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| Installations and Preferences |
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| Course Settings and Online Options |
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| Internet Connections and Error Messages |
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Installations
and Preferences
How do I uninstall
Design-a-Course?
The most efficient way to uninstall Design-a-Course
is to select Uninstall from the Design-a-Course
program group. (Start/Programs/Design-a-Course/Uninstall).
Within the Uninstall routine, choose Custom, choose Select
All for each screen and then just follow the prompts.
This cleans out the program and all registry entries.
Return How do I
know where to find the pages I create when I use Design-a-Course?
When you go through the steps of creating
a new course in Design-a-Course, a folder is saved
to your hard drive where all of the files related to
your course are stored. You name this folder during
the course setup process.
Return Do you require anything for the student to be downloaded
from your site?
Students and administrators
do not need to download anything in order to fully use
the software. Course developers must
download the Design-a-Course Author, which is the
course development tool.
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Editing
Course Pages
Can I change
where I want the questions to appear in my course after
they have been added?
Design-a-Course allows you to group questions so that
they appear to the student either at the end of a
given chapter, at the end of the course, or as they appear
in the course outline. You set this by clicking the "Properties" button
on the editor toolbar. With this feature, you can
put questions anywhere in the Outline!
Return How do I get
a picture or graphic to align correctly on my page in the Author?
The best way is to put your cursor on the line with
the picture or graphic and use the left, center, or right
alignment buttons. These buttons are located on the tool
bar between the Underlining and Numbered Bulleting buttons.
Return Why doesn't
my Tab key doesn't seem to have any effect?
The Tab key is another feature that is not supported
in most HTML editors. For best results in aligning text
and graphics, put your cursor on the line with the text
or graphic and use the left, center, or right alignment
buttons. These buttons are located on the tool bar between
the Underlining and Numbered Bulleting buttons. You can
also achieve the same effect as you would with the Tab
key if you use the indent and outdent buttons, which
are located to the right of the alignment buttons on
your Design-a-Course tool bar.
Return I know I can
use external HTML editors to develop my pages outside of
Design-a-course, but can I also use Word?
Well, the answer is mix of yes and no. Yes, you can
initially develop your pages in Word, or any application
that can export to an HTML page. But once it's imported
in Design-a-Course, you must make a decision. If you
want to edit your imported pages in DaC, then you should
not edit that page in Word again. If you want to edit
your pages in Word, then ONLY use Word to edit those
pages.
- The
reason? Since DaC is HTML based,
Design-a-Course made the decision to conform to
the strict HTML standards developed by
the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) http://www.w3c.org.
For instance, they, with input and cooperation
from leading industry companies and professionals,
decide what code or tags (HTML terminology)
should be used to make a sentence bold
on a Web page. Adhering to these standards
ensures that HTML code, pages, technologies,
and applications like Web browsers, are
interchangeable with one another. Microsoft,
however, has gone a different route.
In order to streamline their applications
and make them more integrated with one
another, they generate non-standard HTML
code with extra information that only
Microsoft applications understand. If
DaC attempted to get involved with what
Word was generated, the applications
would bump heads, so-to-speak, and the
end result would be inconsistent.
Return
What happens
when I delete a course?
Using the Delete Course button on the
Catalog View window causes all files and folders associated
with that course to be permanently removed. Items deleted
in this manner are not recoverable.
Return
Can I preview
a course in my browser during development?
Yes. Use the Preview button on the
main toolbar in the Author. This will open individual
HTML pages in your Web browser, allowing you to see
how they will appear online before your course is published
to the Web.
Return How can
I back up a course that I've been working on?
To maintain a copy of a course apart
from the database version, use the Course Export option.
This produces a .zip archive that you can save as a
back-up copy. To load the back up, use the Import Course
option from the course selection screen. Design-a-Course
has a built-in Backup folder where all Imported and
Exported course .zip files will automatically be directed
to for storage.
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How
do a rename a course in Design-a-Course?
- Highlight your course in in the course catalog.
- Click the Export button. Save the course into your
backup folder or any folder you keep backups in.
- In the course catalog, Open that course.
- Click the Properties icon and the General tab.
- Change the Course Title and Directory name to whatever
you want. Click OK.
- Click the Catalog icon to return to the course catalog.
Your course will now show up with its new name.
