Posting content files in ICON

What is Possible with ICON’s Content Tool?

• Post text documents, images, audio, video, RSS feeds, Library reserve materials, and other course materials in a password-protected space.
• Upload multiple files to the file manager at one time.
• Add multiple links to the Content Menu (student display) at one time.
• Compose documents using ICON’s built-in html editor. Insert images, tables, symbols, equations, etc., as well as QuickLinks to websites and other components of your ICON course.
• Edit html documents from within ICON.
• Use WebDAV for convenient uploading, downloading, and revising of content files.
• Display links to external web sites.
• Display links to quizzes, discussions, self-assessments and other areas of your ICON course.
• Restrict access of content items based on group membership or completion of online tasks.
• Import content files from another ICON course.

22 March, 2007

Overview

The Course Content menu displays links to content files, other areas of your ICON course (quizzes, etc.), and outside websites. These links, called "Topics," are organized into folders called "Modules."

Before you can post a course file link (Topic) in the Course Content menu, you must create a folder (Module) to put it in.

The actual files are housed in the Manage Files area. Your students cannot see into your Manage Files area. In order for them to access these files, you must create links in the Course Content menu, which they can see:

If you are posting multiple files, upload them to your Manage Files area first and then create links on the Course Content menu. This way you can upload multiple files at one time—and create multiple links in the Course Content menu at one time.

If you are posting only one file at a time, you can upload it while you’re creating a link in the Course Content menu. Your actual file will reside in the Manage Files area, the same as if you had uploaded it there to begin with.

28 February 2007

Acceptable File Types

ICON accepts the following file extensions:

Images: .jpg, .jpeg, .gif, .png

HTML Files: .htm, .html, .mthml, .css

Web Documents: .htm, .html, .txt

Media: .rm, .wmv, .asf, .ra, .mov, .mpg, .mpeg, .ram, .wav, .swf, .avi, .wma, .mp3
.png, .jpg, .jpeg, .gif, .ppt, .htm, .html, .txt, .doc

Text document:  .rtf, .ppt, .pps, .pdf, .doc*, .xls, .txt, .wpd

Zip: .zip

Misc.: SASS.sav

*Windows users: If you are posting a Microsoft Word file, save it as a filtered web page before you upload it.  This will allow you to edit the file from within ICON.

ICON does not accept files with these extensions:

.asa .asax .ascx .ashx .asmx .asp .aspx .axd .bat .cdx .cer .com .config .cs .csproj .dll .exe .idc .ini .jsl .licx .rem .resources .resx .shtm.shtml.soap .stm .vb .vbproj .vjsproj .vsdisco .webinfo

About files types not listed here:

Some file types that are not on either of the the above lists are restricted, that is, they can be uploaded but not downloaded. Some other file types not on this list can be uploaded after we make an adjustment in the server. If the file you wish to upload is not listed above, contact ICON Support at icon-support@uiowa.edu.

Avoid long file names :

Regardless of the file type, its a good idea to keep your file names under 100 characters. Longer filenames have been known to cause problems with downloading.

30 January 2008

Adding and Formatting Content Modules

Content Modules are folders (headings) in on the Course Content menu.  All content links must be inside a Content Module.

Your course can have one Content Module or several, and you can nest Content Modules inside other, “parent” Content Modules. You can also set the enumeration style (or omit the enumeration altogether) or modify other display settings.

Content module headings are displayed by default in a sidebar menu left of the main Content Menu. You can modify this sidebar menu or eliminate it altogether.

If your Content Menu has many files, you can make it more user-friendly for students by displaying the file links in the sidebar instead of in the main Content Menu. This can save a lot of scrolling, and all the links for a module will be visible while the student is viewing an individual content file (see instructions at bottom of this page).

To add a Content Module:

1. Click Content in the NavBar.
2. Click Add Module in the menu at right.
3. If you want to nest the Content Module inside another Content Module, select the parent module from the dropdown menu.
4. Enter a title (e.g., About Your Instructor) to be displayed in the Content Module table of contents.
5. Enter a short title (e.g., Instructor) to be displayed in the sidebar menu.
6. If you don’t want contents to be numbered, click Hide Enumeration
7. If you want to hide the Content Module from students temporarily, click Hide. (You'll need to unclick this later.)
8. If you want the Content Module to be displayed during a certain time period, enter start and stop dates. Otherwise, leave the default setting No set starting or ending dates.
9. If you want to link to an online Discussion topic, select it from the droplist.
10. Click Save.

