What is it and how does it work?

Live Streaming Video makes your computer act almost like a television. A video camera is set up wherever your instructor is located—instead of the images being sent out as TV signals they are sent to the web server that is hosting the course (usually located at a company office or university). If you log on to the website during the broadcast, you can watch the instructor teach the class as he or she is teaching it.

What will I need to be able to use this technology?

To view streaming video, you will need a computer that is connected to the World Wide Web. You should have a 486 or higher microprocessor; the faster the processor, the better the quality of the video you will see. Your web browser should be either Netscape 3.0 or higher or Internet Explorer 3.0 or higher. (? I’ll have to check the version numbers) Finally, you will need to have a video viewer on your computer. Each distance education program has different programs they prefer to use; you’ll have to check with your program to see which one it uses and get instructions for installing it in your computer.

What makes this method unique?

Streaming video allows you to see your course instructor and learn in more of a lecture and demonstration format. While it does mean that there is very little flexibility in scheduling when you take your class, some people prefer to participate in a "virtual class" over just reading on their own. This format also provides some structure for people who are afraid that they won’t be able to keep themselves motivated or on schedule with their class work.

What are the possibilities?

Right now, streaming video usually goes only in one direction (you can see your instructor, but he or she can’t see you, and you can’t see the other people in the class). In the future, however, two-way streaming video will allow true "virtual classrooms" where students will have small video cameras at their computers, so the instructor and other class members can see them. All students will be able to ask questions and have the instructor respond almost immediately.

 

Stored Streaming Video

What is it and how does it work?

Stored streaming video is video that has been recorded and digitized, then placed on a web server. It acts like a video tape that is shown on your computer--you link to the course website and click to start the video. Unlike Live Streaming Video, you can watch stored streaming video any time you want, as many times as you want.

What will I need to be able to use this technology?

To view streaming video, you will need a computer that is connected to the World Wide Web. You should have a 486 or higher microprocessor; the faster the processor, the better the quality of the video you will see. Your web browser should be either Netscape 3.0 or higher or Internet Explorer 3.0 or higher. (? I’ll have to check the version numbers) Finally, you will need to have a video viewer on your computer. Each distance education program has different programs they prefer to use; you’ll have to check with your program to see which one it uses and get instructions for installing it in your computer.

What makes this method unique?

Stored streaming video makes it possible for students anywhere to watch the same lecture, demonstration, or lesson whenever they have the time to watch it. It is beneficial for instructors as well, in that they only have to give their presentation once and it can be used over and over. Like Live Streaming Video, Stored Streaming Video adds another dimension to computer-based distance learning by providing students with the opportunity to watch demonstrations and listen to explanations instead of only reading their lessons and teaching themselves.

What are the possibilities?

At this point, streaming video is becoming more popular, though the technology is still not perfect. In the future, as technology continues to improve longer and more detailed courses are likely to develop, and lectures by the best minds in different fields can be captured and saved so that future generations can learn from them too.

 

What is it and how does it work?

An interactive white board (IWB) is a software application that lets you use your computer as a virtual sketchbook. IWBs are usually applications that run in your web browser (i.e. Netscape or American Online), and allow you to collaborate and share your ideas with other distance learning users and educators. The technology behind most of the typical IWBs is Java. There are some IWBs, however, that are parts of larger packages, which may use different technologies.

What will I need to use this technology?

As we said, an IWB usually runs in a browser, so you will need a computer with a Java capable Internet browser such as Netscape Communicator or Microsoft Internet Explorer. Other items you will need are a modem, phone line and an Internet service provider (or some other means of connecting to the Internet). Finally, you will need someone on the other end with the same technology components to share in this session with you. Once you get accustomed to the IWB's interface, you can start using it.

What makes this unique?

The thing that makes an IWB unique is that it allows a group of users to share their ideas with everyone viewing the board no matter where the group members are located. All of the participants can not only see the same thing at the same time, they can also add their own ideas. As a result, IWBs are perfect for brainstorming and collaboration as well as illustrating complex ideas. IWBs can also be used in conjunction with technologies like conference calls and chat sessions to further illustrate a point that you are making.

What are the possibilities?

The possibilities of IWBs are endless. Some of the ways you can make use of them are by:

• recordingmeeting notes
• sketching ideas while collaborating on development
• emphasizing a point with a visual example
• demonstrating a method of doing something to other members of the group.

IWBs are a fairly recent phenomenon, so they are not commonly used yet, and the technology to massively deploy them is in its infancy. They also are, just as real white boards, not permanent records - they can be written over or erased by another member of your group. Some include the ability to save, but not all. What they can do, though, is help save time and span distance. The corporate planning session no longer has to be at that retreat in the hills and the traditional classroom lecture notes are no longer restricted to a chalkboard.

