Just in case anyone missed this message from Bb HQ.
best rgds
simonf
Begin forwarded message:
> From: David Yaskin <[log in to unmask]>
> Date: Thu Sep 18, 2003 3:55:26 PM Europe/London
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Bb Product Communication
> Reply-To: "blkbrd-l - \"Listserv\"" <[log in to unmask]>
>
> Dear Blackboard Community,
>
>
>
> We apologize in advance for the length of this post. :-)
>
>
>
> As you know, Blackboard respects the independence and mission of this
> listserve. While there are often questions or comments posted which
> spark us to write, we think it's important to resist the temptation and
> post information only when there is a significant issue or our
> involvement is explicitly requested. The recent posts about product
> issues in Release 6 of the Blackboard Learning System represent just
> such a situation.
>
>
>
> Over the past several months, we have had the opportunity to speak with
> many of you and to review the information that is exchanged daily on
> the
> various listserves. We would like to take this opportunity to provide
> you with some additional information on the current issues Blackboard
> is
> facing and the actions we have taken to address them.
>
>
>
> Current State of the Product
>
>
>
> Working with clients, Blackboard has identified a number of performance
> issues with the Blackboard Learning System (Release 6). These issues
> impact a sub-segment of Blackboard's clients, especially those with
> large implementations and a high volume of usage. Other clients,
> especially smaller and newer ones, remain largely unaffected. To be
> candid, the problems with Release 6 have posed an unexpected challenge.
> Despite considerable effort, the internal quality assurance testing we
> performed did not fully represent the depth and breadth of our client
> installations as they have rapidly evolved over time.
>
>
>
> While we certainly did conduct load testing during the appropriate
> development stages of the product, we have since learned that our tests
> were neither intensive nor extensive enough to reveal problems which
> appear when use of the application scales. Unlike testing a standard
> website, it is quite difficult to replicate all of the activity that
> occurs simultaneously on a Blackboard installation. For example, at any
> given moment a typical system can have 500 teachers loading content,
> 2,000 students submitting assessments, dozens of teachers running grade
> book queries, and an SIS data load executing on the back end. While
> certainly not an excuse, this simply explains some of the issues
> Quality
> Assurance has encountered when creating advanced test cases for the
> Learning System. To complicate matters further, our beta
> implementations did not reveal these issues either.
>
>
>
> Based on what we learned from the experiences of our clients in the
> field, Blackboard is completely revamping the approach, processes and
> people involved in the testing of our current and future products. We
> have significantly increased the size and expertise of our Quality
> Assurance team. In addition, we have partnered with several high-scale
> clients on an Early Release Program to add hundreds of complex testing
> scenarios to reflect real-world usage of the Learning System. Finally,
> we are adding more automation to our testing processes to enable us to
> test our software more efficiently and effectively. The investments we
> have made in Quality Assurance over the past six months will have a
> direct impact on the quality of our software and thus on our clients'
> implementations moving forward.
>
>
>
> Resolving Known Issues
>
>
>
> Now that the 2003-04 academic year has commenced, some additional
> product issues are coming to light for client implementations,
> especially those with heavy loads. Some participants of this list
> serve
> have expressed concern over Blackboard's policy of releasing fixes for
> such problems. This next section is intended to provide some insights
> regarding Blackboard's approach to this topic.
>
>
>
> As new issues arise, just as with fixes for new releases, Blackboard
> has
> two options: we can (1) immediately release a patch to try and address
> the issue, or (2) put a patch through a full cycle of regression
> testing, which would take several weeks or more.
>
>
>
> Due to around-the-clock usage of our application at many universities,
> we must follow the first approach. While this course of action does
> have
> the unfortunate side effect of potentially introducing additional bugs,
> we work very closely with clients in the Early Release Program to
> identify and rectify any new issues that may be introduced. Blackboard
> is then able to fix those new issues quickly before the patch release
> becomes generally available. Thus the overall number of bugs in the
> system is reduced. If we took the second approach, and decided not to
> introduce any fixes until they were put through an entire regression
> testing cycle, many of our clients would wait for months to have their
> issues resolved.
>
>
>
> The rapid patch approach is one we have discussed with many of you and
> has been acknowledged as the best one available, given the nature and
> challenges associated with software development. Clients who need
> fixes
> to critical issues today have the choice of whether or not to apply a
> patch release. Clients who have less serious issues, or feel more
> comfortable waiting for a fully-regression-tested release, may choose
> to
> wait for the general availability of Release 6.1. This release will
> include all of the fixes previously issued and will be tested fully by
> Blackboard Quality Assurance.
>
>
>
> In short, Release 6.1 of Blackboard Learning System (and Basic Edition)
> will be the next fully-regression-tested release. It will deliver all
> improvements rolled out in our rapid patch cycles, plus additional
> fixes, with the benefit of extensive client feedback and a revamped QA
> process.