To modify the enumeration setting:

1. Click Content in the NavBar.
2. Click Content Display Settings (at right).
3. Click the Enumerations tab.
4. For each level of enumeration, click Override and then select the desired style—or no enumeration—from the droplist.
5. Click Save Enumeration.

To modify or eliminate the Content Module sidebar menu:

1. Click Content in the NavBar.
2. Click Content Display Settings (at right).
3. Make your desired changes under the General Settings tab.
4. Click Save General Settings.

To display content file links in the sidebar instead of in the main Content Menu:

1. Click Content in the NavBar.
2. Click Content Display Settings (at right).
3. Click the General Settings tab.
4. Increase the Sidebar Width to 350 pixels.
5. From the TOC List Style dropdown menu, select Modules Only (only the module names will appear in the main Content Menu).
6. From the Sidebar List Style menu, select Current Top-Level Module Expanded.
7. Click Save General Settings. Now when a student clicks a content module name in the sidebar or main Content Menu, the files in that module will be displayed in the sidebar, and the first file will open automatically.

 

 

 

 

27 February 2007

Uploading and Posting a Single Content File ("Topic")

Note: You’ll find Instructions for posting PowerPoint presentations in a separate section titled Posting a PowerPoint Presentation.

If you are uploading only one file at a time, you can upload the file at the same time you are creating a link on the Content Menu. ICON will store the file in your Manage Files area (which only you can see) and create a link for students on the Content Menu.

Before you begin: Check the filename of the file you wish to upload to make sure it does not contain more than 100 characters AND that it does not have a space at the beginning or contain one of the following illegal characters: " * / : < > ? \ | ' & ; #

A filename that is too long or contains one of more of the characters can prevent the file—and other files in the Content menu—from downloading.

1. If you haven't yet created a Content Module (folder) that will contain the link to your content file, do so now (see Adding a Content Module).
2. Click Content in the NavBar.
3. From the menu at right, click Add Topic (ICON adds files as “Topics”).
4. Click Upload New File. (Note: The actual file will be uploaded to your Manage Files area, which your students cannot access.)
5. Select the Parent Module (this is the Content Module that will contain the student link to your file).
6. Enter a title to be displayed in the Content Module table of contents.
7. Enter a short title to be optionally displayed in a sidebar menu bar.
8. Click Browse, browse your desktop for the file you wish to upload, and click Open.
9. Click Save.

The links to the content file will appear under the Content Module heading. You can change link names anytime by clicking the Bulk Add Topic icon next to the Content Module name.

30 January 2008

Uploading and Posting Multiple Content Files ("Topics")

Note: You’ll find Instructions for posting PowerPoint presentations in the Online Help section Posting a PowerPoint Presentation.

If you have multiple files to upload at once, you can zip them together on your desktop, upload them to your Manage Files area, and unzip them there. Your students cannot see into your Manage Files area, so once you have uploaded your files you will need to go to the Content area and create links in the Content Menu.

Uploading Multiple Files to Your Manage Files Area

Before you begin: Check the filenames of the files you wish to upload to make sure they do not contain more than 100 characters AND that they do not have a space at the beginning or contain one of the following illegal characters: " * / : < > ? \ | ' & ; #

1. On your desktop, zip the files you want to upload into a single archive:
   • Mac OS X users can select the desired files and then select Create Archive from - from the the File dropdown menu. The file saves as Archive.zip in the same location. You may wish to rename it before uploading it to ICON.
   • Windows users can place all the files in a folder on the desktop and then right-click the folder and select Send to Compressed (zipped) Folder. The zip file saves in the same location. You may wish to rename it before uploading it to ICON.
2. Click Content in the NavBar.
3. Click Manage Files in the menu bar at right.
4. Click the   Upload icon (top right).
5. Browse your desktop for the zip file and click Upload again.
6. Click the New icon (top right) and create a folder to hold the files when they are unzipped.
7. Move the zip file to the folder you just created. To move the file:
   1. Click in the checkbox by the filename
   2. Click the Cut icon (top left). (The filename may not disappear even though the cut is successful.)
   3. Click the folder name to open it.
   4. Click the Paste icon (top left).
8. Click the  Unzip File icon directly to the right of the filename.

