Driver and Vehicle Safety Images Now in Course Catalog

The course catalog inside of Convergence Training Viewer has been updated with a preview of our driver safety series courses (Defensive Driving, Seatbelt Safety, and Vehicle Preparedness). While these courses are still under development, we wanted to include them in our catalog to show everyone what is in the works.

Below, check out a screen shot of the catalog page in CTV:

Did you know that Convergence Training Viewer is a free mini-LMS for your desktop?
It can import courses, track results, and even track non-computer training events – and its FREE! Check it out or give us a call today. We would love to get your feedback.

Integrated Catalog in Convergence Viewer Shows Other Course Formats

We’ve added some additional links on the details pages of our courses in the integrated catalog in Convergence Training Viewer. The links will show up when the course can be purchased in other formats. Most of our CBT titles are currently available in DVD format, and soon they will be available online via pay-per-view. You don’t need to perform any updates to get this feature, it will be available when CTV connects to the catalog.

New Course: Compressed Gas Cylinder Safety

I’ve uploaded several samples to YouTube from one of our recent training modules – Compress Gas Cylinder Safety. The full module includes over 23 minutes of training covering subjects such as a basic description of gas cylinders, how they are used, potential hazards, and best practices for storage, transport and use of compressed gas cylinders. This module is also now included in our Online Catalog featured in Convergence Training Viewer.

This course is combined with Compressed Air Fundamentals and offered as our Compressed Air package. These individual courses can be purchased starting at $39 for the computer-based version, or $49 for the DVD version. The combo-package is only $69 for the computer-based version, and $79 for the DVD version. To purchase, visit our online store and search for “compressed”.

To view the latest samples, you can view my channel here: http://www.youtube.com/kdellavalle

Upgrade Microsoft Framework Using Windows Update

Microsoft just released new Windows updates that will significantly reduce the time it takes to download our software and courses!

Because we used the latest technology to develop our software, some of our customers have been missing the required components. Our installer recognizes this and downloads the required components – this can take a long time! If you’ve installed all the latest updates (specifically Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 Service Pack 1), downloading CTV should take less than 5 minutes on a broadband connection. For more details on how to make sure you have the required components, see the documents below:

Upgrade Guide for Vista Users

 

Upgrade Guide for XP Users

 

Email us with questions.

Convergence Training Viewer – The Installation is Worth the Wait

Our Vision

When we set out to create our free training viewer software, we wanted a platform that was fast, stable, and provided a rich graphical interface to our customers. We believe that an application should work well and be easy on the eyes. The technology we chose was Windows Presentation Foundation, or WPF. For those unfamiliar with WPF, it allows us to create applications that behave more like Flash animations (animated menus, glowing button highlights, interactive interface, etc.), and are built around a powerful and stable core (earlier frameworks have a number of known bugs). Which would you choose – older technology that most people have, but contains known bugs, or newer technology that might take longer to download but would be more stable and perform better?

Required Components

We chose the latest technology and refused to compromise on the quality of our product which means that users of our product must have the Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 (service pack 1) installed on their system. Currently, this is an optional windows update, but is scheduled to be a required update on Windows XP and Vista users early this year (2009). For more information about getting the framework via windows updates, check out this Microsoft blog posting:
When will the .NET Framework 3.5 SP1 be pushed to windows update?

Long Download/Install Time

We’ve designed our installation process to work for everyone, regardless of what software the users may or may not have installed – it will download and install necessary components, including the .NET Framework. This can be helpful, but it can also increase your download time if you don’t have the required components. If the necessary components are already installed on your computer, then the installation of Convergence Training Viewer is typically as short as a few minutes. If you can bear with the long Microsoft download/install, we promise the CTV install will be quick and painless.

Other WPF Applications

Convergence Training is not alone in embracing the new Microsoft technology to build software. Visit the Microsoft Community Showcase to see other applications using this new and innovative technology.
Visit Microsoft’s WPF Showcase

Worth the Wait

We appreciate the patience of our users who have experienced longer installation times and less than elegant installation. We’ve investigated several techniques to shorten download times, such as using older versions of controls, including the components in the download file, and more. All of these approaches have had their own unique drawbacks forcing us to choose the least problematic solution. For those of you wanting to claim your free course, please contact us and we will be happy to send it to your physical address on a CD-ROM. For everyone else, we will gladly send you the necessary Microsoft .NET components on a CD-ROM which will help alleviate long download time.

