Graphic & Visual Design
The indirect instructional aspects of imagery, text, white space, color choices, etc. that impact cognitive load, drive engagement, and influence the learner experience.
-
Raise the Bar: Stealing from Television
Since the beginning, broadcasters have been coming up with techniques to engage us, stimulate us, and keep us focused on the tube. Many of these techniques can be easily adapted for eLearning, and when used correctly, further engage consumers of learning content.
-
Mobile or Not, eLearning Needs Strong Visual Design
Anyone can learn the basic principles of good visual design; applying them to eLearning can make it more effective.
-
Raise the Bar: Removing Backgrounds in Photoshop
Removing photo backgrounds so you can use an object in an image is a common task in Photoshop, but it’s not an easy one. Upon mastering this task, you can composite engaging images for inclusion in your learning content.
-
TechSmith Releases New Version of Camtasia: A Powerful Platform for Making Remarkable Videos
TechSmith is introducing the latest version of Camtasia, its powerful video creation platform. The latest version, Camtasia 9 for Windows and Camtasia 3 for Mac, offers simplified workflow enhancements along with an updated, modern look and feel. The new features enable a more streamlined process of content creation.
-
Six Tips to Make Your Visual Design Support Your Content
Good visual design complements the text in eLearning materials (and in print materials, too). Here are a half-dozen ways to harmonize the words and the graphics when designing eLearning!
-
Raise the Bar: Five Ways to Make Slides More Engaging with Photoshop
Create slides that engage—no matter whether your students are sitting with you in a classroom or watching you in a virtual environment. Two skills are involved here: creativity and production. With a little of both, you can greatly improve the quality of your presentation. Here are five techniques to get you started.
-
Raise the Bar: Understanding Typography for Online Learning
Typography is often best understood by examining the vocabulary used to discuss the craft. Here are some of the most common terms, along with tips to help you apply them using typical digital design software. The people who use your products will be forever grateful for your efforts, and other designers won’t laugh at your work!
-
Copyright Law, Prototypes, and the Five-second Rule
Dealing with copyright when adding images or other media to your eLearning is a major concern—or it should be. It doesn’t help that there is much incorrect information floating around on this topic. Here’s an article that may help you to stay out of trouble!
-
Nuts and Bolts: Getting Organized
Continuing the discussion of Richard Mayer’s “SOI” model (select, organize, integrate), this month’s column focuses on organizing information into meaningful wholes. Most slide-based authoring tools and old habits get us to think in terms of bullet points, but there are better ways! Here’s how to re-think content and concept information.
-
Nuts and Bolts: Give the Learner a Fighting Chance
A constant challenge with eLearning (and face-to-face) courses is managing “overwhelm:” too often the learner is inundated with content and ideas and bullets and more content. Here’s how to select the really important information and present it in a way that helps learners focus and make sense of what they are seeing.