Tag: Microsoft
Lights, Camera, and Action!
Have you ever wondered what it takes to produce and film a LearnKey course? If you have, today is your lucky day! We are going to share what our authors do while filming inside our production studio in Salt Lake City, Utah. We are going to be highlighting the work of Michael Meskers, the LearnKey expert behind our new Excel 2013 course, and freshly filmed Excel Formulas and Outlook 2013 courses.
Check out our course release schedule to find out when these courses will be available.
So what happens between deciding to produce a course and filming it? Well, it all starts with a good game plan, or officially called the course outline. Michael is a long-time LearnKey author and has filmed many courses with us, the most recent being Outlook 2013. Before arriving at the studio, Michael spent several months planning and preparing the look and feel of the course. One of his most important tasks during this time is to make sure all objectives are covered, allowing our students to prepare and pass industry certifications.
The next step is flying into the studio and getting to work early in the morning. When Michael walks into the studio first thing in the morning, there is a computer set up with the software he will need for the shoot that day. The studio crew then places a wireless microphone on him, which is followed by an audio check. Michael likes to warm up his voice with funny jokes and an occasional song, such as selections from Fiddler on the Roof. Once the audio check is good, we move on and make sure we are capturing the computer screen correctly.
Now it’s time for the fun part – we start filming. Michael is in the studio presenting the course information in front of our green screen with our camera man filming him. Back in the control room, the crew has the outline and the course objectives in hand. As he teaches, the crew is listening and checking off where each objective is covered. The crew is also watching sound levels and checking out the computer capture. If something goes wrong, we have to go back and do it all over again.
Once Michael has completed teaching the course, we go back and film the headshots. We place Michael in front of a green screen and then key out the headshots later with a cool background. Filming the headshots are usually the most entertaining time of the shoot. We love it when the author accidentally makes a mistake, which can give us the giggles. Michael is really good in front of the camera and rarely makes a mistake, but when he does make the occasional flub, it’s always funny, which is why shooting the headshots is the crew’s and author’s favorite part!
Now you know what goes into filming our courses. As you can tell, it’s a lot of work and a lot of fun.
Are you excited for the end of summer? You should be!
I know what you are thinking – “Why is this guy talking about the end of summer when summer has just begun?” Well, as promised in my last blog post I want to keep you up-to-date with some of the exciting happenings at LearnKey this summer. Here is a little sneak peek of some awesome OnlineExpert features to look forward to over the next couple of months.
Learning Management System (LMS) Tour
This free instructional course teaches educators and administrators how to easily access, use, and learn the functions of OnlineExpert. The LMS tour is broken into manageable sections, which allows users to easily find and watch material that is relevant to their needs.
This is one feature you don’t have to wait for – the LMS Tour was just recently released! Since it is free, current customers can easily have our representatives add it to their course libraries.
Projects
Teachers: We have listened to your requests – “More hands-on activities!” We are excited to announce that our Office 2007/2010, Adobe ACA, and IC³ courses will feature hands-on projects created by teachers who use our courses in their curriculum. These projects will help reinforce what students are learning by providing them with hands-on experience throughout the course.
Touchscreen support
In the past, our courses have made heavy use of Flash video and players, which certain mobile devices don’t support. Since these devices are becoming more and more popular in learning environments, OnlineExpert will allow students and teachers to use mobile devices as a learning tool with new touchscreen support beginning in August.
I am excited to be able to share these upcoming releases with everyone. After all, don’t we all need a good reason to actually look forward to the end of summer? Be sure to check back often for the down low on what’s going on at LearnKey.
I love getting comments, so here’s a question for you – What are your favorite summer traditions or vacation spots?
LearnKey First Quarter rollout of enhanced courses and products for 2012!
