General resources collated in UK, also e-learning jobs: www.e-learningcentre.co.uk

UK monthly magazine - probably the only one specialising in the sector: www.elearningage.co.uk.

I will show my age by saying that when I lived in England I used to take the train to London every month to go to the TACT meeting. That was "The Association for Technology Based Training" in those days before the web and as a developer writing in BASIC I had to count rows and columns on the screen to place the text! It is still the venue to get expert opinions in my view although the cost of flights from Guernsey and timing make it difficult for me to justify nowadays: eLearning Network

News on training issues in the UK at the TrainingZone.

For an international view on technology issues and learning management look at Brandon Hall and the Masie Center. I subscribe to their newsgroups where you experience the interchange of ideas on instructional design between US, India and occasionally Guernsey.

Elliott Masie runs a Learning Futures website which is peer-reviewed and collaborative. Brandon Hall is taking a similar step into networking with its new Brandon Hall Network site where members link to members.

E-learning was not exciting in the commercial world when it was plain old TBT (Technology Based Training) or CBT (Computer Based Training) but that changed around 1999 with an explosion of interest from venture capitalist firms in any person or company that claimed to be in this "space". It was in some ways unfortunate that the attention of get-rich-quick merchants fell onto our boring sector since it was right at this time that I had taken the decision to spread my efforts beyond the Channel Islands by using the nascent web technologies and "afterburning" some of the Macromedia Authorware files I had been working on. The spotlight was enjoyable while it lasted but since 2001 I have been watching the consolidation and now a rebirth of interest in Web 2.0 technologies means a new generation of players and trend to mash-ups and open source technology.

Alan November has visited Guernsey as a guest speaker on learning, technology and community issues invited by our Education department. He "gets it" - maybe Guernsey will. The States of Guernsey have invested heavily in a Guernsey Grid for Learning and as a bystander and parent of two children who should benefit from this I am intrigued by the project. Recent challenges in financing public sector projects like this (the infamous "black hole" due to changes in Guernsey's taxing of managed offshore companies) could have an affect on how much we achieve in this area but Guernsey is innovative and I believe necessity is the mother of invention.

Outside the Channel Islands I work for Traineasy Ltd, a company I helped establish in 1999. We supply web-based training solutions for creating, delivering and managing content for clients across Europe. It is satisfying to work on projects of all sizes: in Guernsey or Jersey I can talk to a company that is "big" with 250 employees but without the in-house resource even to scope out an e-learning project. You can talk directly to the owners and have a huge influence. I can work at the same time for a UK client who needs to track 1,000+ users across their curriculum - the task may be similar but there are multiple stakeholders. Having presented in boardrooms across the country one thing is abundantly clear in e-learning: you need buy-in from IT departments and Training Departments but they rarely speak the same language or share the agenda! The e-learning consultant is destined to be an interpreter.

I have attended or exhibited at many training and e-learning shows over the years. The main shows in the UK are in London in January: Learning Technologies and WOLCE later in the year at the NEC Birmingham.