OLSA Benefits

SkillSoft OLSA version 1.2
Key Features and Benefits for LMS Partners

This document provides an overview of the key features of OLSA Version 1.2 and related benefits for LMS Partners.

OPEN LEARNING SERVICES ARCHITECTURE (OLSA) PARTNER GOALS

The goal of OLSA is to provide customers with easier access to all SkillSoft content and content-related services through the LMS of their choice. By integrating OLSA into their LMS, SkillSoft LMS partners will be able to:

Reduce the complexity, resources and time required to install, update and manage SkillSoft content within their LMS
Provide quick access to the complete range of SkillSoft traditional and advanced content, and content-related services

These key benefits provide OLSA-integrated LMS partners with:

A strong competitive advantage over other platform providers
Potential to increase licensing as historical data shows usage increases with OLSA support

OLSA VERSION 1.2 FEATURES AND BENEFITS

OLSA Version 1.2 introduces support for several new features, including a critical new web service called On-Demand Communication.

1. On-demand Communication

Historically, tracking data for courseware launched by an LMS was sent directly from the course player back to the LMS in real-time. Although this model works well for traditional courseware, it can not track data associated with SkillSoft’s Advanced Content. Advanced Content consists of more complex and dynamic types of assets such as SkillSoft KnowledgeCenters or Learning Programs. Also not supported are content-related services such as code judging and off-line play.
When Advanced Content is launched from an LMS, any subsequent launches of objects from within this asset can only be tracked by the content provider (i.e. the OLSA Server). This leads to a complicated scenario where a customer may end up with usage data in two databases for a single asset - in both the LMS and the OLSA Server databases.

For example, advanced content, such as a KnowledgeCenter focused on Visual Basic, contains a collection of related books, courses and assignments. An LMS tracks a learner when they first access the KnowledgeCenter. However, due to industry standards limitations, once inside the KnowledgeCenter, the LMS can no longer track which courses the learner accesses. To compensate for this limitation, the OLSA server acts as a content repository and also tracks usage for trackable assets launched from within the KnowledgeCenter. The result is that tracking data for all types of content is captured, and the LMS remains the system of record.

Screen shot of Visual Basic e-learning Knowledgecenter

The On-Demand Communication web service allows data associated with Advanced Content to be automatically imported into the LMS. OLSA can also be configured in such a way that data for all launches returns to the OLSA server. This provides for a single place where all tracking data is stored, and there is no potential for data collisions. The data is then retrieved from OLSA and imported into the LMS through the use of the On-Demand Communication service.

With this new service, customers can use their LMS or other systems to gain access to advanced content for their learners. Integrating OLSA On-demand communication integration would enable the associated tracking data to be automatically imported into their system of choice.

In summary, On-demand Communication lets LMS vendors provide their customers with:

Access to Advanced Content such as KnowledgeCenters and Learning Programs.
Benefit: Allows LMS customers access to more content, creating more usage and potentially more user licenses.
Access to content-related services such as off-line play of courses.
Benefit: Allows LMS vendors to offer offline play of SkillSoft courses without requiring additional development work; creates more usage and potentially more user licenses. Easier to show ROI.
Data synchronization back to the LMS for content launched outside of the LMS.
Benefit: Allows the LMS to remain the system of record when customers embed SkillSoft learning assets into systems such as portals, which the LMS cannot track.

2. Backward Compatibility with OLSA Toolkits

OLSA 1.2 supports the OLSA 1.0 and 1.1 Client Toolkits. If you have integrated with a previous version of OLSA, SkillSoft can upgrade your customer’s OLSA site with no impact to your current integration.
Benefit: Partners’ integrations are guaranteed to run on newer versions of OLSA. Partners don’t need to upgrade immediately after release of a new version of OLSA. You can add new features to an existing integration based on older versions of OLSA.

3. Support for SCORM 1.2 Metadata

OLSA Asset Integration services have been expanded to provide SCORM metadata Referral Objects (ROs). To support SCORM LMS customers, OLSA will provide SCORM metadata (information about the content and how to launch it) that can be loaded into an LMS as a Referral Object. OLSA supports SCORM metadata through both the Asset Integration service and the OLSA Administrator Portal.

Note that AICC is used to launch and track these SCORM ROs, and the data is sent back to the OLSA Server. LMS partners can integrate On-demand Communication Services to import the data into their platform. Otherwise, the customer may want to run reports or use OLSA web services to retrieve the tracking data, and return it to the desired system of record.
Benefit: If you LMS only supports SCORM, and not AICC, you can now take advantage of the benefits of OLSA.

4. Selected Asset Metadata Retrieval

OLSA includes services that allow retrieval of metadata for individual assets located on the content server, including Books, SkillBriefs and Job Aids. This can be used to then install these individual objects into the LMS catalog via catalog synchronization.
Benefit: Lets the user select a non-trackable asset like an online book and make it available within a learning plan. Also, allows customers to selectively load book titles into the LMS catalog.

5. Metadata in Other Formats

Metadata is now available in XML or CSV format for ease of import into your system’s catalog.
Benefit: The LMS can now retrieve asset metadata via the Asset Integration service, for a single asset or all entitled assets. Parsing the XML or CSV file may be preferable for some partners or vendors, versus importing from AICC or SCORM metadata files.