "Real" Side.
At TrainingCity our classes are known for intense, Hands ON labs. We pride ourselves on keeping lecture time to a minimum and Hands ON time to a Maximum.
The key is building "Real World" labs and group workshops that are challenging and educational; after all, the only thing worse than a boring lecture is a useless lab!
If Hands ON labs are the key to learning in your classroom, what happens when things go Virtual?
At TrainingCity we examined the option of using the Web Ex "virtual lab" configuration, but with over twenty Hands ON classes, all with complex labs using incredibly sophisticated software and hardware, WebEx's solution just wasn't up to the task. To make matters worse, the WebEx pricing model was rigid and completely out of tune with the realities of our lab requirements.
In the end we asked ourselves one fundamental question: What must be "Virtual" in a Virtual classroom; the lab equipment or the students?
Our goal in building a Virtual classroom is to accommodate students who for one reason or another will not be physically present in one of our classrooms. That doesn't mean we can't send the classroom to the student!
We developed fully functional "suitcase" modules for each class that contain all the necessary equipment and software to run each classroom lab.
We use Fed Ex ground service (and sometime Fed Ex Express) to deliver these "Suitcase Labs" to Virtual Students around the world. When you sign up for a TrainingCity Virtual class, we immediately schedule the delivery of a "suitcase" containing the same lab equipment you would be working with in our real classroom.
Is this expensive? Yes....But:
This brings up another critical concept regarding Virtual Classroom training. Virtual Training, as I have been saying for over two years, is NOT e-learning. Whenever I think of e-learning I think, "cheap, out of date, expensive to develop". E-Learning promised to deliver "cheap" training, Virtual Classrooms promise to emulate a real World classroom. Virtual Training is NOT e-learning, and it will never be "cheap" to deliver.
If you think of a Virtual Classroom as the equivalent of a Live, Instructor Led, class, then the idea of spending an extra $100 or so to Fed Ex real classroom equipment to a student starts to make sense... After all, it's still cheaper than the student flying to your training center.
The key is building "Real World" labs and group workshops that are challenging and educational; after all, the only thing worse than a boring lecture is a useless lab!
If Hands ON labs are the key to learning in your classroom, what happens when things go Virtual?
At TrainingCity we examined the option of using the Web Ex "virtual lab" configuration, but with over twenty Hands ON classes, all with complex labs using incredibly sophisticated software and hardware, WebEx's solution just wasn't up to the task. To make matters worse, the WebEx pricing model was rigid and completely out of tune with the realities of our lab requirements.
In the end we asked ourselves one fundamental question: What must be "Virtual" in a Virtual classroom; the lab equipment or the students?
Our goal in building a Virtual classroom is to accommodate students who for one reason or another will not be physically present in one of our classrooms. That doesn't mean we can't send the classroom to the student!
We developed fully functional "suitcase" modules for each class that contain all the necessary equipment and software to run each classroom lab.
We use Fed Ex ground service (and sometime Fed Ex Express) to deliver these "Suitcase Labs" to Virtual Students around the world. When you sign up for a TrainingCity Virtual class, we immediately schedule the delivery of a "suitcase" containing the same lab equipment you would be working with in our real classroom.
Is this expensive? Yes....But:
This brings up another critical concept regarding Virtual Classroom training. Virtual Training, as I have been saying for over two years, is NOT e-learning. Whenever I think of e-learning I think, "cheap, out of date, expensive to develop". E-Learning promised to deliver "cheap" training, Virtual Classrooms promise to emulate a real World classroom. Virtual Training is NOT e-learning, and it will never be "cheap" to deliver.
If you think of a Virtual Classroom as the equivalent of a Live, Instructor Led, class, then the idea of spending an extra $100 or so to Fed Ex real classroom equipment to a student starts to make sense... After all, it's still cheaper than the student flying to your training center.
Wednesday, February 16, 2005
Product Review: Web Ex
TrainingCity is constantly searching for "Best of Breed" technologies to enable our Virtual Classroom configuration. In the past few months we've been trialing products from a number of vendors. One of the product offerings we've been using is WebEx.
This review is broken down into the following sections:
1. User Interface
2. PowerPoint Presentation
3. Voice & Video
4. Application Sharing & Whiteboard
5. Summary
The WebEx service worked very well throughout the trial phase. We used the standard WebEx product offering, which seemed to be designed more for short presentations than full blown, several hour long, training classes. Apparently WebEx does offer a true "Virtual Classroom" product, something we may try in the near future. A "true" Virtual Classroom typically includes a method of allowing students direct VPN access to lab computers as well as "I'm away" or "be right back" flags that students can use during the class to inform the instructor of their status.
The WebEx user interface was relatively easy to use. It allowed for straightforward scheduling of classes and a simple email interface to inform students of the start time/ access URL, password for log in etc.
The primary end user interface for WebEx is a java applet. This presented some difficulty for students who did not have a java virtual machine installed on their desktop. Many people forget that Microsoft no longer supports JVM, and you must download the app from Sun Microsystems’s Java.com.
