Trainers Talk Tech

There have been reports leaking to the web that hint of an April release date for the Adobe CS5 suite of software. Although Adobe goes out of their way to keep these release dates a secret, reports keep coming out. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. I've had lots of buggy situations with Flash CS4 and with Dreamweaver CS4 on my Mac, so I'm hoping that in addition to those new features which are coming, Adobe has taken the time to clean up the code a bit.

And, because I cannot wait, here are some CS5 Videos and a dedicated CS5 website that should keep you enticed:

Flash CS5 : Export to iPhone
Flash CS5 : New Features

Photoshop CS5 : Sneak Peek
Photoshop CS5 : Patch Match
Photoshop CS5 : Spot Healing

GREAT CS5 Site: http://cs5.org/

Second day session overview. Great morning!

8:15 :: Introduction of Rich and his awesome background!

8:20 :: Richard (Rich) takes the stage - game designer/Chief Creative Director for EA - was the designer for the first Madden Football game, Yeager's flight Sim and Golf - 25 years at EA. Born up in MN, moved to Vegas.

8:22 :: "What did I learn while I live in Vegas? People Lie..." People Lie...but their actions don't

8:22 :: People Lie, but they don't mean to

8:25 :: Learning through Games - showed Cartels & Cutthroat$ - an economic sim game built on a wall street model. At an EA retreat, had a Cartels & Cutthroats tournament. About 11 out of 150 people participated! LOL.

8:25 :: EA University :: Knowledge Changes Everything - Xcelerator program - investment in the key folks at the firm - primarily Creative Directors. Has 40 products and about 25 Directors - Working on leadership and teamwork

8:30 :: Plugged Lego Mindstorms - YES - Lego RULE!!! Integrated into the Xcelerator program and his other classes - An educational toy that allows you to create a working, programmable robot with Lego.

8:30 :: Used in Leadership and Team Training - simulates what its like to launch products on new platforms, simulates market cycles, create teams of Production, Design and Engineering professionals (playing out of position - each of them plays a different role than their "real job"

8:31 :: Exercise Gameplay - each team attends a faux "Developer's Conference" to learn the "new" tech, then they get access to "The Market". "The Market" is a separatecontains Play Money and plexi-glass squares and during the market cycle, the robot tires to acquire revenue by putting a wheel on a moneyed square.

8:33 :: Complications - The Market you see, isn't always what you get - more than one team can win a square - the wheels don't have to stay on (encourages creativity)

8:35 :: The purpose of the exercise is to CREATE CHANGE - winners have an appropriate combination of risk and a high iteration cycle :: The anticipate market changes

8:36 :: Some other games :: The Gong Show (public speaking and rapid production techniques), The Pieces Game (Game design iteration techniques and team dynamics), The Roaring Silence (sound design for emotion, quick repair techniques)

8:37 :: "Audio is 51% of the entertainment experience" - George Lucas

8:38 :: How we Used to Make Games - a single designer on a game - "Drove them crazy because they never finished anything!"

8:38 :: Now, they add a few more people to the mix - the problem is that the numbers of people on a game design have increased and the products are more complicated. Godfather had 300 people on the project! They have had to change they way they worked - from solo to team

8:42 :: Was failing because they are guessing about what people are telling them. Aircraft carrier story - "We thought people wanted to fly the planes off the carrier...others thought they wanted to drive the ships...others wanted to do fleet and resource management. Resource groups told them ALL THREE!" The problem is that PEOPLE LIE! (We had to shout this out...some of us more enthusiastic than others... LOL)

8:44 :: Every online game played in John Madden "phones home" sends a report back to EA so they can read the reports. Actions Don't Lie!

8:45 :: Played a number of games calibrate some problems - comparing performance verbally - People Lie, their Actions Don't

8:46 :: Real World Problem - Madded 10 had a Kicking Problem - Telemetry messed up - Video testing verified it

8:47 :: Team worked on the DATA, rather than what people said was wrong.

8:48 :: Stop Guessing, Start SCORING the Change - Google Semantic Analysis relies of user data and Amazon's uses your ACTIONS: Suggested Products. Data mining based on choices and correlating that to other customers, services and products.

8:50 :: Stop guessing and start measuring - Identify your Markers of Progress, Turn those into Scorecards all can see, Pay attention to the results, Iterate for success, Celebrate metrics, Pursue new Markers and Correlations for insight they provide

8:52 :: Nice Telemetry Based Education example - applies the measuring steps to an educational example

8:55 :: All that is nice, but how does it help me get paid? Metrics are important

8:56 :: Benefit of programs - Know the difference between clients and customers, Avoid different scoreboards for different audience, Measured progress metrics ensure all parties:: be sure development outcomes = business outcomes

8:57 :: People Lie, their actions don't - don't trust, don't guess, Find metrics to measure, Communicate progress and value through scoreboards of those metrics

8:58 :: Questions

8:58 :: Where is gaming going and how does it integrate into the rest of the world? We spend lots of times building games for machines that are not in educational environments. PS3, XBOX and Wii are not in the business world. Why not? Building for these platforms, not business platforms. Web based games may be the solution for gaming in the workplace.