Once the files have been uploaded to the File Manager, you make them accessible to students by creating links in the Content area, inside folders called Content Modules. 

Note: There's an alternative method of uploading files that does not require zipping. See the Online Help section Adding/Editing Files with WebDAV.

Adding One or More Links in the Content Menu

Since students cannot see into your Manage Files area (where your files are stored), you must go to the Content area and create links in the Content Menu. Here's how:

1. If you haven't yet created the Content Module (folder, heading, directory) that will contain the link(s), do so now (see Adding a Content Module).
2. Click Content in the NavBar.
3. Click Manage Content in the menu at right.
4. If you're adding a single link, click the Add Topic icon next to the Content Module name.
5. If you're adding multiple links at one time, click the Bulk Add Topic icon next to the Content Module name. For each file you wish to add, click the checkbox and enter a title students can click on
6. Click Create.

The links will appear under the Content Module heading.

30 January 2008

Posting a PowerPoint Presentation

Selecting a Format

A PowerPoint file can be saved in different formats; each has its advantages and disadvantages:

1. .html slide show
• Can be viewed in ICON.
• Can display in color; good for showing small details.
• May be difficult or expensive to print (one slide per page).
• Cannot be edited by students.
2. .pps (PowerPoint Show)
• Can be viewed as slide show on the student’s desktop.
• Can display in color; good for showing small details.
3. . pdf
• Easy and inexpensive to print (can be printed in black and white).
• Can be saved in outline form or as multiple slides on a page (good for note taking if made available prior to class).

Regardless of the file type, its a good idea to keep your file names under 100 characters. Longer filenames have been known to cause problems with downloading.

Posting an HTML PowerPoint Presentation

First, you'll save your PowerPoint file as a web page. Here's how:

Windows users:

1. Open the file in PowerPoint.
2. From the Office Button menu (top left), select Save As > Other Formats > Web Page (Office 2007) OR from the File menu, select Save As > Web Page (Office 2003).
3. Click Publish.
4. Under Browser Support, select All browsers listed . . .
5. Click Publish.

Mac users:

1. Open the file in PowerPoint
2. Under the File Menu, select Save as Web Page. 

This creates:

• A folder containing the individual PowerPoint slides
• An html file that calls up the individual slides

You will need both.

Next, zip together the html file and the folder containing the individual slides. 

Then you'll upload the zipped file to ICON:

1. From the ICON homepage, click Content.
2. From the menu at right, click Manage Files.
3. Click the  Upload icon (top right).
4. In the Upload File popup window, click Choose File.
5. Browse your desktop for the zip file, select it, and click Choose. 
6. Click Upload.  The file will appear in your File Manager.

Now you’ll unzip the file:

1. Click the  Unzip File icon, directly to the right of the zip file you just uploaded.
2. In the Java Script popup window, click Okay.  A folder containing the .html file and the slides folder will appear in the File Manager. Your students can’t yet access this file.  You need to create a link inside a Content Module.

Finally, you’ll add the html file to a Content Module:

1. If you haven’t yet added the Content Module that will contain your file, do so now. (See Adding a Content Module.)
2. From the course homepage, click Content in the NavBar.
3. From the menu at right, click Add Topic (a “Topic” can be a PowerPoint presentation).
4. Click Course File.
5. Select the Parent Module (the Content Module that will contain your file).
6. Enter a title to be displayed in the Content Module table of contents (e.g., BasicElements of Rock Music).
7. Enter a short title to be displayed in a menu bar at left (e.g., Rock: Elements).
8. Click Browse and browse for the html file in your File Manager popup window. Be sure to select the html file; this file will call up the individual slides
9. Click Save. A link will appear in the selected Content Module.

To view the html PowerPoint presentation in ICON:

1. Click Content in the NavBar.
2. Click the file link in the Course Content listing.
3. If you don't see the presentation, click the Undock this Topic icon (top right).

Posting a .pps Show

1. Open the file in PowerPoint and save it as a PowerPoint Show (pps): From the Office Button menu (Office 2007) or File menu (2003), select Save As > PPS.
2. Upload the file to your ICON File Manager.  (See Uploading Files to the File Manager.)
3. If you haven’t yet created the ICON Content Module that will contain your file, do so now. (See Adding a Content Module.)

