MS Office expert on call.

* Microsoft Live Office, online, 2004, 40 hrs., KnowledgeNet 877-688-3717, www.knowledgenet.com), $2,490 for 10 students. Session archives, student guide, performance support tool.

From the outset, e-learning proponents predicted that web-based training would revolutionize, if not wholly supplant, traditional classroom training. Those predictions proved to be wrong. The live classroom proved to be more durable than predicted, while e-learning proved to be less riveting for learners than advocates had hoped.

The consensus view now seems to be that web-based training complements and extends traditional classroom instruction by offering learners accessible, relevant, customizable training. Until recently, much web-based training lacked the personal, real-time interaction between instructors and students. In an effort to combine live expert training with the convenience of Internet delivery, KnowledgeNet launched KnowledgeNet Live, an innovative blend of traditional and web-based training approaches.

Recently, KnowledgeNet added Office 2000 productivity training to its "live" format. Titled "Live Office," KnowledgeNet provides an "all-access pass" to training on Microsoft's core office suite: Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint, and Outlook. The all-access pass means learners have unlimited access to the Office courses for the duration of their subscription.

Virtual campus

To begin training, you must log into KnowledgeNet's campus using your email address and password. Once logged in, you're directed to the campus home page, titled, "my learning campus." From there you can access recently viewed courses or, if it's your first visit to the campus, you may click the "view all courses" link to see courses available and enroll in them. The homepage also includes a link to "My notebook," a virtual space for taking notes and organizing them into folders.

Along the top right of the window are the campus navigational tabs: homepage, courses, resources, catalog, and profile. For quick access, the help and log out links are directly above the navigational tabs.

The courses tab provides you with a quick look at your current classes and the option to view any expired courses. The hyperlink for "Learn it Now" sits in the lefthand column. This feature, which I consider a strong selling point for KnowledgeNet, links you to a searchable listing of labs. Once you complete a class you can gain valuable hands-on experience by performing specific tasks in a lab environment. If you or your colleagues need to brush up on a specific skill--creating a macro, for example--you don't have to search through notes, written how-to guides, or the application's help function. Simply enter your search criteria and work though the appropriate lab. (Note: you should familiarize yourself with the labs so you know what is available for the different Office applications.)

The resources tab lists various articles ranging from KnowledgeNet press releases to ways to increase Windows security.

The next navigational tab, titled catalog, lists all the courses available to you. KnowledgeNet headlines each application and provides a hyperlink to direct you either to the KnowledgeNet theatre where the "live" class takes place or to the Express format, a recorded live session for on-demand training. If a live class is open, an icon shaped like a heart monitor graph will be active.

The last navigational button, "Profile," displays your preferences and allows you to make changes. For example, under the heading "Content Delivery Options," you can choose to turn on or off the audio or text captioning.

Course layout and content

KnowledgeNet divides each course into two parts: core and expert. Core classes introduce learners to the application and help them navigate through its many features. For example, learners explore an application's menus, learn to customize the toolbars, and perform basic tasks such as using templates and creating and formatting documents. Expert classes, as the name implies, cover advanced features. In an expert Excel class, for instance, you'd learn to perform v-lookups, create macros, and perform simple editing using visual basic.

When you attend a "live" class, you enter the "KnowledgeNet theatre," a virtual classroom that enables you to listen to your instructors as they work in the application and demonstrate various tasks. Although learners cannot speak with the instructors, the classroom includes a chat feature. If you set the chat to "my questions," you can write questions and submit them to the instructors who will respond to your question quickly. If you set the chat to "all questions," you'll see questions submitted by others as well as the instructor responses. Typically, the instructors incorporate questions and answers into the class session so there's little if any interruption to the training flow.

The class duplicates the content you'd receive if you attended a class at an off-site training facility. However, in a traditional class you'd expect the instructor to inject tips and shortcuts while demonstrating various tasks in the application. You'll find that the KnowledgeNet instructors deliver the same attention to detail. In classes I attended, the instructors shared keyboard shortcuts, time-saving tips, customization options, and pointed out common features among Office products. In each class, for example, the instructors provided learners with the URL for Microsoft Office on the web. Microsoft's site offers an immense amount of information to help you customize your applications and increase your productivity. You'll find templates, clip art, stationary, utilities, and guides for all the applications.

The KnowledgeNet instructors shared their expertise in ways other than tips and shortcuts. They recognized that some learners might want to demonstrate their Office skills via certification. When appropriate, the instructors alert you to content areas you should learn well if you intend to prepare for the Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) certification.