Once the student desktops are configured, WebEx offers a smooth, well organized, interface for both the student and the instructor. WebEx requires the instructor to upload the presentation to a Web ex server prior to the start of the Virtual Class in order to allow the students to view high resolution images of the Power Point presentation.
PowerPoint Presentation
Once the presentation is uploaded, the instructor can decide whether to limit student access to the page being displayed by the instructor, or let them "browse" through the various slides during the presentation. This is a great little feature, as students often want to skip over content during a training session. At TrainingCity we decided to enable this feature, however, all our students receive a Hard Copy of the student manual and the slide presentation via Fed Ex prior to the start of our Virtual Classes.
Next Up: Product review of Microsoft’s Livemeeting.
Wednesday, February 02, 2005
Overcoming the "Ugh, No Way!" factor
As TrainingCity progresses in our efforts to build a "Best of Breed" Virtual Classroom, we increasingly face the challenge of "educating" our customers on the benefits and limitations of VC Training.
One challenge is the balance between "selling" and "critiquing" Virtual Classrooms. How do you convince clients to try Virtual Classrooms when you prefer Instructor Led classroom Training?
At TrainingCity we believe that live Instructor Led classroom Training (ILT) is almost always the "ideal". Virtual Classroom training fits somewhere between ILT and traditional static elearning, where students may, at best, interact with a distant "email help center".
The challenge then is not to "sell" Virtual Classroom training to hesitant clients, but to determine how best to meet their needs.
Virtual Classroom training may make sense for a client with one or two employees who need to attend a specific class offered only in a distant city, clients who cannot travel for medical reasons, or clients who have a team of employees dispersed in various locations throughout the country or the world.
With a dispersed team of say 10 employees, a typical Instructor led class held in one central location would require 10 travel expenses and up to 20 lost employee days spent in transit to and from the training location. Virtual Classroom training for a team like this offers a significant Cost/Benefit ratio when the lost productivity is factored against the limitations of a Live, fully interactive Virtual Classroom.
There is no "one size fits all" solution when it comes to training. The key is to prepare viable alternatives and listen carefully to the clients needs before making a recommendation.
One challenge is the balance between "selling" and "critiquing" Virtual Classrooms. How do you convince clients to try Virtual Classrooms when you prefer Instructor Led classroom Training?
At TrainingCity we believe that live Instructor Led classroom Training (ILT) is almost always the "ideal". Virtual Classroom training fits somewhere between ILT and traditional static elearning, where students may, at best, interact with a distant "email help center".
The challenge then is not to "sell" Virtual Classroom training to hesitant clients, but to determine how best to meet their needs.
Virtual Classroom training may make sense for a client with one or two employees who need to attend a specific class offered only in a distant city, clients who cannot travel for medical reasons, or clients who have a team of employees dispersed in various locations throughout the country or the world.
With a dispersed team of say 10 employees, a typical Instructor led class held in one central location would require 10 travel expenses and up to 20 lost employee days spent in transit to and from the training location. Virtual Classroom training for a team like this offers a significant Cost/Benefit ratio when the lost productivity is factored against the limitations of a Live, fully interactive Virtual Classroom.
There is no "one size fits all" solution when it comes to training. The key is to prepare viable alternatives and listen carefully to the clients needs before making a recommendation.
Tuesday, January 25, 2005
The "Private" Virtual Classroom
Many students have commented to me that they are willing to attend a Virtual Class, but they don't have a location where they can attend and not be interrupted for the duration of the class. Often the office is a "cubicle farm" with all sorts of noises, distractions, and bosses! While attending from home usually means stepping over children and interfering with family activities.
So, what can you do if your Virtual Classroom is a virtual mess?
We faced this problem the other day. Numerous Fortune 500 companies have incorporated TrainingCity classes into their career development programs. A student in Boston needed to attend a TrainingCity class as part of her corporate professional development program, but the class was only being offered in San Diego. She needed to complete the class as soon as possible so I suggested she consider being a Virtual Student.
That's when we realized there was a problem!
She had no where to go to attend the Virtual class. Her desk was in the middle of a busy office, there was no way she could occupy the group's only conference room for several hours each day of the class, and her home was overflowing with three little bundles of joy!
Faced with this dilemma, I suggested she come to a rented temporary office in downtown Boston where TrainingCity maintains a contracted day office rental option. For a modest daily fee we were able to provide her with a Class "A" office, complete with Internet access, teleconference, and a TrainingCity supplied laptop configured to participate in the Virtual Class presentation and connect via our TrainingCity VPN directly to a lab computer in our San Diego lab. As a result she could attend the Virtual class in comfort and complete the same labs as the other students, without interruptions!
The key to this success was the recognition that Virtual Classroom training is more "Instructor Led" than "elearning".