Now you’re ready to add your .pps show to the Content Module:

4. From the course homepage, click Content in the NavBar.
5. From the menu at right, click Add Topic (a “Topic” can be an individual file).
6. Click Add Course File.
7. Select the Parent Module (the Content Module that will contain your file).
8. Enter a title to be displayed in the Content Module table of contents (e.g., Basic Elements of Rock Music).
9. Enter a short title to be displayed in a menu bar at left (e.g., Elements of Rock).
10. Click Browse and browse for the file in your File Manager popup window.
11. Click Save.  A link will appear in the selected Content Module.

Posting a .pdf Presentation

Note: In order to create a .pdf presentation, Windows users must have Adobe Acrobat Professional (available in the ITC's).

You’ll begin by “printing” the file to pdf format:

1. Open the file in PowerPoint and select Print from the File menu.
2. In the Print window, select Slides, Handouts (# slides per page), Notes, or Outline from the Print What: dropdown menu. 
3. Mac users: click Save as PDF. Windows users: Select Print under the Office Button (2007) or File (2003) menu; select Adobe PDF and then save to your computer.

Next, you’ll add the file to a Content Module:

4. If don’t already have the Content Module that will contain your file, add it now. (See Adding a Content Module.)
5. From the course homepage, click Content in the NavBar.
6. From the menu at right, click Add Topic (individual files are referred to as “Topics”).
7. Click Add Course File.
8. Select the Parent Module (the Content Module that will contain your file).
9. Enter a title to be displayed in the Content Module table of contents (e.g., Basic Elements of Rock Music).
10. Enter a short title to be displayed in a menu bar at left (e.g., Elements of Rock).
11. Click Browse and browse for the file in your File Manager popup window.
12. Click Save.  A link will appear in the selected Content Module.

30 January 2008

Composing a Content File in ICON

You can easily create a file in ICON.  The html editor allows you to format your document and insert images, tables, links, and more.

1. If you haven’t yet created the Content Module that will contain your file, do it now.  See Adding a Content Module.
2. From the course homepage, click Content in the NavBar.
3. From the menu at right, click Add Topic (ICON adds files as "Topics").
4. Click Create New File.
5. Select the Parent Module (the Content Module that will contain your file).
6. Enter a title to be displayed in the Content Menu (e.g., About Your Instructor). If your title includes illegal filename characters such as parentheses or certain punctuation marks, you will need to add the extension .html to the title (e.g., Alice'sRestaurant.html). If your title does not include illegal characters, ICON will add the html extension automatically.
7. Enter a short title to be displayed in the sidebar menu (e.g., Instructor).
8. Create your content.  Notice the available formatting options and the special-purpose tools (available with ICON-approved browsers: Mozilla or IE on Windows machines or Mozilla or Netscape 7+ on the Mac) :
   • - Insert object
•  - Insert image
•  - Insert table
•  - Insert QuickLink (to course tool or content or to outside url)
•  - Insert symbol
•  - Insert equation
9. Click Save. Then click Save again in the popup window.

13 April 2006

Restricting Access to Content Files

You can restrict file availability to certain time periods or to individuals, based on group membership or completion of a certain online task.

If you plan to restrict access based on group membership and you haven’t yet created the group, create it now, before you proceed with step 1 (see Creating Groups).

If you haven't yet added the file (Topic) to the Content Module, add it now and save it.  (The Topic must be saved before you can enter release conditions.)

1. Click Content in the NavBar and then click Manage Content in the menu at right.
2. Click the  Edit icon next to the Topic name.
3. Click the Release Conditions tab.
4. If you wish to restrict access to a specified period, click the circles for Available Starting and/or Advailable Ending, select the times and/or dates from the droplists, and click Save.
5. If you wish to restrict access to a group or individuals who have completed a certain online task, click Add New under Additional Release Conditions. Then select a Condition Type, select aspecific item or group from the dropdown list, and click Save to close the Create New Conditions popup window.

Note: If you enter more than one selective release condition for a content file ("Topic"), students will need to satisfy each of the conditions (not just one) in order to access that file.

