Reducing File Sizes

You take a picture with your digital camera and then try to email it to a friend. It is so large that you can only attach one at a time. Even if you just want to upload it to Facebook, it takes a long time. Want to fix that problem? Read on.

Not too many years ago we were careful about the size of our files. We had to be or they would not fit on a 1.44mb diskette. Now our digital cameras create pictures over 1mb each. But with computer hard drives reaching into the terabytes, it is easy not to pay attention to the size of the files we save.

However, bloated files take longer to open and when located on a network drive they tie up bandwidth on the network as well as being slow to open. In our anxiousness, we often double-click two or more times on the same seemingly non-responsive icon only to wait and have multiple windows open, one for each of our frustrated clicks.

Why should we be concerned? The more bloat on the hard drive, the slower it runs and the more frustrated we become. We can control the size of our files and here are some examples of what we can do.

Click to read the complete white paper as a PDF

WebCT to Bb9

At Rhode Island College the decision has been made to move from WebCT to Blackboard v9. Since WebCT is now Blackboard you would think the transition from one to the other would be pretty easy. There is a migration tool and you can back up the old course from WebCT and migrate it to Bb9. However, Bb9 is a different LMS. It does not have the same look and feel as WebCT.

The data comes over, but the course looks quite different. After migrating one of my courses to Bb9, I have come to the conclusion that I would rather start from scratch and build a new course in Bb9. All the content from WebCT can still be used, so I do not have to re-write those assignments, lecture notes, slide decks, or even quizzes. I can use them in my new Bb9 course.

I have written some White Papers for building a course in Bb9. The link is http://www.ric.edu/revans/bb9

Let me know your thoughts and experiences with the move.

Creating a Bookmark to Jump Down to the Current Semester

1. Sign into WebCT

2. At the top of the screen, click Bookmarks

3. On the right, under Options: Personal Bookmarks, click Create

4. In the Name box, type Spring 2009

5. In the Location box, type javascript:window.scrollTo(0,500)

0,500 describes the location on the screen you want the browser to jump to. The first number (0) indicates the left to right position. The second number indicates how many pixles down the page you need to be. Adjust the second number by trial and error to get you to the top of the Spring 2009 list of courses.

6. Click Add Bookmark

7. At the top of the sceent, click MyBlackboard

8. On the right you should see the Spring 2009 link under Personal Bookmarks

9. Click Spring 2009

The screen scrolls to the postion you selected in the Location box. If this is not where you want it to be, return to the Boolmarks page and edit the Spring 2009 bookmark to try a different value for the second number.

Adding a Solution Page

In some classes it is good to give out solutions to problems the students have been working on. The challenge is when to give them out and in what form. If you wait until everyone had turned in their work and you have graded them, it is too late. They have gone on to other areas and will not care to look at it. Give it out too early and they copy the solution instead of figuring it out for themselves.

In WebCT we can arrange for a selection to only be available after an event has occurred. The event in this case is the grading of an assignment. The selection is an icon to open the solution file for the assignment.

For the complete White Paper:

http://www.ric.edu/faculty/revans/webct_files/Adding%20a%20Solution%20Page.mht

Grading Non-WebCT Quizzes in WebCT

Sometimes we just want to give a quiz in class without the use of WebCT. The question becomes how to post those results so the stundents can view them on WebCT and so the grades avarage into our WebCT gradebook.

This white paper explains how to handle it.
http://www.ric.edu/faculty/revans/webct_files/Posting%20Grades%20for%20Quiz%20not%20Part%20of%20WebCT%20Quizzing.mht

Reducing File Sizes in WebCT

Not too many years ago we were careful about the size of our files. We had to be or they would not fit on a 1.44mb diskette. Now our digital cameras create pictures over 1mb each. But with computer hard drives reaching into the terabytes, it is easy not to pay attention to the size of the files we save.

WebCT is a great tool for faculty. It helps us organizers our courses in such a way that we have easy access to class materials and offer the same convenience to our students. Although it was designed to use HTML pages, WebCT accepts and displays all type of files and becomes a repository for all we decide to dump into it.

Why should we be concerned about file sizes? The more bloat on the WebCT server's hard drive, the slower it runs and the more frustrated our students and we become. We can control the size of our courses and here are some examples of what we can do.

http://www.ric.edu/faculty/revans/webct_files/Reducing%20File%20Sizes%20in%20WebCT.mht

Importing Calendar Entries

The Calendar Tool in WebCT is a great way to keep the students aware of what is due when, but it is a slow process to update especially at the beginning of a semester when multiple entries need to be added. Another approach is to create the entries in a comma delimited text file, and then import the data into the calendar all at once. Excel makes this task even easier. It is an efficient way for designers to add multiple calendar entries. WebCT allows the designer to import calendar entries from a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet.

http://www.ric.edu/faculty/revans/webct_files/Importing%20Calendar%20Entries.mht

Office 2007 issues with WebCT

Students are arriving with new computers and the new Office 2007 suite of applications. Some schools have already adopted the new software and teaching it begins this summer or fall. While getting prepared for an advanced office class this summer, I have run into more than one problem in WebCT--it does not recognize the X file formats!