When we think elearning we usually think cheap, static, and rigid. Instructor led training on the other hand is built on the premise of flexibility and real time interactions between the instructor and the student. When we set out to build Virtual Classrooms, the focus must be on the real human welfare of the students and the instructor. We must always consider technology not only in terms of how it allows for virtual collaboration, but in terms of how a "complete" virtual classroom experience enables a comfortable and effective learning environment.
So, what can you do if your Virtual Classroom is a virtual mess?
We faced this problem the other day. Numerous Fortune 500 companies have incorporated TrainingCity classes into their career development programs. A student in Boston needed to attend a TrainingCity class as part of her corporate professional development program, but the class was only being offered in San Diego. She needed to complete the class as soon as possible so I suggested she consider being a Virtual Student.
That's when we realized there was a problem!
She had no where to go to attend the Virtual class. Her desk was in the middle of a busy office, there was no way she could occupy the group's only conference room for several hours each day of the class, and her home was overflowing with three little bundles of joy!
Faced with this dilemma, I suggested she come to a rented temporary office in downtown Boston where TrainingCity maintains a contracted day office rental option. For a modest daily fee we were able to provide her with a Class "A" office, complete with Internet access, teleconference, and a TrainingCity supplied laptop configured to participate in the Virtual Class presentation and connect via our TrainingCity VPN directly to a lab computer in our San Diego lab. As a result she could attend the Virtual class in comfort and complete the same labs as the other students, without interruptions!
The key to this success was the recognition that Virtual Classroom training is more "Instructor Led" than "elearning".
When we think elearning we usually think cheap, static, and rigid. Instructor led training on the other hand is built on the premise of flexibility and real time interactions between the instructor and the student. When we set out to build Virtual Classrooms, the focus must be on the real human welfare of the students and the instructor. We must always consider technology not only in terms of how it allows for virtual collaboration, but in terms of how a "complete" virtual classroom experience enables a comfortable and effective learning environment.
Thursday, January 20, 2005
Cell Phone Training!
As we've struggled to build a "Best of Breed" Virtual Classroom at TrainingCity one of the challenges we face is providing a viable voice communications solution for virtual students.
We normally use a 1-800 conference bridge to ensure reliable "full duplex", real time, voice communications between the instructor and the students. We've also experimented with a service called "skype". Skype is a free Voice Over IP service that includes a 5 person conference bridge.
Students who use the VoIP solution often comment on how they prefer it because we are not tying up their telephone line for several hours. Many Virtual Students get permission from their supervisors to attend TrainingCity's virtual classes from their home.
Recently we had a student attend a virtual class while sitting at the airport. She used the airports WiFI service to connect to our Virtual Classroom, but was unable to use Skype for the voice portion. She used her cell phone, plugged into a wall charging unit, to provide the voice portion of the class.
This use of the cell phone got my thinking. Could we push the whole virtual class onto a cell phone?
With current cell phone calling plans, and the rise of high speed internet services from carriers such as Sprint and Verizon Wireless, what if we could share all our Virtual Classroom functionality with a cell phone user?
Instead of needing both a laptop and a cell phone, students who are mobile could attend, using the color display screen on their cell phone to view the courseware and streaming video, while also participating on the voice portion.
So far I haven't found a product offering that can accommodate this option. In the meantime, I think we'll start a few tests of cell phone capabilities. I'll let you know how things go in a future post!
We normally use a 1-800 conference bridge to ensure reliable "full duplex", real time, voice communications between the instructor and the students. We've also experimented with a service called "skype". Skype is a free Voice Over IP service that includes a 5 person conference bridge.
Students who use the VoIP solution often comment on how they prefer it because we are not tying up their telephone line for several hours. Many Virtual Students get permission from their supervisors to attend TrainingCity's virtual classes from their home.
Recently we had a student attend a virtual class while sitting at the airport. She used the airports WiFI service to connect to our Virtual Classroom, but was unable to use Skype for the voice portion. She used her cell phone, plugged into a wall charging unit, to provide the voice portion of the class.
This use of the cell phone got my thinking. Could we push the whole virtual class onto a cell phone?
With current cell phone calling plans, and the rise of high speed internet services from carriers such as Sprint and Verizon Wireless, what if we could share all our Virtual Classroom functionality with a cell phone user?
Instead of needing both a laptop and a cell phone, students who are mobile could attend, using the color display screen on their cell phone to view the courseware and streaming video, while also participating on the voice portion.
So far I haven't found a product offering that can accommodate this option. In the meantime, I think we'll start a few tests of cell phone capabilities. I'll let you know how things go in a future post!
Friday, January 14, 2005
Oh the Weather Outside is Frightful!
Let it snow, Let it snow, Let it snow! It's looking a lot like January out there these days!
I was listening to the weather forecast the other day and I was struck by the way the announcer was dismissing the idea of Global warming. "When I was a kid it was never 50 below zero like it is today!" he exclaimed. "Yesterday it was minus 40 and today it will reach minus 60,... with the wind chill!" The reality is that the temperature today is actually minus 5; cold yes, minus 60, no.
