Currently Google requires you to have a Google acct to use any of their API's. So a site like OpenClass will probably have to cater to that...really hope they don't expect people to use two types of logins...
Instructure's Canvas also used Google APIs and yes, you have to have a Google acct to use certain things like GoogleDocs within their site...
I am currently building a social eLearning site and I will proactively never call what I'm building as an LMS. LMS' key words are "management" where I'm building a site that will facilitate learning not just manage it.
I agree that the big game changers are live work collaboration and video chat and the standard Google has set is absolutely great. As a recent grad (may, 2011), working on group projects was absolutely essential to successful learning and by being able to allow similar interaction online is a win-win.
We have both those features in the site we're building...and the reason we're not too terrified of others using Google's APIs is that the user will ultimately still need a Google account to use them even on a different site.
If OpenClass is truly open, why make everyone sign up and then also sign up to Google? Not everyone has a Google acct. What about all the countries around the world that would benefit from a true "OpenClass"?
Check us out at www.cloudeas.com...our landing page is still not up yet as we recently started this project but with the amount of traction this article is getting, it's needless to say our landing page will be up today (tonight at the very latest).
We are 5 recent grads that feel the exact same way you have about blackboard---absolutely sick of it and it actually distracted us from learning rather than enhancing it...we decided to build our own: built by students but designed for professors
Ok, seriously, this has got to be a marketing ploy for Roger and brid.ge
Reasons:
-I spoke to him last night and said the ticket was not taken. Great! He told me to email him and he'd get back to me by the end of the night.
-I emailed him. Offered my laptop and monitor.
-No reply
-Morning: still no reply
-Afternoon: still no reply
-called him: google voice number is off. left a message.
-saw that he posted that the ticket is still up for grabs (see below).
-replied to his comment
-no response
-followed him on twitter: tweeted him
-followed brid.ge on twitter
-preregistered for brid.ge
-tweeted that i preregistered
basically i did everything i could do (besides giving up a kidney) to show him i'm the man for the volunteer job and deserving of the disrupt ticket.
Instructure's Canvas also used Google APIs and yes, you have to have a Google acct to use certain things like GoogleDocs within their site...