Given the quality of our training products, we believe that our software and training courses are worth the wait. Once you are finished with the installation process, you will be glad you took the time. If you would prefer to receive the files on a disk, send us an email.

Again, we apologize for any difficulties you may have experienced and appreciate your patience while technology catches up with our innovative approach to training. We are committed to supporting our product and ensuring your ongoing satisfaction by helping you build a successful training program.

Free Training Viewer Featured on Microsoft Website

Today our free training viewer, Convergence Training Viewer, has been featured on the Microsoft WindowsClient.NET WPF Showcase. Our application uses Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF), the latest technology framework from Microsoft, to provide rich user experiences to our viewers.

For those who don’t know, Convergence Training Viewer is a free, downloadable training access portal designed to view interactive training media. The Training Viewer provides anyone, anywhere, at any time access to a rapidly growing catalog of computer-based training modules.

Convergence Training Viewer requires a complex and highly graphical feature set that must be presented in a way that first time users can grasp the essential elements with little or no prior instruction. WPF is a critical component in achieving that goal. It uses .NET 3.5 SP1 and Microsoft BITS technology.

Convergence Training Viewer delivers training content using a single workstation – Best for smaller companies that need quality training material with minimum administrative functionality or trainers who wish to present in a group or classroom setting.

Check it out on the showcase and check out some of the other applications to take advantage of WPF.

New Convergence Training Viewer Screenshots

I had saved a bunch of screenshots in various places over the last few weeks and needed to pull them all together in one location so I could get to them all easily. Roman (Director of Sales here at Convergence) also needed some for an email he was putting together. I thought since I have them all together I would post some of the shots with comments.

New screenshot with only a few modules installed, you can see the icon for presenter mode on the First Aid modules:

This screenshot shows modules in various stages – installed content, content being installed, and content that is currently downloading:

There isn’t much new with this one, but it does show the details of our integrated catalog:

Free Training-Course Offer

Good News! Convergence Training is offering our users a unique opportunity to receive a copy of one of our Environmental, Health and Safety courses ABSOLUTELY FREE!

Over the past year we have been working hard to develop a brand new training delivery tool – Convergence Training Viewer (CTV). With Convergence Training Viewer you can download some of the most contemporary and highly-effective training content available. Our easy-to-use setup wizard will guide you through the installation process within minutes. Once CTV is installed you can download selected titles from our integrated catalog and train as many users as you want using your personal computer.

For more information on this offer, click on the following link: Convergence Free Course Offer

The CTV Advantage

Why spend hundreds of dollars on DVDs or VHS tapes when the Convergence Training Viewer will allow you to manage, track, and update training for a fraction of the cost? CTV can work in student (self-paced) mode and will automatically track results. CTV can also work in presenter mode (for classroom presentations) for use in groups and meetings. When course updates are released, you can use our simple update feature to download the new content and be ready to train in minutes. CTV will help you get rid of the paper-nightmare and simplify your record keeping. Try it for free today and discover the most powerful new solution for the training industry on the market! Download Now!

MSHA Videos Posted to YouTube

We went through our Surface Miner Training curriculum and pulled a video from each module. We have updated our YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/kdellavalle) to include all of these video samples. The samples show the type of content that we produce and show how much more interesting and engaging our training is versus the other MSHA training out on the market. If you are sick of videos from the 1980’s and 1990’s being out of date, old, and unprofessional, I suggest taking a look at our samples. For even more details, you can download Convergence Training Viewer for free and install a fully featured demonstration version of our Surface Miner Training curriculum.

Laser Safety Training Updated and Released

Today, we have released a new and improved version of Laser Safety. This module is part of our Environmental, Health and Safety course library. The Laser Safety module covers laser light, how lasers work, types of lasers, laser classifications, laser hazards, low-power laser hazards, and laser pointer safety guidelines. Reference: STD 01-05-001 – PUB 8-1.7.
The course includes 16 minutes of training and is now being offered for $39.00 for use in Convergence Training Viewer and is competetively priced per user for use in SCORM compliant LMSs.

You can see a video preview of the module on YouTube here: http://www.youtube.com/kdellavalle. You can also download CTV and have a 5-day free trial of the module.