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Authorware 6

Authorware 6

List Price: $64.95
Your Price: $59.95
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Wait for Updated Edition
Review: I don't see how anybody can recommend a book which is obviously missing entire sections. I thought at first that the book's organization was just confusing me until I realized that critical parts were not there. For example, in Chapter 21, the exercises are all missing the actual step by step instructions.

The index is also a joke which really hurts a book like this which people will want to use as a reference. This is really unfortunate since if you thumb through the book there are useful bits of information hidden away, but finding them is nearly impossible.

They should pull this printing, burn it, and reprint after the corrections have been made.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Nothing Great
Review: I recently went to a bookshop to see some books on multimedia. I went through the Table of Contents and flipped through this book. Took about 20 minutes to go through the book.

The book is for the beginner level only.

Nothing great about it. Some websites like ARC, Authorware Tutorial by Apurva and many more when combined together provide a whole lot of material.

Too costly for a beginner level book. Waste of money.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Most Comprehensive Approach to AW
Review: I work for a state agency that can't afford to send me to high-dollar training in Authorware development. Since I was made Project Manager for TX Parks & Wildlife's E-learning initiative, I tried four other sources to learn AW so I could get a solid foundation for application development.

No other book handled the subject in as succinct, direct, definitive, profoundly complete fashion as this book does. Not only do you get basic, elementary instructions, but you get background fundamentals and related technical know-how as Tips and Hints to round out the total educational experience. You are presented with an extremely logically structured approach that immediately gives the beginner a sense of satisfaction at having grasped major concepts early in the learning.

I should have used this book first, and it would have saved me about 4-6 weeks of floundering about and frustration!

I'm not finished with it yet, but I've already developed the confidence to begin putting together at least the introduction to our "New Employee Orientation" E-learning project, have done so, and have very much pleased my customer.

Thanks, Dr. Wilson & Ms. Thornton! EXCELLENT job!

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Great book, but too many errors
Review: I'm a teacher learning to create learning software for high schoolers. I bought this book in 2002 to learn AW6. It's been a great resource that has made me a proficient user. However, I'm disappointed that the files for chapter 16 were missing from the CD which are the meat and potatoes of the program. That alone cost it 2 stars. Along with other errors people have mentioned. To the publisher, stop being sloppy, lazy and cheap. CLEAN UP YOUR EDITING!!!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: An Excellent Companion Text
Review: It is ironic that the company that makes the very best software for multimedia projects isn't equally as good at providing instructional material for helping neophytes learn that software. Which is where star Authorware developers and writers -- among them, Joe Ganci and Mark Henry -- come into the picture by providing good source material for prospective and seasoned Authorware developers.

Add to that stellar list of instructors the names of Scott Wilson and Jennie Thornton. They have just published one of the best texts on the market for using Authorware 6. The size of this book, 935 pages, is one indication that the writers don't leave many stones unturned as they use explanations, examples, insider information and exercises to bolster user confidence in not only learning the software but mastering it.

Despite the depth, the book's focus isn't a shotgun approach that tries to cover every conceivable point about this powerful software. Rather, the writers use the rifle model by focusing the student's aim at information that is most useful in "real world" Authorware development. Hence, you aren't going to get a run down on every conceivable function. What you will gain, however, is a mastery of the most commonly used features and functions.

While this approach isn't new, the quality of the prose in this book makes the information fresh, and it undoubtedly will help you understand more clearly concepts that might have baffled you up to now. It's as if the authors have asked you to pull up a chair to give you the inside scoop and plenty of tips to help you maximize your understanding of the software.

I would have given the book 5 stars, but I don't think any one Authorware book deserves such a rating. We tend to pick up good information about Authorware from a range of sources, and this book happens to be one of the best of many such sources.

You won't regret buying it.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Great book for the beginner to new intermediate user
Review: Jennie goes into great, great detail to explain a procedure. I'd estimate that somewhere between 1/4 to 1/3 of the book is step-by-step information on how to accomplish a particular task. This entails use of the CD-ROM which may or may not be a problem if you're the type to take the book home at night and you don't have AW at home. In short, this is really not a book to take home at night if you don't have a PC with AW loaded. BUT, if you do have AW at home, take the book home, especially if you're a newbie to early intermediate user.

