I think we would all agree that e-Learning

I think we would all agree that e-Learning courses benefit from graphics, even if the matter you are presenting is dry. No one likes to read large amounts of textual content on-screen. Using graphics to break upwards text gives the eye something unwind on before continuing to read. Below are some tips for using graphics within e-Learning development, so without any additional adieu, let's get started.

1 . Graphical Size

Sure, you may want to make your training more inviting by adding graphics, nonetheless don't go overboard! Depending on your readership, you may have users with slow links or older hardware. You'll want to produce your course content to them immediately, and adding hi-resolution graphics will slow things down.

- Make sure to optimize all of your graphics so that they load up quickly.

- Use Photoshop(TM) or perhaps Fireworks(TM) to squeeze down the scale your images.

- Be sure that you are using a good formats for your images.

- Never crowd pages with multiple images.

- Avoid images that firmly contrast with their surroundings.

If you are using a new continuous-tone photograph, be sure to save the particular file as a JPEG (Joint Pictures Experts Group). JPEG compression brings a weighty image down in space. The downside to JPEGs is that the compression setting scheme that is built into the extendable (what makes the file size smaller) can be lossy, meaning that the more compression an individual apply, the more image quality you sacrifice. There's a fine balance involving file size and quality, so make image files as small as possible, while still looking crisp.

Any ripped graphics, charts, and graphs having solid colors should be saved as GIF (Graphic Interchange Format) files. The algorithm in the GIF file format searches for common occurrences of color, and groups those colors together to a palette. The palette can incorporate 256 colors or less. GIF compression is also lossless, so GIF conversion doesn't introduce artifacts plus aberrations, like the JPEG scheme can.

GIF files have two more tricks up their sleeves: they can have transparency and can be animated. The transparency adapter in the GIF file format is only 1-bit transparency, meaning that just one color of the whole palette can be clear. Usually, that color is bright white, but you can make any color the transparent color. The GIF 89a format allows multiple frames in one file for animation. You can get really creative with GIF animations now, while using the new animation panel in Photoshop CS3. This, however, doesn't necessarily mean you should have spinning logos and pulsating graphics everywhere. But an animated group of steps can be very useful, when used in conjunction with explanatory text.

Even though a page can benefit from a few graphics, putting Website Design Staffordshire too many images of varying sizes, qualities, and colors can really cause problems designed for readers. The size and complexity on the graphics is also an important factor, when considering the amount of images to use per page. A sophisticated wiring diagram, with all of its legends and explanations, will probably tax the reader's eye for quite some time, whereas a photo of an ocean would have a different result.

Also, your course may have some sort of shell or structure with its individual colors and shapes. Choosing pictures that strongly contrast with the ones colors and shapes may not be advisable. You may be thinking that if the image stands out, it will attract more attention. Which might be true, but it might not be the kind of interest you really want. If at all possible, homogenize your color scheme across all graphics. There could be acceptable variations of color between screen locations, such as highlights, arrows, gradients, and other effects that can help in order to draw attention to specific areas of a new screen image or product photograph.

2 . Visual Hierarchy

A visual structure sets the order of importance on the page. You can achieve maximum presence and results by using a simple and continual visual hierarchy. Every item over a page has visual importance, however you can control that importance based on the design of those items. For example, a magazine has a clear hierarchy: its statements draw readers' attention because the head line text is larger than any other text on the page. Somewhat smaller subheads fall under the headlines, and help visitors scan for chunks of information that might curiosity them. Then, even smaller body system text follows. But despite this clean formatting hierarchy, just one quarter-page-sized impression would completely dominate the entire site, and draw readers' eyes away from text. Similar design hierarchies are seen in other publications as well, and this is merely one example.

The systematic ordering of importance through a hierarchy will guide pupils through a course, and help them accomplish their objectives more quickly.

3. Text message Breaks

As mentioned before, facing large amounts of dense on-screen text is just not an optimal situation. In print, developers try to help readers by breaking up text using columns, paragraphs, first-line indents, tabs, and other conventions. Sections length is another important tool. Normally, the eye is most comfortable reading by 41 to 50 characters for every line. But this also depends on the optic characteristics of the font being used and on its size. It has been shown that will sans-serif fonts, like Arial and even Verdana, are easier to read on-screen compared to serif fonts, like Times New Roman and Georgia.

As we mentioned before, graphics (either embedded inside the text or running alongside) can provide a visual break for the eye because it moves through a story. Of course, sizing and placement are important; you want to work with graphics, but also retain continuity. Diagrams and figures that relate to the storyplot are especially valuable.

