Table 3 Criteria checklist for the evaluation of ePortfolio Software from Himpsl and Baumgarten [13]

Essential criteria

 Input of keywords

Yes

 Internal cross-references

Yes

 External cross-references

Yes

 Publication in the web

Yes

 Pricing and license schemes

Not applicable

 Simple data export

Yes

 Support of all currently used A-grade browsers

Yes

Collecting, organizing, selecting

 Simple data import

Yes

 Comfortable data import

Yes

 Searching, sequencing and filtering

Yes

 Annotations to files

Yes

 Aggregating (integration of external data via feeds)

Yes

 Version control of files

Yes

Reflecting, testing, verifying and planning

 Guidelines for reflection

No, but could be built-in

 Guidelines for competences

No, but could be built-in

 Guidelines for evaluation (self-assessment, assessment by others)

No, but could be built-in

 Guidelines for goals, personal development and career management

No, but could be built-in

 Guidelines for Feedback (advice, tutoring, mentoring)

No, but could be built-in

Representing and publishing

 Access control by users (owner, peers, authority, public)

Yes

 Adaptation of the display: layout (flexible placing, boilerplates)

Yes

 Adaptation of the display: colours, fonts, design

Yes

 Publishing of several portfolios, or alternatively, various views

No

Administrating, implementing, adapting

 Development potential of the provider, company profile

Yes

 Enabling technologies (programming language, operating system, …)

Yes

 Authentication and user administration (backed-up interfaces, …)

Yes

 E-Learning-standards

Yes

 Migration/storage/export

Yes

Usability

 User interface

Yes

 Syndicating (choice of feeds for the individual portfolio)

Yes

 Availability, accessibility

Yes

 Navigation/initial training/help

Online help

 External and internal information function

No

 Interchangeable, adaptable user-defined boilerplates

No, but could be built-in

 Personal storage, respectively export function

Yes