6. Click Save and then click Close.

13 April 2006

Revising or Replacing Content Files

You can revise a syllabus or other content file in one of two ways: (1) edit the file on your desktop and then upload the revised version to the ICON File Manager, replacing the original file; or (2) open the file in ICON and make the edits there (this works only if you have saved or created the file in html format; Windows users should save Word files as filtered web pages).  

Provided you haven’t change the filename or saved the file to a different folder in the File Manager, the orignial link(s) in the Content area will remain intact, and students will be able to access the revised version.

Note: The following instructions are for revising files using ICON's built-in html editor. For an alternative method, see Adding/Editing Files with WebDAV.

Revising a File from within ICON

Note to Windows users: Word Files should be saved as Web Page, Filtered.

1. Click Content in the NavBar.
2. From the menu at right, click Manage Content.
3. Click the Edit File icon to the right of the file (Topic). 
4. In the Edit popup window, make your changes and click Save.

Students accessing the file from a Content Module will see the modified version.

Revising the File on Your Desktop

1. From your desktop, make the desired changes to the file and save it with the same filename.
2. From the ICON course homepage, click Content in the NavBar.
3. From the menu at right, click Manage Files.
4. Click the  Upload icon (top right).
5. In the Upload File popup window, click Browse.
6. Browse your desktop for the file and click Open or Choose.
7. In the Upload File popup window, click Upload.  You will be asked if you want to replace the existing file with that name.  Click Okay.

The revised file will appear in your File Manager.  Provided you have kept the same filename, the link(s) in the Content area will remain intact.

13 April 2006

Linking to a Discussion, Quiz, Self Assessment or Other Course Component from a Content Module

You can give your students convenient access to ICON tools from within a Content Module.

To post a QuickLink to a course tool:

1. Click Content in the NavBar.
2. From the menu at right, click Add Topic (note that QuickLinks, like files, are added as “Topics”.)
3. Click QuickLink (the link name, not the icon).
4. Select the Parent Module (the Content Module that will contain your file).
5. From the popup menu, select the tool Category (e.g., Discussion Forums and Topics).
6. Select the item (e.g., Bach’s Life and Works – Discussion).
7. Enter a title to be displayed in the Content Menu (e.g., Bach’s Life and Works - Discussion).
8. Enter a short title to be displayed in the Content Module sidebar (e.g., Bach Discussion).
9. Click Save.

28 February 2007

Organizing Content Modules

You can delete, re-order, and rename Content Modules and “Topics,” or move them to different folders (moving, renaming, etc., won’t break links).

1. Click Content in the NavBar.
2. Click Manage Content in the menu at right.
3. Move or delete items:
• To move an item to a different Content Module (directory), click the box for that item and then click  Move (top).
• To move an item up or down in the Content menu, click the box next to the item you want to move.  Type in the By: box the number of spaces you want to move the item, and then click Up or Down.
• To delete an item, click in the box next to the item you want to delete and click Delete.

13 April 2006

Organizing the File Manager

If you wish to organize your File Manager into folders (for your benefit only, since only you can see into your File Manager), you should add the folders and move the files now, before you create student links in the Course Content listing. If you move File Manager files into folders after you create student links in the Course Content menu, you may cause those links to break. (ICON will notify you if a link becomes broken, but it will not fix the link. You must do that yourself.)

To create a folder in the File Manager:

1. If you are not in the File Manager, click Content in the NavBar and then click Manage Files in the menu at right.
2. Click the New icon (top right).
3. Enter a folder name and click OK.

To move a file into a folder:

1. Click the checkbox by the filename.
2. Click Cut (top).
3. Open the folder you want to move the file to by clicking on its name.
4. Click Paste.
5. To return to the File Manager, click Up.