 

What is it and how does it work?

Email has been around for almost 26 years. The first form of the electronic transfer enabled messages to be transmitted in a plain text format known as American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII). Nowadays, you can send email from web-based browsers such as Netscape or Internet Explorer, which gives you the option of tying your email in a more user friendly and visually appealing interface.

Email is one of the quickest and cheapest means of delivering information on-line. After typing up your email, you simply hit the "send" key and your message is immediately sent to your recipient’s mailbox. Email has eliminated the need for long distance telephone calls and paper mail, making it a highly efficient communication system suitable for distance learning.

What will I need to use this method of technology?

You will need a PC, an Internet Service Provider (ISP), a modem, a phone line, and an email account. Most ISPs offer an email account with a web account If you’re a student or an employee of an organization, you may have access to email via your school’s or corporation’s email server. Also, there are free email services you can subscribe to. Hotmail and Yahoo are popular email service providers.

What makes this unique?

Email has truly changed the way we communicate, The ease with which you can now write an email to anyone breaks down barriers to communication. You can send an email to the Director of a company, to a professor at college, or to an instructor of a course to clarify any outstanding issues. No more red tape, waiting around for the "right" time, and fixing appointments.

In addition to enabling an almost instantaneous transfer of email messages, email also allows you to attach files such as Excel Spreadsheets, Word Documents, scanned photographs, and even web pages to your messages. This ensures that your recipient can have a copy of your document in the same format you've saved it. In distance learning or business communications, this could mean shelving the traditional way of faxing pages and pages of your assignment or report.

What are the possibilities?

Email helps user save time, money, money, and effort. It is now integrated into the daily life of most people, much like the telephone. Research by Kate Delhagen of Forrester Research reveals that more than 80 percent of Americans will have email in the next ten years. Over time, email will show up on cell phones, or push-button pagers – that’s when it will approach mass popularity and make it an ideal support to distance learning for individuals and corporations.

 

What is it & how does it work?

The Internet is the world’s most powerful computer network. When you connect to the Internet you can access information located on other computers in different parts of the country – or even the world. It is estimated that over 4 million computers make up the Internet.

You can access the Internet via the World Wide Web (WWW) using a web browser. Common web browsers include: Netscape Navigator, Microsoft Internet Explorer, and America Online (AOL). Once you are connected to the Internet, you can uncover vast resources. These resources, commonly called "home pages" or "web pages" display information in various forms: text, graphics, video, and audio. Web pages are created using Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), a computer notation that all web browsers understand. As a result, anyone who has a web browser can see them.

What will I need to use this?

To access the web you must have a computer, a modem, an Internet service provider, a phone line, and a web browser. Because web pages often contain colorful images and sound, a color monitor and speakers can make the experience more fun.

What are the possibilities?

The WWW offers many unique educational opportunities. Web pages offer a way to integrated graphics, text, and sound, and a dynamic presentation of information rather than just text presented in a linear fashion. Often hyperlinks are included on the web page. A hyperlink, or a "link", takes you to a different, usually related, web page, so that you can see more information. Once you are finished exploring, you can go "back" to where you started and keep reading.

 

What is it and how does it work?

Chat is a real time exchange of text between two or more people on the World Wide Web. Chat is usually broken up into "rooms" or screens where only users chatting about a particular topic will be typing to each other. You read what other users are typing and type your questions or responses. Chat is sometimes conducted in HTML which provides a fairly slow exchange of text because web pages you read has to be continuously reloaded to include the latest comments from your classmates to those from your instructor. Chat rooms conducted with JAVA applets are a much quicker way to exchange words.

What will I need to use this technology?

In order to use a chat room, you will need a computer with Internet access and a web browser of some kind (i.e. Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator). To use a JAVA chat room you will need a browser with Java capabilities.

What makes this method unique?

Because the information exchanged is text only, there is the opportunity to capture written transcripts of an entire class session. Also, because people generally type slower than they speak, and therefore try to conserve their energy, the text-only format lends itself towards focusing class discussions.

What are the possibilities?

Chat is mostly good interim technology. As streaming video becomes more feasible as a common distance learning technology, chat could decline in popularity.

Definition of "Real Time": The key concept in "Real Time" technologies is immediacy. You must connect to the information as it occurs. Thus following an established schedule or coordinating a time for a group of users to work together is essential.

Definition of "Your Time": The key concept in "Your Time" technologies is flexibility. You can connect to the information whenever you have the time because this information is stored and waiting for you.