The instructors demonstrated audience sensitivity in other ways. At key points, they offered sage advice about the importance of audience analysis so you can avoid the pitfalls of overusing certain Office features. Undoubtedly, you've sat through a PowerPoint presentation in which the presenter wants to show off his mastery of many features. As you endure various sounds, overused animated gifs, uninspired clip art images, and poorly sized charts, you may wish the presenter had put the same amount of time into analyzing audience need as he did in constructing the presentation. In different KnowledgeNet classes, instructors advised learners to consider how a document or presentation "fits" with the intended audience.

Adjustment issues

Although the "live" classroom instructors demonstrated mastery of their subject and were attentive to questions submitted by learners, I had some initial difficulty adjusting to the delivery styles. At times I thought vocal modulation was excessive. Let me qualify my statement a bit. It's very difficult to connect with a live but invisible audience. While strong modulation demonstrates enthusiasm, I found it distracting in the beginning. After I attended a couple of classes, however, I grew accustomed to the delivery styles of my instructors. If you're unable to attend a "live" session, KnowledgeNet offers KnowledgeNet Express, a recorded version of a live training session. Once you access an Express class, you have full control over the session. The navigational buttons mirror those you'd find on a media player: play, pause, stop, and repeat. Unlike the "live" class, you can repeat specific lessons so you set the pace of the class.

KnowledgeNet's Express format combines some of the best elements of web-based training--convenience, flexibility, and accessibility--with some of the best elements of traditional classroom training--expert-led instruction, value, and standardized curricula--to foster a learning strategy.

I use the phrase "learning strategy" specifically to distinguish between training and learning. Training, at its most basic, refers to the mode of delivery; that is, the ways the material is conveyed to the learner and how it supports the learning process. There are, of course, many delivery modes ranging from books, web-based tutorials, live training, and question-answer sessions in forums to teleconferencing and web chats. Given the many ways learners can approach material, a learning strategy should embrace different training methods. KnowledgeNet builds and delivers a learning strategy by combining virtual classroom sessions, pre-recorded sessions, in-session exercises, and hands-on labs and student guides.

Technical observations

Since KnowledgeNet's Live Office provides sophisticated training features, you should verify that your systems meet all technical requirements. I found out the hard way that KnowledgeNet does not support the Mozilla browser and I had to use Microsoft's Internet Explorer to attend the live classes.

Before attending a live class event, I was careful to log onto KnowledgeNet's campus to ensure that my system passed the requisite checks. I used a system running Windows 2000 advanced server when I attended my first live class. I didn't experience any technical problems. The instructor's voices streamed clearly and the video was crisp. Unfortunately, my experience was less than perfect when I tried to access another live class from a laptop running Windows XP Professional with service pack one.

As you may know, Microsoft no longer bundles Sun Microsystems's Java plug-in with the Internet Explorer browser. If you're running XP, you may have to surf to Sun's site to download the Java plug-in and install it.

In my situation, the laptop passed the audio test but I did not have audio function when I entered the KnowledgeNet live class. I received a runtime error followed by a dialog box that informed me about a wrong audio stream. Once I clicked through the dialog boxes, I could watch the instructor working in the application but I could not hear anything. I performed some basic troubleshooting tasks and verified that Java was installed as well as the latest version of Microsoft's Media player.

I contacted KnowledgeNet's technical support, and although I found the people attentive and patient, they could not resolve the problem via phone. Ultimately, I abandoned the laptop and attended the rest of the class using the system running Windows 2000. There are certainly situations when technical support can't resolve a problem over the phone, and I understand this fully. Admittedly, I might not be quite as understanding if I had purchased a subscription or if I did not have another machine to use.

Recommendation

The technical difficulties I experienced do not curb my enthusiasm for KnowledgeNet's Live Office. The virtual campus is feature packed, and I was pleased to see such attention to detail. The live virtual classroom allows learners to interact with instructors in real time, but if you're schedule can't accommodate the live classes, you can access the same expert instruction in recorded sessions. Both class formats, Live and Express, are supported by exercises, labs, and student guides. When you compare KnowledgeNet's Live and Express classes with traditional classroom training on a feature-by-feature basis, KnowledgeNet is a clear winner.

KnowledgeNet Live Office product rating

Holds user interest  Outstanding
Production quality   Outstanding
Ease of navigation   Very good
Interactivity        Very good
Value of content     Outstanding
Instructional value  Outstanding
Value for the money  Outstanding
Overall rating       Outstanding

Lorraine Vachon holds an MCSE and MCSA as well as several CompTIA certifications. She is an independent technical trainer and technical writer specializing in Microsoft products and Linux administration.