TinyLMS is a lightweight learning management system for SCORM compliant learning content.

Features of TinyLMS

• TinyLMS is (almost) conformant to SCORM 1.2 at conformance level "LMS-RTE1". (See Known Issues)

• Tutorials generated with TinyLMS can be used online and offline.

• Runtime requirements for tutorials are low: HTML, JavaScript and Cookies are all that is needed. You don't need a server software.

• TinyLMS can print a tutorial as a PDF document.

• TinyLMS supports layered and quiz organization of learning content in addition to the hierarchical organization of learning content specified by SCORM.

• TinyLMS can be used as a SCORM-to-SCORM adapter. This can be used to aggregate fine grained learning content into one big SCO.

• TinyLMS has a very strict validator for the imsmanifest.xml file. Files which pass this validator are likely to run on all SCORM 1.2 comforming learning platforms.

What is SCORM?

The Sharable Content Object Reference Model (SCORM) defines a Web-based learning "Content Aggregation Model" and "Run-time Environment" for learning objects. At its simplest, it is a model that references a set of interrelated technical specifications and guidelines designed to meet the following high-level requirements for Web-based learning content:

• Content reusability: SCORM tutorials are aggregations of "Sharable Content Object's" (SCO). A SCO is a single web page or a sequence of web pages containing learning content. SCORM enables the integration of existing SCO's into new tutorials.

• Accessibility: SCORM tutorials are accessible over the web. To run a tutorial the end user needs to have a Browser supporting ECMAScript 1.0 (aka JavaScript 1.0) and frames. Information about the tutorial is available through metadata. All metadate is stored in XML documents.

• Durability: SCORM is based on open Internet standards such as HTML and ECMAScript.

• Interoperability: Interoperability is specified for the metadata, and for the API of SCO's and the runtime environment.

SCORM has been developed by the Advanced Distributed Learning Initiative (ADL). See www.adlnet.org for more information about SCORM.

Known Issues

TinyLMS does not pass the SCORM RTE-1 self-test because of its limited persistence capabilities. During a user session, TinyLMS uses an in-memory database for all data entries. Long term persistence is achieved using Cookies. Unfortunately Cookies do not provide enough space to store all data entries.

If a course consists of exactly one SCO, TinyLMS is capable of storing the cmi.core.lesson_status and the cmi.core.lesson_location. If a course contains more than one SCO, TinyLMS stores the cmi.core.lesson_status only.

Installation Requirements

TinyLMS consists of two parts: the course builder and the runtime environment.

• Creating a course: To create a course you need to have Java 1.5 installed on your computer. It does not matter which operating system you are using.

• Deployment: TinyLMS does not need a server software. Simply ship the course files to your students (by mail or on a CD ROM) or upload them to your web-server.

• Using a course: All a course needs is a browser supporting ECMAScript 1.0 (aka JavaScript 1.1) and frames.