Course Testimonials

Over the years, organizations and companies such as IBM, AT&T, Cognos, Nortel Networks, Lockheed Martin, the RCMP, the United States Military and the Canadian Government have been sending their people to learn information design skills from us. At the end of each course, we survey our students. Here are just a few of their responses.

XML Authoring and Introduction to XML Authoring

I wrapped a real life experience around the assignments and it was a tremendous learning experience! I now have no problem participating actively in meetings dealing with XML subject matter (either on a business or technical level). In all, I rate the Online-learning.com XML course 9.5 out of 10. -- Corrine

Excellent content and assignments that build on your knowledge, reinforce, and then expand. Challenging assignments with instructor support to assist you. My 2nd course with OLL and I look forward to more. Best training site I have found on the internet! There is a lot of substandard instruction on the net but OLL is definitely not one of them. More sites should learn from OLL! I recently secured new employment using XSL and XML and couldn't have done so without the Professional XML and XSL courses. Thanks! -- Kymberly

One thing that impressed me about Online-Learning is if I have a question (even before enrolling), there is always a quick response. This is critical when distance is involved. Susan is very good about getting me through difficult issues and keeping in touch with the class. -- Judy

As an online course it allowed me to study where and when I wanted, but it was more than just that. The support from tutors was first rate, while the course was well paced, and pitched at a level which allowed me to learn quickly and in depth without becoming bogged down in too much techno-babble. More importantly since I completed the course I have been able to work in creating DTDs for clients and programming XML content as well as contributing to the work of other teams in the company. -- Justin

I wanted to thank you for your time and effort in teaching a course with such an extensive array of topics! Professional XML Authoring has at last given me the chance to learn and implement new skills in the area of markup languages, and to see how my background in technical editing could be well suited to DTD Authoring, in particular. -- Kathy

Susan, I was highly impressed with this course and your great help and knowledge. I have taken a handful of other on-line courses and have found this one to be the best instructed class. There was a high degree of information in the manual and it was well laid out. Thanks for all of your help! -- Sherri

You learn when you want, you receive help promptly, you may be sure that your queries will be answered always. Excellent materials, easy to understand even for people like me with poor English. -- Jan

The online web format is great! I was taking this class for professional development, and it allowed me to do things for the course without missing entire days of work away at a class. -- Elizabeth

It was my first real exposure to XML, and XML-related technologies, like schemas, DTDs, and style sheets. I think it was super. I learned so much. It was flexible, interesting and challenging. A perfect course. -- Lisa

XSL Techniques

I enjoyed the information, and also the structure of assignments. I liked that the course included step-by-step exercises and tutorials PLUS unassisted assignments. Unlike exercises where a student can get by simply doing as directed, the assignments reveal the real learning. I really liked the combination of tutorials, exercises, and on-your-own assignments. The assignments were where I discovered whether I truly understood the material. This course produces real learning. -- Mike

Personally I found the course layout easy to use. The manual was not as daunting as it first looked, and things were for the most part explained well. A good introduction to XSL for a person not familiar with the standard. I would have no troubles recommending this course. -- Sean

Very well organized and conceived. By following the manual I was able to learn and build on the concepts with minimal questions or frustration. It taught me what I was looking to learn, was well organized, and well paced. I'm already applying what I learned at work. -- James

The fact that the assignments are graded means that there's incentive to work on them, solve problems, and ask questions. Traditional online courses don't offer that incentive. -- Mario

Graphic Design

The course exceeded my expectations in many regards -- especially in the depth of information supplied and the access to the instructor for feedback on work in progress. In a very non-threatening environment, I learned key principles of design that I can implement immediately. Without reservation, I recommend this course to technical communicators -- in fact I have already encouraged several colleagues to sign up for the next time it is presented. -- Kathie

I have taken many on-line courses. None have offered teleconference as part of the course. It enabled conversational interaction with other students and the instructor which enriched the learning environment. It enabled us as students to see and discuss each others work and share in the feedback interactively. -- Cheryl