9:00 :: People complain about gaming isolating them from others. How do you see that changing? People are playing with other humans online. The online environment means people are playing games against each other. The most interesting interactions are between the humans playing the game. Human beings beat the "crap" out of any code.

9:02 :: You face the challenge of leading creative people. Every organization drives creativity. Do you try to manage your "leadership brand" using games and NOT stifle the creativity? In EA's case, every four years the company has radically changed. From 5 1/2" disks, to CDs, to game platforms. Changed the "game" that is the company. Done lots of work communicating the "rules" of the new game, and have "learning camps". Change is then put into class. Reinventing all the time.

9:04 :: What tools can you use to create corporate training? What tools? There are lots of tools but they take forever to learn. Game designers are working on making the products more accessible from the back end. Sim builders and stuff...game design tools..sometimes you just need to be a program...then there is Flash which takes about a year to master.

9:05 :: Situations and case based learning using Flash. What measurement techniques can we test and implement in Flash? Have tools to generate output, but choosing the metrics are the hard part. Create your variables, export them and use things like Google Analytics to examine the data. The hard part is exporting the data.

9:06 :: Retention is a problem. Especially with creative minds. What do you do to manage retention? What motivates people. Tie retention to motivation. (I think he misunderstood retention (keeping people employed) from retention (keeping content in their minds)

9:10 :: If I purchased Madden 10 for my husband for Christmas and his field goals never go in, how can I make him better at kicking goals? YouTube videos

9:12 :: We've changed our idea of what our "platform" is. Its not a system where you can dedicate many hours to it, its now a change to the mindset of "touching" the gamer where they access. Take your game from the web, take it to the iPhone, finish it up on the console when you get home. Take the game out of the living room to the mobile device. Take the game experience with you.

9:13 :: Applause! Good session.

8:15 :: Jim (committee chair) takes the stage. Tells a great joke about limiting his speech to 140 characters. Gets a laugh at the show, but not as big. Only the geeks like me were laughing. Three key elements of the conference: Connect...Apply...Transform

8:20 :: Jim thanks the sponsors - the usual suspects

8:22 :: Jim thanks the committee and the committee stands up and takes a bow! Ah...I remember my four years on the committee.

8:24 :: Jim talks about the impact of social media - Hudson crash - Haiti aftermath - texts, tweets and social media is emerging as a viable communication method! Yay!

Social Media for Learning

8:26 :: Tony Bingham introduced as opening presenter - talking about social media for learning

8:27 :: Jokes about the Apple announcement spilled my the CEO of a "major communication group" - either unintentionally or intentionally

8:30 :: "What keeps you up at night?" - Generating revenue is not the biggest concern keeping CEOs up at night

8:31 :: "How does your future workforce value learning?" - video on future adult learners.

8:35 :: How does the majority of learning occur today? Informal or formal? Mostly informal! ASTD and i4P researched the impact of "Informal Learning" :: Asks audience to include informal learning to the budget line. Why aren't company's funding it? Loss of control? Fear? Hmm...

8:40 :: Growing up Digital book - talking about Net Gens and their stereotypes - "You baby boomers screwed up the world, and its our job to fix it?"

8:41 :: "Would you rather be smart or beautiful?" - 70% said smart. They "view technology as they view 'air'". Yeppers!

8:42 :: Another video - Don Tapscott interview - "The worse thing they do is 'ban Facebook'..."

8:48 :: Boundaries between work and play is blurry...people are used to massive customization...want to be managed as individuals, not as a part of a group...see right through "the BS"...want to collaborate, not necessarily want to "climb the corporate ladder"

8:50 :: "If you understand the Net generation, you will understand the future. You will understand how our institutions and society needs to change today."

8:51 :: Introduce the book Groundswell.

8:52 :: Reasons for Adopting Web 2.0 - ASTD Study

8:53 :: How do you assure 2.0 is effective - Use blogs, use search engines, integrate it into the culture, assign "wiki gardeners" to review posts, have well document policies and guidelines.

8:54 :: AIIM found that a lack of understanding was considered the number-one impediment to implementing Web 2.0 technologies cited by 59% of the participants

8:55 :: Another video. A great one on the impact and "fad" of social media. It's not a fad, its a fundamental SHIFT in the way we communicate. "Social media has overtaken porn as the number one activity on the web!"

9:00 :: Push to get on the ASTD LinkedIn group. "Virtual water-coolers"

9:00 :: Jay Cross :: Getting started :: support all the learning, start slowly, engage an executive sponsor, encourage facilitate and partner, identify opportunities to support formal learning, save tag search, hold on loosely but don't let go

9:05 :: The Dark Side of social media - privacy - protect your personal information online! "Leaving a trail of digital crumbs" - protect it! "Facebook has fabulous privacy controls...you just need to go and use them!"

