Quiz

Ken,

Moodle, like the other web-based CMSs is "cross platform compatible" for students in that access is through a web browser, most of which are available on several platforms. As long as you don't include platform-specific content (such as a Windows executable or Linux binary), you do not need to create "PC and Macintosh formats".

Moodle, itself is a web server-based Course Management System application and not a workstation-based Computer Aided Learning application like something developed in Macromedia Authorware. It is not really feasible to put a working Moodle course on a read-only CD for the same reasons we can't put a WebCT, Blackboard or eCollege course on a CD. They all really depend on web server-based applications to work.

If you search the forums, you will find discussions on how to put Moodle on a CD for installation to a workstation or how to run Moodle from a flash memory device (USB key).

Cheers,

Bob

Hi Ken, Moodle isn't a CD authoring tool and CD based learning content isn't really much good for interactive learning unless it has a web-connection component (and I've made quite a few Educational CDs). CDs lalone are great for information transmission modes of teaching with limited interactivity, but IMO you need a web based system to really get the interactivity, feedback, security that it's good to have for learning applications.

For instance, you might deliver some content on a CD with some questions in it for the student to answer (the practice principle of elearning). But the CD is read only, so it can't record the students answers for you to observe and grade.

The CD might talk to a webserver to do save the answers, or it might write to a file on the student's machine. But if it writes to a file there, how does it get the file back to the teacher to review if it can't write the file back to itself? There are also security issues when you write the file back to the student's machine, it takes some tricks to keep the more computer savvy students from just editing their grades.

Some LMSs use CDs or DVDs to deliver course content, but they require a webserver to do assessments and of course interactive things like forums and chats.

You could write your learning application in html or flash, deliver it on CD, and then have it connect to a Moodle quiz  or lesson online for a secure assessment, for instance.

I've made a few CDs in the past 10 years, but I don't recommend it much anymore, the difficulty of distributing and updating generally seem to outweigh the advantages of CDs over the web (mainly bandwidth). Though I might deliver say a video piece or other non-interactive content via CD, if the learning goals require any kind of assessment or more than simple interactivity, I'd recommend a fully web-based solution or a hybrid that connects to a web server, for any new elearning courses, myself.

Frankly, the IME,the biggest mark against CDs is that you can build a great, wonderful, non-linear presentation on a CD, put it in a nice shiny package, and send it to your students, but if there is no assessment involved, no way to tell if the students ever opened it and installed it, then most of them will just leave it in the box.