Learning the Basics of Citrix XenApp 5 for Windows Server 2008

Learning the basics of Citrix XenApp 5 for Windows Server 2008 is a fairly easy process. However, understanding all the installation options, configuration settings, management consoles and administrative processes for all the various Citrix software and hardware components that can go into a Citrix farm can be a daunting task. This series of articles will lead you from the very first step to the very last step of installing, configuring and testing XenApp 5 on a single server running Windows Server 2008. The goal – to get you installing and running a Published Application in the shortest amount of time.

• Learning the Basics of XenApp 5 for Windows Server 2008 (Part 1)
• Learning the Basics of XenApp 5 for Windows Server 2008 (Part 2)
• Learning the Basics of XenApp 5 for Windows Server 2008 (Part 3)
• Learning the Basics of XenApp 5 for Windows Server 2008 (Part 4)
• Learning the Basics of XenApp 5 for Windows Server 2008 (Part 5)
• Learning the Basics of XenApp 5 for Windows Server 2008 (Part 6)
• Learning the Basics of XenApp 5 for Windows Server 2008 (Part 7)

VIRTUAL PRESENTATIONS: TECHNIQUES FOR MOVING TRAINING ONLINE

The move from classroom training to e-learning requires proper preparation for a smooth and effective transition.

Mary was just like hundreds of other people I've come across in my work. She was an experienced classroom trainer. She loved interacting with learners, and didn't mind traversing the country for a one-day course. Then her company decided to slash travel and training budgets. They got a WebEx license and expected Mary to convert existing courseware and deliver it online. Sound familiar?

This is the most common complaint I hear from fellow training professionals about the move from instructor-led training (ILT) to virtual instructor-led training (VILT): We are expected to figure out how to use the platform, meet the learning objectives, and present the training as effectively in the virtual classroom as in the in-person classroom—all without sufficient preparation, practice, or resources (budget, time, and expertise).

I prefer to think the reasons for this are not negligence or thrift, but rather our organizations' faith in our ability to find a solution where others can't—after all, who's smarter than the learning function? However, such faith provides little comfort and even less help.

As classroom trainers, we struggle to move smoothly to the VILT world for three reasons:

1. We don't clearly understand the possibilities and limitations of the new technology.
2. We aren't as comfortable using this new platform as we are presenting in the traditional classroom setting.
3. Online training is not as enjoyable as being in the classroom, so we're not motivated to make the transition.

Each of these reasons, explored in this article, is a legitimate barrier to successful instruction. The good news is that there are tips and best practices available to help us quickly overcome them.

Understand the limitations and possibilities

According to some of the top web platform providers, more than 80 percent of people who conduct online presentations never receive any training on how to use the platform effectively. If you find yourself in this particular position, here are some actions you can take.

Participate in a variety of online learning opportunities. Too many people attempt to create or lead online training without having participated in a solid online learning program. If you've only experienced noninteractive, PowerPoint-dependent snooze fests, of course you are not in a hurry to inflict such boredom on others.

Watch what works, and model it. Many platform providers offer training opportunities that demonstrate the features and possibilities. Be mindful of one caveat: Free marketing webinars are marketing opportunities, not training, and should not be used as such. You may have to spend some money to receive decent instruction.

Learn the features of the platform and how to replicate them for your own training experience. Some people are so apprehensive of technology that they forget what they know about great adult learning. For example, many trainers use a show of hands or a flipchart activity to build interaction in the classroom. Most web platforms have a "raise hand" button and a whiteboard feature—learn to use these tools online as you would in a formal classroom setting.

Realize that class size depends on the learning, not the technology. Learning professionals know that as class size increases, participation and interaction decrease. This reality is especially true online where it's difficult to engage even a small group of participants. Just because you can have 100 participants for a virtual event doesn't mean you should. Such training often becomes a lecture, and not real learning.

Become comfortable presenting online

We aren't as comfortable presenting online as we are in the classroom for good reason. First, we have developed a set of skills and behaviors that are natural to us when teaching in person. We can scan the audience, remember our material, present it, and simultaneously run the PowerPoint while still hitting the lunch break right on time. We have become unconsciously competent. By adding the complexity of technology, we suddenly have become unconsciously incompetent. We'll survive VILT with some basic common sense.

