If everybody used open source software then we could all club together and
purchase a small part (or parts) of a developer or development team!
So how much do we think Blackboard is going to charge their (new) customers
to switch their delivery platform from WebCT to Blackboard? It's a licence
to print money I tells yer - especially given Blackboard's track record of
charging large amounts of money for 'simple' upgrades!
Will we be seeing Heads of E-learning stumbling around our campuses with
begging bowls and dogs on a piece of string??
Adam (Bodington man through-and-through!)
| -----Original Message-----
| From: Virtual Learning Environments [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf
| Of Heather Peake
| Sent: 14 October 2005 15:48
| To: [log in to unmask]
| Subject: Re: [VLES] open source, open standards, free
|
| Then of course you could get stung with the 'out of the box' product
| that doesn't actually do 'what it says on the tin' where the licence fee
| for larger institutions is astronomical and the delay on fixing issues
| is ridiculous and you can't fix it in house (even if someone on your
| team has the skills) because you would invalidate the licence agreement.
| Out of the box don't always let you have a second install at no extra
| cost for 'developing on' and trying out with other in house systems so
| that you don't bring the house down at the most inopportune moment.
|
| I'm not saying we should only consider open source, you should consider
| whatever works for your establishment, but saying that 'Open Source
| isn't 'the' Answer to anything' (see below) is a tad naive, there are
| whole rafts of people out there using open source for all sorts of
| things - even one of the well known manufacturers of an out of the box
| VLE stuck their product on an Apache web server rather than IIS although
| I believe (according to their web site) it will now run on IIS. Open
| source therefore can be the answer to some things as can, out of the box
| solutions. Paying money for it does not necessarily make it better or
| worth having.
|
| Best regards
|
| Heather Peake
| ILT Development Co-ordinator
| West Nottinghamshire College
| Tel 01623 627191 ext 2292
|
| -----Original Message-----
| From: Amber Thomas [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
| Sent: 14 October 2005 14:09
| To: [log in to unmask]
| Subject: [VLES] open source, open standards, free
|
|
| Hi
|
| Recent postings on this list and others have highlighted the fact that
| open source doesn't necessarily mean free. I think it's worth picking
| apart the concepts of open source, open standards and free.
|
| It's not so straightforward ....
|
| * you could pay for an open source product - pay for the software,
| pay for a hosted service, pay for someone to customise it for you
| * an open source product doesn't necessarily conform to open
| standards
| * a commercial closed box product can confirm to open standards:
| it can interoperate with other systems without you knowing how
| * some commercial solutions will end up cheaper overall that open
| source solutions because good programmers cost money
|
|
| I don't think open source is "the" answer to anything - its all part of
| the picture. Its also not right to use taxpayers money to create
| products that the commercial world will produce: this is expensive
| stuff.
|
| I guess this is where the E-Learning Framework comes in. There's a good
| article here (2004 but still useful): "JISC programme to foster the pick
| 'n mix MLE" http://cetis.ac.uk/content2/20040305162217
|
| If commercial providers have to fit into a bigger framework, then the
| open source community can get on with linking things up and creating
| things that commercial providers won't or can't.
|
| This needs technical experts in institutions who really know how to
| design architectures, integrate systems, stitch interfaces together ...
| are there enough of you to go round? :-)
|
| Amber
|
|
| Amber Thomas
| Project Leader
| JISC DEL: Promoting Use of Shared Content in the West Midlands
| Bredon 76
| University of Worcester
| Henwick Grove
| Worcester
| WR2 6AJ
|
| email: [log in to unmask]
| mobile: 07913 842421
| http://www2.worc.ac.uk/wm-share/
|
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