About Comparison

Methodology

For the initial comparison in August 1999, Systems/NIS installed copies of WebCT and Blackboard on a shared server. For the revised comparison in March-April 2001, we installed WebCT 3.5 and Blackboard 5, and used the vendor's demo site for Prometheus 4.1.

Rather than reiterating vendor lists of standard features such as e-mail, bulletin boards, and online assessment, we generated the comparison by hands-on user testing while producing several demo courses on each system. As a result, the comparison contrasts the functionality of each product's standard features.

As we used the products we took extensive notes, and organized them into general categories which form the basis for the pages in this site. Through the tables, readers compare products from a user's perspective and get a sense of what using the products would actually be like. We then reviewed and revised the feature summary tables for completeness and accuracy.

Summary

The comparison is a learning and decision-making tool. It is a snapshot of three products in a specific time frame. It will familiarize you with the features and capabilities of Web courseware and start you thinking about what types of features are most useful for your course and students. The following table lists the feature categories we identified, and the number of features in each category by product.

Category	Total Features	WebCT	Blackboard	Prometheus
Site Administration	16	12	13	12
Content Development	21	20	9	10
Navigation and Interface	12	11	7	6
Monitoring Participation and Progress	11	10	4	8
Assessment	22	20	16	7
Student Study Tools	9	9	3	3
Group Participation	7	7	6	7
Calendar	6	4	2	4
Bulletin Boards	11	9	7	5
Chat/Whiteboard/Email	13	9	9	7
Audio and Video	5	4	4	5
Total	132	115	80	73

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