Ensure that the courseware is deliverable by delivering it. The online environment is different from ILT, and you cannot present courseware the same as you always have. Short modules work best because attention spans are much shorter during online learning. Also, incorporate plenty of breaks—people physically can't interact with a screen for more than an hour at a time.

Adjust learning exercises for the online environment. Some platforms have breakout rooms, which can be useful in replicating small-group work completed in the traditional classroom, but they often require more monitoring from the instructor. This takes practice and patience.

Practice delivering your online presentation. You can't read or watch your way to proficiency. Practice means accessing the platform and presenting the training in real time using all of the tools in your arsenal—preferably with another human being observing and providing feedback. Once you are consciously competent, the rest of your innate facilitation and listening skills will come to the fore.

Enjoy the online experience

The third barrier to moving from ILT to VILT is one that most learning professionals do not want to admit: We miss the fun and excitement of the classroom. Few people go into the training profession for the money. We thrive on the human interaction and performance buzz we experience in the classroom. Why would we sign up for something that eliminates what we love most about our jobs, and replace it with what we like least—working with technology in isolation? There are, however, ways to have fun with online training.

Increase interaction opportunities. Because of our discomfort, we tend to limit interaction in the online environment (at least at first). Instead of restricting chat, let people talk and joke, and keep audio lines open when possible.

Use polling frequently and appropriately. Allow participants to write on the whiteboard. While instinctually we seek to maintain control, it's actually quite fun to let people contribute and "play." And start interaction early in the session—you can't expect the audience to sit passively for 45 minutes and then spring into action.

Use humor, color, and pictures. People can become incredibly serious in an online learning environment. Because their attention spans take a beating, it requires more energy to keep participants engaged. Don't be afraid to be creative with photos, pictures, and graphics. For example, I often use jokes and silly examples in polls and surveys just to see if the audience is awake.

Although many of these tips may seem to be common sense, it's surprising how few companies give their training teams the time, budget, and access to resources necessary to support a move to the online training environment. Use these suggestions to enjoy a smoother and less traumatic transition.

The Art of Online Instruction

"One machine can do the work of fifty ordinary men. No machine can do the work of one extraordinary man."

— Elbert Hubbard

"One machine can do the work of fifty ordinary men. No machine can do the work of one extraordinary man." — Elbert Hubbard

Teaching online is increasingly an option for higher education instructors. Traditional institutions are expanding their reach by adding online versions of their existing programs and online universities continue to add new programs to their catalogs. And in some cases, teaching online is a requirement, as traditional faculty are encouraged or assigned to take their face-to-face courses online.

Online instructors can realize benefits from the virtual delivery of an academic course, but they also face a number of challenges. While they enjoy some of the same benefits that draw online students in terms of convenience and flexibility, online instructors must also master additional skills associated with the technology and administration required of a virtual learning environment.

Comparing Online and Traditional Classrooms

Making the move from face-to-face instruction to virtual instruction is becoming less complicated, as traditional classrooms incorporate learning management systems (LMS), such as Blackboard, eCollege, Moodle, and Sakai. The LMS is now used in many course formats traditional, blended, and completely online to manage and organize course content and provide additional methods for students and instructors to interact and communicate.

When online course sites are used to deliver the course materials, the online instructor’s role is to facilitate the learning experience, student interaction with the materials, and student-to-student interaction. This facilitation involves several considerations that are not typically part of a face-to-face course.

Communication Tools and Techniques

Communication in an online course can be categorized as either synchronous (occurring in real-time) or asynchronous (participants contribute at times of their own choosing). Synchronous tools allow instructors to meet with students as a group or one-on-one when participants are all online at the same time, providing instant feedback. These tools range from text-only instant messaging to virtual classrooms with audio, video, and tools for working collaboratively (i.e. whiteboards, application sharing, web tours). Synchronous tools may be built into an LMS, accessed through a commercial license (e.g. Adobe Connect, GoToMeeting) or available as open and web-based options (e.g. Skype, GoogleTalk). Managing a synchronous event involves a number of skills related to both technology and moderating.

