A new Web site aims to connect people with continuing education opportunities, making it easier to find the appropriate courses faster and with less hassle.

Inquiring minds in search of education sometimes learn that finding the right class through the Internet means a tangled loop of telephone calls and surfing out-of-date sites. This is the most chaotic and fragmented $500 billion industry on earth," said Jeff Creighton, founder and chairman of EduPoint.com. EduPoint.com_s centralized database allows students to find the right curriculum, much as a user would access Travelocity for an airline ticket, Creighton said. EduPoint.com lists more than 1.5 million different courses in its database. Users can locate online continuing education courses as well as on-site classes in their hometowns. Students also can register online for 30,000 of the classes listed on the site by filling out a form that can be sent to more than one course simultaneously. A number of sites on the Web have a similar mission: to capture as many educated eyeballs as possible. Hungry Minds and eCollege.com help students find online learning opportunities. TrainingNet helps users locate courses in the business and information technology fields. SmartPlanet.com lists courses developed by the site itself as well as other partners. EduPoint does not develop its own courses, but attempts to list all the options that are available. Company officials hope their partnerships with large corporations -- which contribute a significant slice of continuing education students -- will help them capture new customers.