What is an LMS?

With a pile of innovation and ideas generating everyday, it is impossible to strum a friendly chord with all the concepts and tools that the age of internet has to offer. You may be reasonably comfortable with the browsers and socials networking sites but for once there pops up an e-term that leaves you bewildered. One such concept is LMS or Learning Management System which, despite being used for decades, is still unfamiliar to many. You must have heard of the term LMS irrespective of whether you are a student, employee, or even a manager and why not! The software has a broad range of benefits to offer to anyone indulged in the learning process. Here we bring you the guide to drum all the things that you need to know about Learning Management System, into your mind. What is an LMS? LMS or Learning management system is a software which assists the users with e-learning programs by hosting, managing, organising and evaluating the web-based courses for the learners. Like the spine of e-learning system, LMS provides a support framework to the learning process. Putting it simply, the software enables users to perform the work of putting together the course material and performing the activities of managing, tracking and evaluating the learning process. Who uses the LMS? Primarily a learning management system can be presumed helpful only for the students but the truth is, organisations and companies are witnessing an upsurge in adopting the software for better efficiency of employees and subsequently, work. Corporates are increasingly using the software for not only orientation of new employees but also to train and educate the existing employees for better results. Business organizations of almost every size are increasingly adopting LMS in their learning and development strategy. Managers are adopting LMS in the process of tracking and evaluating the work record of employees. Thus, Learning Management System is not just a software to assist the e-learning process but also a necessary ingredient for a systematic and skillful function at the workplace. Conventional educational institutions like schools and colleges, institutions offering distant education programs, government organizations, NGOs etc. are also some of the major users of LMS. How to deploy an LMS? Once you know what an LMS is and what is it used for, the next query would be how to install the software. LMS can be deployed in two ways and to make your best pick, you must know about both, minutely. 1. Self-Hosted LMS Self hosted LMS is actually a web application which needs to be downloaded and installed on your own server. Deployment of a self hosted LMS require thorough technical knowledge of software installation, back up and updates. Self-Hosted LMS applications provide greater control and scope for customization however the down side is that you usually have to pay for updates. 2. Cloud-Based LMS (SaaS) Cloud-based LMS are basically subscription based LMS provided by a third party LMS provider. No additional installation of a hardware or a software is required, you just need internet access and a browser. Users can log in to the learning management system with a username and password and can access the learning content hosted on LMS. Cloud-Based LMS is preferred more because of its low installation maintenance cost and faster setup. The LMS vendor maintains the system and carries out updates or upgrades. What is an LMS used for?