Asynchronous tools allow students to provide their input, feedback, responses, etc. at times that are convenient to them, but within deadlines established in a course. Threaded discussion forums are perhaps the most prevalent asynchronous tool and are usually part of the LMS for each course. This tool allows for class discussions in which students respond to a posted question, and to each others’ responses, at different times. Managing an effective asynchronous discussion involves creating good questions that encourage exchange, moderating via text, and a great deal of reading and writing.

Creating an Online Presence

Online instructors often never meet their students face-to-face. This environment and the relationships between instructor and student are enhanced by the creation of online presence. Patrick Lowenthal and Tina Parscal of Regis University published a list of specific strategies available to online instructors for the development of presence in a course using computer-mediated communication. These strategies are categorized into three areas ñ instructional design, teaching, and social learning. Examples of strategies for creating teaching and social presence in an online course include posting student and instructor profiles within the LMS, sharing personal stories and professional experiences, and using expressions of emotions.

Often universities with online programs will provide some guidance for online instructors on developing an online teaching presence. The Center for Teaching Excellence at Duquesne University is just one example. This information can be valuable, especially if it is based on information and feedback from the university’s online students and successful online instructors.

Developing an Online Community

Developing an online presence is closely linked to the development of an online community. Palloff and Pratt describe the need for an effective learning community in their 2011 book, The Excellent Online Instructor: Strategies for Professional Development. Creating an environment in which students feel they belong promotes engagement, sharing, collaboration, and support, as well as a feeling of responsibility among members.

Wayne Hall, a professor from San Jacinto College, published his list of "5 Ways to Build Community in an Online Course". This list includes: requiring extensive student introductions; sending personal email messages to students weekly; conducting frequent student surveys or polls; providing opportunity for discussion; and conducting synchronous chat sessions. Hall also recommends the use of video throughout the class, in the form of brief introductory presentations to begin units or lessons.

Recent research conducted by a group of instructional designers and faculty at Eastern Kentucky University also found that faculty introduction videos had value from the student perspective. A majority of students felt that viewing their instructor’s videos helped them prepare to participate in their online courses and gave them the opportunity to meet their instructors virtually.

As an online instructor you will also be the one to set the tone for the course in terms of etiquette and netiquette. Your students will look to you for cues. Model the professional behavior you expect from your students in online communication and participation. Be explicit about how you want to be addressed in the course as the community’s leader and facilitator.

Qualifications and Competencies

Each institution will have its own preferences and policies for hiring online instructors. Basic qualifications usually include a minimum level of education in the field in which you will teach, work experience in your field, and teaching experience. You will find these requirements along with a list of skills as part of teaching position announcements. An overview of typical items you can expect to see is provided below. Some of these competencies are not so different from what is required for traditional courses, while others speak specifically to the needs of the online environment and the tools used there to facilitate learning at a distance.

Professional Preparation

• Education. Level will be based on requirements for the courses and programs. Instructor positions in higher education usually require at least a master’s degree and a doctorate is often preferred.
• Experience. Many online universities specifically recruit faculty who have recent experience working in the fields they plan to teach. Previous teaching experience may also be a requirement.
• Expertise. Subject matter expertise in the area you are teaching is typically required as evidenced by at least 18 graduate credit hours of coursework in the academic discipline you are teaching.

General Skills

• Facilitation. In an online environment, instructors are often referred to as guides or facilitators. Students will have access to course content and supplementary materials on their own. As the instructor, you will guide their progress through this content and the related activities, evaluating their learning with formal assessments. Explore online instructional strategies that can help you serve as guide. An essential component of guiding your class is your ability to facilitate and moderate synchronous and asynchronous discussions. Review a collection of specific suggestions for discussion forums.
• Organization. Online courses require instructors to have the ability to conduct the course and as well as complete all of the related administrative requirements. You may find yourself teaching courses in overlapping terms or at multiple institutions. Keeping everything straight will be an important part of your duties.
• Problem-solving. The virtual environment will present numerous opportunities for problem-solving, such as helping a student find the support resources he/she needs and troubleshooting your own computer’s Internet connection. Not all issues can be anticipated and you will be responsible for taking the initial steps toward finding solutions.
• Time management. Online courses often take place over shorter terms than the semester-based academic schedule used at traditional universities. During the term, your course will be "live" 24/7, so your ability to manage progress and respond to students in a timely manner is important. Some programs have standard policies regarding time commitments for instructors to provide feedback to students. If these guidelines are not in place it will be up to you to clearly communicate what students can expect.
• Employment negotiation and tracking. Many online instructors work as adjunct faculty and on a contract basis. It is important for you to understand issues related to pay equity, fairness in employment, salary expectations, unions, and employment contracts. You will also want to track your hours and expenses for potential reimbursement and tax implications.

