History Pete Goettner, one of the founders of DigitalThink, was growing up in a business environment having his father as the owner of a too-and-die company. Yet, he had no interest in taking over his father’s company. He was, instead, fascinated by video games which were not popular at that time and wondered how computer games worked because he didn’t have any computer courses nor a single desktop for students to use in his high school. He got a degree in electrical engineering from the Univeristy of Michigan and his MBA from the Haas School of Business at Berkely. After graduating from Haas in 1992, he worked at Knowledge Revolution which provided physics-learning software to high schools and colleges. He started to have a thought of starting …show more content…
Nonetheless, those online courses were supported by a single instructor who lacked funding and technical implementation. In spite of the existing online courses, there are currently no dominant competitors in the market. Thus, DigitalThink still has the silver lining to grow big. Threats DigitalThink found it extremely difficult to obtain finance for its business, as its products are new to the market. Despite the difficulty, Goettner had taken his ideas to some capitalists and been told that he “didn’t have anything.” He did not give up and went on finding funds. He visited executives at Addison-Wesley, a publishing company and was rejected by them unless he actually developed a product visually shown. The company might face the problem of having their advanced software technology stolen because they were not protected by any patents. It is common that competitors steal somebody’s ideas and develop them. Competition will then be more intense. Fierce competition makes the company hard to survive. Currently, there are universities and colleges, such as the University of Massachusetts, providing online degree programs. Not only them, but also publishers, some start-up companies and established training companies were offering computer-based
Will Wright is the guest editor at Wired magazine and cofounder of Maxis, a game development company. In April 2006 he wrote the “Dream Machines” story in Wired, which expressed his opinion on video games. He wrote about his vision on them and he defended the opinion that video games are not that bad as a lot of people think. In his article, he discusses how games have positive effects on children and teenagers’ minds. For example, he shows that children use a science method to understand games’ rules; before they find the right button they make a lot of mistakes.
The result is a new breed of fresh and exciting game genres that people in the early 1980s could only dream about. Video games is a huge industry and it is estimated that 70% of U.S homes will own a Video game system by the year 2005 (Cassandra, 2002). The idea of making a video game first appeared in 1949 when a young engineer named Ralph Baer was given an assignment to build the absolute, best of all televisions. He wanted to go beyond his original assignment and incorporate some kind of game into the set but it would take another 20 years for his idea to become a reality.
The future is a mystery that human beings can’t figure out because of the mindset ideal of the future. A step closer to the future has been the revolution of technology. It has changed society individually and mentally for the reality of the future. However, technology has changed entertainment in the manner of video games. Development to create games has been phenomenal.
...the traditional college is in peril. The traditional college is becoming less and is transitioning more towards accelerated online courses. This allows students to even obtain a degree over the Internet. This paper provides information on both sides of the argument and allows the readers to make their own decision after. Depending on your goals and what you want to achieve in the future, you should ask yourself is college really worth the trouble.
Video games can be seen in both a positive and negative light. Video gaming has become a popular activity for people of all ages, yet many fear the aftermath they can ensue. Many children and adolescents expend large amounts of time playing them. Video gaming is a multibillion-dollar industry – bringing in more money than movies and DVDs. In fact, the PlayStation 2 was the first video game system to integrate DVD mechanics. It was originally intended to exist as a CD add-on to complement the Super Nintendo, but due to licensing difficulties Sony chose to develop the PlayStation as its own distinctive system. Video games have become very sophisticated. Some games connect to the internet, which can allow children and adolescents to play online with unknown adults and peers. The
The video game industry frequently connotes and restricts itself to the hotbed of console gaming. However, this segment, while quite large, fails to accurately represent the gaming industry’s economic, social, and interactive structure. And the game (or gaming) industry refers all to often to gambling rings. Thus, the “industry of games,” as a collection of interactive media, provides a more robust, inclusive notion of play that transcends platforms, roots of origin, and digital versus non-digital spaces. Analyzing the industry of games from past to future, with significant consideration given to present challenges faced therein, requires a holistic view of history and a critical evaluation of scholars’ and developers’ commentary on games as a whole.
