One point I really liked was about the ipods!, my company is looking into e-learning podcasting as many of the road-warriors are looking for the kind of learning they can take with them to the gym, listen to in their car (note I said LISTEN even though they can also watch just not while driving *giggles*) And I just am not really sure how I feel about this project.

I thought I was craving a burger, but now….. not so much!

But the RLO idea is hard to get off the ground to begin with. How much content in an LCMS-generated course really reusable across other courses? If there’s really THAT much reused content from one course to another, then you’ve got an entirely different problem that the fast reusability of media will not solve. In my experience, maybe 5-10% of any course is reusable into another…if that. A diagram here, a text block there, an animation, etc. But nothing close to the amount implied by the very idea of RLOs.

I agree with the reusable potential of learning content. What I primarily have a problem with is creating that content using a tool whose primary goal is making that content reusable. Imagine if the only data Google indexed was data created using some Google-mandated development tool. The Web would be a pretty boring place.

@ Galynn:

I only have experience with one LCMS, but I imagine most, if not all, put out similarly mundane eLearning. The problem is these tools focus on the process, not on the product. And in my opinion, the product should be king. Always. Learners don’t care *how* we create eLearning; how quickly, easily, or cost-effectively we do it. They only care about the learning experience. And we eLearning professionals continually sabotage our own efforts to effect the massive culture change required to convince learners to embrace eLearning by churning out forgettable dreck time after time after time.

P.S. I loved your “RLO, unicorns and mermaids” analogy.

The RLO idea is a fantasy in the same league as unicorns and mermaids. I created a course in Preventing Workplace Violence to be delivered to supervisors. Then, I was tasked with creating a course in Preventing Workplace Violence to be delivered to employees.

Piece of cake. Just recycle the course with a few modifications. WRONG! About the only thing I could recycle were the graphics.

Same policy. Same company. Different audience and the course was totally different.

On the other hand, you’re right on the money about the RLO is formal elearning. It’s not like learning is just a process of slapping data together like a bunch of lego bricks.