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Classroom and registration administration
Throughout the 1970s, primary activities of the early LMS involved classroom and registration administration. Already in existence was PLATO - a computer assisted instruction system. -
Computer-based CD training
The 1980s saw the LMS version software licence being bought and installed on buyer's server and network. -
LMS support of additional distance learning features
LMS begins to support a number of distance learning features evident in First Class LMS by SoftArc. United KIngdom Open University used First Class to deliver online learning across Europe. -
HTML designed sites - by hand
HTML coding by hand used to display pages on e-commerce sites as they were the only dynamic pages at that time. Scripting languages used included Perl and Cold Fusion (created in 1996). -
Custom CMS
Site owners discovered the benefits of writing and editing their own content and could upload photos and write stories resulting in the dawn of the Custom CMS. Programmimg languages PHP, Java, Perl and NET with supported databases like MySQL, Oracle and SQLite assisted with the customization of the CMS. -
LMS an Interactive Learning Network
The first LMS to use a relational database, MySQL. This LMS was installed at the universities of Yale and Cornell. -
Proprietary CMS
Commercialization of CMSs began as site owners offered support services for and sale of the Custom CMS. An example is Microsoft SharePoint -
Document Management Systems
Large magazines and newspapers managed word processing documents, spreadsheets and presentations using document management systems. -
Open-source CMS
Work began on open-source CMSs in the early 2000s. It was in 2004 however that usage increased substantially. For e.g Drupal CMS -
First Open-Source LMS - Moodle
The LMS Moodle was released in 2004 and is the first open-source LMS. To start learning, the software needed only to be downloaded to a personal computer. -
Single source LCMS
Xyleme Inc. released a single source LCMS, Studio in September 2007 to satisfy the need for critical training content. -
LMS for learning anytime and anywhere
By 2010 LMSs are managing learning anytime and anywhere. With the advent of cloud computing in the year 2008, the LMS has the option to exist online and not have to be connected to an internal network.
