To a novice even simple things seem complex. And when things appear complex, we can become frustrated or feel like we don’t have the skills to accomplish what it is we want to do.
I recall years ago when I was learning video production. I felt like my skills were inadequate (which they were). So my instructor told me to record some television commercials and then break them down into pieces to see how they were built. He said that this would help me ...
More Than a Dozen Ways to Navigate an E-Learning Course
May 17th, 2011
A question I’m asked quite often is whether or not to offer instructions on course navigation. It’s a good question because while many courses do have instructions, sometimes they just don’t seem necessary.
I addressed this in a previous post where I asked if you need instructions on how to use an elearning course. In today’s post we’ll take a look at some real examples of how people have dealt with the course instructions.
Examples of E-Learning Course Instructions
When I was ...
Rapid elearning design is made up of three core functions: rapid authoring, rapid assets, and rapid instructional design. One thing common to many rapid elearning developers is that while their organizations will fund the purchase of rapid authoring tools, they do little else to fund the development of the assets required to make the elearning course look good and be effective.
For example, a ...
Years ago when I did video production, it seemed that every one of my customers wanted the final video to be like an MTV music video—fast moving with quick cuts. They didn’t seem to care much about whether or not that was the right approach; they just knew they wanted it to be like MTV. By the way, this was back when MTV actually showed music videos.
That was challenging enough because not every subject required an MTV-type video. However, a bigger challenge ...
5 Free PowerPoint E-Learning Templates
April 26th, 2011
I had a great time at recent presentations in Minneapolis and Nashville. It’s really fun to meet people from different parts of the country. Like in most sessions, I find that many are struggling to work by themselves with limited resources. So I’m always looking for ways to help people get more out of the tools they have.
During these trips I tend to have extra time at the airport, so usually play around with template ideas. They help me eat up some of the ...
Tips on Managing All of Those Free Fonts
April 19th, 2011
Some people love font talk. That and a glass of wine could make for a good date…by yourself! The reality is that most people probably don’t care much about fonts but they do want to make good decisions when using them.
In previous posts we’ve looked at how to acquire lots of fonts:
- How to get more than 100 free fonts and create your own
- How to use hand-written fonts to add personality to your
Over 150 Free Fonts to Use in Your E-Learning Courses
April 12th, 2011
Many of us are on a limited budget. So when there’s an opportunity to get something for free I’m all for taking advantage of it. So today, we’ll look at how to get 174 free fonts from Google.
Quick Overview
In the past when you wanted to display text on a web page you had some limitations. Your choices were to use a generic font or you make an image of the text in a special font (if you wanted more than the basics).
Today, many ...
5 Time-saving Tips from the E-learning Community
April 5th, 2011
A few days ago I came across this thread in the user community. In it, Dave Newgass was asking how to build an interaction of a person going in and out of a cubicle. He got a couple of responses and a demo PowerPoint file to review.
Dave’s question (and the feedback he got) really speak to the value of the user community and why you need to be part of it if you aren’t already.
- Production tips come from
3 Things You Can Only Learn from a Real E-Learning Expert
April 1st, 2011
Last week I was pleasantly surprised to find Dr. Werner Oppelbaumer on the flight from Orlando to Seattle. He’s been a hero of mine for years and truly one of the most brilliant minds when it comes to all things learning. So I took advantage of the time with him to pick his brain and get a feel for his perspective on our industry.
Dr. Werner, it’s always ...
5 Ways to Prepare & Be an E-Learning Winner
March 29th, 2011
I just got back from the Learning Solutions Conference in Orlando. Like always, it was great getting to meet so many blog readers. I truly appreciate the enthusiasm and kind feedback.
At the close of the conference, I participated in a panel presentation with some really smart people (not sure how I got invited). If you’re not familiar with them I included links to their sites below.
We each had to present a “big idea.” For my ...
If you add characters to your elearning courses, odds are that you’re also adding some speech bubbles. PowerPoint comes with the ability to create your own text callouts, but I find that I like to use ones that look more organic than the PowerPoint shapes. I try to create my own.
I created some speech bubbles for a recent project so I’m making them available for you to use as you wish. I also added a few bonus tips below.
On a side note, you’ll notice that ...
Here’s How to Make Your E-Learning Course Meaningful
March 15th, 2011
When I meet people who aren’t in the elearning industry I usually ask them if they have to take elearning courses at work; and if so, what they think about them. For today’s post, I’d like to address some of the more common issues I hear from those who have to take elearning courses and offer a few ideas on how to deal with them.
Is this course important?
To quote James Stockdale, “Who am I? Why am I taking this ...
0
comments