9:10 :: Web 2.0 and NetGens are gifts to drive informal learning...Now is the time to connect the pieces...if you are new, you are not alone...if you are a veteran, please share...

9:11 :: Resources in the store :: Nice three pack of books at the ASTD bookstore! Tony's got a new book on social learning! Yay! Great job Tony!

9:13 :: Questions

9:13 :: Is there one department that's better to start with than another? SALES - start in sales

9:14 :: How can you get buy-in from the senior leadership team? Use research, case studies and best practices from other organization. Make it a competitive edge by comparing to other companies using them.

9:15 :: Should I do it as a skunk works project? Don't try to sneak it in. Legal and HR should be involved at the front end, supporting you as you launch it. They don't like surprises!

9:16 :: What are some lessons learned from companies using social media? Start small, learn from other companies, share data (CIA uses social media to share data! If the CIA can use it, why not your company)

9:18 :: What's going on with Web 3.0 - the symantic web. People and products will FIND US! Data will store what's important to you, and then deliver it. One challenge - symantic web might miss the things you are only partially interested in or don't even know you are interested in. Web 3.0 will deliver what you want, but how will it know what you want when you don't know what you want?

9:18 :: How do you deal with legacy data in your social media? Companies are popping up to specifically clear your "social media breadcrumbs." A whole new service!

9:26 :: Is social media the life or death of SCORM? SCORM isn't going to go away, it has its place. SCORM will continue to be used, but in tangent with social media.

9:28 :: What if folks are limited by the technology itself? What about people who don't use computers, can't afford computers or companies (like restaurants) who don't have access to computers? How does this impact social media? The phone now is a primary way to connect to the web. Most people have phones, and with the awesome tech inside phones, people do have access even though they don't have a computer.

9:31 :: Are laptops and other computing devices going away in favor of the iPhones, Droids and other smart phones? How will this impact learning? It's going there!

Great opening session! Thanks ASTD!

I'm proud to say that I've witnessed a couple changes in the conference this year...all for the best.

1) Free Wireless - FINALLY, after 10 years of squawking, ASTD heard the masses and are providing free wireless throughout the conference center. As you may or may not know, many of us were tweeting non-stop about this last year. Its good to hear that someone was listening.

2) Expo is PACKED with vendors - 61 to be exact. That's the largest Expo we've ever had. In 2003 and 2004, we were struggling to get 20. So nice to see.

3) Seeing lots of people from previous conferences - does this mean that TK 2010 is turning into a repeatable conference? Data showed that for most folks attending this conference, it was their FIRST educational technology conference. Maybe not anymore! This is my 10th conference as a speaker, 11 total. I feel so old...someone called me an old timer yesterday...Hmm....

I'll be running around like a crazy man at ASTD TK 2010 this year (what else is new) and I look forward to seeing friends and associates I only see at these shows! If I haven't yet met you in person, PLEASE take a second to say hello. If you have a burning questions about eLearning technology, please come up and ask. I love to talk tech!

I have three main questions that I will be asking folks at the conference. These will also be a big part of the video blogging I will be doing on site. Here they are:

1) Is Crapid eLearning an issue for you in your firm? Almost a year ago, I predicted a decline in the quality and interactivity of eLearning programs because companies will no longer be investing the time and energy into high quality design and development of their online training programs. Instead, they spend $2000 on a piece of "do it yourself" eLearning development software and telling their ID and training folks to learn it and use it. Other bloggers have coined the phrase Crapid eLearning, and I like it so much, I'm going to continue the trend. However, I'm interested in hearing opinions about whether or not you are investing in big budget eLearning, or whether or not you have purchased a development tool to "rapidly develop" eLearning. Of course, your honest opinions about whether or not its Crapid eLearning s up to you!

2) Is SCORM and development standards such a big deal anymore? I don't know...they seem to have fallen out of favor. If so, what are all the LMS folks doing about it? I develop a ton of eLearning every year...only three or four programs have to be wrapped in a SCORM wrapper for delivery. What else is going on? Am I missing something?

3) Are we seeing a loosening of budgets around professional development, either stand up or via eLearning? Are companies still leaning towards a "wait and see" model? Have they opened the door for contractors/consultants again? Are job req's coming for Training and Development folks? I have folks I mentor and coach who are graduating MA Ed's and are wondering what the market will look like in 4-6 months when they walk down the aisle and flip their tassel. I'm the eternal optimist...I want to be able to give these folks real answers rather than the typical rosy Thomas perspective.

I'm at the airport getting on the plane to Vegas. The Force of Nature will be landing at 1:00 Vegas time...Look Out Sin City!!! Training and Development People are coming to TAKE OVER!!!