Contributed by Organizations or Campuses and CMS

Oakland University's LMS policy on support and users of Moodle and other online learning management software.

This paper analyses the university as an Internet intermediary in the current climate of online distance education, classifies the stakeholders associated with the university in Web course management, and explores the need for an “Instructional Design Copyright Law”. The situation is likened to a theatrical production, with front-of-house preparations, backstage operations, and tragic characters.

"Blackboard, the dominant player in course management software, has the ability to inspire devotion and, for the more fervid open-source adherents, not a little contempt. So today’s announcement may cause a stir among those more apt to liken Blackboard to the devil than a gentle giant: The company is partnering with Syracuse University to develop a way to integrate Blackboard with Sakai, one of the primary open-source alternatives."

"In a closely watched copyright-infringement lawsuit, Georgia State University fired back this week at its accusers, three academic publishers that say the institution invites students to illegally download and print readings from thousands of works. The university asserts that its online distribution of course material is permitted under copyright law's fair-use exemption. "

"Drupal in Libraries" features helpful case history examples of Drupal use in libraries. Most of the report, however, is dedicated to a useful and user-friendly how-to guide for libraries interested in utilizing Drupal — and its dedicated developer community — to build dynamic and easy-to-use library Web sites.

"The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has issued a preliminary decision that rejects all 44 claims Blackboard Inc. made regarding the controversial patent it was granted for an online-learning system. If upheld, the decision could have sweeping ramifications for Blackboard's competitors and universities that use course-management software. "

A federal jury in Texas recently awarded the learning services giant Blackboard $3.1 million in its patent infringement lawsuit against a much smaller competitor, adding a new layer of complexity and uncertainty to a complex, uncertain market for higher education learning management systems.

The patent dispute heats up between enterprise software makers Blackboard Inc. and Desire2Learn Inc. over patent rights that Blackboard was granted in January 2006 for its course-management software and other eLearning products.

The author provides a long and comprehensive list of resources concerning teaching and learning with technology.