Visuals can also add motivation. For example, a course that reveals exact steps for completing an application task will benefit greatly by screenshots that support each step. Absolutely nothing is more frustrating than to have text-only instructions for a visual task. Any time something requires a lot of hand-eye skill, then the course should include screenshots, layouts, simulations, or even video of the methods being completed. And using screenshots through the latest version of the software is mandatory.

some. Appropriate Imagery

Some educators bring on libraries of stock picture taking and "found" images for their study course graphics. More often than not, these images are merely marginally related to the course written content. True, they add visual splits in the story, but they often fall short in supporting course content. A standard example that we've all seen is business courses that use stock photos of executives and secretaries seated at desks and talking about phones, but who are not truly doing anything related to the course material.

The challenge here is to build cost-effective courses. A typical photo shoot, with all of its versions and studio expenses, can be quite pricy. But there are some great traditional stock-photography agencies that sell royalty-free images for reasonable prices. The web has also turn into a tremendous source of content-specific images. The particular Stock Xchange, iStockPhoto, Creatas, Veer, and other agencies have a wide variety of image categories related to specific areas of business. Most times, you can order these pictures online, download comps, and how to use online lightbox to view and select design. Of course, be careful to follow appropriate copyright laws guidelines when acquiring online images!

More and more public-domain photos are becoming accessible. Often, they have outlived their copyrights and are now freely available. You must especially consider public-domain photos if you are building a historical course.

5. Numbers for Learning

Figures and blueprints with supporting text can really help learners accomplish your course objectives. Edward Tufte has written several superb, classic books about the effectiveness of figures, diagrams, charts, and graphs. Tufte single-handedly changed information design and style, as it is called, with the publishing regarding "Visual Explanations. " Creating shapes and diagrams to support courses is a craft in itself. Basically, the most effective supporting graphics can quickly convey important information that their corresponding text descriptions cannot. It is extremely important that such graphics become appealing, easy to understand, and adequately marked.

These images should help students achieve specific instructional goals. A plain image of a semiconductor with accommodating text may be enough for some learners, but the same image, with tags and arrows that are referenced within the text, can be much more effective for others. So always target your photo presentations toward all appropriate understanding levels.

Specific features of these images should be considered for effectiveness. Line bodyweight, color, legends, and other features should all directly relate to, and support, course material. If there are multiple graphics in a course, consistency in design is very important. Far too often, colors and styles will shift via graphic to graphic, and present a continuously changing look and feel. Scholars may easily construe this stylistic meandering as a shift in topic or objective. Consistency of style and even color can support broad themes, help learners to know when they are in a subject, and alert them when they move on to the next subject.

When labeling design, it is important to use contrasting colors and even color fields behind the labels. Take into account layering the labels and ordering all of them appropriately. Legends for color links are very useful for charts and charts, and the same holds true for numbers and diagrams.

6. Charts and even Graphs

Charts and graphs are very useful for conveying statistical or fantastic information. Most people can create charts and even graphs in Microsoft Excel or even PowerPoint, but these quick charts will usually benefit from some additional work. For instance, a pie chart that expresses a target sales quota may be presented with a specific piece of the quiche enlarged, extruded, or in some various other way more prominent than the other items. For quickly showing the relatives importance of data, this is a visual seite an seite to the text hierarchy that we mentioned previously.

Again, style and consistency within a course is important. You may have a series of steering column charts that express specific sales quotas from city to city across the country. Each chart might make use of gray bars for all states that are not currently being discussed and a blue bar council for the state that is being discussed.

Typically the width and height, (and with 3-D) the depth of pubs can be exaggerated, to bring attention to certain parts of a chart. Adding dimensions, shading, and drop-shadows to a graph and or chart, although appealing, should be done only following your chart's basic information is being presented effectively.

Be sure to adequately label chart, and make sure that the labels don't imprecise other information or data. Legends are useful guides for reading a data, and should be both adjacent to typically the chart and clearly labeled.

Other ways of improving charts is to use imagery that is directly related to their matters. For example, a bar chart regarding populations could use silhouettes of people (instead of rectangles) for its bars. Some sort of bar chart about oil costs could use barrels of oil as opposed to rectangles. Every chart should be evaluated first for clarity and reliability of its presentation, and then examined intended for alternate methods of presentation that might be applied.

7. Color Choices

We've already mentioned color several times, but it can be a touchy subject because it is so subjective. You could be driving down a street where every single house sports a muted shade aside from the bright purple one along with lime-green shutters! It may make your epidermis crawl, but to the person who painted the house, it's beautiful.

Color is a scientific disciplines of its own. At the core of coloring theory is the color wheel, which often basically displays and organizes the whole rainbow. The primary colors are reddish, yellow, and blue. From these, we can create the secondary colors, just like orange, green, and purple. Tertiary colors are a mix of secondary and first colors, and complete the color wheel. Colour wheel also shows different coloring shades, from the outside to the inside, going from dark to light worth.

