A learning management system or LMS is an online space that allows to manage, track and report educational courses in your organization. Using this software you can create and store eLearning courses, provide content to learners and evaluate the results.

But the changing landscape of the eLearning industry requires experts to respond and implement updates operating in real-time. The open source LMS model accomplishes these tasks and you can build custom solutions based on your specifications and flexibility. This model made it possible for any developer to contribute with the source code and adopt an online learning process to trending updates.

The Landscape of an Open Source Learning

So, you are choosing open source among other types of LMS and now you need to understand what makes this solution sound choice and what can be difficult for your company.
 

Benefits of an Open Source LMS 

• Customization: Open source LMS offers flexible and customized features, which you can add as you need. You’re able to integrate own branding, layouts, dashboards and personalize the learning process. You can achieve specific training goals by modifying every aspect of the platform. 
• Cost: Open source is a low-cost solution, but full functionality and capabilities are available for premium offerings.
• Community: You can find tips and tricks inside online users community. It is built by practitioners, that’s why troubles usually resolved through online forums and discussion groups.

Risks of an Open Source LMS

• Support: There is no dedicated technical team and support is forum based. It's often hard to find some solution immediately. 
• Features: Many open-source platforms limited to provided features. You should clarify what included in the download package and extra cost. 
• User Interface: Open Source platforms offer basic and complex UI that isn't user-friendly. Usage can be difficult in practice.

Does an open source LMS fit you well?

There are thousands of LMS vendors and too many Learning Management System features to choose from. Even after deciding what type of deployment or license you are going to go with, there are many other things to consider as well. 

Market-feature matrix

Each customer has requirements, such as user progress tracking and bookmarking, that are common to all. But an LMS solution that is successful for a university does not mean that it will be successful for a large organization. The following market-feature matrix outlines the requirements that are priorities for each sector of online education: 

4 Questions To Ask Yourself Before Choosing An Open Source LMS

Answering questions below you will be able to determine whether Open Source LMS is something your online learning project needs.

Click Let’s start button to pass the quiz!

The Top Open Source LMS Vendors

In our previous post we reviewed the best open source LMS vendors. So, let’s consider the Top 3 of them: Sakai, Moodle, Canvas and Open edX. 

What's next?

When it’s time to choose an open-source software, you should consider some factors for development and remember the tips and tricks described in this article. Choosing a vendor you should have the capability to review the services with solutions demo. Usually, it takes about 30 minutes and contains a brief presentation of online learning solutions.
Start investing in an Open Source Learning Management System and bring your educational services to the new level!