Technology Skills

• Hardware. As an online instructor, it is likely you will also be a remote employee of the universities where you teach. This may mean using your own computer system for work. Online courses, especially those with synchronous sessions, have additional requirements for speakers, microphones, and web cameras, as well as the skills necessary to use this equipment effectively.
• Software. Check with your Dean or supervising instructor to find out what software you will need to be able to use in your courses, as well as additional applications such as Skype or Adobe Connect. As a course instructor, it will be your responsibility to use the software and applications effectively with your students.
• Digital and media literacies. Online instructors, as well as online students, need to be skilled in conducting an online search and assessing Web-content for credibility in terns of its currency, source, purpose, and relevance.

Personal Characteristics

• Self-confident. An online educator must have the self-confidence to embrace the ever-changing nature of technology and to engage students in the learning experience. Theodore Sizer, former Harvard University Dean of Education, describes the self-confidence necessary to be a successful educator: "A fine teacher does have confidence, but the honest confidence that flows from a fair recognition of one’s own frailties as well as talents and which accommodates both joyfully." (reprinted here) The truly self-confident online instructor embraces the changing nature of technology and the potential for collaboration in the technology-facilitated class as a learning experience for all participants.
• Collaborative. Online instructors are sometimes called upon to work on committees, participate on online course development teams, and help mentor newer instructors. As in traditional university settings, there may also be the opportunity to participate in collaborative research projects and presentations.
• Flexible. Being comfortable with change and anticipating the possibility of change is important in the online learning environment where technologies and policies may require a quick shift in procedures.
• Willing to learn. The online learning environment is a dynamic one. As an instructor you will constantly be required to learn how to use new technologies and innovative course components. Considering the incredible pace of change in technology, even if you are an expert with hardware and software today, there is a real possibility that those systems will soon be obsolete. Be open to learning new systems and to learning from your students who may know more about a particular program or tool than you do.
• Committed to student advocacy. Online students are also working remotely and will rely on their instructor as a front line resource for assistance with a wide range of questions and issues. You will be their link to additional resources, such as the help desk and library, which may not be a formal part of your course.

There are ongoing efforts to refine competency lists for online instructors through both research and practice. While each school or program may have a list of instructor skills available for you to review, there are others that may be helpful resources as well.

• Penn State’s Learning Design Community has posted a list of 30 competencies for online instructors organized into five areas: Administrative, Design, Facilitation, Evaluation, and Technical.
• Education researchers Alvarez, Guasch, and Espasa published a 2009 article in the European Journal of Teacher Education that lists 5 key roles, and associated competencies and tasks, for online teachers. These roles include: Designer/Planner, Social, Cognitive, Technological, and Managerial.
• In a 2007 publication titled "Master Online Teacher Competencies" by Virgil Varvel from the Illinois Online Network, a list of 7 roles was developed: Administrative (systems, ethical and legal issues), Personal (personal qualities and characteristics), Technological (technology knowledge and abilities), Instructional Design (process, knowledge, and abilities), Pedagogical (teaching processes, knowledge and abilities), Assessment (student learning and abilities), and Social (processes and presence).

Each of these lists, and others like them, provide critical information about the skills and qualifications required for successful online instructors. There is some overlap but each list offers an interesting perspective. There is a lot to think about and prepare for, and a wealth of resources to help you get ready.

Becoming a Successful Online Instructor

The path to achieving success as an online instructor is made up of steps that include preparing for the work ahead, achieving realistic perspectives through assessment and experience, and learning from the pedagogy of online teaching. Some of the resources required are provided by universities and others you will need to find on your own.

