Wimba Create replacement (WCR) initiative
Description
Wimba Create is a commercial software package for authoring interactive content. It has been centrally supported at the University of Bristol for many years and is used by a good number of academic Schools, central divisions and activities including Modern Languages, Medicine, Dentistry, Library Services, eBiolabs and Chemlabs. However, in 2013 Blackboard (who own Wimba) announced that the software will reach the end of its life on 31 December 2014. Wimba Create users may wish to read about the implications of this announcement.
This initiative aims to identity and establish a suitable replacement product.
Community input
To ensure the replacement software meets the needs of it various users as far as possible, a group of suitably experienced academics and support staff from different faculties and central services has been convened to:
- Specify and prioritise software requirements.
- Assess different products’ ability to meet requirements.
- Inform decisions that will directly affect end users, e.g. software configuration.
- Steer the design of training and support materials.
Schedule and progress
The initiative will run between December 2013 and January 2015. The following table summarises the schedule and progress to date.
| Target date | Task | Status |
|---|---|---|
| 09-Dec-13 | Initiative start up | complete |
| 09-Dec-13 | Notify users that Wimba Create will reach the end of it life | complete |
| 20-Dec-13 | Convene Wimba Create replacement Working Group | complete |
| 31-Jan-14 | Specify and prioritise user requirements | complete |
| 28-Mar-14 | Evaluate products ability to meet requirements | complete |
| 14-Apr-14 | Recommendation to TELAN for endorsement | complete |
| 30-Sep-14 | Deploy eXe institution-wide via Software Centre | complete |
| 30-Sep-14 | Develop basic user support for eXe | complete |
| 31-Oct-14 | Technical assessment of Xerte | current |
| 12-Sep-15 | Bring Xerte production service online for selected user groups | |
| 12-Sep-15 | Collate basic user support for Xerte | |
| 12-Dec-15 | Implement Wimba Create exit strategy | |
| 12-Dec-15 | Close initiative |
Initiative contact
Hilary Griffiths
Head of Digital Education
Academic Registry
Email: Hilary.Griffiths@bristol.ac.uk
Tel: +444 (0)117 33 14431 (internal 14431)