This got me thinking about the problems with traditional elearning.
Wind chill is one of those things that the media loves, and everyone else assumes makes sense. Unfortunately, they do and it doesn't.
There is only one outside temperature. If the actual temperature is 35 degrees fahrenheit outside, water will not freeze, period. No matter what crazy "wind chill" temperature the radio host breathlessly announces; "It's Minus 20 with the wind chill, watch out for ice!", the fact is water won't freeze at 35 degrees.
Why then do the weather announcers think it's colder outside today than it was when they were kids? They are working from outdated information and poor training, maybe because they "attended" an elearning class!
When we use the term "elearning" today it usually refers to the kind of cheap "classes" your company may buy and try to pass off as Training. Full disclosure, I've never been a fan of elearning, in my humble opinion it is usually nothing more than reading and page turning. Useful yes, training, no.
The page turning, reading, and lack of instructor interaction that are common complaints of traditional elearning are really just the tip of iceberg.
The greatest risk enterprises must confront when developing learning strategies that place elearning at the core of the delivery model is this: How will we cost effectively sustain this content over the lifespan of this investment?
Elearning content is notoriously difficult and expensive to develop. The tools and techniques used to produce the content require special expertise. Elearning class content must be able to "stand alone", there is intense pressure to make sure every single bit of information is absolutely accurate. The costs to develop elearning content are staggering, and there is immense pressure to "Keep it Simple", and "Don't Update".
Accurate, simple information is always desirable in a training class. However, when a class is being designed to keep employees on the "Leading Edge" of the latest development in a complex field, accuracy is somewhat less important that making sure the information is current and up to date, sometimes up to the minute!
So, should companies drop all "page turning" elearning initiatives?
Maybe not, but more realistic ROI calculations need to be integrated into the cost/benefit analysis. More rigorous examination of the useful lifecycle of the content is also critical. Training Objectives that incorporate fields of study known to be fairly static are strong candidates for traditional elearning. For those Training Objectives built on fields of study in constant flux, and in my opinion most corporate training falls into the later category, caution is the keyword.
So does elearning have a place in corporate learning strategies? Yes, most definitely. Using the latest XML and Web Services standards such as RSS, online course content can more effectively be continuously updated than in the past. Template designs and tools such as eedo's development kit are further improving the Cost/benefit equation. Finally, the rise of Virtual Classrooms such as TrainingCity's Best of Breed VC, prove that "Virtual Training" can step in where "elearning" drops off.
I was listening to the weather forecast the other day and I was struck by the way the announcer was dismissing the idea of Global warming. "When I was a kid it was never 50 below zero like it is today!" he exclaimed. "Yesterday it was minus 40 and today it will reach minus 60,... with the wind chill!" The reality is that the temperature today is actually minus 5; cold yes, minus 60, no.
This got me thinking about the problems with traditional elearning.
Wind chill is one of those things that the media loves, and everyone else assumes makes sense. Unfortunately, they do and it doesn't.
There is only one outside temperature. If the actual temperature is 35 degrees fahrenheit outside, water will not freeze, period. No matter what crazy "wind chill" temperature the radio host breathlessly announces; "It's Minus 20 with the wind chill, watch out for ice!", the fact is water won't freeze at 35 degrees.
Why then do the weather announcers think it's colder outside today than it was when they were kids? They are working from outdated information and poor training, maybe because they "attended" an elearning class!
When we use the term "elearning" today it usually refers to the kind of cheap "classes" your company may buy and try to pass off as Training. Full disclosure, I've never been a fan of elearning, in my humble opinion it is usually nothing more than reading and page turning. Useful yes, training, no.
The page turning, reading, and lack of instructor interaction that are common complaints of traditional elearning are really just the tip of iceberg.
The greatest risk enterprises must confront when developing learning strategies that place elearning at the core of the delivery model is this: How will we cost effectively sustain this content over the lifespan of this investment?
Elearning content is notoriously difficult and expensive to develop. The tools and techniques used to produce the content require special expertise. Elearning class content must be able to "stand alone", there is intense pressure to make sure every single bit of information is absolutely accurate. The costs to develop elearning content are staggering, and there is immense pressure to "Keep it Simple", and "Don't Update".
Accurate, simple information is always desirable in a training class. However, when a class is being designed to keep employees on the "Leading Edge" of the latest development in a complex field, accuracy is somewhat less important that making sure the information is current and up to date, sometimes up to the minute!
So, should companies drop all "page turning" elearning initiatives?
Maybe not, but more realistic ROI calculations need to be integrated into the cost/benefit analysis. More rigorous examination of the useful lifecycle of the content is also critical. Training Objectives that incorporate fields of study known to be fairly static are strong candidates for traditional elearning. For those Training Objectives built on fields of study in constant flux, and in my opinion most corporate training falls into the later category, caution is the keyword.
