Educational Applications Research and Videodisc Technology

Applications of random access videodiscs to a variety of potential education and training markets will be successful or not, depending on how these markets are approached. While the devices offer a possible quantum leap in capabilities, applications of these features will be difficult. Most education and training institutions are not required to accomplish planned outcomes, thus making favorable cost-effectiveness trade-off analyses virtually impossible. No apparent mechanism exists for user groups to communicate requirements to hardware suppliers, thus creating the opportunity for highly diverse approaches to fragment the potential market. Features requirements are presented in the context of potential applications and four classes of possible systems are described. The implications of these features for courseware design are discussed. Finally, an appeal is made for the formation of a user's group to collect the user requirements, verify them, and communicate these to hardware manufacturers.