Review of Macromedia Dreamweaver e-Learning Toolkit: Building Web-Based Training with Coursebuilder (Paperback)

Doyle's book is supposed to be an introduction for Dreamweaver extensions, CourseBuilder and Learning Site. CourseBuilder writes javascript for learning interactions (multiple choice questions, etc.) and Learning Site helps manage information from a course website within a database. The book strikes me as poorly edited or proofread (a whole paragraph is repeated on p. 81, for example). Readers are directed to the author's web-based training website for resources in ways that feel like you are reading an infomercial, but then, when I took the bait, I found that links to the resources were dead anyway. Text and tables repeat the same information, making it seem like the book has been "padded" to reach the editor's page count, or like the author believes he is writing for particularly dim-witted readers.

To those looking for help with Dreamweaver and other Macromedia tools in e-learning applications, I would recommend two other books: Using Dreamweaver to Create e-Learning (Garin Hess and Steven Hancock) is a first-rate introduction to CourseBuilder, with clear and engaging tutorials.  Even better, perhaps, is MX eLearning (Jeffrey Bardzell), which does almost nothing with CourseBuilder, but demonstrates how to build interactions using the javascript that Dreamweaver will write through its behaviors panel, as well as Flash and ColdFusion.  This is an "advanced training from the source" book and non-threatening to people who don't think of themselves as coders but want to begin to make sense of html, javascript, actionscript, etc.

Product Description
* Includes everything developers need to start building online courses quickly and easily
* Enables Dreamweaver users to enter the rapidly-growing Web-based training market
* Begins with a crash course in Macromedia Dreamweaver MX, then guides readers through developing an online learning course, incorporating interactions, quizzes, tests, and animations
* Dreamweaver commands approximately eighty percent of the market for professional Web development tools; its supplementary CourseBuilder and Learning Site extensions have been downloaded more than 90,000 times
* CD-ROM includes sixteen e-learning templates worth $99, quick start forms, additional software, and a complete, customizable, three-hour online course

From the Back Cover
"With a book like this, even mere mortals can use Macromedia tools and extensions to create effective e-learning."
-Bill Horton, author of Designing Web-Based Training and e-Learning Tools and Technologies

The Web-based training field is hot, and this comprehensive toolkit will prepare you to take advantage of the opportunities it offers developers. Everything you need to create your own e-learning curriculum is here-software, plans for building your courses, site templates, a database, a dozen samples, and complete step-by-step instructions for using them all. There's a section devoted to Dreamweaver basics, an overview of e-learning concepts, a quick course in creating effective tests, plus plenty of expert tutorials and hands-on examples. You'll feel confident designing, developing, and implementing WBT courses with the most popular Web publishing tool in the world.

You'll learn how to:

• Design interactive pages, manage reusable content, and apply cascading style sheets
• Install and use Learning Site and CourseBuilder extensions
• Develop valid test questions and reduce the odds of accurate guessing
• Select, control, and process CourseBuilder interactions
• Choose layout styles for effective site navigation
• Create drag-and-drop and image hot area interactions
• Track test results with the Learning Site database

"Mike Doyle has done a fantastic job teaching novice and experienced Dreamweaver MX users how to develop effective courseware. This is destined to become a reference book you will want to keep close at hand."
-Margaret Driscoll, IBM Mindspan Solutions, Author of Web-Based Training: Designing e-Learning Experiences

The CD-ROM features:

• Trial version of Macromedia Dreamweaver MX, plus Learning Site and CourseBuilder extensions
• 12 valuable e-learning templates
• A complete 3-hour online course you can use as a course model for your custom Web-based training
• Author files and tutorials

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