There's a good bit of reference material here, although again, it seems skewed toward the new to early intermediate user. I think a book along the lines of Joe's Functions book will end up more dog-eared, but this book will not sit on the shelf gathering dust. I'd use it in a class setting for sure.

The typography is good, the instruction clear, the displays and graphics very good. And some are downright funny. I know there are stories behind some of these screen shots. And watch out for 2 video files in particular on the CD. Very funny stuff. Jennie does a good job of using real world examples to explain concepts. Remember the 35mm camera from an early version of AW? While it was cool, I'm not sure how "real world" it really was. Not too much of that here. Plus, she lets us in on at least one undocumented feature. Pretty cool.

In short, Jennie has done an outstanding job of explaining not only the tool itself, but also how to use the tool to create eLearning applications. That's no small feat. Most books explain the tool and present a hodgepodge of examples. This book, however, has been well thought-out, well-written, and well-edited. It flows.

If you're new to the tool, or not new but would like to learn Jennie's method of accomplishing a task, then this is a must-have book. Buy it.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Excellent Reference and Resource
Review: Last year my company took the quantum leap into CBT, and I was offered the opportunity to help design and create it, using Authorware. While Authorware is marketed as a "non-programmer development tool" you find early on that a lot of typical CBT behavior cannot be accomplished without scripting, using AW's internal functions and variables. To my disadvantage, I don't have any formal programming training, and have purchased just about every book recommended by the AW community, each specializing in one or two areas of AW development.

This is the first book I've found on the use of AW that covers it all. It begins with the basics and then goes beyond...into detail on writing scripts, using functions and variables, using lists, etc. all inside one cover.

The tutorial style of the book is very appealing to me, and the accompanying CD includes plenty of example files that are very helpful. There's no way you can learn what this book offers without doing the exercises, so it is highly interactive.

I still have a lot to learn - it's great to have such a handy reference and "teacher" sitting on my desk! Thank you, Jennie and Scott!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Excellent Reference and Resource
Review: Last year my company took the quantum leap into CBT, and I was offered the opportunity to help design and create it, using Authorware. While Authorware is marketed as a "non-programmer development tool" you find early on that a lot of typical CBT behavior cannot be accomplished without scripting, using AW's internal functions and variables. To my disadvantage, I don't have any formal programming training, and have purchased just about every book recommended by the AW community, each specializing in one or two areas of AW development.

This is the first book I've found on the use of AW that covers it all. It begins with the basics and then goes beyond...into detail on writing scripts, using functions and variables, using lists, etc. all inside one cover.

The tutorial style of the book is very appealing to me, and the accompanying CD includes plenty of example files that are very helpful. There's no way you can learn what this book offers without doing the exercises, so it is highly interactive.

I still have a lot to learn - it's great to have such a handy reference and "teacher" sitting on my desk! Thank you, Jennie and Scott!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Best you can get as a beginner or intermediate
Review: Seen Jennie Thornton instruct people in a classroom on how to use authorware, I trusted that her book would be an excellent resource for those who want to get their knowledge and skills beyond beginners-level.
It is!

In the 942 pages, she explains in detail the steps to a succesfull piece of interactive training.
Not only explaining how things can be accomplished but also making the life of the developer easier by taking advantage of all the features that are available in authorware.

In conclusion: A must have for the upcoming authorware guru.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Almost as good as going to a training class!
Review: Thank you so much Jennie and Scott! I work in Alaska and my boss would not pay for me to come to San Francisco and take your Authorware class. I have bought ALL of the other Authorware books on the market, but this is the only one that took me, step-by-step, from being a complete multimedia-novice to producing my first 1/2-hour long training piece that is running over the Web!

The best part was when I realized that I had gotten everything I thought I needed out of Authorware and I had only gone through 12 of the 27 chapters in this MASSIVE book. I am thrilled to have gotten such a great introduction to this software product.

My advice to anyone is that if you need to produce a training course and can't go to a class, buy this book and copy all of the application chapters...they even give you the authorware files on the CD...you will have your own working WBT in no time.

Thanks again...hopefully, NOW I can convince my boss to send me to your intermediate classes!


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