This article is based on a discussion that took place in the Ask a Techo forum

If you want to witness the enormous search power of an engine like Google, try using the keyword “LMS” and see the incredible number of results that turn up. The plethora of information about LMS makes it incredibly difficult for a newcomer to choose one for their own circumstance.

Here's a one-page outline of where to find out what you need.  A quick search on the web turned up:

edu tools – a site that reviews products by researching and describing more than 40 product features. http://www.edutools.info/course/index.jsp

Ocotillo Web Courseware Comparisons and Studies - a meta site listing many links for courseware comparison sites: http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/ocotillo/courseware/compare.html

For a "mere" $995 you can get 3 months access to LMS KnowledgeBase which provides In-Depth Profiles of 50 Learning Management Systems, with Custom Comparison Across 200+ Features: http://www.brandonhall.com/public/publications/lms/

If you’re looking for an Australian product, it’s worth investigating Janison Toolbox. This has integrated features, is value for money and includes a supportive help desk. Recently, IMS content packaging and SCORM run time compliance (extremely useful features) have been added. However the downside is that a system with as many features as Janison can have steeper learning curves, although I must say that it is relatively easy to get up to basic delivery speed quite quickly - and then the rest follows.

If you’re interested in open source and still want an Aussie product, check out Moodle. This is developing quite a following. Whether it works for you really depends on the size of your organisation and projects, number of users on the system, whether you have the resources to host and support in-house or whether you would be better off with a hosted solution.

Open source is flavour of the month at the moment but is not free. The decision about going in that direction depends on the investment you want to make financially as well as time and staff resources. If you have someone in your organisation keen to take the open source path, follow up changes, support the software etc then go for it. If not, a commercial solution may be more suitable.

The single most important piece of advice I’ve found in terms of future proofing is to ensure that the system supports IMS or SCORM content packaging and SCORM runtime. That way - when you need to move on you zip up your content and your interactions and move on.

Also don't forget - if you are a small operator you may not need an LMS at all - there are many other free and cheap software downloads out there that can do many of the jobs an LMS can. The advantage of an LMS is that most everything you need is in the "one basket" and for larger organisation they represent an easier to manage solution, particularly given the divergence of IT skills in our wider VET staff populations.

Further reading:

Is Your LMS on Steroids Yet?

Learning Management Systems: A teacher's perspective

Coursework: A FREE Learning Management System