The following White Paper describes each issue and suggests one or more work-arounds. From what I can see on the WebCT site, nothing is planned to correct the problem at this point. It affects versions CE 4.1 and CE 6 that I know of.

http://www.ric.edu/revans/webct_files/X%20Files%20in%20WebCT.mht

Tracking Students in WebCT

I strongly suggest to students a daily look at their WebCT account. They never know when I will be posting assignments, quizzes, new white papers, posting bulletins, or sending email. Missing an important email could be a critical mistake.

However, all I can do is suggest. They choose to take the suggestion seriously or not. In WebCT there is a way to monitor each student’s access to the various pages in WebCT.

This white paper walks you through the various tracking pages available within WebCT

http://www.ric.edu/revans/webct_files/Tracking%20Students%20in%20WebCT.mht

Grade Book Formulas

The fact that WebCT records grades and has a way to download those grades in a format which can be imported into Excel is convenient. However, the gradebook can do so much more. By adding calculation columns, WebCT will calculate grade averages and remove the need to download to Excel all together.

This White Papers details setting up formulas in the grade book:

http://www.ric.edu/revans/webct_files/Gradebook%20Formulas.mht

The Compile Button

In WebCT mail, there is a button allowing you to compile. Compile what? If you have taken any programming courses, you may think of this as a way to create an executable program. This is not the case at all. When mail is compiled it is merged into one printable file.

After a number of discussions with a particular student, you may want to review all the communications between you and s/he for the entire course. You can go through the emails one at a time and read/print them. This is time consuming and there is a possibility of missing one or two.

This White Paper explains how to use the Compile Button:

http://www.ric.edu/revans/webct_files/The%20Compile%20Button.mht

WebCT Surveys as an Assessment Tool

Most textbook companies supply WebCT quizzes with their textbooks and I take advantage of them. For each chapter I assign a quiz to be taken outside of class and count them as 10% of the students grade. I find it forces textbook reading.

Surveys are something I had not used until last semester. I created surveys for the material being covered in the class and had them take them in class. Surveys are not graded and are anonymous, so there is no pressure on the students. Giving the same survey before the material is covered and again after it is covered allows me to determine how much was really absorbed.

Then I used a survey at the end of the semester to assess my own performance in their eyes and how well they liked using WebCT.

Here are two White Papers on using surveys:

Understanding Surveys
http://www.ric.edu/revans/webct_files/Understanding%20Surveys.mht

Analyzing Surveys
http://www.ric.edu/revans/webct_files/Analyzing%20Surveys.mht

Streaming Audio and Video in WebCT

Audio and video files are typically very large. A half hour lecture might take up 50mb or more. Files of this size need to be stored on a streaming server and many are available to use. I have been using a free account at http://www.mediamax.com/. They provide 25gb of space at no charge to anyone who registers for their service. They hope you need more space or additional options and will purchase one of their packages. 25gb is more than I will need for my courses.

Sign up for an account and upload your audio/video. Once you have successfully uploaded a file, you are ready to link it to your WebCT course.

http://www.ric.edu/revans/webct_files/Reducing%20File%20Sizes%20in%20WebCT.mht

Note: There is a 1gb per month limit for downloads, unless you sign up and pay a montly fee

Reducing File Sizes in WebCT

Not too many years ago we were careful about the size of our files. We had to be or they would not fit on a 1.44mb diskette. Now our digital cameras create pictures over 1mb each. But with computer hard drives reaching into the terabytes, it is easy not to pay attention to the size of the files we save.

However, bloated files take longer to open and when located on a network drive they tie up bandwidth on the network as well as being slow to open. In our anxiousness, we often double-click two or more times on the same seemingly non-responsive icon only to wait and have multiple windows open, one for each of our frustrated clicks.

WebCT is a great tool for faculty. It helps us organizers our courses in such a way that we have easy access to class materials and offer the same convenience to our students. Although it was designed to use HTML pages, WebCT accepts and displays all type of files and becomes a repository for all we decide to dump into it.

There is no way for faculty to know the size of their course until they backed it up. Even then we do not know the size of the working files in the course, just the compressed size. My Files does display file sizes, but this is but one of many sets of files stored within our courses.

Why should we be concerned? The more bloat on the WebCT server's hard drive, the slower it runs and the more frustrated our students and we become. We can control the size of our courses and here are some examples of what we can do.

The following describes four ways we can minimize file sizes in WebCT

http://www.ric.edu/revans/webct_files/Reducing%20File%20Sizes%20in%20WebCT.mht

Content Page Content

The content page in WebCT makes it easy to load a number of useful bits of information for a student to view. And each time they access one of the links, they are tracked so the professor can check up on who linked out to which file and how often.

The one flaw in this approach is that the links must be to HTML files. Most of our work might be saved as Word documents or even PDF files. The links work but the tracking feature does not.

Here is a simple method to use to get your .doc and .pdf links to track.

http://www.ric.edu/revans/webct_files/Content%20Page%20Content.mht

Too Many Courses

I have many courses listed on my WebCT Welcome page. Many old semester courses appear along with the current semester. I need some of the old courses for reference, so I do not want the to go away. However, the courses are ordered by semester and I have to scroll down to find the current courses each time a open WebCT. Although scrolling is not a big deal, I do stop on the wrong semester more often than I like to admit and this it not helpful.

WebCT does not appear to have a way to open this window at the current course so I looked for a work around. It turned out simpler then I thought. Here is how I solved the problem.

http://www.ric.edu/revans/webct_files/Too%20Many%20Courses%20part%202.mht