It is starting to be really busy with our LearnKey 2012 production shoot schedule, and I’m very excited with some of our new courses and exams recently released the past three weeks. It started with our February 2012 release of our Advanced Security Practitioner Certification (CASP) course designed to provide students with an explanation and understanding of conceptualization of security topics, as well as theoretical instruction/demonstrations in designing and engineering security solutions. This training course prepares students for the CompTIA exam CAS-001. LearnKey Expert course instructor Tom Carpenter does a very thorough and solid job covering the key objectives.
Earlier this week we successfully released our Flash CS5 MasterExam™ that helps IT certification candidates put the finishing touches on their comprehension and confidence as a final step before sitting for the exam. With over 200 questions, this supplements the training and hands-on experience needed to pass the Adobe® Certified Associate (ACA) Rich Media Communication with Adobe® Flash® certification exam.
Another release this week is our PowerPoint 2010 MasterExam 77-883 which is a great way to assess the skills of your staff with the individual components of PowerPoint 2010. Increase productivity by discovering and correcting skill deficiencies, or to find out how proficient prospective employees are before you hire them.
We ended the week releasing our Dreamweaver CS5 MasterExam™ with over 200 questions that supplements the training and hands-on experience needed to pass the Adobe® Certified Associate (ACA) Web Communication with Adobe® Dreamweaver® certification exam.
Over the next couple of weeks I will share with you our 2012 Production release schedule for the remainder of the year. One teaser I can share with you is a very exciting course we plan to release about leveraging behavior – a perfect life skills and career readiness topic.
We are off to a great start, and I promise to keep you posted on our most recent product releases!
Certification Journey: Moving along slowly
I saw that our Word 2010 course was only three sessions long, and I thought to myself, “This is going to be easy, and I will be ready to take my certification test in no time!” Well, procrastination is one thing I am very good at, so it has taken me longer to get started than I thought it would.
Finally last night after a long day at work, I made myself open up the training and get started (this was due in large part to the fact that there was nothing decent on TV).
In our training, we have this great feature: the Pretest. This kind of acts like a gauge to let you know how much knowledge you already have about the information in the course, and what areas you will need to focus on. I looked at the pretest and thought to myself, “Not a problem. I am going to ace this test in about 10 minutes and then I can back to reading my book.” My reasoning behind this thought was that I have been using Word since my high school days, and now I use Word pretty much every single day at work. Well, I had another thing coming to me. I went through the test in about 15 minutes, but as I did, the realization slowly crept in on me that I had no clue. There were a lot of terms I did not know and a lot of features I was clueless about. At the end of the pretest, when the results said I failed, I was pretty disappointed in myself and a little nervous about the challenge I was taking on.
The good thing is, I realized I have a long way to go to learn everything there is to know about Word, which worked as a motivator. So with this in mind, I started looking through the resources section of our training and looked at the glossary to find the definitions of many of the terms I had missed on the pretest. My lack of knowledge also made me think that this is something I really need to do so that I can function more efficiently in Word at work. So I am making the commitment to continue to make progress on this journey every week. I’ll keep you posted on my progress! If you are currently on your own certification journey, let us know how it is going for you, and any achievements or set backs you have faced trying to get certified.
Join Our Upcoming SQL Server R2 Webinar
We have partnered with noted Microsoft SQL Server Expert Wayne Snyder and Mariner, a leading Microsoft Gold Partner to produce a webinar that will take place on Wednesday, March 23 at 1PM ET. The webinar will be led by Snyder, one of the industry’s most experienced and knowledgeable SQL Server professionals. The webinar will provide information about SQL Server R2, LearnKey’s SQL Server 2008 Implementation and Maintenance training course content, and will also have a question and answer session. Participants can email questions to info@mariner-usa.com and Wayne will answer during the session. A white paper entitled “Why Upgrade to SQL 2008 R2 for DBAs” will be available to participants.
Join our webinar to receive valuable information from an industry expert about updates on product-focused database specialization, how to maximize use of your SQL Server install base, reasons for upgrading to R2 and tips and tricks. Watch Snyder’s comments about SQL Server 2008 in this clip and then join the webinar.
