Authoring Tools Comparison
Moodle, aTutor, Claroline.net
William R. Clements
Grand Canyon University
TEC-542 Devmnt & Degn of Mda.In Edu St
04 May 2011
Table of Contents for
Moodle, aTutor, and Caroline.net
• The Cost of Each LMS
• Animation Capabilities
• Audio and Video Capabilities
• Compatibility Amongst Platforms
• Ease of Use
• Integration into Learning Management Systems
• Limitations
• Ultimately, choose a Web authoring tool that would
suit your tutorial.
The Cost of Each LMS
• Moodle
− The cost will always be free
• aTutor
− Basic Support
• Single Support Ticket Cost $100
− Development Services
• Cost $85 per Hour or a Contractual Cost
• Caroline. Net
− The web site asks for donations to cover its growth
− Right now, it is free
− Since it is growing, operators may have to pay later
Animation Capabilities
• Moodle
− Clip Art or pictures can be downloaded
• But there can not be animation within each picture
• aTutor
− Should be able to play movies, short or long
− Should be able to input clipart that has animation
− Should
• Caroline. Net
− Does not show the capability for animation
− When making the course, pictures and clip art
could be added without animation.
Audio and Video Capabilities
• Moodle
− Can record any audio and video onto the system
• Has commercial support
• Has 3rd party plugins
• Instant Messaging for students to collaborate
• aTutor
− Can have audio and visual conferencing
− Can use instant messaging
• Caroline. Net
− Has a collaboration feature for video conferencing
− Audio and video streaming can also be used
Compatibility Amongst Platforms
• Moodle
− Has a list of different resources to use to make other platforms
compatible
− Compatable With Most Programs
− Tech support is increasing the capabilities
• aTutor
− Is compatible with most browsers
− Is compatible with most platforms
− Tech support is increasing the capabilities
• Caroline. Net
− Tech support is making efforts to make Caroline more
compatible with other programs
− Is compatible with some programs with minimal conformance
level
Ease of Use
• Moodle
• 7 to 16 year olds have taken a very short period of time to master
the program Moodle
• The home page is straight forward
• Gets you started quicker
• aTutor
• The Home Page has a large amount of info.
• Makes it hard to pin point certain areas of interest
• Have to scan through the whole page to find where to begin.
•Caroline.net
• Has a manual for operators to use that has ten chapters
•Takes 2 to 3 windows to get to the information
•The text is difficult to understand
Integration into Learning Management
Systems
• Moodle
• Various items can be integrated into Moodle easily
• Step by Step procedures are given to you
• Integrating can also mean to work in conjunction with Moodle
• aTutor
• Can be integrated with many programs
• Tech support has developed ways to integrate useful tools of
elearning, (i.e. Gradebook)
• Newer integration is being developed as needed
• Caroline.net
• Has the capability to be integrated into any computer system.
• Tech support has developed ways to integrate useful tools of
elearning, (i.e. Calenders)
• Newer types of integration are being developed
Limitations
•Moodle
• It is difficult to share objects between courses
•
•
It is difficult to change colors and graphics in the course
There is a limit on the reports describing students progress
•aTutor
• There is a limit to the size of the file that can be uploaded
•
•
There is a limit to the storage space that is needed
Students are limited to the number of times they can view the
content in the course
•Caroline.net
•
•
•
Focuses on self-learning only
There are time restrictions
There is no collaboration between students
Ultimately, choose a Web authoring
tool that would suit your tutorial.
• Moodle is the tool, I want to use
• Students can collaborate on the reading material
• This is essential for students to develop inferring skills
• Students can understand other points of view
• The web site is user friendly
• It is easy to use the developing tools
• Students can use this tool without difficulty
• It has the necessary tools to be a successful
resource
• It has a grade book to watch the students progress
• You can make assessments to judge students knowledge
• You can make a blog for students to use for their thoughts