So does elearning have a place in corporate learning strategies? Yes, most definitely. Using the latest XML and Web Services standards such as RSS, online course content can more effectively be continuously updated than in the past. Template designs and tools such as eedo's development kit are further improving the Cost/benefit equation. Finally, the rise of Virtual Classrooms such as TrainingCity's Best of Breed VC, prove that "Virtual Training" can step in where "elearning" drops off.
Tuesday, January 11, 2005
Wil Wheaton: Just a (Smart Geek)
You may remember him from the movie "Stand By Me", or the hit TV show, Star Trek: The Next Generation", today Wil Wheaton is best known as a technology author. Wil's constantly updating his popular Blog, wilwheaton.net, where he discusses his take on life and technology.
In a recent post, "still building and burning", Wil comments on the first time he discovered the Apple Mac computer back in 1984. I too recall the first time I saw a Mac. It was at Dalhousie University where I was a student. The Mac had a profound, life altering effect on me and millions of other "geeks" and "not so geeks". Pretty much everyone knew the second they laid eyes on that thing that the world had changed; for the better.
I didn't feel the same way until nine years later when I saw a web browser and HTML pages for the first time.
So, what's next? When (and what) will introduce us to the next future?
There is no way to know for sure, but if we keep our eyes open, maybe, just maybe, we can get a head start on the Next Big Technology Thing.
Imagine for a moment that you had unlimited bandwidth at your finger tips. Now imagine that you have to give a presentation at a conference thousands of miles from where you are, and it absolutely, positively, must be live and in person. Your only option today is to spend hours eating stale peanuts and hoping the guy next to you took his medication before boarding.
But what if we could "Beam" you to the conference, a la Star Trek! Wait, it's not as wacky as it sounds. What if we could send a complete three dimensional map of you and project it in Real Time using existing holographic technology. You would "be" in the room as far as everyone was concerned. They could see you, talk to you, walk around you, stand next to you, maybe even touch you if we had enough sensors.
Three dimensional holographic projection technology promises to revolutionize the concept of a "Virtual Classroom". Imagine a "Virtual classroom/Hollow Deck" where the instructor and all the students are projected holograms and interact as though they are all in the same room. For all practical purposes this virtual, internet based training class would be a "real" live training class. Students and the instructor would get the sense that they were really in the room, and would begin to interact with one another naturally. This "Hollow Class" would offer the best of both worlds: The travel and cost advantages of a Virtual Class, and the Real Time, personal interactions of a live instructor led class.
Far Fetched? Maybe, but so was the idea of a Personal Computer with a mouse back in 1984.
Related links:
SPIE
Military Instructional Technology Overview
The Cave!
In a recent post, "still building and burning", Wil comments on the first time he discovered the Apple Mac computer back in 1984. I too recall the first time I saw a Mac. It was at Dalhousie University where I was a student. The Mac had a profound, life altering effect on me and millions of other "geeks" and "not so geeks". Pretty much everyone knew the second they laid eyes on that thing that the world had changed; for the better.
I didn't feel the same way until nine years later when I saw a web browser and HTML pages for the first time.
So, what's next? When (and what) will introduce us to the next future?
There is no way to know for sure, but if we keep our eyes open, maybe, just maybe, we can get a head start on the Next Big Technology Thing.
Imagine for a moment that you had unlimited bandwidth at your finger tips. Now imagine that you have to give a presentation at a conference thousands of miles from where you are, and it absolutely, positively, must be live and in person. Your only option today is to spend hours eating stale peanuts and hoping the guy next to you took his medication before boarding.
But what if we could "Beam" you to the conference, a la Star Trek! Wait, it's not as wacky as it sounds. What if we could send a complete three dimensional map of you and project it in Real Time using existing holographic technology. You would "be" in the room as far as everyone was concerned. They could see you, talk to you, walk around you, stand next to you, maybe even touch you if we had enough sensors.
Three dimensional holographic projection technology promises to revolutionize the concept of a "Virtual Classroom". Imagine a "Virtual classroom/Hollow Deck" where the instructor and all the students are projected holograms and interact as though they are all in the same room. For all practical purposes this virtual, internet based training class would be a "real" live training class. Students and the instructor would get the sense that they were really in the room, and would begin to interact with one another naturally. This "Hollow Class" would offer the best of both worlds: The travel and cost advantages of a Virtual Class, and the Real Time, personal interactions of a live instructor led class.
Far Fetched? Maybe, but so was the idea of a Personal Computer with a mouse back in 1984.
Related links:
SPIE
Military Instructional Technology Overview
The Cave!
Paper beats Rock... and Scissors!
As I was preparing to Fed Ex a set of 5 paper course manuals and labs to a group of upcoming Virtual Class students this morning I was struck by the cruel irony of the situation. TrainingCity has invested in "Best of Breed" Virtual Classroom technologies, and here we are sending hard copies of all the courseware to the students!
Unfortunately, there is no other choice; for now.
We've tried pdf files, html pages, word docs, you name it. In the end we found students really need a hard copy they can refer to during the virtual class.
Will we ever be able to kiss Fed Ex goodbye?