The tutorial examples for each section were very helpful. I like the fact that we were able to download the entire course content for future readings as it was impossible for me to read all the content during the course timeframe. The instructor critique of each project was very helpful as well. Great course and instructor was very knowledgable and helpful. -- Carol

This was a great online class experience for me (the first one that I've completed!). I think the personal touch thru the phone sessions, combined with the e-mail responses from Doug when I had questions helped a lot! -- Chris

Doug's an excellent instructor who really knows his stuff. He's obviously enthusiastic about the topic and that made the course very enjoyable. Willing to share his knowledge even if I had questions that went beyond the course material. -- LNT

The instructor's clear and consistent focus on the four basic principles of graphic design (contrast, repetition, alignment, and proximity) kept the course very focused and efficient. The reading material was clear and well presented. Great way to take a course if you're disciplined and choose carefully. Lots of fun - thanks! -- Christine

Online Help System Design

The class is almost identical to a graduate level course I took at a well known University in Boston, Massachusetts. --Lisa

I'd also like to say that yours is a well designed course that exhibits some of the best examples of instructional design that I have seen. I'm looking forward to seeing how I do with the assignments. -- Janice

Susan is fantastic and "super" understanding. The course is useful and practical. Excellent course. -- Wilkie

Susan's feedback was wonderful. She always provided positive feedback then showed how to take the assignment one step further. She also included samples that provided other perspectives on the same assignment. These samples added a whole new dimension to the assignments. -- Kathryn

Usability Testing

I got almost immediate responses when I turned in assignments and she had wonderful feedback! I think it does a very good job of covering the basic steps in usability testing. -- Debbie

I believe that I developed an understanding of the process of usability. This is what I was interested in achieving. This is the third course I have taken from Online-learning.com and I feel that I am achieving a good understanding of information design. -- David

The assignments were well designed and very good learning tools. It is a good introduction to usability topics and has the right blend of theoretical and practical knowledge. -- Valerie

I thought the material was suited to people who are beginning to learn about usability and conducting tests. It was online and I could fit the assignments and coursework in when it was convenient for me. -- Lauren

User Interface Analysis

Instructor feedback was excellent, and his knowledge of not just the course material, but related subjects as well. This course [User Interface Analysis] is very applicable to many aspects of user relations, not just building applications. I really enjoyed this course, and look forward to taking the next course. -- Kathy

I really liked the self-paced format. Having the material available via download and online made it useful to access from various places. The assignments were a good way to apply the concepts. -- Susan

The reason I would recommend this course is because it helps you to learn things for yourself and does not impose rules. The course was really good and I look forward to doing my next course with the you. -- Zurika

I liked the chats with Hans and formatting the homework in a report form (as if you were turning it in to a real customer) the best. I thoroughly enjoyed the course and the course materials. I'm sure I'll refer to them often. -- Karen

Real bonus to speak with a highly experienced professional in the field. As good as as face-to-face tutorial/lecture. I feel I have been on a real course. Thanks to both Hans & Doug! -- Dave

Covered the topic of UI analysis very good. Assignments gave a very good practical knowledge of the topic. The reading material structure is just right. And chats add a very important component of interaction with instructor and other students and receiving another point of view on the material. -- Lyah

User Interface Design

The personal touch via teleconference with instructor (Hans Bergman) makes the course a unique learning experience. A very enjoyable online learning experience overall. -- Dave

Well designed, gives a great and useful opening to user centered design. Thank you very much. It was a great experience for me. -- Lyah

The assignments were very useful. -- John

Web-Based Training Design

I believe in OLL as a great value for the money invested... As always OLL delivers a course that exceeded my expectations. A thorough course that enables the student to learn at their own pace, have access to their instructor when needed, and have tools that they can continue their education and build upon what they have learned. You receive more than just a piece of the puzzle and wonder how to incorporate it into your work, you receive the skills to start a project at inception and see it to completion! Great Course! -- Not specified

I am a currently a stay-at-home mom, with two small children and a household to run and I really appreciated the flexibility to study when it fitted MY schedule. Susan is an absolute gem. It is the first time I have ever done an online course. The support that I had from her was great. She was patient, friendly, helpful and relaxed. I enjoyed doing something that I have never done, on a topic I knew nothing of !! Well done, what a great course. -- Annemarie

