Hosted by: Publishers of the Authoring Tool Buyer's Guide

Does converted PowerPoint constitute real e-learning? How dynamic and interactive can it really be? We put 12 teams to the test to find out who has the technology for repurposing PowerPoint presentations into self-paced learning content. We gave each team a sealed envelope containing a 16-slide PowerPoint presentation (used for classroom instruction). The topic was a product knowledge piece (teaching learners about the product features of an Atomic Clock). Each team had only 20 minutes to convert the PowerPoint into an e-learning course. The entire development process occurred live, in front of an average audience size of between 300 to 350 people -- primarily classroom instructors and training managers. What we discovered is that PowerPoint does play a significant role in the development of e-learning materials. Here are the results...

February  24, 25, and 26, 2003

Atlanta, GA - World Congress Center 

All 12 Participants (listed alphabetically by product name)

We announced winners in four different categories. 

And the winners are....  (more details about the format of the shootout can be found below)

Category #1 Results ­ Ease of Use (10 points possible)

Category #2 Results ­ Use of Rich Media (10 points possible)

Category #3 Results ­ Interactivity (10 points possible)

Category #4 Results ­ Innovation in Conversion of PowerPoint (10 points possible)

Shootout Description

In previous shootout events, especially ones dealing with e-learning content development, we have often pre-defined how the output should work (e.g., with the Software Simulation Shootout we determined that the learner must interact with the software application and that the simulation must provide feedback on the learner's performance).

With this task, however, we decided to let the teams have some more creative freedom. Instead of naming an overall winner for the competition, based on a checklist of product features participants were allowed to make their case for any of the four categories. In other words, we didn't tell them they needed to record audio, add live video, create discovery exercises from the slides, convert the test questions, etc. Rather, they were encouraged to use the 16 slides (shown below) as source material and use PowerPoint to create anything they wanted. In fact, we saw a variety of different approaches. Some teams set up full video production facilities and recorded video narrators. Other teams worked hard on making the test questions interactive. Some teams didn't even attempt to convert the test questions or played them as part of the linear flow of a streaming PowerPoint presentation. 

In short, it was possible for any team to simultaneously win in any or all of the four categories; but, we found it fascinating that there were separate winners in each category.

The format of the shootout was as follows: Before the shootout took place in Atlanta, each team received a copy of the rules and a practice copy of the PowerPoint presentation. They were told that the content of the final PowerPoint would be on the same topic, and that there would still be 16 slides. They were allowed and encouraged to practice with the preliminary content. However, the content was changed for the final version. The subject matter was the same, but the final PowerPoint included text, notes, and graphic changes so that we could ensure that all development work was done live on-site. Although the participants were not told to create accompanying media (audio and video) for each slide, the source PowerPoint also included narrative text written for each slide, included in the notes field.

Here is a summary of the 16-slides they received at the competition:

Title screen	Objectives in a bulleted list (not animated)	Description of the clock with hyperlink	Bulleted list (not animated)
Animated sequence (narration for each)	Pop-up labels (parts of) - animated	Pop-up labels (parts of) - animated	Bulleted list (not animated)
Title screen for self exam	Static multiple choice question	Correct answer (static in PowerPoint)	Static true/false question
Correct answer (static in PowerPoint)	Another static true/false question	Correct answer (static in PowerPoint)	End title

If you would like to download a copy of the master PowerPoint file and convert it as a benchmark, please click here.

Four teams participated in each round of the shootout over the three days, for a total of 12 teams (Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday). The total duration of each round was only 45 minutes as follows:

Each product was rated on a 10-point scale in each category. Members of the participating companies were not allowed to rate their own products or others in the competition. The scores were averaged to derive the final score with winners announced in each category (see the results above). 

Audience members enjoyed seeing the process of converting PowerPoint to e-learning first-hand. The competition was designed as a method for learning about what is possible. We saw a wide variety of approaches with different types of output. For example, Sonic Foundry won the category for rich media by focusing on the use of synchronized video, produced live on-site. The team from Turbodemo caught the audience's attention in the interactivity category by converting the pop-up labels into a dynamic discovery exercise (with drag-over pop-ups). The audience did an excellent job at spotting systems that performed well in each of the four categories.

Links to Converted PowerPoint Content from Each Team    

For those of you who weren't able to join us in person, we'd like to invite you to watch this section over the next few weeks. We've invited the participants to post their converted PowerPoint content here. We'll add these links as they become available.

Challenge for Others....    

For other PowerPoint to e-learning product vendors or other groups that specialize in converting PowerPoint content, we'd like to challenge you to take the source slides and make your own version of the content. You can download a copy of the source slides by clicking here. Convert the content, post it to your own Web server, then send the link to bryan@brandon-hall.com. NOTE: The PowerPoint file includes narrative text in the "notes" field that you can use for audio narration and/or on-screen text as desired. If the page is free of advertisements and does not require a log-in to run, we will post the link for others to see. We hope to make this a page that will serve as a test bed for what's possible when converting PowerPoint source material.

Here is a list of the companies that have taken us up on the challenge so far. Please click on the links to see how they converted the PowerPoint used in the Shootout competition...

Shootout Hosts

Brandon-hall.com and Training Magazine jointly hosted this shootout event.

Publishers of the Authoring Tool Buyer's Guide

More Pictures of the Shootout

Bryan Chapman, e-learning analyst at brandon-hall.com served as the referee for the Shootout

All development occurred live, in front of an audience made up primarily of classroom instructors and training managers. Each audience member had a ballot to rate each product in the four categories listed above.

Average attendance for the shootout was about 300 people. The first two days of the competition were very full. The crowd got a bit thinner on the third day of the shootout as the conference was winding down. However, scores are based on averages, so it had little effect on the outcome.

Because the PowerPoint slides included a narrative script in the notes field, several of the teams took the opportunity to add rich media content. Some, like OnPoint Digital shown here, added video to the final output. All audio and/or video had to be recorded live during the 20 minute conversion time.

The one-man team from Macromedia, using newly acquired Breeze product to convert PowerPoint content.