BKWBTCKB.RVW   980703

"Web-Based Training Cookbook", Brandon Hall, 1997, 0-471-18021-1,
U$39.99/C$56.50
%A   Brandon Hall info@brandon-hall.com
%C   5353 Dundas Street West, 4th Floor, Etobicoke, ON   M9B 6H8
%D   1997
%G   0-471-18021-1
%I   John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
%O   U$39.99/C$56.50 416-236-4433 fax: 416-236-4448
%P   482 p. + CD-ROM
%T   "Web-Based Training Cookbook"

When I first started dealing with online distance education, less than
a dozen articles had been published on any aspect of the topic, and
the Web had yet to be invented.  Now there are whole books on specific
sub-topics.  However, I'm not sure that there should, or can, be a
cookbook on training or education.  In any case, this isn't one.

Part one presents background information on the World Wide Web and its
use in training.  Chapter one lists examples three different types of
WBT (Web-Based Training), ranging from simple page turners to
interactive multimedia.  Unfortunately, the printed page is not a good
medium for explaining interactive material, and the screen shots tend
to confuse the explanatory text.  The set of FAQs (Frequently Asked
Questions) in chapter two are basically limited to promotional level
material.  Yes, Web-based training is platform-independent, but only
if you stick to "common denominator" functions and avoid the more
esoteric plug-ins and features.  Firewalls will not stop negative
feature programming that is submitted via ActiveX and similar
controls.  A quick overview of Web and related technology is given in
chapter three.  The list of hardware and software required for running
WBT, in chapter four, is somewhat daunting and heavily slanted towards
commercial developers.

Part two deals with the development of WBT.  Chapter five outlines a
possible development process but one crucial step is notable by its
absence: nowhere is there any mention of learning objectives.  This
"cart before the horse" order is emphasized by the fact that chapter
six, which attempts to sell the course to management, follows
development.  Although the miscellany of factors that are discussed
should be considered, chapter seven does not really tell you how to
convert a curriculum to the Web.  Chapter eight does mention
objectives, and places instructional design first in the list of
important factors, but the actual content makes two points very clear:
first, multimedia is really the primary concern, and second, the book
does not make any strong distinction between Web-based training and
any other form of computer-based training.  Online testing is
definitely Web-based since chapter nine is only a list of Web query
tools.  WBT management systems are enumerated in chapter ten.

Part three looks at the actual implementation of the training system,
although the planning section has dealt more with specifics than
principles.  Chapter eleven reviews text and graphics.  Other than the
addition of interactivity, chapter twelve isn't much different.  And,
since multimedia doesn't really come across in books, neither is
chapter thirteen.

The introduction boasts that the book holds everything needed to
successfully start producing Web-based training.  That is simply not
correct.  None of the underlying Web technologies, including such
basic ones as HTML (HyperText Markup Language) and CGI (Common Gateway
Interface), are covered in any detail.  The author no doubt considers
these fundamentals redundant, since there are commercial tools to deal
with the necessary functions, but that does mean the reader must then
go out and buy those tools, not having the requisite skills to do
without them.  The real shortcoming of the text, though, is the total
triumph of style over substance.  This is merely a compendium of
programs to add flash to Web presentations, and has almost nothing to
do with training at all.

copyright Robert M. Slade, 1998   BKWBTCKB.RVW   980703