13 April 2006

Copying Content / Components from Another ICON course

Moving (copying) content and most other components from one ICON course to another is a fairly easy process. However, not all components will copy and some may not display as expected:

• Student data will not copy (this includes student names, grades, discussion postings, assignment postings, quiz submissions and statistics, etc.).
• Most gradebook items (columns) will copy, but the following will not copy and will need to be manually recreated:
  • Formula grade items
  • Grade display settings
  • Grade calculation settings
  • Final grade formula in a Formula System grade book
  • Final grade display options (on the Final Grade: Properties screen)
  • Student dat

• Certain quiz elements may not copy. If you have a lot of quizzes, or if your quizzes include media, you may wish to request help from ICON Support at icon-support@uiowa.edu or 335-6139.
• NavBar and Homepage widgets will not display until you activate the new homepage. To do this, click Edit Course (in the bottom-right NavBar or in the Course Tools widget). Then click Homepages and click in the Active box to display a checkmark next to the new homepage name.
• Links to a course file in the NavBar or in a Homepage widget are absolute. That is, they point to a file in a particular course. For example, let's say you copied the NavBar from last semester's course, and the NavBar you copied includes a link to the syllabus. The link will continue to point to the syllabus file in last semester's course. To fix this problem, you would need to replace the file in the Mange Files area of this semester's course and then edit the NavBar link to point to the replacement file. But be aware that since the link is absolute, last semester's NavBar would consequently point to this semester's syllabus. If this creates a problem for you, contact ICON Support and we will help you change the link from absolute to relative so both courses will point to the right files.

To copy content or components from one of your other ICON courses:

1. Log in to your new (empty) course site.
2. Click Edit Course in the NavBar or in the Course Tools box on the homepage.
3. Click  Components (top).
4. Make sure Copy Components from another Org Unit is checked and click Next.
5. If you would like to review which components you already have in this course, click a View Detail icon for the component type.
6. Make sure the circle for Existing Offerings is checked.
7. From the Select Offering droplist, select the course you want to copy from.
8. Click the box next to each course component you wish to copy (or click Select All Components). For each component type, you can copy all items or select individual items to copy. If you are importing content, select Content, Content Display settings if you want to keep the original formatting of the content modules, and be sure to click Course Files (or else nothing will appear when students click the content links).
9. Click Next at the end of the list.
10. Confirm the components you wish to copy (click the Modify links to make changes). When you click Next, ICON will copy the components into your course.
11. When ICON informs you that the component(s) have been copied, click Done.
12. If you have copied the homepage (NavBars and widgets), go to your course homepage (which will still look like the default) and click Edit Course in the Course Tools widget. Then click Homepages and click in the Active box to display a checkmark next to the new homepage name. Finally, click Go to Course.

To return to your course homepage, click Go to Course  (top right).

11 February 2008

Adding Library Reserve materials

You can post links to electronic library reserve materials in your course Content area. Upon request, selected reserve staff will add the files to your Manage Files area. Then, because your students cannot see into your Manage Files area, you create links in your Content Menu.

Begin by giving selected library reserve staff the right to add electronic materials to your ICON course File Manager and lettin them know which materials you want to post:

• Click Electronic Reserves in the Course Tools widget on your course homepage.
• Click the (add staff) link next to the library in which the materials reside.
• Contact that library immediately and let reserve staff know which materials you want posted on your ICON site.

Once these materials are in your File Manager, you will need to add student links in the Course Menu:

• If you haven't yet created the Content Module (folder) that will contain the link(s), do so now (see Adding a Content Module).
• Click Content in the NavBar.
• Click Manage Content in the menu at right.
• If you're adding a single link, click the Add Topic icon next to the Content Module name.
• If you're adding multiple links at one time, click the Bulk Add Topic icon next to the Content Module name. For each file you wish to add, click the checkbox and enter a title students can click on
• Click Create.

22 March 2007

Adding RSS Feeds

You can put RSS feed links in a Widget on your course homepage or on an HTML page in your Content Menu. First you will need to generate a Javascript code. To do this, copy the feed address (it appears in the url field when you click the feed's hyperlink). Next, you will go to a websites that will generate the code. One popular site is http://rss-to-javascript.com. If you need help with this, contact ICON Support 335-6139 or icon-support@uiowa.edu.

Once you have generated the Javascript code, you will copy it and insert it into a new widget or an HTML page.

Here’s how to insert the code into a widget:

1. Click on the small e in the lower-right corner of your course homepage;
2. Click Manage Homepages.
3. Click on Create New Widget.
4. Name the widget and click Save.
5. Click Custom Code.
6. Delete Enter Custom HTML Here and paste the Javascript code into this field.
7. Click Save.
8. Click Course Home.
9. Click on the small e in the lower-right corner of the course homepage.
10. Choose the region in which you want to add the widget.
11. Move the new widget from Available Widgets to Active Widgets.
12. Click Save.

