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VideoPaper Builder 3.0: Request For Proposals
February 27, 2004
Dear Bidder,
The Concord Consortium (CC, www.concord.org) is implementing a project called Seeing Math, funded by a grant from the US Department of Education, to develop multimedia tools for mathematics teacher professional development. CC is looking to contract with an outside company to upgrade our VideoPaperBuilder 2.0 software program.
To assist you in completing the RFP process, we have provided the following documents:
- Request for Proposals
Please review the proposal process carefully and submit any questions that you have to
rfp-videopaper@concord.org before submitting your bid. Answers will be shared with all invited bidders via the website.
Note the following key components that must be submitted within your proposal in order for it to be considered:
1. Statement of work
2. A comprehensive budget
3. A proposed timeline
We will not review proposals that do not contain this information.
Thank you for your consideration. We look forward to receiving your proposal.
Sincerely,
Alvaro H. Galvis
Research Director for Seeing Math Project
The Concord Consortium
Request for Proposals
The Concord Consortium
10 Concord Crossing, Suite 300
Concord, MA 01742
VideoPaper Builder 3.0 Development
February 27, 2004
Table of Contents
1. INTRODUCTION
2. SCOPE OF WORK
3. RFP PROCESS
APPENDIX A - VPB3 SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS SPECIFICATIONS
APPENDIX B – PROJECT SUBCONTRACT AGREEMENT
1. Introduction to Concord Consortium and Project
The Concord Consortium (www.concord.org) is a nonprofit educational research and development organization based in Concord, Massachusetts. We create interactive materials that exploit the power of information technologies. Our primary goal in all our work is digital equity – improving learning opportunities for all students.
The Seeing Math project, funded by the US Department of Education, develops multimedia case studies and digital tools for elementary, middle and high school mathematics teacher professional development. Among these tools is the VideoPaper Builder (VPB), developed by TERC and CC, which is an application that provides a graphical user interface to organize and interconnect image, video and textual context content and outputs this content in the form of a VideoPaper with customizable settings.
A VideoPaper is an interactive video-centric article that runs in a web browser. Like an article published in a scholarly journal, a VideoPaper presents findings and discusses these findings using text-and-figure-based media. However, unlike normal print media, a VideoPaper is able to present “raw data” in the form of digital video footage. At the heart of a VideoPaper is a sequence of audio-video content called the Main Movie. The VideoPaper provides background information, description, analysis, and discussion of the Main Movie by a collection of HTML pages organized into sections and sub-sections navigable by hyperlinks and a graphical menu interface. This collection of HTML pages is called the Main Text. Supplementary pieces of multimedia content may be presented along with the Main Movie in a
time-synchronized manner called the Slideshow. Interactive links may be authored between the three main elements of the VideoPaper (the Main Movie, Main Text and Slideshow). For example, a section of video may provide a link to a referring section of the text, and a button may be embedded within the text to provide a means to play a pertinent portion of the Main Movie or SlideShow. VideoPapers may be viewed on Mac OS9, Mac OSX and Windows platforms.
2. Scope of Work
Basic Description of Needs
CC would like to upgrade VideoPaper Builder Version 2.0 (which is available at http://vpb.concord.org/ along with user guides, tutorials and examples) to Version 3.0. Version 3.0 provides a superset of the features available in VPB 2.0. Version 3.0 will be able to load the XML-based file format of the authoring project document (called a VPML file), but not vise-versa. The new authoring features include:
Updates to current performance:
? Improved application performance and memory management.
? More hassle-free installation
? Improved error checking and logging
? Improved document handling
? Clearer and improved document and publishing settings
? Support for frames in the HTML page
? Basic (simplified) and Advanced user interface settings.
Improvement to menus:
? Support for 2 levels of subsections
Improvement to slide frame:
? More media types supported in the Slideshow
? Support for showing slide titles and numbers (indices)
? The ability to embed links to slides within the Main Text.
Improvement to video playback:
? Improved video playback controls
? A slow-motion feature for Embedded Controller buttons.
? Improved support for previewing button interactivity
New features:
? Basic HTML editing
? New Author metadata that mark the author of content in a VideoPaper.
? Support for .mov, .mpg, .mpg4 and .avi video formats
? Ability to publish to a printable layout
? Automatic organization of references and reference links.
