Computer scientist Richard Lucic works with senior Alex Ho. Lucic is one of the 200 faculty, staff and students involved in the Lynda.com pilot Photo credit: Les Todd

Durham, NC - A new online training resource offered through Duke's Office of Information Technology (OIT) is enabling faculty, staff and students to learn the latest technological tools with video tutorials available anytime, anywhere.

For Richard Lucic, associate chair of the computer science department, the pilot program through Lynda.com offers a convenient way for him and his students to stay up-to-date on emerging web and multimedia technologies.

"These technologies change rapidly -- just keeping up as new versions come along can be a real time sink," said Lucic, who includes the videos as part of a class he teaches in the Information Science and Information Studies (ISIS) program. "I find it incredibly helpful just to make sure I'm well-versed on the software, and I think it's good to show students what resources are out there and available if they want to go into the technology deeper than we do in class."

Lucic is among more than 200 Duke faculty, staff and students who have participated in OIT's Lynda.com pilot since it was launched in October. Lynda.com offers more than 30,000 online training courses on topics ranging from Microsoft Word and Excel to web design and computer programming.

OIT is providing a limited number of individual accounts for Duke users during the yearlong pilot. Staff and faculty can review the training tutorials online (from Duke or at home) or can use designated workstations at the ACT Warehouse lab, Multimedia Project Studios, the Center for Instructional Technology and the Link in Perkins Library.

Tutorials in PHP, Dreamweaver, Microsoft Excel and PowerPoint have been among the most popular with Duke staff, who comprise about 75 percent of program participants to date, said Christine Vucinich, OIT's training coordinator.

As more jobs throughout the university and health system demand technology skills, online training can help users at all levels, Vucinich said.

"Online training provides an opportunity to get quick questions answered and for staff at any location to get the training they need when they need it, not weeks or months later," she said. "When you're in an instructor-led class, so much information is thrown at you at one time. Users learn in different ways, and they don't always have the time or the training budget to leave their desks and go to a two-hour class."

The online courses also can serve as a refresher for those who may have attended an earlier instructor-led session, Vucinich said. Tutorials are structured so users can review one particular section without having to sit through an entire course.

The training helped Terry Banfich get up to speed during a recent Microsoft Word upgrade in Duke Law School's Alumni & Development Office. It also proved useful as she transitioned into a new job as a trainer in Central Development's IT department.

"Everything and anything is there, and it's there at any time, even if you've just got five minutes to spend," Banfich said. "It's a great tool for giving folks the essential training and tips that can help make our work lives more effective and efficient."

OIT will gather user feedback this spring to evaluate whether the program will be implemented on an ongoing basis next fall.