Preparation

• Formal and informal training. If you are brand new to online learning, consider preparatory workshops, courses, and certificate programs offered by private companies, universities, and professional organizations. There are informal options as well in the form of open courseware focused on faculty development and topics related to online teaching.
• Your school. Once you are hired, explore all of the resources provided to you by your new department. Look for opportunities, and potential requirements, to attend new instructor orientation sessions. You will also find helpful information and guidance in faculty handbooks and other policy and procedures manuals. Locate faculty development resources in the form of tutorials and workshops. Ask your supervisor for information related to online instructor performance expectations, to better understand how the university will measure your success as an online instructor. Ask for access as a visitor to another professorís online course at your university, so that you can learn what is expected at the school.

Perspective

• Assess yourself. Self-assessments can help you identify your current strengths and weaknesses as an online instructor. Tools such as the Faculty Self-Assessment from Penn State provide a list of critical competencies, feedback on your current levels of experience with each one, and guidance on helpful resources for you to pursue.
• Take a course. Consider experiencing the online learning environment as a student. This experience and fresh perspective will be invaluable as you work with online students in your future courses. Some schools will pay for you to do this ñ research available options for tuition reimbursement and fee waivers.

Practice

• Transition. Seek out opportunities to integrate technology into your traditional courses as a way to transition into a completely online course. Taking small steps in this direction will help you build your skills and comfort level with both technology and online communication.
• If at first you don’t succeed. Take the time to assess what went well and what didnít go well in each online course you teach. Then, formulate a plan for improvement that builds on the successes you’ve had in the past. You will be better able to anticipate problems, and enhance your skills, with every new course and term.

Being an online instructor means more than posting information online and standing back. It also means more than strictly presenting lecture content on the Internet. Effective online instruction requires interactivity both in terms of the course content and the community of learners participating in the class. Prepare yourself for your role as an online instructor with a thorough review of both your current skills and the wide variety of resources available to support your efforts.

Software Design Principles

There are many design principles that have become best practices over the years. Using these principles we can develop scalable and maintainable enterprise application with time tested approaches.

Keep It Simple Stupid (KISS)
The main goal here is keep things simple. Avoiding unnecessary complexity will help to keep it clear and easy to understand. Also this principle will help in maintenance; if it is simple then also easy to modify. Usually the simplest solution is the best solution.

Don’t Repeat Yourself (DRY)
This principle states to not repeat things. We can abstract out repeated things and keep it at some common place where everybody can access it. We can also make common (repeating) things as general, so that it is available to all.

Separation of Concerns (SoC)
Separating things into discrete responsibilities increases reusability, maintenance and also testability. Here concerns refer to specific features or behavior of the system.
For example, Object Oriented programming languages such as C++, C# and Java (to name a few) can separate concerns into objects. A Design Pattern like MVC (Model-View-Controller) can separate content from presentation and data processing (model) from content. Service Oriented design can separate concerns into services. Procedural programming languages such as C can separate concerns into procedures. Aspect Oriented programming languages can separate concerns into aspects and objects.

The Pareto Principle
The famous pareto principle states that 80% of effects comes from 20% of causes, i.e. 80% of sales comes from 20% of customers. The principle is named after Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto, who observed in 1906 that 80% of land in Italy is owned by 20% of the population. It can help to resist efforts to correct and optimize designs beyond critical 20%. So 80% focus is on 20% part of the stuff.
In software engineering Pareto principle can be applied to optimization efforts. For example, Microsoft noted that by fixing the top 20% of the most reported bugs, 80% of the errors and crashes would be eliminated.

The Robustness Principle
The Robustness Principle states that, “Be liberal in what you accept, and be conservative in what you send”. In other words, code that sends commands or data to other parts of the system should conform completely to the specifications, but code that receives input should accept non-conformant input as long as the meaning is clear.
For example, TCP implementation follows the principle.

