News tool (Announcements)

What is Possible with ICON’s News Tool?

• Post announcements about course-related events (project due dates, virtual office hours, quizzes, PBS programs, readings, guest speakers, chats)
• Post interesting pictures, quotes, news stories
• Post changes in class time or location
• Include images and links to content files, other areas of your ICON course, and external websites.
• Restrict display of news based on group membership or fulfillment of certain course requirements
• Set display of news items for certain dates (including future dates)

News appears as a widget (box) on the course homepage.

6 June 2005

Posting a News Item

1. From your course homepage, click Add (top right) in the News box.
2. Select the availability dates and times from the dropdown lists.  Notice that you can specify future dates and a removal date. (NOTE: Although students will not be able to see a news item after the removal date, instructors will be able to see the news item.)
3. Type in a headline.
4. Type your news in the textbox.

Note: ICON's built-in HTML editor offers various formatting options. It also allows you to insert images and add links to content files, to other areas of your ICON course, and to external websites. (Click the HTML Editor icon. In the popup window, click the Insert Image icon or the Insert QuickLink icon.)

5. If you wish to attach a file, click Browse, locate the file on your desktop, and click Open.
6. Click Save. The announcement will appear in the News box on your course homepage.

6 June 2005

Adding Special Release Conditions

You can restrict access to a News item to individuals who are in a certain group or who have fulfilled a certain online requirement.

If you plan to restrict access to a group and have not yet created the group, do it now. (See Creating Groups.)

1. Create and save a News posting.  (The posting must be saved before you can enter release conditions.)
2. Click Edit to the right of the posting on the homepage.
3. Under Additional Release Conditions (bottom), click Add New.
4. Select a Condition Type and specific item or group from the dropdown lists and click Save.

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

6 June 2005

Editing and Deleting News Items

To EDIT a News item:

1. On your course homepage, click Edit beside the item on the News widget.
2. Enter your changes and click Save.

To DELETE a News item:

1. On your course homepage, click Search (top-left corner) on the News widget.
2. Click the trashcan next to the item you wish to delete; then click OK.

22 August 2007