_ .......................................................... __ __ __ __ __ __ web's eye view | | /| / /| | /| / /| | /| / / March 22, 2000 | |/ |/ / | |/ |/ / | |/ |/ / Maricopa Center for |__/|__/ |__/|__/ |__/|__/ Learning & Instruction .......................................................... http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/eye/ .......................................................... The freshest bag of URLs is ready for pickup at http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/eye/bag/curr.html Help us refill by dropping interesting sites into: http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/eye/bag/drop.html Multiple Intelligences/Learning for Understanding Institute =========================================================== April 27-29, 2000 Presented by Glendale Community College http://www.gc.maricopa.edu/mi-lfu-inst/ 5 Testers Make a Web Site Review ================================ The Alertbox for March 19 is now online at: http://www.useit.com/alertbox/20000319.html Elaborate usability tests are a waste of resources. The best results come from testing no more than 5 users and running as many small tests as you can afford. ACCESSIBLE WEB DESIGN CONTEST 2000 ================================= The TLT Group and EASI are sponsoring a Web design contest to find college and university Web sites that are fully accessible to Web users with disabilities and which still remain attractive and appealing to users without disabilities. http://www.rit.edu/~easi/contest.htm News from EDUPAGE ================= N.VA. BILLIONAIRE ENVISIONS CYBER-U High-tech billionaire Michael Saylor tomorrow will announce his $100 million donation for the development of a cyber university featuring lectures from the world's "geniuses and leaders." The nonprofit university would provide an "Ivy League-quality" education free of charge to anyone in the world, says Saylor, CEO of software firm MicroStrategy. Saylor plans to donate more money to the effort as it progresses, and he says other philanthropists might contribute as well. In the next several months Saylor plans to start building a studio in the Washington area where lectures will be videotaped. Saylor's goal is to build the university into "a cyber Library of Congress." Currently the online university lacks structure, staff, and specific curriculum, and observers are waiting to see whether the university will meet Saylor's large expectations. Endorsements from legislators and educators will be announced in coming weeks, Saylor says. Saylor says he has already spoken with Congress members about providing federal grants for students to buy the hardware and software they would need to take courses at the school. (Washington Post, 15 March 2000) COLLEGES ARE ON AN I.T. SPENDING SPREE U.S. colleges have budgeted $1.2 billion to upgrade academic hardware this year, a 28 percent increase over last year, says a report from Dun & Bradstreet. Public universities will spend more than twice as much on hardware as private institutions, primarily because of their large enrollments. Large institutions are expected to reduce software budgets by an average of 29 percent, the report says. Altogether this academic year, schools will spend $2.7 billion on computer and network hardware and software for academic and administrative support. The report also reveals a surprisingly increase in the number of schools that provide distance education. This year 72 percent of respondents say they are offering a distance-education program, up from 48 percent last year. In addition, 34 percent of colleges surveyed now provide an accredited distance- learning degree program, compared with 15 percent last year. Thirty- eight percent of schools now provide Internet connections in dormitories, up from 28 percent last year. (Chronicle of Higher Education Online, 17 March 2000) EDUCATION: WEB'S NEW COME-ON The next wave in Internet marketing may be "eduCommerce," a concept that combines online course offerings with advertising content. Several companies devoted to eduCommerce already exist, including notHarvard.com, Learn2.com, Smart Planet, and Hungry Minds. NotHarvard.com founder Michael Rosenfelt says his organization simply provides students with another educational choice, and its offerings are not intended to replace traditional methods of learning. Smart Planet CEO Chris Dobbow believes the eduCommerce idea is entirely viable as long as companies are careful to avoid creating academic infomercials. His Web site permits advertisements on introductory pages but prohibits them within course pages. Many education officials are skeptical and claim the eduCommerce idea lacks true educational merit. William L. Rukeyser, director of the nonprofit group Learning in the Real World, wonders whether people will understand that eduCommerce sites are "primarily advertising and secondarily educational" and believes the terms "education" and "courses" may be deceptive when used in connection with such sites. Although it is unlikely eduCommerce courses will ever completely dominate the online educational market, many colleges and universities face stiff competition from newcomer hybrids that often offer their courses for free, counting on sales generated from advertisements to make their profits and draw new customers. (New York Times, 16 March 2000)