Online learning is coming of age in both postsecondary education and industry. The courses now offered online range from kinesiology to mathematics to complete M.B.A. programs. The growing popularity of online education has created a need to reduce costs without diminishing the value of the edification. In response to this need, an instructional technology concept commonly referred to as the "learning object" was created. This paper explores the learning objects concept, their value to an online education, as well as an applied outlook into the use of learning objects in an online environment. The paper concludes with a discussion on how learning objects can be integrated into a specific example of an online course. (Contains 16 references.) (Author)