- Click the Import Course button and navigate to where
you saved your course.
- Highlight the original course and click Import.
You will now have two courses,
with the exact same content but with different names
in your course catalog. This "Save
As" function can be handy for unique branding of
the same course for different audiences.
Return
How do I make a copy of a course and keep the original?
- Select your course in the Author Course Catalog
- Click Export and save it in another directory
- Now select that same course in the Course Catalog and click
Open
- Once the course is open click the Properties button
- Change the course title and directory name
- Save and Close the course
- From the catalog screen Click Import
- Navigate to the original course you Exported, highlight
it and click Import
- You will now have two separate courses in your catalog
Return
COURSE
SETTINGS AND ONLINE OPTIONS
How do I upload courses?
Uploading courses
requires a simple click of the "Upload" button.
This will send all of the files in the course folder
to the server, where they will be stored and accessible as a fully
functional course to your students.
Return
I have placed
a user in the same group with a course, but the user still
can't take that course. What else do I need to do?
Design-a-Course is set up so
this works by default. Meaning every group has a default
permission that allows
users in that group to take courses in that group.
The only time it won't work is when an administrator
has accessed the "Manage Groups" screen to remove
the default permission, either by changing "Courses
which may be taken by users" or "Students that
may take courses".
To correct the problem you choose
Manage Groups, select the group in question, click on
the first "edit" link
under permissions, and verify that the group shows up
in that list. If not, click " add more groups of
courses" and add it.
Return
What do
I do if I want to update or change my course information
after the course has been uploaded?
You may edit your course pages at any
time by opening up your course in the Design-a-Course
Author. However, in order for the changes to take
effect online, you will need to re-upload the course
once you complete your editing.
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How do my
students access their courses?
Once courses are uploaded, the course
administrator creates users, entering their user information
for scoring and tracking purposes and giving them access
to the course pages. When students visit the Design-a-Course
login page, they are given a list of any courses they
have been given permission to take.
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What is
the difference in letting my students view the outline
or turning this function off?
Allowing students to view the course
outline also enables them to navigate to any area of
the course they choose, skipping questions or entire
sections of material. Depending on your audience, topic,
and purpose, this may be preferable. Disabling this
feature ensures that students will follow the course
in a linear fashion.
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Why would
I choose to allow students to skip questions?
If you have limited the number of times
a student may take the questions in a course, you may
want to allow them to skip questions until they feel
prepared to take them. This would allow them to read
the material as many times as they needed before being
tested. If students are not able to skip questions,
they will be required to answer the questions as they
appear in the course each time they take it.
Return
I
have placed a user in the same group with a course, but
the user still can't take that course. What else do I need to do?
Every
group has a default permission that allows users
in that group to take courses. However,
that default permission can
be deleted by an Administrator for the
group which in turn will deny access for everyone
in that group. To correct the problem, you log into
your online account with Administrator privileges, choose
Manage Groups, select the group in question, click
on
the first "edit" link
under permissions, and verify that the group shows up
in that list. If not, click "add more groups of
courses" and add it.
Return
If a student is put in the highest
group do they have access to all courses in lower groups in the hierarchy?
No. The default rule is that
a student in a group can take courses in the group they
are placed into and any parent
group.
For example. Lets says
you have a top level root group called 'MAIN'
and then
you have 2 branched groups under that called 'HR'
and 'ACCOUNTING.' And you have
a group branched off 'ACCOUNTING'
called
'PAYROLL.' If you place a
student in Group PAYROLL they
will have access to courses in groups MAIN, ACCOUNTING,
and PAYROLL, but NOT HR.
Again, this is the default behavior
of groups and permissions can be modified on an indvidual
student basis as needed.
Return
Internet
Connections and Error Messages
Regarding access via firewall ports,
which are required and is the access outbound only or inbound
also?
Port 80 is required. Port 443 is also strongly recommended.
However, you can choose to disable the default security
requirements on Design-a-Course connections to their
account, after which port 443 is not needed. If this decision
is made, you would need to inform us so that we can
disable the default security requirements.
Only outbound
connections are required. Proxy servers
are fine, but course developers will need to know their
proxy configuration. WPAD and auto-configuration scripts
are not available for the course Author upload function.
Return
I
am getting, "Connection refused by remote host" when
I try to upload my course. What's wrong?
