WBT Systems, one of the providers covered in our Association Learning Management Systems research has just released a new report titled “Open Source or Commercial Learning Management System?” Yes, coming from a commercial learning management system provider, this is a a bit of a loaded proposition, but WBT has done a good job in previous reports of maintaining an objective viewpoint, and it does so in this one as well.
The report “looks at the pros and cons of both an open source and commercial LMS and takes a deep dive into areas such as license fees, IT resources, support & maintenance, product roadmap, security and industry best practice.” You will have to fork over an e-mail address to get it, but that’s all – and I think it is worth it.
You can download “Open Source or Commercial Learning Management System?” and other reports from the WBT Systems Web site (http://bit.ly/p1EDIi)
Jeff
P.S. – If you are interested in this post you may also be interested in our free video on Selection Essentials for Association Learning Management Systems.
I usually save this sort of geeky stuff for a link in the monthly ALT Digest, but I’m a huge WordPress fan (this site is built on it) and I have been following Sclipo with interest for a while. The two together seem worth much more than a newsletter link. Here’s the basic run down from Sclipo:
With Sclipo’s new “Embed your Campus” feature, you can now transform your WordPress site, or any Content Management System like Joomla or your custom-coded website, into an Online Campus in just a few minutes! The Sclipo Online Campus provides powerful e-Learning apps, including a course manager and live web conferencing, as well as a social network and promotion tools. It has been especially designed for continuing education helping independent teachers and education organizations to teach and collaborate better, as well as to attract new students.
We created this feature because many of our current users have a website to promote their educational services. Now, their webs can also offer an Online Campus, providing a better learning experience for current students and helping to win more new ones.
(Get the full story on the Sclipo blog: http://sclipo.com/blog/feature-note/transform-your-wordpress-site-into-an-online-campus-with-sclipo.html)
While Sclipo or Sclipo+WordPress is probably not an answer for continuing education providers with bona fide LMS needs, it does offer some very interesting possibilities at a very reasonable price. I think it is well worth taking for a spin if only to see what ideas it sparks.
Jeff
P.S. – As with all of the technology providers we cover here at Tagoras, we have no financial relationship of any sort with Sclipo. This just struck me as pretty cool and worth noting.