One of the major advantages of an online degree program is the flexibility it provides to someone working a demanding job, living geographically removed from a college campus, or that simply finds it most convenient for a host of other reasons. These challenges of the modern workforce have in fact been the big driver behind the exponential rise in online degree programs over the past decade. Furthermore, the flexibility provided by an online degree program enables tailoring a program matched to personal learning style and pace.
In 1999, Mark Bonner of PricewaterhouseCoopers accurately predicted, “Online learning will rapidly become one of the most cost-effective ways to educate the world’s expanding workforce.” Fifteen years later, his statement is truer than ever, as the price of going to a four-year university skyrockets, and technology required to get the same degree online becomes more available. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, from 2000 to 2010, the average cost for undergraduate tuition, room, and board at public institutions increased over forty percent.
Some students within society need to have online learning to complete college degrees due to their lifestyles. While it is good to have online learning as an option if one chooses, it should not be the only option available to some students. Some may argue that online education is not creating discrimination within the educational environment. Furthermore, some may suggest that online learning is benefiting our students in society. There has been a breakthrough in time and geographical limitations of education via online courses (Ho, 2009).
"Interest In Gaming Grows With Focus On Competitiveness, Engagement And Critical Thinking. (Cover Story)." Electronic Education Report 14.12 (2007): 1-3.
Many people think online education can be more expensive than a traditional school setting. Previous generations did not have the option for online learning experience, so why should we start now? An interesting point about online education is that LeBaron (2010) states, “The largest school in the U.S. is the University of Phoenix Online, with a whopping 380,232 students. That’s over 5x more than the largest public school, Arizona State University, which has 68,064 students” (para. 7). Despite the cost effectiveness, distance education is becoming the educational model of the future.
Online courses soon will prevail over the traditional high school and college education. Online Universities will create classes sponsored by companies. These companies will direct the universities on the materials of the course. The company will then offer those who pass the course a job. This will created a skilled worked specifically for a position in a company. Teachers will take a backseat in these courses. Teachers will offer one-on-one help and help people work collaboratively. These teachers will be more of a guide then a true classroom teacher.
People have a lot of options in educating themselves online in today’s time and technology. Online education has improved a lot in the past twenty years. Even though it has had its setbacks, it continues to show promising results. Online education has many benefits with little to no disadvantages. It provides flexibility in scheduling and offers various options in educational online programs. In the past decade, education has evolved into a more technological-driven world.
Digital learning is defined as learning through digital devices such as computers, tablets, or smart phones over the Internet. It is also known by other names, such as virtual learning, online learning, e-learning, distance learning, or continuing education. Digital learning was first introduced as “Computer Assisted Learning Center” in 1982 [1]. The first online course was introduced by “Computer Assisted Learning Campus” in 1994, in which students can take courses over the web [1]. Michael Chasen and Matthew Pittinsky founded Blackboard in 1997. In 1999, Blackboard, SmartThinking and e-campus became popular among different universities around the world. Between 2002 and 2008, there was an increase in students taking online courses by 187% [2]. In the year 2009, total number of students who were taking web-based curriculum was 5.5 million [2]. This statistic shows that the online learning trend is on the rise each day.
Online learning, also known as distance learning or online learning, has become a new and successful means of receiving an education in a highly technologically enhanced environment (Regan, Evmenova, Baker, Jerome, Spencer, Lawson, & Werner, 2012). Kaymak and Horzum (2013) defined online learning as using Internet technology to gain knowledge and skills through the use of synchronous and asynchronous learning tools. Allen and Seaman (2013) stated that about 6.7 million students attending colleges and universities across the United States were successfully enrolled in at least one online course in 2011. There is an increased interest in online learning that continues to grow as a result of the amplified demands from the work place and the escalating availability of nontraditional educational options and providers (Allen & Seaman, 2008).