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1.1.2.1 The SCORM Content Aggregation Model (CAM) Book
The SCORM Content Aggregation Model (CAM) book contains information on metadata, content packages, and ADL sequencing and navigation content package extensions. There are several dependencies between the SCORM CAM book and the SCORM SN book.
Metadata is “data about data.” Simply put, metadata is information that describes the different components (content aggregations, content organizations, activities, SCOs and assets) of the SCORM content model. Metadata is necessary for the search and discovery of content objects. The SCORM SN book does not define a relationship with metadata; metadata has no impact on processing navigation requests or sequencing behaviors.
A content package, in a general sense, bundles content objects with a prescribed content structure. A SCORM content package may represent a SCORM course, lesson, module or may simply be a collection of related content objects that may be stored together. All SCORM content packages contain the imsmanifest.xml file. This file describes the contents of the package and may include an optional description of the content structure.
SCORM content packages may include additional information that describes how an LMS is intended to process the content package and manage its contents. Some of the information is used by the SCORM SN book.
Several elements in a SCORM content package affect initialization and management of a content object’s run-time data model. These elements have no effect on the behaviors described in the SCORM SN book.
Other elements in a SCORM content package describe initial values for specific elements of a content object’s run-time data model. Sequencing only identifies a content object for delivery; these elements have no effect on the behaviors described in the SCORM SN book.
Content object launch locations and launch parameters are also described as elements in a SCORM content package. Sequencing only identifies a content object for delivery; these elements have no effect on the behaviors described in the SCORM SN book.
When a SCORM content package includes a description of content structure, sequencing information may be added to define an intended approach to sequencing the package’s content objects. The SCORM SN book defines how the defined content structure, in the content package, is to be interpreted as an activity tree – a fundamental structure used for sequencing purposes.
A SCORM content package may include user interface (UI) elements intended to provide guidance to an LMS on how certain UI navigation controls are to be presented, enabled, and/or hidden. The sequencing behaviors described in the SCORM SN book do not rely on which or how UI navigation controls are enabled or triggered (navigation events), it is only concerned with the processing of LMS- invoked navigation requests.
To fully understand how sequencing- and navigation-specific elements are specified in a SCORM content package, refer to the SCORM CAM book [3].