We can do a lot more to really make this site sing, said Jeeps. For example, we plan to use the templates to provide a customised look and feel for individual users. There are also plans to provide more virtual drop-in centres where people can gain online advice about courses and funding. However, there is no intention to abandon the more conventional learning centres. We see the future as a mixed economy, said Dr Sutton.
People are always likely to want some form of human contact for peer level support.
It would be remiss to have created this model for continuing education and not attempt to make it a competitive offering on a world scale, said Dr Sutton. Given that Ufi is set up as a charitable trust, all revenues can be reinvested to further enhance products and services. Thanks to the technology, there are no problems of scalability, and reliability has been maintained despite the site s rapid expansion. Given the high levels of public access, the site has to be very robust, Dr Sutton said. We are glad to have been able to predict loadings and spikes of interest without having experienced the massive meltdown of other such sites.