You Ain’t Gonna Need It (YAGNI)
It is the principle in extreme programming, states that programmers should not add functionality until it is necessary. It tells programmers that always implement things when you actually need them, never when you just foresee that you need them. Even if you are sure that you will need it later on, do not implement it now. The principle is actually emerged from “Extreme Programming” methodologies.

Loose Coupling and High Cohesion
Coupling means links between separate units of a program. In OOPs, if two classes depend closely on many details of each other, we say they are tightly coupled.

Coupling is a measure of the interdependence between types/entities. If every object has a reference to every other object, then there is tight coupling, which is undesirable. Because there’s potentially too much information flow between objects. Loose coupling is desirable. It means that objects work more independently of each other. Loose coupling minimizes the “ripple effect” where changes in one class cause necessity for changes in other classes

Cohesion refers to the number and diversity of tasks that a class is designed for. If a class is responsible for a few related logical tasks, we say it has high cohesion.

Cohesion is a measurement of strengths of the association of variables and methods within a class. High cohesion is desirable because it means the class does one job well. Low cohesion is undesirable because it indicates that there are elements in the class which have little to do with each other.

Modules whose elements are strongly and genuinely related to each other are desired. Each method should also be highly cohesive. Most methods have only one function to perform. Don’t add extra instructions into methods that cause it to perform more than one function
Loose Coupling has following advantages:

• We can understand concerned class without reading other classes
• We can change one class without affecting other classes
• Loose Coupling improves maintainability

High Cohesion has following advantages:

• We can easily understand what is the purpose of class or method
• High Cohesion makes it easier to use descriptive names
• We can easily reuse classes or methods

SOLID Principles

• Single Responsibility Principle (SRP)The Principle states that every object should have single responsibility, and the responsibility (reason to change) should be entirely encapsulated by the class. So a class or module should have one and only one reason to change.
  For example, we have a print report module. There are utmost two reasons to change the module. First is content of report is changed. Second is format of report is changed.
• Open Closed Principle (OCP)Software entities (i.e. classes, functions or modules) should be open for extension but closed for modification. Normally we close entities modification for providing backward compatibility (regression testing) and open entities extension for extending existing entities with new functionalities.
  For example, we can implement this principle by using Abstract classes, and thus enforcing concrete classes extend abstract classes rather than changing it. Some of the design patterns that supports this principle is template pattern and strategy pattern.
  In .NET Framework Microsoft has further supported this principle by providing partial classes/methods and extension methods. You can extend existing code by using these two new features in .NET.
• Liskov’s Substitution Principle (LSP)The principle states that derived types must be completely substitutable for their base types. It is just an extension of Open Closed Principle in terms of behavior. Meaning that the derived types must extend without changing behavior of base types, so that derived types is replaceable with base types (No need to change code).
  For example, we have method called StoreAddress(Address address) which accepts type “Address” as input parameter and stores it into the data store. Now if we make derived type from the “Address” type named “HomeAddress” then I should be able to call the same method by passing type “HomeAddress” and it stores correctly into the data store.
• Interface Segregation Principle (ISP)In nutshell, the principle states that “Clients should not be forced to depend upon interfaces that they don’t use”. When we simplify it states that when interface is too heavy, just break it down to the smaller and more specific interfaces which is client oriented so that clients should only worry about their concerned part.
  For example if we have <> interface which has “fly()” method and is implemented by Duck class. Now if we have wooden duck?
• Dependency Inversion Principle (DIP) [also known as Inversion of Control or Hollywood Principle: Don’t call us, we’ll call you or Dependency Injection]The Dependency Inversion principle refers to specific form of decoupling where conventional dependency relationship established from high level. The principle states two things.
  
  1. High-level modules should not depend on low-level modules. Both should depend on abstractions.
  2. Abstractions should not depend upon details. Details should depend upon abstractions.
  The main goal of dependency inversion principle is to decouple high-level components from low-level components in such a manner that reuse of low-level component implementations become possible.For example Adapter Pattern does the same thing. The high-level class defines its own adapter interface which is the abstraction that the high-level class depends on. The adaptee implementation also depends on the adapter interface abstraction. The high-level has no dependency to the low-level module since it only uses low-level indirectly through the adapter interface by working polymorphic methods to the interface which are implemented by the adaptee and its low-level module.