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
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

I am currently enrolled in your Professional XML Authoring Course with Susan Bodnik as my instructor. It is a very challenging course, but I am enjoying it. I feel as if I am on my way to developing a good skill set. 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. I also appreciated the self-employed discount. This is a pretty tough economic environment right now and discretionary dollars for extra classes are not easy to come by. I am hoping I will be able to enroll in additional classes in the future. -- 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 had a lot of fun taking Professional XML Authoring, thanks in no small part to your help and patience. In fact, as I state in the closing remarks of the Assignment 5 doc, I think this is the best time I've ever had learning a new skillset. Thanks again for your support and understanding during the last few months, I think you are excellent at what you do. -- Richard

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. After all the time and energy I spent on this class, I know that I have really only reached a beginning. You have indeed opened my eyes to a world of new possibilities for the second half of my career, for which I thank you. -- Kathy

The end... or I must say the beginning of a new adventure. For me, XML will not end with the conclusion of the course - I will have to live up to my new diploma on the wall of my cubicle! Already people at work have asked me where I took my course and I have given them the Online-learning web site. Thank you all for the excellent course! The PXA course is extremely well structured and designed... You can customize the level of work you want to apply (from basic to advanced) and hence the level you want to achieve by the end of the course. 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

Thank you! I understand perfectly now. It's just a matter of becoming more familiar with the syntax and understanding when an element is required or not. Gosh this is fun! I never really thought a course like this could fun. Thanks again. -- Maria

Keep up the good work! Worth the money and great course to start real world application practise. It was fun! -- Steven

It gave me the incentive to actually do some work on XML. Very impressive and professional course. Other students very highly qualified and motivated. Instructor very highly qualified. Course material very comprehensive. -- Allison

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

It's very difficult to say what was most or least effective. On the whole all parts of course were very effective. In this point I may only say what was most interesting for me. It was DTD authoring and assignment 3. This is a good way to deepen your knowledge in a choosen topic. 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

I couldn't believe that I got immediate responses to emails sent as late as 10pm... Susan, take a break once in a while!! ;) -- Michele

It gives a solid start to xml. I feel that I can speak intelligently now about xml and its applications. A very good course. Later on, I would like to take a higher level course. -- Greg [Greg is referring to our Introduction to XML course]

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

Enjoyed the course and the instructor excellent. Would recommend the course to friends/colleagues. -- Tony

It gives a very good grounding of the subject but allows you to learn it at your own pace and at times that suit busy people. Very satisfied with the course. -- Paul

Non-programmers should find the explanations and step-by-step tutorials a useful way to understand the subject. I like getting course materials on CD so that i can load the material at home and at work. This gives me an extra option for working on lessons at home when the work schedule is too crazy. -- Eric

I was happy with the way all information and content was presented. 23 This was exactly what I expected with an online course! Overall, nice job. Thanks! -- Eric

The flexibility of selecting your own project subject matter and making them as easy or difficult as you are willing to tackle. Thanks! I'll be back for more! -- Marsha

Good materials and excellent instructor. Thank you! -- Jeff

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

Content, readings and assignments were a great way to learn. Keep up the good work! -- Cameron

It was all uniformly good. An excellent course, which I'm pleased to have undertaken. This is the first time that I've tried distance learning and I'm sold on it. -- Peter

XSL Techniques
I enjoyed the information, and also the structure of assigments. 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. All in all, I found this course to be more than worth my time and more than worth the cost. -- 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 exercises followed by a homework assignment plus all the good correspondence. The second webserach really got me looking at things on the web, too. I learned a lot! Keep up the good work! -- Bonnie

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

It was well organized and run. Exceeded my expectations for an online course. -- Anne

"...the teleconference concept was excellent. 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. I have used text chat in my other on-line classes. And while it works to send and receive information, it is limited and doesn't allow for interactive brainstorming and sharing of ideas. Often, the text chat line of conversation gets lost and I can't say enough about how the teleconference brings you right 'into' the classroom... Keep up the good work. I also think honestly for the quality offered especially with introduction of teleconference you can differentiate yourself from competitors and charge more.-- 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

Getting the feedback from the telephone chats and being able to talk to the instructor. I actually did learn something that I will use from it. -- Chip

Just wanted to let you know that I'm enjoying myself a lot with the course and its superb course material! I will recommend the course also for my collegues who work with user interface design. -- Marjut

Just wanted to say thank you for everything. I learned a lot from your course and you have been very helpful. Do you plan to arrange any more advance-leveled GD courses soon? -- Usicha

It gives you the basics you need for a number of jobs. As for me, it gave me the ground work for continuing on to learning Desk Top Publishing. Doug, the instructor, was excellent, and I would advise anybody to take this course. -- Nancy

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

Keep doing what you're doing, it's great! -- Debba

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

While I'm at it, 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

Usability Testing
She did a great job. 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

Everything was effective. And the excellent instruction of Adina. -- John

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. Adina's comments were very helpful and I appreciated that she responded so quickly to my e-mails. 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 your self and does not impose rules. The course was really good and I look forward to doing my next course with the you. Good on 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 refer to them often. Thank you. -- Karen