New Year, New You – Certification Maps for 2011
If you are like me, you profess every New Year that you are going to make changes… Well it is almost February, and I haven’t even started to make any changes yet. If this sounds like you and certification is on your list this year, we have something to help you get started.
If you are like me, you profess every New Year that you are going to make changes… Well it is almost February, and I haven’t even started to make any changes yet. When you decide to make these changes you usually do not take into consideration that figuring out what steps to take next can be so overwhelming, you quit before you start. For example, every year somewhere on my list is to be healthier (I am sure like many of you), but more often than not, sifting through all of the diets and exercise programs out there overwhelms me, and I just continue with my same routine.
If this sounds like you and certification is on your list this year, we have something to help you get started. Continue reading “New Year, New You – Certification Maps for 2011”
Most in Demand IT Certifications for 2011
The Robert Half Technology Salary Guide 2011 has found the most in demand job titles, skill sets, and certifications for the coming year. If you are looking to change careers or add to your skill set you need to read this to make sure you are looking at career paths that are in demand.
There will be high demand for application developers, .NET developers, systems administrators, database administrators and desktop support professionals.
In demand skill sets for the coming year include; programming , business mindset, technological proficiency, security, networking, infrastructure support, and electronic medical records.
Certifications in demand- Cisco certifications (Cisco Certified Network Associate), Linux (Red Hat Certified Engineer), Microsoft certifications (Microsoft Certified Applications Developer, Microsoft Certified IT Professional, Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer, and Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist), Project Management Professional (PMP), and Security certifications (Certified Information Systems Security Professional, Check Point Certified Security Administrator, and Check Point Certified Security Expert).
Check out the training LearnKey has available to help you get certified!
Benefits of Obtaining Vendor-Neutral Certifications
Have you been looking for a way to increase your marketability to employers? Vendor-neutral certifications might be the answer because they focus on a technology and not a specific product from a company. These certifications also do not become obsolete as quickly as vendor-specific certifications will.
When a vendor-neutral certification is obtained as a complement to vendor-specific certifications, it shows your flexibility and diversity in handling different scenarios. This means that you will have a broader knowledge base which can be very appealing to employers, because you are not limited to working with one specific product. Vendor-neutral certifications prove that you can use your knowledge in a variety of situations and are well rounded. Sure, you can specialize in a certain direction, but when a problem arises that is outside your area of expertise, do you want to look like the guy who can’t adapt, or the one that can solve everyone’s problems?
Continue reading “Benefits of Obtaining Vendor-Neutral Certifications”
Microsoft Training in Every North Carolina High School
North Carolina is on it’s way to becoming the first state to offer Microsoft certification and training in every one of its high schools. It is expected by next fall that all of North Carolina’s high schools will be participating in the program representing the largest adoption of the Microsoft IT Academy program to date.
Students will have the option to get certified as a Microsoft Office Specialist or a Microsoft Certified Professional by successfully completing training and passing certification exams. To support instructors and students, the program includes access to online learning, course materials, instructor resources, and support materials.
The hope is that this program will give students an advantage in a competitive job market. These certifications are widely recognized and the skills learned are highly sought after. The certifications represent students understanding of current industry standards and gives them the edge in the job market.
Do you see this catching on? Is certification through online learning materials the way schools are headed, or are too many still resistant to non-traditional learning methods?
Learn “Little Known Windows 7 Shortcuts” with Expert Tom Carpenter
Here at LearnKey, when we say the people who present our training courses are experts, we mean exactly that. We don’t find some random guy on the street who can read from a cue card, we find people who really know their stuff and are considered experts in their various fields. When they provide us with tips, we listen!
Tom Carpenter has been an expert for LearnKey in a variety of different courses, and since he also has his own blog with tidbits of information, we thought we’d showcase some tips from the source himself. In his post Little Known Windows 7 Shortcuts, he showcases…well, little known Windows 7 shortcuts. These tips will make using Windows 7 much faster and more efficient. Plus you can show off to your co-workers and look like you are a Windows 7 expert yourself! Check out his blog and enjoy!