To add RSS links to a file on your Content Menu, generate the Javascript code, as described above. Then go to the Content area and create a new Content file using ICON's built-in html editor (for instructions, see the Online Help - Content section Composing a Content File in ICON) .

22 March 2007

Adding / Editing Files with WebDAV

ICON supports WebDAV, a web protocol that allows you to easily move files into or out of their course's Manage Files area without having to log in to ICON.

You can use WebDAV to create a direct connection from your Windows or Mac computer to your ICON course's Manage Files area. Then, when you select this connection, a window displaying your ICON course files will open, and you can you can upload or download files by simply moving them into or out of this folder. You can even move multiple files without having to zip them first.

Setting up WebDav on your computer takes a couple of minutes, but it can save you time in the long run, especially if you post a lot of files over the course of a semester.

Attention Windows Vista Users: You will not be able to create a WebDAV folder by mapping a network drive, but you can use WebDAV through a third-party application such as Dreamweaver. See the Online Help section Setting up Dreamweaver 8 and WebDAV for Use with ICON. Advanced users may be able to alter their registry editor to enable WebDAV in Vista, but this solution is not recommended for most users because altering the registry editor incorrectly can cause serious problems to the operating system. The Microsoft document Troubleshooting Web Folders describes how to enable WebDAV in Vista.

Setting up WebDAV in Windows XP

Begin by going to your ICON course and copying the path to the Manage Files area:

1. Open your ICON course and click Content in the NavBar.
2. Click Manage Files on the right.
3. In the grey bar, copy the path to your ICON Manage Files area. This is almost always "/content/enforced/" followed by the unique identifer for your course site and a final trailing slash (/). Do not copy the final trailing slash.

   In the following example, the text that should be copied is highlighted in yellow. Note that the final trailing slash is not highlighted.

   /content/enforced/63818-BUSN_06T134_SECEXW_20068/

Next, you'll go to My Network Places on your computer and enter the complete path to your ICON course Manage Files area:

1. From the Start menu in Windows, open My Computer.
2. Click on My Network Places.
3. Click Add a Network Place. The Add Network Place Wizard will appear.
4. Click Next.
5. Select Choose another network location and click Next.
6. Enter the locaton: https://icon.uiowa.edu followed by the course path you copied earlier, without a final trailing slash (/).
7. Click Next.
8. You will be prompted to authenticate. Enter your Hawk ID and password. Click OK.
9. You will be prompted to enter a name for this connection. Enter any name you like.
10. Click Next.
11. You will be prompted to enter your Hawk ID and password again if you have not selected Remember my password in the password entry window.
12. Click Finish.
13. Your course site's files are now available the same as if they were on a network drive.

Note: Your students cannot see into your Manage Files area. After you have uploaded your files, you must create links on the Content Menu. For instructions, see the Online Help section Uploading and Posting a Single Content File ("Topic") or Uploading and Posting Multiple Content Files ("Topics"). Skip the part about uploading the files.

Setting up WebDAV in Mac OS X Tiger

WebDAV is built in to Mac OS X Tiger (version 4) or higher.

To create a direct connection to your ICON course files, begin by going to your ICON course and copying the path to your Manage Files area.

1. From within your ICON course, click Content the NavBar.
2. Click on Manage Files at right.
3. In the grey bar, copy the path to your course files. This is almost always "/content/enforced/" followed by the unique indentifier for your course site and a final trailing slash (/). Do not copy the final trailing slash.

In the following example, the text that should be copied is highlighted in yellow. Note that the final trailing slash is not highlighted.

/content/enforced/63818-BUSN_06T134_SECEXW_20068/

Next, go to your Finder and enter the complete path to your ICON course's Manage Files area:

1. In the Finder, select Connect to Server... from the Go menu at the top of the screen.
2. In the Server Address text field, enter https://icon.uiowa.edu followed by the course path you copied earlier—without a final trailing slash (/).
3. Click Connect.
4. You will be prompted to authenticate. Enter your Hawk ID and password and click OK.
5. Your course site's files are now available from the Go menu, the same as if they were on a network drive.

Note: Your students cannot see into your Manage Files area. After you have uploaded your files, you must create links on the Content Menu. For instructions, see the Online Help section Uploading and Posting a Single Content File ("Topic") or Uploading and Posting Multiple Content Files ("Topics"). Skip the part about uploading the files.