Perhaps. For years the promise of electronic paper has remained just out of reach. Recent developments out of Japan continue to offer hope that an "ipod" for reading may be at hand.
For now, it's paper beats everything!
Unfortunately, there is no other choice; for now.
We've tried pdf files, html pages, word docs, you name it. In the end we found students really need a hard copy they can refer to during the virtual class.
Will we ever be able to kiss Fed Ex goodbye?
Perhaps. For years the promise of electronic paper has remained just out of reach. Recent developments out of Japan continue to offer hope that an "ipod" for reading may be at hand.
For now, it's paper beats everything!
Sunday, January 09, 2005
Before you say anything, Take a Training class!
When I was transfered to the Ottawa office after several years working at TrainingCity's San Diego office, I was reminded of the fact that there is no mistaking Winter in Ottawa! The city is cursed, and blessed, with a "real winter season".
If there is anything positive about winter for me, it's skiing. Fortunately, mother nature has blessed the Ottawa area with an incredible number of ski resorts within minutes of the city.
With so many ski resorts, ranging from small local hills to the largest resorts in Eastern North America (Mount Tremblant & Lake Placid), competition is fierce. Price competition is important, but for many skiers, providing outstanding customer service is foremost.
Given this competitive environment, imagine my surprise earlier today when I arrived at my favorite local hill, Calabogie, and I encountered a classic breakdown in the delivery of customer service.
My niece accompanied us on our ski trip. She is new to skiing and we decided to pick up a set of rental skis when we got to the hill. After arriving, we spent the next 30 minutes waiting to get the rental gear.
As we approached the front of the line, the person in front of us was told that she could not rent equipment without proper identification. The young woman pleaded with the staff members. She explained that her husband had taken her wallet for safe keeping and he was already on the hill. The staff was unmoved. The policy was posted at the entrance to the rental shop, she should have read it before entering; too bad.
As the drama unfolded I began to think that this was a moment when the staff needed help. After my intervention, they agreed to contact their manager, who, of course, was unavailable. More pleading ensued, until finally I decided the simplest solution was to get my credit card out and guarantee the woman's rental myself.
As I left the rental shop I couldn't help but think that what the staff needed in that moment of crisis, when their manager could not be reached, was an on demand, one minute, mini training class!
Imagine if the staff, unable to reach their manager, could have accessed a company website where they could search for a one minute video/audio session that described what to do in a situation when a customer is in need of help and a manger cannot be reached. That training session could have told them that they have the authority to make a decision.
E-Learning may find it's niche in the "mini-training", even "micro-training" market, where short videos, audio clips, perhaps attached directly to company documents, policy statements, forms, etc, would allow employees to quickly review what to do at the moment a crisis occurs.
If there is anything positive about winter for me, it's skiing. Fortunately, mother nature has blessed the Ottawa area with an incredible number of ski resorts within minutes of the city.
With so many ski resorts, ranging from small local hills to the largest resorts in Eastern North America (Mount Tremblant & Lake Placid), competition is fierce. Price competition is important, but for many skiers, providing outstanding customer service is foremost.
Given this competitive environment, imagine my surprise earlier today when I arrived at my favorite local hill, Calabogie, and I encountered a classic breakdown in the delivery of customer service.
My niece accompanied us on our ski trip. She is new to skiing and we decided to pick up a set of rental skis when we got to the hill. After arriving, we spent the next 30 minutes waiting to get the rental gear.
As we approached the front of the line, the person in front of us was told that she could not rent equipment without proper identification. The young woman pleaded with the staff members. She explained that her husband had taken her wallet for safe keeping and he was already on the hill. The staff was unmoved. The policy was posted at the entrance to the rental shop, she should have read it before entering; too bad.
As the drama unfolded I began to think that this was a moment when the staff needed help. After my intervention, they agreed to contact their manager, who, of course, was unavailable. More pleading ensued, until finally I decided the simplest solution was to get my credit card out and guarantee the woman's rental myself.
As I left the rental shop I couldn't help but think that what the staff needed in that moment of crisis, when their manager could not be reached, was an on demand, one minute, mini training class!
Imagine if the staff, unable to reach their manager, could have accessed a company website where they could search for a one minute video/audio session that described what to do in a situation when a customer is in need of help and a manger cannot be reached. That training session could have told them that they have the authority to make a decision.
E-Learning may find it's niche in the "mini-training", even "micro-training" market, where short videos, audio clips, perhaps attached directly to company documents, policy statements, forms, etc, would allow employees to quickly review what to do at the moment a crisis occurs.
Saturday, January 08, 2005
Is Super Mario a Super Trainer?
A couple of years ago I won a Nintendo Gamecube at a trade show in Los Angeles. Little did I realize at the time that the gamecube would cost me hundreds of dollars - In games for my kids!