Certain colors can evoke feelings or convey moods. Active colours are yellows, oranges, reds, plus purples. These are ideal for highlighting aspects of a course and calling attention to specifics. Think of the color of a stop signal. The color red is arresting and even contrasts well with just about any history. So it's a natural choice for an image that commands students (at least in the U. S. ) to quit. Passive colors are greens, doldrums, and lighter purples. These are frequently used in hospitals and detention facilities, because they are calming. You can use passive colorings as background colors and in encouraging graphics for courses. If your training will be delivered internationally, also be aware that your other students' cultures may well influence color selections. For example, due to our traffic signage, American learners easily perceive red as an indicator to stop. But in some countries, red-colored conveys danger, and sometimes even death. And so unless you really want to convey a sense regarding danger (as in DON'T POSSIBLY THINK ABOUT PUSHING THIS BUTTON FOR THIS MACHINE FOR ANY REASON, PERIOD! ), you may want to avoid red graphics inside courses for international audiences.

Many of us can't discuss color without referring to contrast - the relationship between shades in a given scenario. Black textual content on a white background is easy to read because those colors contrast very well with each other. But yellow text on the white background or blue text on a black background is hard to check out; there isn't enough contrast between shape and ground to make the text inteligible. However, always apply common sense and good taste: green text with an orange background may contrast firmly, but this combo is hard to study, and painful to look at. The same factors also hold true for images.

Color is a powerful tool when used correctly. It can convey which means, add a mood, be playful or even serious, and carry a lot of bodyweight in delivering the content at hand.

almost eight. Navigation Aids

Throughout your course, you'll use on-screen controls to let users navigate through the material. These controls could be either textual (like hyperlinks) or even graphical (like buttons). If you make use of such navigation graphics, be sure that these are clearly labeled and easy to use. If possible, you'll want to use a combination of both visual and text elements to ensure ease-of-use. Button graphics should follow well-known human-interface guidelines, meaning that they should conduct themselves like buttons. Their appearance should improve when they are rolled over with the mouse button and clicked. This provides visual (and often audible) confirmation that the button action has been triggered.

- Make sure to follow these simple tips for producing navigation controls:

- Buttons must be clearly labeled.

- Contrast is essential.

- Use complimentary or energetic colors to highlight button functionality.

place and use navigation controls constantly throughout the course.

Other useful equipment that you can use in courses are breadcrumbs or area indicators. For example, your a button within a navigation system should shift appearance whenever a certain section is without a doubt reached. And the Previous and Next areas should always be visible near the current webpage indicator. Every course navigation system has to be easy to use, and allow students to often see where they just originate from in the course, where they are now, and wherever they can go next.

And be certain to actually test your course and tutorial navigation, to be sure that it is clear which anyone can use it. Use a couple of testers, and note and target any tie-ups or pitfalls which they find.

9. Functional Communication

Think about graphic vehicles for conveying a series of steps, the style of graphic you choose (animation, static image, video) isn't as critical as the images accurately presenting the steps. Studies have shown that a series of steps provided as line drawings, animations, and even videos are all assimilated equally nicely by learners. The true effectiveness of the graphics depends on both adequate marking and the use of graphic features of which show the progression or movement.

Un-illustrated text or unlabeled graphics usually do not carry much weight, and are not really effective. Using even simple image devices, such as descriptive labels, continuous labels, highlights, and directional arrows, will help users to follow step-by-step courses. Adobe Captivate and other simulation software allow you to add these features to any registered presentation - either automatically, or perhaps manually. Either way, adding descriptors in order to communicate functionality will go a long way towards successfully presenting a series of tasks.

10. Student Gestalt

There's more mixed up in overall training and learning processes than a might think. It's important to strategically make use of thematic elements to tie a course together, in a consistent and ideal gestalt. "Gestalt" is a German term, often used in graphic-design circles, that will implies "the overall sense or even aim of a user experience. "

Here is an example of how a bad graphic aussehen can cause problems. A British design organization was asked to create signs for your coal mine in Africa. As a result of mine's non-English-speaking workers, the creative designers used pictures of carts getting loaded with coal. But when the clues were installed, the workers started unloading the carts, rather than loading these people. The "gestalt" problem was that the designers assumed a left-to-right reading method, whereas the workers read right-to-left.

In the same way, making assumptions about your learners' experiences, without actually testing typically the course goals, objectives, and outcomes can lead to disaster. Be sure that you have a total understanding of your target audience. Take a student testing and test your courses on them. You can definitely find specific details that need to be ironed out and about. But more importantly, you should collect suggestions about your students' entire learning encounter. If a course is objectively informative, but bores students to cry, it should be re-worked to make it more interesting. Of course, if the course simply doesn't meet its objectives, you should use a review to gather feedback about the course resources. Perhaps there were too many distractions or even unclearly labeled graphics. Revisit all of problem areas with a critical eye.

Of course, not everyone comes to a course together with the same learning ability, and different college students will have varying aptitudes. So guitar in case you collect information from as huge a group as you can, to gauge your course's effectiveness for all students. Gauging gestalt is like stepping back from painting, to view its overall make up before continuing.