XStream
Software Wins its Second Award in the Software Simulation
Shootout Competition in Europe
RapidBuilder® retains
its position among the top 3 winners at the second simulation-authoring
competition presented by brandon-hall.com and Online Learning
magazine.
OTTAWA, Canada, April 1, 2002 - XStream
Software's simulation-authoring technology, RapidBuilder,
has again captured the Bronze Award in the second Software
Simulation Shootout competition presented by brandon-hall.com and Online
Learning magazine.
RapidBuilder v3.0 is XStream's powerful Simulation
Tool that enables any developer to easily build Interactive, Multimedia
Simulations that realistically duplicate the functionality
of the live Windows environment. Developers may record
screen changes and real-time interactions with the Windows
desktop, including mouse clicks, keystrokes, and cursor/mouse
pointer movements. The recorded simulation may then be
enhanced through RapidBuilder's feature-rich multimedia
edit suite. Customization options include provisions for
adding text, graphics, audio files, recorded sound clips,
embedded sound tracks, video, navigational hyperlinks,
links to external files and web pages, mouse pointer animations,
special visual effects, colors, shapes, instruction boxes,
and more. The simulation may then be generated in a variety
of different media formats, including RBX (RapidBuilder's
native file format), EXE, AVI, ASF, MOV, MPEG, and Flash
(SWF). Simulations may be deployed on CD-ROM, over intranets,
and over the Internet as a Flash (SWF) file, as a video
file, or by using the RapidPlayer runtime player and browser
plug-in. In addition, the developer may build RapidBuilder
Projects, which are courses comprising a series of RapidBuilder
simulations (.RBX files) that are linked together. Each
.RBX file represents a lesson containing topics and sub-topics.
Projects may be managed through RapidManager™, the back-end
(SQL Server-based or Oracle-based) administrative management
tool included with RapidBuilder. It enables a system administrator
to control user access to courses as well as track users'
progress through lessons and topics.
Armed with the advanced technology of RapidBuilder
v3.0, XStream Software's team of representatives were
in London, England on March 5 and 6 to compete in the Software
Simulation Shootout at Online Learning Europe 2002 (hosted
by brandon-hall.com and Online Learning magazine).
For XStream Software and its RapidBuilder tool, this was
the second simulation shootout in less than a year, as
we also entered RapidBuilder v2.2 in the first
software simulation shootout held in Los Angeles in October
2001. In this latest simulation shootout, XStream's RapidBuilder
team was up against 7 other simulation teams in a race
to build an interactive e-learning simulation from scratch
in the fastest time. The performance of each software tool
was judged by an audience vote in four different categories,
including Ease of Use, Speed of Development, Robustness
of Simulation (feedback, guidance, etc.), and an Overall
Rating. The scores for all four categories were used to
determine the software's overall average score. Based on
the overall average scores, Gold (1st place), Silver (2nd
place), and Bronze (3rd place) award winners were
determined.
Just as it was in the first simulation shootout,
RapidBuilder was again awarded the Bronze Award with
an overall average score of 7.42 out of 10 (which was only
slightly less than the Gold and Silver Award winner scores
of 7.76 and 7.67). RapidBuilder finished the competition
with a development time of 4:38, which was notably less than
the average development time of 7:15. It is also interesting
to note that the development time of 4:38 achieved by RapidBuilder
v3.0 in this simulation shootout was significantly less
than the development time of 6:50 achieved by RapidBuilder
v2.2 in the original 2001 simulation shootout.
"The latest award shows that RapidBuilder
continues to maintain its standing among the top simulation-authoring
and e-learning tools," says Sunil K. Sethi, XStream's
President and CEO. "The noticeable improvement in development
time from RapidBuilder v2.2 to v3.0 is also powerful evidence
of the continuing evolution of RapidBuilder's technology."
About XStream
XStream Software is an innovator in the
computer simulation, eLearning, and knowledge management
domains. Its first two products, RapidBuilder® and RapidExam™,
are already in use by a growing base of clients. RapidBuilder captures
real-time interactions between users and OEM software applications
to create tutorials, product demos, and courseware with minimum
time and effort. A powerful compression technology, paired
with a multimedia edit suite, allows customers to create
high-end, interactive demos and learning tools in minimal
time. RapidExam then enables customers to create
equally fast and feature-rich competency and/or certification
exams - a perfect way to close the training loop. LGP
Builder™ is our Live Guided Practice (LGP) technology
that enables developers to create and provide guidance to
users in real-time within the 'live' applications they are
using. Users are provided step-by-step multi-language instructions
(in audio or text format) along with animated laser pointers
that indicate to the user where they need to perform actions
within the 'live' applications they are using.
For more information, visit www.xstreamsoftware.com or
call 613-731-9443 or send an email to info@xstreamsoftware.com.
About brandon-hall.com
The leading authority on e-Learning, Brandon
Hall, Ph.D. is the CEO of brandon-hall.com and author of
the groundbreaking Web-Based Training Cookbook. Since
1992, brandon-hall.com has been providing independent expert
advice in the form of published reports and phone consultations
on the tools of e-Learning: LMS, LCMS, authoring tools, content
providers, and any other tool that helps organizations develop
successful e-Learning solutions. Dr. Hall participates regularly
as a featured speaker in conferences such as ASTD and Online
Learning. He earned his doctorate in educational psychology
and has served on the faculty of San Francisco State University's
Multimedia Studies Program.
About VNU Business Media and VNU, N.V.
OnLine Learning 2001 is produced by VNU
Business Media and VNU Expositions and is presented by Online
Learning Magazine, Training magazine, Presentations magazine,
Creative Training Techniques newsletter, and OnLine
Learning News and OnLine Learning Reviews e-newsletters.
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