The ReadyGo Web Course Builder (WCB) is a tool that creates web based training designed for subject matter experts. ReadyGo believes that the reason that so few content experts are creating web courses is because the tools that are available are focused on the needs of the graphic artist. We use "content expert" to denote a trainer, product manager, project manager, or other employee who needs to transfer their experience and knowledge to other employees, but who does not have a background in computer programming or use of sophisticated computer software. With tools designed for the content expert web training will move from a specialty niche to a core component of business.

Think back to what it was like to create presentations in the 1980s. Only those organizations that could afford to have professionally produced materials had presentations that were more than word-processed transparencies or flip charts. When tools like PowerPoint became available, everyone had the ability to create presentations that looked professionally produced. The same need exists in today's business world with respect to distance training. Content experts need a tool that enables easy production of professional looking web based courses. When ReadyGo decided to create the Web Course Builder, we interviewed people from over 200 companies. Our goal was to clearly understand how content experts work and to identify corporate trends for training and web use. This information guides the architecture of WCB.

• Almost all content experts we interviewed told us that they do not create their own graphics. Rather, they rely on an artist. We decided not to include a graphic design tool within the WCB, and instead focused on providing easy methods to import and integrate any type of web-viewable graphics into courses.
  
  
• We found that if we gave content experts a blank screen and asked them to create a course (especially with something new like web based training), they got stuck at the layout phase, and never progressed to the content creation phase. Therefore, we decided to base the tool on templates so that content experts can immediately start creating courses.
  
  
• We had the choice to develop a WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) interface or a dialog box interface. We decided to build a dialog box-based interface:
  • With a WYSIWYG authoring tool there is an expectation that the layout created by the author will be exactly how the student sees the content. This conflicts with one of the main benefits of web browsers: Each person can control the size, shape, and font the browser displays. Since students can modify their environment, it is probable that the environment a course designer uses during development is not the same as that on the student's desktop. For course creators to be able to control the student desktop they will either need to create a plug-in to display the course, capture the page as a single image (GIF, JPEG) like PowerPoint does, or take control of the browser eliminating many web features. Use of a plug-in adds an additional level of technical complication in serving a course. Creating an image to capture the page and taking over control of the browser means a slow downloads and negates many of the benefits of the web including the ability to search documents so they can be used as a resource, and the ability for blind readers to access courses (ADA/508/W3C). Our decision was to implement dialog boxes instead of WYSIWYG. This provides the course creator with a structure into which their content can be placed. The ReadyGo Web Course Builder takes the content and produces standard HTML that which the student's browser can optimally display.
    
    
  • An additional benefit of using a dialog box based authoring tool is that the advanced user can easily drop in any HTML/ XML/JavaScript into the template. This extends the ReadyGo WCB into a course container. For advanced users, the tool automates tedious tasks such as linking pages, building indexes, moving pages, and making sure all the links work; while providing the flexibility to use anything that is web readable wherever the course creator sees fit.
    
    
  • With a WYSIWYG tool, course developers must hunt through multiple pull down menus to access desired capabilities. Our research found that content experts who were not constantly using the WYSIWYG tool, quickly forgot which features were available and became confused by the naming structures found in the pull down menus. Our solution was to include function buttons on the input dialog boxes. This way content experts are always aware of which features are available (and appropriate) for the particular page/task because they have easy, intuitive access to those tools.
    
    
  • There are a few limitations to the approach, however. ReadyGo's dialog box-based input screens are more constrained than WYSIWYG tools, but we feel that the ease of use and speed of development compensate for this. With a dialog box based solution course developers are given a standard, proven, structure to create web courses. We support style sheets, This gives the course developer complete control over the look of a course. Additionally we provide dialog boxes so the course creator can change the graphics layout, replace any of the stock navigation graphics, change color schemes, modify automatically generated text (e.g. score your test), and easily add any drill down features (e.g. articles, tests, quizzes, exercises, links).
    
    

• We found that Power Point is the corporate education tool of choice for most companies. When PowerPoint is saved for web use each page is saved as a graphic, making it inappropriate for the web. Content experts want an easy way to migrate their existing Power Point slides into an e-learning course. Our tool provides a copy-paste mechanism to transfer titles and bullets from PowerPoint into a ReadyGo course. Course developers told us that they wanted to expand on PowerPoint to include features like FAQ, Glossary, Help, and Indexes. We provide straightforward templates to create these services and incorporate these functions. Additionally the ReadyGo Web Course Builder provides an easy way to rearranging chapters and pages within a course.
  
  
• The ReadyGo Web Course Builder supports copy-paste functions between courses; by course, chapter, page, sub-page, FAQ, help page, or Glossary. By using the "Import HTML" feature any links found within the imported web page will be changed from static to relative so that they will work correctly. This means content experts can create reusable course modules and several developers can concurrently work on a single course. For example, it is possible to create standard glossaries or chapters and then share them between content experts in multiple courses.
  
  
• Another feature is the ability to create a printable text version of an entire course, a chapter, FAQs, Glossary, etc. The main uses of this are for course handouts and editorial copies of the content. (Printing out an entire course using a browser is a slow and tedious process.)

The ReadyGo Web Course Builder is a tool focused on the content expert, enabling them to create web-ready tutorials and full e-learning courses. Because of the architectural decisions incorporated in the tool, most content experts are able to produce multi-chapter courses in less than one hour (from installation of the product.)