As part of Generation-X, I'm just old enough to have been among the "First Wave" of Gamers. I recall spending my newspaper delivery money on the grand daddy of the TV attached game consoles, Pong. Within a short time, it was on to Atari, and then the Vic 20. The Vic 20 was part of the first wave of PCs, which were used as they are today: To plat lots of games!
Over the years we've talked a great deal about how games; interactive, roll playing, problem solving, team effort, etc, can and should be used in the Training environment, but what about using games on the popular games consoles (Nintendo, PS2, XBox) that people already play to help them learn?
Many of the team games on the market today are too violent to be used "off the shelf" in most corporate training classes, and as far as I can tell, the vast majority of the other "retail" games fall far short of meeting any but the most basic training objectives found in a typical professional training class. What do you think? Please add your comments!
Next up: How hard is it to develop a "training game" for these popular platforms. Can it be done?
As part of Generation-X, I'm just old enough to have been among the "First Wave" of Gamers. I recall spending my newspaper delivery money on the grand daddy of the TV attached game consoles, Pong. Within a short time, it was on to Atari, and then the Vic 20. The Vic 20 was part of the first wave of PCs, which were used as they are today: To plat lots of games!
Over the years we've talked a great deal about how games; interactive, roll playing, problem solving, team effort, etc, can and should be used in the Training environment, but what about using games on the popular games consoles (Nintendo, PS2, XBox) that people already play to help them learn?
Many of the team games on the market today are too violent to be used "off the shelf" in most corporate training classes, and as far as I can tell, the vast majority of the other "retail" games fall far short of meeting any but the most basic training objectives found in a typical professional training class. What do you think? Please add your comments!
Next up: How hard is it to develop a "training game" for these popular platforms. Can it be done?
Friday, January 07, 2005
Blended Virtual Classes: Can it be done successfully?
Recently at TrainingCity we tried a "Blended" virtual/"real" training class. All of the students were from one company, and the client had two employees who could not travel to the designated training location.
We decided to try a "blended" virtual classroom configuration: Live students in the classroom with the instructor and two "virtual" students logged in using our "Best of Breed" Virtual Classroom toolset.
The results of the experience? Mixed... Not a failure, but not a success either. We learned a number of lessons from the experience. In the end, we solved a critical problem for the client whose employees could not travel to the classroom, but at the same time, this "blended" delivery method is something TrainingCity feels needs much more "soaking" before it will be ready for Prime Time.
Here are a few of the lessons we learned:
1. Outstanding hardware is critical: We felt the Instructor needed to be able to move around the classroom and that the virtual students needed to be able to hear the various conversations that occurred naturally in a classroom setting. The solution was to purchase a set of outstanding microphones from Sony (check back later for a link). These mics were amazing and allowed virtual students to hear everything without the usual "echo chamber" effect of cheaper products.
2. The instructor needs a full time assistant. Virtual students have their own set of challenges in a live class. Someone other than the instructor needs to be available at all times to assist them with technology trouble shooting and general support issues.
3. Blended classes need to be smaller than either "all real" or "all virtual" classes. This is a case of 5 + 5 does not equal 10. Where a "real" class of 10 students or a virtual class of 10 students is readily manageable, a Blended class requires more attention to each detail. 10 total students is probably too many, from our experience a Blended class, especially one where there is no full time assistance for the instructor, should be limited to 6 - 8 total attendees.
We decided to try a "blended" virtual classroom configuration: Live students in the classroom with the instructor and two "virtual" students logged in using our "Best of Breed" Virtual Classroom toolset.
The results of the experience? Mixed... Not a failure, but not a success either. We learned a number of lessons from the experience. In the end, we solved a critical problem for the client whose employees could not travel to the classroom, but at the same time, this "blended" delivery method is something TrainingCity feels needs much more "soaking" before it will be ready for Prime Time.
Here are a few of the lessons we learned:
1. Outstanding hardware is critical: We felt the Instructor needed to be able to move around the classroom and that the virtual students needed to be able to hear the various conversations that occurred naturally in a classroom setting. The solution was to purchase a set of outstanding microphones from Sony (check back later for a link). These mics were amazing and allowed virtual students to hear everything without the usual "echo chamber" effect of cheaper products.
2. The instructor needs a full time assistant. Virtual students have their own set of challenges in a live class. Someone other than the instructor needs to be available at all times to assist them with technology trouble shooting and general support issues.
3. Blended classes need to be smaller than either "all real" or "all virtual" classes. This is a case of 5 + 5 does not equal 10. Where a "real" class of 10 students or a virtual class of 10 students is readily manageable, a Blended class requires more attention to each detail. 10 total students is probably too many, from our experience a Blended class, especially one where there is no full time assistance for the instructor, should be limited to 6 - 8 total attendees.
Technology Coach: An Idea who's time has come?
With the rise of the "professional career coaching" industry over the past few years I've begun to wonder if there is a market for "professional tech coaches".
Virtual training classes, and the associated cost savings, have allowed TrainingCity to successfully "lower the bar" on our minimum number of class attendees. What if we could lower the bar to one?