? Extensible publishing profiles and layout templates
? Authoring of video overlays
? Authoring of text caption tracks
Miscellaneous:
? Ability to localize the authoring tool for different languages (such as Spanish)
VideoPapers built with VPB3.0 function very similarly to those built with previous versions, but have several improvements and some added features:
* More media types in the Slideshow
* Improved button-to-video linkage (prevents “confused” controller buttons)
* Embedded Controller buttons can now play the movie in slow motion
* Better HTML compliance with modern web browsers
* Wider variety of layouts
* Menus with second-level subsections
* Ability to perform a text search across the entire VideoPaper
* Ability to view slides independently of the Main Movie
* A slideshow table of contents
* A feature to enable printing of the Main Text of the VideoPaper
* Reference Links embedded in the Main Text
More detailed specifications are provided as Appendix A: VPB3 SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS SPECIFICATIONS
3. RFP Process
Due Date: March 26, 2004
Proposal responses are due by 5 PM EST on March 31, 2004. Bidders must agree to the terms of the attached standard Project Subcontract Agreement (Appendix B).
Cover Page
Please include a cover page that contains a single point of contact as well as organizational contact information. An appropriate representative(s) must sign the proposal.
Proposal Narrative
The proposal narrative must include the following items or the proposal will not be considered.
1. Detailed statement of work
2. Proposed Timeline
3. Proposed Budget
Evidence of Qualifications
The Bidder must show evidence of expertise pertinent to the project. A minimum of three relevant references are required. In addition, proposals must provide a resume and description of the experience for the personnel that will be assigned to perform services for each set of tasks. Describe the responsibilities of each member of the team and summarize the key qualifications related to each member’s responsibilities.
Budget Plan and Budget Narrative
Budgets should not exceed $100,000. You must submit a budget showing an itemized breakdown of requested funds. Attach a budget narrative that provides an explanation of the costs and payment schedule. Payment should be tied to a deliverable whenever possible. Each proposal should designate one person responsible as the fiscal agent.
Timeline
CC would like to receive an Alpha Version with the complete functional structure but pending some or all of the last four “New Features” (above) by June 30, 2004. An alpha test would take place in July, 2004. A Beta version should be received by CC on September 30, 2004. Beta test would take place in October 2004.
Property Rights
CC requires that all deliverables be created on a “work-for-hire” basis, and that CC own all intellectual property rights in these deliverables. Bidders who own preexisting materials, and wish to repurpose such materials for the requested deliverables, must provide CC with perpetual, royalty-free rights to use and modify the preexisting materials as incorporated in the work-for hire final deliverable.
Review Process
A panel of CC staff and consultants will evaluate the proposals on the basis of the quality of the statement of work, ability to meet the timeline, quality of personnel, and the most competitive realistic bid. The review panel will make recommendations for awarding a contract. Bidders will be notified by April 5, 2004.
Submission
The official release date of this document is February 23, 2004. Bidders wishing to have their quotations considered for implementation by CC will submit them no later than 5 pm EST on March 26, 2004 to:
Or by mail, received by CC on March 31, 2004:
Alvaro Galvis
The Concord Consortium
10 Concord Crossing, Suite 300
Concord, MA 01742
Electronic submissions are strongly encouraged.
CC is not responsible for the cost of respondents’ efforts associated with developing their responses to the RFP. CC does not guarantee a selection will be made or a resulting project will ensue. This RFP is not intended to restrict in any way CC’s right to reject any quote submitted in response to this RFP or to negotiate an agreement with one or more contractors that will best serve the needs and interests of CC. CC reserves the right to reject quotes for any reason including late delivery or incompleteness.
By submitting a proposal, the Bidder is representing that they have not been debarred, suspended or otherwise excluded from obtaining Federal contracts in accordance with EOS 12549 and 12689.
Questions
All questions regarding this RFP should be submitted via email only rfp-videopaper@concord.org
However, questions will not be answered individually as they are received. Instead, all questions and corresponding answers will be maintained on the web page; http://fc.concord.org/rfp/videopaper/
This web page will be made public and updated daily. CC will restate all questions and will make every effort to keep the originator(s) anonymous. However, because of the use of email, you cannot assume any privacy to or from CC email systems. Submission of questions as well as requests to receive responses to questions will be accepted through March 24, 2004.
CC Confidentiality Agreement
This RFP and its attachments contain information that is confidential and proprietary to CC. The disclosure of this RFP or any of its contents to any third party and the use for any purpose other than by a party in preparation of a response to this RFP without CC’s expressed permission is not permitted. If CC does award a contract to any party submitting a response to this RFP, then such party’s right to duplicate, use or disclose the information contained in this RFP will be only to the extent authorized in the resulting agreement between CC and that party.
APPENDIX A - VPB3 SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS SPECIFICATIONS, and APPENDIX B – PROJECT SUBCONTRACT AGREEMENT are available for view on the web page: http://fc.concord.org/rfp/videopaper/
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