Course Deployments

Course deployments are a service offered to address the Deployment (phase) > UAT (task) in SmartSheet. These are requested through the ICOM ticketing system.

Overview

What is that?

A course deployment is simply the moving of a course from one place to another. Typically this is required after a client has signed off on their Beta and would like to perform User Acceptance Testing (UAT) (see their new course works in its Production environment (where their end-users will take the course "fo rilla")).

Why do we need it?

Today, this boils down to two reasons: Reconfiguration and/or Access.

Reconfiguration?

Brain-Flash courses quite often need a reconfiguration plus a few tweaks. Please send these to Client Services to deploy just to make sure everything is copacetic.

Storyline courses publish just fine from the Storyline app. The only thing to worry about here would be if you need help removing the Storyline Beta Feedback tool.

Access?

FiLMS access?

Production environments are very sensitive things because they can potentially impact thousands of people. Imagine an email being sent to 4000 employees only to realize later that the course doesn't even launch. Not a good day. Because they are sensitive generally only a small group of administrators can deploy a course to them.

FiLMS (with one exception) is hosted by ICOM so Client Services has access to deploy courses. Even some tech-savvy FiLMS clients with the ability to deploy courses to their own FiLMS Instance like us to do it for them - just to be sure. It a value-add when they build a new course with us.

You'll find the request form for that here:

https://sites.google.com/a/icomproductions.ca/knowledge-base/icom-infrastructure/call-handling/request-for-service-rfs-call-handling

3rd Party LMS access?

ICOM does not have access to any 3rd Party LMSs like SuccessFactors, etc. Only the client can add a course to these so they'll be happy if you send them their SCORM package.

FiLMS or 3rd Party?

The deployment target(s) for your course should be revealed during your Learning Outcome session. Please double-check your LOS before deploying. Still unclear? What a client uses for an LMS should be noted in our Knowledge Base. An example below (figure 1). Still unclear? Ask someone.

Types

SCORM Course > FiLMS

This procedure is for FiLMS clients:

  1. Review the (RfS) Deployment request & confirm all required fields were input correctly

  2. Schedule & inform requestor

  3. Execute

    1. Import into FiLMS as sysadmin

    2. Use course title provided but add " [UAT#]" to the end for both Course & Curriculum names (# being the attempt count for this course deployment)

    3. Enroll sysadmin

    4. Smoke test for functionality adding results to log

  4. On Pass, implement UAT enrollment rules

    1. Enroll UAT users

    2. Impersonate one UAT user

    3. Don't launch but ensure the course is visible on their home page

  5. Return results to the requestor as a Pass or Fail

  6. Close the ticket (new ticket required for redeployment)

Go-Live

New Course

Enrollment Wizard without Event

Select the Users & Curriculums

Result

Update Course & Maintain Previous Progress

SCORM Course > Demo Portal

The Demo portal is a FiLMS instance used by Sales to demo SCORM courses to clients.

This is the procedure:

  1. Review the information provided

  2. Request exact location of SCORM package, if not provided

  3. Schedule & inform requestor

  4. Execute

    1. Import into demo.icomproductions.ca as sysadmin

    2. Use course title provided but add " DEMO" to the end for both Course & Curriculum names

    3. Enroll sysadmin

    4. Smoke test for functionality

  5. On Pass, implement enrollment rules

    1. Create new group named with after the course but unique under “Singles”, eg: WHMIS 2018

    2. Auto-enroll new group in the new course

    3. Enrollment Wizard the group “Admins (ICOM Sales team)” into the new course

    4. Add to topic “NEW” (figure 1)

  6. Return the full group name to the requestor

  7. Close the ticket

SCORM Course > eco

This procedure is the same for FiLMS except the On Pass section.

  1. Review the (RfS) Deployment request & confirm all required fields were input correctly

  2. Schedule & inform requestor

  3. Execute

    1. Import into FiLMS as sysadmin

    2. Use course title provided but add " [UAT#]" to the end for both Course & Curriculum names (# being the attempt count for this course deployment)

    3. Enroll sysadmin

    4. Smoke test for functionality adding results to log

  4. On Pass, implement UAT enrollment rules

    1. Enroll UAT group

    2. From eco: View page > Edit Mode > Assign Groups > UAT

    3. Impersonate one eco/UAT user

    4. Don't launch but ensure the course is visible on their eco

  5. Return results to the requestor as a Pass or Fail

  6. Close the ticket (new ticket required for redeployment)

SCORM Course > Breaze

Same as eco but has additional steps for different deployment types.

UAT

  1. Some clients have a UAT section in their instances create one if there's none.

  2. Add the course there and assign the UAT group


Live

FiLMS

  1. Create a group specific to that course (e.g. VGC)

Breaze Front-End

  1. Add a page/section (whichever is most appropriate)

  2. Add the SCORM package

  3. Assign Image and Topic then Publish

Note: You have creative liberty to assign an image(s) to the course unless the client specifies the image to be used.



Storyline/Captivate Course > 3rd Party LMS

Deployments for courses produced by 3rd Party Authorware, like Storyline, for 3rd Party LMS targets do not need the assistance of Client Services. SCORM package published by the Content Development team can be sent directly to the client. Please be aware that not all 3rd Party LMSs support Objectives so these may need to be avoided when publishing.

Brain-Flash > 3rd Party LMS

This procedure is like Storyline/Captivate Course > 3rd Party LMS except it requires a reconfiguration:

  1. Review the (RfS) Deployment request & confirm all required fields were input correctly

  2. Edit FiLMS_ini.txt

    1. <useObjectives>false</useObjectives>

    2. <trackQuizResponse>false</trackQuizResponse>

    3. <submitInteractionHistory>false</submitInteractionHistory>

  3. Schedule & inform requestor

  4. Execute

    1. Import into SCORM Cloud

    2. Smoke test for functionality adding results to log

    3. Debug Monitor available

      1. Press keys: [Shift] + [.] + [D]

      2. Passcode: shift

  5. On Pass, vault in Google Drive vault

  6. Return results to the requestor

    1. Pass with link to Google Drive vault; or

    2. Fail

  7. Close the ticket (new ticket required for redeployment)

Ken's Vault notes (deprecated)

When any of the above are done, you need to put the course in the Google Drive in the course deployment area. There is a format we follow to make sure everything is the same and easy to follow.

The top level is a folder with the company name. Sometimes the company name is something old and is not really the company name anymore. Gibraltar, for example. The correct name is Taseko, but we still have Gibraltar on the folder.

After the company, we have the course folder. This is named after the title of the course given to us by the PM in their request ticket.

Next is the files themselves. This level will have the folders named for the date we are working with them. For example: 20180301 (March 1st, 2018). This keeps the dates sequential and easy to find. The zip file with the course in it will have the same date structure on it. I will go over the naming of courses later. This level will also be the home the project documents and files when we are ready to vault the project.