Setting up WebDAV in Mac OS X versions 10.3.9 or lower (before Tiger)

Mac OS X versions 10.3.9 or lower need a third-party application to use WebDAV. To get a free utility called Goliath, go to http://www.webdav.org/goliath/#download and follow the instructions under Downloads, Mac OS X. Once you have installed this utility, you're ready to create a direct connection to the Manage Files area of your ICON course. (Note: It's a good idea to read the documentation that comes bundled with the Goliath application.)

Begin by going to your ICON course and copying the internal path to your Manage Files area:

1. From within your ICON course, click Content the NavBar.
2. Click Manage Files at right.
3. In the grey bar, copy the path to your course files. This is almost always "/content/enforced/" followed by the unique indentifier for your course site and a final trailing slash (/). Do not copy the final trailing slash.

In the following example, the text that should be copied is highlighted in yellow. Note that the final trailing slash is not highlighted.

/content/enforced/63818-BUSN_06T134_SECEXW_20068/

Now you're ready open Goliath and enter the complete path to your ICON course Manage Files area.

1. Open Goliath.
2. When Goliath launches for the first time, a New WebDAV Connection window will appear. If this window does not appear, select New Connection... from the Goliath File menu.
3. In the url text field, enter https://icon.uiowa.edu followed by the course path you copied earlier—without a final trailing slash (/).
4. Enter your Hawk ID and password for the username and password and click OK.
5. From the Goliath file menu, Select Save Connection... Enter a name location for your connection (if you select Desktop, Goliath will create a handy icon right on your Desktop).

Note: Your students cannot see into your Manage Files area. After you have uploaded your files, you must create links on the Content Menu. For instructions, see the Online Help section Uploading and Posting a Single Content File ("Topic") or Uploading and Posting Multiple Content Files ("Topics"). Skip the part about uploading the files.

13 July 2007

Setting up Dreamweaver and WebDAV for use with ICON

This section is aimed at those who are already comfortable using Dreamweaver and have experience settings up site definitions. If this describes you, the following may be a good way to upload Dreamweaver files to your ICON course site.

The following procedure works best with the most current versions of Dreamweaver (Dreamweaver 8 and CS3).

ICON supports WebDAV, a protocol that simplifies uploading and downloading files via the web. Dreamweaver also supports WebDAV. Using WebDAV, Dreamweaver can treat your ICON course site like a remote web server. But first you need to tell Dreamweaver where to find the files in your ICON course.

Finding the Path to your ICON files

You'll begin by going to your ICON course and copying the internal path to the File Manager:

1. Open your ICON course and click Content the NavBar.
2. Click on Manage Files on the right.
3. In the grey bar, copy the path to your course files.
   
   
   Location of the course files path. This is usually "/content/enforced/" followed by the unique identifier for your course site.
   

Configuring Dreamweaver to connect to your ICON course File Manager

Next, you'll tell Dreamweaver the complete path to your ICON file manager:

1. In Dreamweaver, select New site... from the Site menu.
2. Select the Advanced tab in the resulting window.
3. With the Local Info category selected, give your Dreamweaver site definition an arbitrary name in the Site name field and then click on the little folder icon next to the Local root folder field. This will allow you to set a location on your local computer for the files you will manage via Dreamweaver.
4. Click the Remote Info category.
5. Select WebDAV from the Access pulldown menu.
6. In the URL field, type exactly https://icon.uiowa.edu (The "s" in "https" is important).
7. Also in the URL field, paste the course path you copied earlier at the end (e.g., https://icon.uiowa.edu/content/enforced/12263-BIOL_SEC004).
8. Type your Hawk ID into the Login field.
9. Type your Hawk ID password into the Password field.
10. If this is your private computer, you can click the Save checkbox so that Dreamweaver will remember your password in the future.
11. Click OK.

Now you should be able to use Dreamweaver to upload files into your ICON course site the same as it would to a regular web site.

Important Note: Your students cannot see into your ICON course File Manager. Once you have uploaded your files, you will need to go to the Content Menu and post links links there. For instructions, see Uploading and Posting a Single Content File ("Topic") or Uploading and Posting Multiple Content Files ("Topics").

01 August 2007