There are several possible
reasons for this message.
- First, please make sure
you have given the correct URL, which was chosen
when registering for Design-a-Course.
- Second, it is possible
that your network is not functioning properly. Please
be sure you have dialed the internet if you are using
a modem, or ask your local help desk or internet
provider about known problems on their network.
- Finally, your organization
may require a proxy server to manage internet connections.
Your network administrator or internet provider
should be able to tell you if this is the case.
To use a proxy server, click on the Advanced button
from the Upload dialog. Enter the proxy information
given to you by your network administrator or internet
provider, and click OK.
- Proxy servers are "inside
firewalls" -- they filter and block access
to sites. They can be used by your IT department
or internet provider to track connections,
or to offer performance boosts by caching frequently
used pages directly on the server. Though some
proxies are designed to improve internet performance,
a proxy server will NOT improve the performance
of uploading courses from the Design-a-Course
Author. If your organization has an optional
proxy server, we recommend that you do NOT
enter any proxy server configuration into the
Design-a-Course Author. If your organization
requires the use of a proxy server, you may
enter your configuration into the Design-a-Course
Author. Ask your network administrator or internet
service provider for the correct proxy configuration.
Return
What role does Java play
and do we need to enable it on student workstations?
Java is used only internally within the course Author,
and requires no special configuration of the student workstations.
However, JavaScript is required for students to take courses
in Design-a-Course, and for others to administer the system.
JavaScript is not Java, but is often confused with Java
due to the similar name. Default JavaScript security constraints
are entirely acceptable, but JavaScript must be enabled
in the browser.
Return
What role does ActiveX play and which settings
need to be enabled?
ActiveX plays absolutely no part in the Design-a-Course
system.
Return
Does your site require cookies
be accepted?
Session
cookies must be enabled for Design-a-Course to function
properly. Cross-session (long-term or disk storage) cookies
are not used, and can be safely disabled in the user agent.
Return
Do you rely on pop-up technology?
Yes, pop-ups are used in two places:
1. Students:
Students launch
pop-ups to take courses. This action is allowed by
all pop-up blockers we have tested in their
default configuration, since the pop-up window is
a direct result of a click by the student to take the
course.
2. Developers:
The preview function of the course Author
uses pop-ups to create the course preview window.
This action may be prevented by various popup
blockers, and Design-a-Course will provide instructions in
the product to disable popup blockers as needed,
in order
to allow course developers to successfully preview
courses. This will NOT be required of students who
take courses
in Design-a-Course; it is only necessary for those
people who develop training courses for the Design-a-Course
system.
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Miscellaneous
Is
training provided or available for the product? If so,
what is the cost?
Design-a-Course provides
a "Using Design-a-Course" course
with each download. This course highlights all
the features DaC offers, and it also provides practice
exercises to help you as you begin your course
development.
Custom training is available on request.
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My course
looks fine both within the Author and when I use Preview
to look at it from a Web browser. When students take
the course, some of the pages are empty or some of the
images appear broken. Why is that, and how can I fix
it?
If a + character occurs in a filename,
the upload will appear to succeed, but the image will
not appear when the user takes the course from the
course engine. Rename the image so it does not have
a + character and re-insert it into the course page.
Return
I am trying
to insert video into my course using the Design-a-Course
Author. It seems to work in the Author, but it doesn't
work in Preview on some machines, or some students can't
see the video. How do I fix this?
Chances are, there's a file configuration
problem on the computers where the video isn't playing.
Ask students who can't see the movie to check their
file associations and make sure that that the video
file's extension is associated with the right application.
Some video file formats can't be played with Apple's
QuickTime player unless the student has additional
extensions, so it is safest to have the student associate
AVI and MPG files with Windows Media Player rather
than QuickTime.
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What are the system requirements
for self-hosting?
If you choose the self-hosting option, the systems
requirements will be:
- Dedicated Linux Server running SuSe Linux 9.1
- 1 GHZ x86 CPU ( 2 GHZ - Pentium 4 or AMD 64
or equivalent recommended)
- 512 GB RAM (1gb ECC RAM recommended)
- SCSI or Serial ATA Hard Drive
- 40gb Disk Space (Mirrored Disks recommended)
- 100Mbps Ethernet Card
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