I got what I wanted from the course. Really useful. Conference link with instructor excellent idea. 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

Easy to use environment, good instructors, chats and message boards were very helpful-- Johnathan

User Interface Design
Overall well done to the course team on a very practical and useful course. 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 think that I definitely have a much better understanding re: course development online. I thoroughly enjoyed it!"-- Monica

I have recommended Online Learning before. I believe in the 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

The interaction that I had with my instructor was EXCELLENT. The fact that I knew nothing about the topic and that I could look back after each assignment and see what I have learnt. I enjoyed learning HTML (which I had never used before). I enjoyed the fact that it is so practical, while you learn a bit about the theory behind it.. Very good course, I have already recommended it to lots of friends. The company is also very well organized and registration and payment was SO easy and hassle free. Having an instructor to help you was very nice and she was always patient and approachable. It is not expensive at all and is excellent value for money. Thank you very much for the course. I really enjoyed it and learned a lot. It was well structured and the fact that we had a time-planning to adhere to, made my work a lot easier. 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

Just keep doing what your doing, I learned a lot from this. If the future is the Internet, then designing the right course is a requirement. I would recommend this to any trainer who wishes to go on the web. -- Matthew

Thanks for your message and the follow-up! Overall, I thought the course was great. I think that I saw the 4 - 6 hour reference either in the beginning of the course introduction, or in the description. I did get tons of useful experience from the course and the instructor Susan was great. Keep up the good work! -- Shaun

Thank you for an excellent course! The material is so rich and in-depth, I would suggest extending the course length to an optional 12 weeks. It seemed to be fast-paced for an 8-week course, unless learners are able to devote a great deal of time to the project. -- Adele

The fact that I could base my assignments on my current project at work. I also enjoyed working from home at my own pace, but knowing that I had support when I needed it. -- Kathy

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 Barrena

Thank you. I really enjoyed the course. I learned so much and my confidence level on my writing skill and organizational abilities has really increased. This course made me realize just how much I missed writing. I appreciated the time and effort you put into helping us. Thanks again. -- Laine

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. On-line learning is very well organized and the amount of time that you have dedicated to it is amazing. -- Lorena

I have joined one of their courses and I would like to share with you the great experience I have had so far. They have very good support service, course content and usually available guidance during the course. 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

I would definitely recommend the course. I enjoyed the class tremendously and feel that the instructor knew the material well. I also like the format of the course. -- Mary

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

The instructor (Kitty) responded to all emails with timeliness and precison. She was most helpful and supportive. The extra readings gave me an opportunity to learn more about a topic if desired. Course materials were fantastic. The length of the course was perfect although sometimes I felt like I needed more time but in fact, there was just enough to do what was needed. The instructor was very knowledgeable with the software and gave excellent feedback on assignments. Overall, it's a great way to learn something new, learn a new program and understand the benefits to using such a program in a business sense. -- Not specified

This was my first online learning experience and it has had a positive impact on my attitude to online learning. I am now considering what to do next. -- Robert

It was a great learning experience. Great course overall, I've learned a lot and I really enjoyed being able to do this from the office and my home, at my own pace. -- France

it's a great alternative to traditional university study. -- Marc

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. See you on another course in the near future. -- Dana

It is a good introduction to the principles of technical writing and XML usage. -- Nigel

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! When I get the time and money, I'm coming back for the XML programming courses! -- Warren

Everything was covered completely. Incredibly useful. As with any course, you get out what you put in. The course contains a wealth of information, and the student should be prepared to spend some time with it. -- Cliff

It's very useful and timely in today's labor market. -- Stephen

A very good cource, with good material. -- Gary

A lot of good experience and you can work at your own pace and time frame. Thanks for a great course. -- Dan

The course instructor was ALWAYS willing to answer questions. KEEP UP THE AMAZING WORK! The hands-on apprach to technical writing. The analysis provided of technical theory. The self-reliance & dedication imposed by the course format. The instructor was superb. The content was challenging & informative. The overall professionalism offered.
THANK YOU for providing an enjoyable learning experience. -- Greg

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
1. Learning to use the "you attitude" was very beneficial to me. 2. The feedback was great - something I haven't received when taking [another learning institution's] Continuing Education Courses. 3. The proposal was a lot of work but also a valuable experience and, in the end, fun. -- Stephanie

Yes - informative. 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

Keep up the good work! It is a great step towards better business writing. -- Kelley

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

You are unbelievable! That is being said in a very nice tone. You have made ever effort to see that I was successful in the Business Writing Course and I have neglected your emails (sorry for not responding to your emails). I can't believe you are still trying to get me to complete the course. Very nice customer service, which I think is unheard of from a website. Most websites take you money and don't care if you continue to use their services. -- Sandy

Informative. The extra grammar module was invaluable. 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. Thank you. You have been a great help. -- Norm

Great learning experience. It was very useful to me -- Mariette

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