Imagine being able to attend a "training class" where you were the only student. A kind of "fully customized", but live and interactive, training class. Of course this is always an option if you have the $$$$$, but what if we could find a way to create an environment where you are able to interact one on one with a single TrainingCity instructor in a full duplex, real time environment for the full duration of yor training class?
If TrainingCity could find a way to "optimize" the delivery of live virtual classes such that we could have several attendees interacting with the course content, online labs, background materials, workshops, break out sessions, etc, in a slightly time staggered process, it might be possible to "optimize" the flow of students through a set of course objectives such that they each get the impression that they are experiencing "one on one" training (coaching?), a kind of "Time Division Multiplexing" of the instructor!
Virtual training classes, and the associated cost savings, have allowed TrainingCity to successfully "lower the bar" on our minimum number of class attendees. What if we could lower the bar to one?
Imagine being able to attend a "training class" where you were the only student. A kind of "fully customized", but live and interactive, training class. Of course this is always an option if you have the $$$$$, but what if we could find a way to create an environment where you are able to interact one on one with a single TrainingCity instructor in a full duplex, real time environment for the full duration of yor training class?
If TrainingCity could find a way to "optimize" the delivery of live virtual classes such that we could have several attendees interacting with the course content, online labs, background materials, workshops, break out sessions, etc, in a slightly time staggered process, it might be possible to "optimize" the flow of students through a set of course objectives such that they each get the impression that they are experiencing "one on one" training (coaching?), a kind of "Time Division Multiplexing" of the instructor!
Thursday, January 06, 2005
Microsoft is (Finally) Rolling out Anti-Virus Software!
Over the years that TrainingCity has been in business we could always count on "The giant from Redmond" to offer us some sort of program, special offer, or partnership opportunity. Now they are (finally) starting to roll out their anti-virus solution!
I just started Blogging, Now everyone's Vlogging!
Ever feel like you are one step behind the "in" crowd? Welcome to my world baby! Here's an interesting article on Video Blogging. The future of TrainingCity's "e-learning" content as it has come to be known, might be the deployment of RSS syndication feeds of Video Blogs, filled with up to the minute snippets from all TrainingCity training classes:
Check out what BusinessWeek is saying...
Check out what BusinessWeek is saying...
Look Out Webex: Someone's got your number!
I'm discovering all sorts of alternatives to the (expensive!) webex service we've been using. Here's a company that seems to have a viable alternative, elluminate. I'll let you know if we decide to try their product.
New Year: New Toys
This week we will be testing a new product from vga2web. The product is a stand alone linux box that connects the the vga port of a laptop and transmits the vga signal to a web server using its ethernet/IP connection where it can be viewed by anyone with the correct url/password combo.
I'm not convinced this is a viable solution for trainers when compared to webex, livemeeting or any of the other hosted solutions out there (PS: Reviews of all coming soon!). The main difficulty I see in using vga2web for training is the requirement to have the actual linux box connected to the trainers laptop. On the service side, it offers none of the "nice to have" features such as "chat" and "raise your hand", etc. that are necessary when conducting a live "virtual classroom".
Nonetheless, vga2web is a one time cost item (until the linux pc eventually needs to be replaced?) compared to the per user/per minute fees charged by webex et al. This one time, up front cost may make sense for a small training company with only a few trainers who conduct the bulk of the classes.
I'm not convinced this is a viable solution for trainers when compared to webex, livemeeting or any of the other hosted solutions out there (PS: Reviews of all coming soon!). The main difficulty I see in using vga2web for training is the requirement to have the actual linux box connected to the trainers laptop. On the service side, it offers none of the "nice to have" features such as "chat" and "raise your hand", etc. that are necessary when conducting a live "virtual classroom".
Nonetheless, vga2web is a one time cost item (until the linux pc eventually needs to be replaced?) compared to the per user/per minute fees charged by webex et al. This one time, up front cost may make sense for a small training company with only a few trainers who conduct the bulk of the classes.
Wednesday, January 05, 2005
Skype Conference calls
I am blown away by the quality of Skype's VoIP service. Not only is the voice quality amazing when using Skype for one to one calls, Skype has an incrediblely useful "conference call" feature that allows up to five people to join a conference call.
We used Skype for the voice portion of a recent webex driven small virtual class, three students and one instructor. Everything worked fine until a last minute, fourth student, joined the conference call. We could not seem to keep the conference bridge operational with a total of five users and ended up having to switch back to a PSTN conference call using another great service, Freeconference.com.
Regardless of the five person setback, Skype conference VoIP calls offer the chance to further build a "real" virtual classroom.
We used Skype for the voice portion of a recent webex driven small virtual class, three students and one instructor. Everything worked fine until a last minute, fourth student, joined the conference call. We could not seem to keep the conference bridge operational with a total of five users and ended up having to switch back to a PSTN conference call using another great service, Freeconference.com.
Regardless of the five person setback, Skype conference VoIP calls offer the chance to further build a "real" virtual classroom.
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