>
>
>
> Enhancing Client Support Services
>
>
>
> On the client support side, Blackboard acknowledges clients' requests
> for enhanced support and services infrastructure. Accordingly, we are
> expanding the size of our support team significantly - increasing
> staffing by over 40% and adding experienced, skilled, and bilingual
> staff. We are also rolling out a new support model that will give each
> client their own dedicated Technical Support Manager. This Technical
> Support Manager is responsible for addressing all of an institution's
> outstanding tickets, and she or he will look at support issues from a
> holistic point of view, rather than handling each issue independently.
> We have already deployed this new support structure for most of the
> Higher Education Central Region and will be implementing it for the
> East
> Region, West Region, International, K-12 and other markets over the
> next
> few months. Currently, 20% of our U.S. client community is now
> benefiting from this new model with Technical Support Managers already
> in place.
>
>
>
> Under this new model, end-of-the-day client satisfaction - not simply
> ticket resolution - is Blackboard's primary goal. Our support
> technicians will provide comprehensive answers to client questions and
> will not close out any tickets until the client is satisfied with the
> issue's resolution. Our Technical Support Managers will be evaluated
> not only on ticket resolution but also on client satisfaction ratings.
> Specifically, we are establishing compensation structures that measure
> and reward our Technical Support Managers and their supervisors based
> on
> direct client feedback and satisfaction surveys. In short, client
> satisfaction is the sole goal of Blackboard Support.
>
>
>
> A More Flexible Approach to Product Development
>
>
>
> In addition to addressing the outstanding issues with Release 6 and
> support services, Blackboard is working in parallel to implement new
> approaches to product development that reflect the changing needs of
> our
> client base and the rapid evolution of our industry.
>
>
>
> Traditionally, software providers such as Blackboard have adhered to a
> "plus-one" development strategy which rolls out significant
> enhancements
> in architecture, administration, and features to all clients
> concurrently on an annual schedule. This approach has proven to be
> challenging for administrators, end users, and the software providers
> themselves. As the complexity of migrating from one version to the
> next
> has steadily increased, and as the Blackboard client base has grown,
> this approach creates extended release cycles and places significant
> stress on testing and support for both the client and the software
> provider.
>
>
>
> With this background in mind, Blackboard is developing a simplified,
> accelerated time-to-market strategy for unveiling new features and
> functionality for our enterprise clients that should also provide a
> higher degree of quality and stability. Leveraging the openness and
> flexibility of our core Building Blocks technology, Blackboard will
> release Application Packs at multiple intervals throughout the year.
> Clients will be able to install these Application Packs containing new
> features and functionality based on their own needs and timelines.
> Major upgrades and migrations, like that from Blackboard 5.5 to Release
> 6, will not be required in the future. These product enhancements will
> work in a fashion similar to Windows Updater and Service Packs.
>
>
>
> For Basic Edition clients, the new features made available through
> these
> Application Packs will be bundled with other enhancements to form major
> releases of the full system every 12-18 months. These clients will
> continue to receive full product enhancements in regular major and
> minor
> releases which incorporate many of the innovations rolled out over the
> previous year. In summary, Basic Edition clients will experience no
> change in how they access improvements; they simply will have the
> benefit of knowing that many of those innovations have been in use for
> a
> few months on an "a la carte" basis before deploying them locally.
>
>
>
> Some Final Thoughts
>
>
>
> We are working extremely hard both to correct the problems that exist
> today as well as to make sure that these issues do not arise in the
> future. While everyone at Blackboard has been extremely focused on
> solving these critical problems, it is equally important to keep the
> lines of communication open with all of our clients. We appreciate the
> input that many of you have provided, and we want to let you know that
> the message has been received loudly and clearly.
>
>
>
> For a company whose products have become such an integral part of
> campus
> life the stakes are very high. At this formative stage, system
> reliability is job one, and we are focused squarely on that job.
>
>
>
> We also want to let you know that more details around product support,
> our development plans and other important Blackboard information will
> be
> communicated to you on a regular, ongoing basis through a variety of
> vehicles, including Blackboard's newsletter On the Blackboard, Product
> Briefs and other periodic communications. This fall, at EDUCAUSE, we
> hope you will attend our corporate presentation, where Matthew
> Pittinsky, will review Blackboard's Networked Learning Environment
> strategy. That session is on Wednesday, November 5 at 2:15pm.
>
>
>
> Sincerely,
>
>
>
> Jim Hermens
>
> Senior Vice President, Support and Services
>
> Blackboard Inc.
>
> [log in to unmask]
>
>
>
> David Yaskin
>
> Vice President, Product Strategy & QA
>
> Blackboard Inc.
>
> [log in to unmask]
>
>
>
>
>
>
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