Thanks for your message and the follow-up! Overall, I thought the course was great. I did get tons of useful experience from the course and the instructor Susan was great. -- Shaun

Thank you, Susan, for your course! My learning curve was very steep, but doing the hands-on activity of creating a lesson helped me to accomplish so many new tasks. The foundation you have created in your course truly helped my understanding of how to proceed with creating my lesson. -- Katy

Technical Writing

After taking the course, I indeed feel that my writing has improved, since I now have the formal knowledge I needed ... Aside from the technical writing itself, the opportunity to learn the tools and interact with other writers in a virtual setting has proven to be both useful and fun. I plan to recommend the course to all the professionals I know. -- Salvadore

Not only did this experience teach me the proper techniques of technical writing and the process of XML document construction as promised, but it also taught me how to learn independently, how to stick with a problem and find ways of solving it, and perhaps most significantly, the experience taught me the skills that will enable me to continue to develop my technical writing skills beyond the electronic classroom. -- Aimee

I want to thank-you for all the assistance you gave me during the course. Online-Learning is very well organized and the amount of time that you have dedicated to it is amazing. -- Lorena

There are modules, homework and chat sessions to make you feel as much a student as possible! I really have enjoyed being a student again. My opinion about distance learning has changed considerably after joining this course. Anyone interested in increasing his or her knowledge in the new technologies that overwhelm you then this is THE place! -- Gauri

Course materials were good, the mentoring approach was good and working with other people via the Internet was good. The instructor did a good job of communicating and making it a more intimate arrangement. A lot of online courses fail because of the isolation. Kitty is very good and I think it's a very solid course. Your company does a nice job. I learned a lot. In general, I would recommend your company's courses. -- Dale

You prepare people to carry out skills in the real world. Also, the course had an instructor, who took the time to find out how each student was progressing. She was fair, helpful and highly professional. Keep up the good work. What I have learned on this course, I will be able to apply in the real world. You go to great lengths to ensure that students understand, what is expected of them and to let them know that you are concerned about their progress. -- Dana

Each assignment is designed to be useful for the job search, afterwards! Keep up the excellent work! Very inexpensive when compared to courses of the same calibre given in colleges! -- Warren

I found the assignments very stimulating and useful from a real life point of view. I have ended the course with actual samples of my writing which will come in very handy. -- Vidya

Business Writing Courses

Learning to use the "you attitude" was very beneficial to me. The feedback was great - something I haven't received when taking [another learning institution's] Continuing Education Courses. -- Stephanie

The extra Grammar information was invaluable. The course material is relevant and easy to understand... Enjoyed the course. Kitty was very helpful and patient --Pat

Instructor is great. Kitty is very helpful and did an excellent job. I took a 6-week MBA business writing course and paid $1,320 at [deleted] College in MA. I learned 100% more in Kitty's course than at the MBA course. Of course, I will recommend. -- Vikrant

The course material is relevant and easy to understand. Enjoyed the course. Kitty was very helpful and patient. -- Pat

The teacher (Kitty) was always there if you needed her. She was great! Looking into to signing up some of my staff. Looking forward to taking another class. -- Susan

As a side note, this morning I prepared a Scope of Work as you had guided me and it was very successful. The client bought our services and was very complimentary regarding the presentation. Although the client doesn't know you they do know that a person named Kitty helped me prepare it. -- Norm

Grammar Essentials Self-Paced Course

I just started the process this morning and the format is perfect! -- Michelle

I have really enjoyed the grammar course and had moments of "Really? I never knew that!" For me, the most interesting section of the course dealt with parts of a sentence. I have written material on instinct, using rules of grammar learned long ago and forgotten. -- David

The reading material provided is excellent. The self-taught grammar module was excellent. -- Vikrant

The extra grammar module was invaluable. -- Pat

JavaScript for Web Designers

I really enjoyed taking this course. I loved working the assignments and the do it yourself tutorials. -- Judy

Great course and well presented. -- Lyse