On a design of scormcompliant smil-enabled multimedia streaming e-learning system

E-learning plays a key enabling role in knowledge management for individuals, schools, and enterprises. Nevertheless, the lack of standards in content and learning management systems (LMSs) makes the reusability and interoperability of learning resources infeasible. The emergence of the SCORM specification has shed light on the standardization of e-learning. Unfortunately, the existing SCORM-compliant asset model is simplified; only a few asset types are allowed. On the other hand, W3C's declarative-style SMIL (Synchronized Multimedia Integration Language) is becoming prevalent in designing Web-based instructions with the consideration of temporality and spatiality of presentations. In addition, advances in real-time multimedia technologies can vitalize further these instructions. In this study, we propose an SMIL-enabled asset model with the enhancement of multimedia streaming. To render SCORM-compliant SMIL-enabled streaming contents, a Java applet-based SMIL RTP/RTSP LMS system is designed. We develop the proposed system in the Java EJB environment to tackle the issue of platform interoperability. The resulting system demonstrates an encouraging direction towards a more vivid and interactive SCORM-compliant e-learning.