Online Course Orientation
For online classes with Mike Strong at ArtfulDancer.Com
First Page, Logging In and Quizzes
| Video Tour |
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| Click the play button to view |
The Web address (URL)
It is not necessary to go to Blackboard for my course offerings. I merely put a link on Blackboard to the following URL, so, you can just go directly to http://www.artfuldancer.com/lessons and login
Logging in gets you credit for quizzes which are tallied by computer. The course material is always there regardless. You can get to the course material by clicking the course-number button in the course list table.
Your login here is:
username: your username at UMKC (which I get from the registrar)
password: just the word "password" for starters (you can change it anytime you are logged in)
Your password here is not the same as at UMKC because we do not share secure information. That also means that when you change your password at UMKC it does not change here. Your username is derived from the text just left of the commercial-at sign in your UMKC email address. For example if your UMKC email address is xyz@mail.umkc.edu then your username would be xyz.
If you are not able to login still there may be a couple of reasons.
1 - In a few cases the UMKC email address provided by the registrar does not match the username you are logging in with at UMKC.
2 - In most cases it just means I haven't gotten your information yet from the registrar, probably because you just signed up.
In either case, send me an email to inform me at strongm@umkc.edu.
To log in you will need two items:
- Username: enter your current UMKC username
- Password: enter the word "password" (the default, starting password)
Once you've logged in you are allowed to change your password to anything else.
Course List Table
Before logging in you should see a table with a gray background and a list of course names. Once logged in, the opening yellow page will show the course list table showing those classes you are signed up for with a white background while the other classes show up with a grey background.
In each table row (each class listing) has a button which when clicked takes you to the course material. If this is not accurate, tell me. Drop me an email.
Any other courses offered at this site will show in table rows with a light grey background. You are welcome to view these other courses at any time as a guest.
For 421P, 422P, 423P and 424P a web page is required as a single project for the course. This is an actual page which is shown on the web using the web space at UMKC. Every student has such a space reserved on the web server at UMKC.
For 400D (database) the course is a single extended project which you put together as you go. Treat this course as you would treat a workbook. The exercises are designed to build a project one exercise at a time. It accumulates, so follow the directions exactly.
Lesson Buttons and Example Pages
In each row of the white-background table - titled "Course(s) You Are Enrolled in" you will see several items.
The left-most column has a link for your grade sheet. Here you can check your current grades.
The second column has buttons with the course numbers listed on them. Click these buttons to bring up the materials for that course.
The third column is the course title.
The last column will have a link to an example page for those courses in which your assignments are posted on and as web pages.
The Example page is important because it shows you what I am expecting for your page on the web.
More about web pages later, but for now this note. You should have as a pre-requisite one of the web-design courses. You really need to know two things:
1 - how to make web pages
2 - how to get your pages onto the web - this last is very important.
For those doing the database course there is no web page. You will be sending me your assignment as an attachment on your email.
Lesson Links for Reading and Quizzes
Reading link
Clicking on any of the white-link groups in the left-hand panel brings up a reading (lesson/lecture) page on the right side of the page.
The readings here are applied to the quiz in the yellow link just below.
Single or Multiple Section Quizzes
Quizzes are really lessons in a complete-the-statement drill format. It has two modes:
1) Learner Mode (drill)
2) Test Mode (for the score)
First, you need to be logged in to be able to take quizzes.
Quizzes are a major source of your grade.
Generally they are a good thing to get done first.
All questions are presented in random order.
All questions start in the top row and are completed in one of the four following
rows.
The quizzes are designed to go over material presented in the readings
The questions are from the reading or exercises in the section just above
the yellow quiz link.
All questions are generated in random order each time.
The schema is:
1) Read the top (yellow) row and either answer the query or complete the statement
from the four options below
2) Click in one of the four lower frames (dark-grey background). You will
be told immediately whether it is right or wrong.
To take a quiz
1 - Click on the link for a quiz
2 - Quiz frame comes up on the right side of the page
3 - This starts in Exercise Mode
4 - The question or statement to complete is listed in the yellow box at the top
5 - Click on one of the four lower boxes with the statement which best answers or completes the statement in the yellow box
Learner Mode
On startup up the quiz (by default) starts in learner (drill) mode. This mode does not get recorded. It repeats questions which are missed, until you get them right. If all questions are run through the test automatically switches to Test Mode. You can also get to Test Mode at any time by clicking on the "Click for Test Mode" button.
When you click a wrong frame you get a "No" displayed briefly before the next question is posted to the page.
When you click a correct frame you get a "Yes" displayed briefly before the next question is posted to the page.
If you have answered all the drill questions correctly in the "Learner" mode, or, if you click the "Test Mode" button you are given the questions in "Test Mode" for automatic scoring. Here they are presented one time for each question. When done, they are submitted automatically for the grade.
Test Mode
In this mode you are presented with each question once. When the entire random sequence of questions is done the test is scored automatically and you are sent a confirmation email to your UMKC email address. (I get one too.)
If you mess up, you may re-take it. The idea is (1) that this is a teaching device rather than an elimination device and (2) that repetition helps you remember.
In-Page Review Quizzes
These are basically recent-reading reminders. They are not scored but may be used later in regualr scored quizzes. You can note from the example above that more than one question in any one of these review quizzes may use the same answer. That is on purpose.
You will find these on various pages in various locations with a variety of types of questions from fill-in-the blank to checkbox multiple choice to radio button single choice or true false questions. These are evaluated on the client (your browser) and the result shown immediately. You can take these as many times as you want. At this time only a couple of them are collected from one or more pages and used as graded and recorded quizzes. In the future more of these will be used in the text and then collected for graded and recorded quizzes.
Clicking the "Submit" button at the botton left gives you this score card. The answered questions are listed with a score for each in points and the answer you gave.
Click the "OK" button to exit. Go over as many times as you wish.
Course Grade And Quizzes
There is no standard number of points for a course. Just do the quizzes and the points will add up. They will be rated on the number of points finished compared to the maximum number of points for that course to produce a percentage.
- Lab Time Appointments: I am in the PACE lab from 1pm to 2pm on
Mondays.
For other times I will drive in to campus for appointments (I don't have an on-campus office, not since 2000).
- Class Files Resource Disk
- Free Data-DVD disk as a resource
for classes - at the PACE office (104 Scofield) - ask at the desk
- Media source files for editing exercises
- Video Files for digital editing
- Streaming Class Files for Streaming Links
- Multi-Media Bonus Star Wars Fan Film - Revelations
- Free and Trial Software
- HTML editors (WYSIWIG and Text) (such as Trellian: http://www.trellian.com/webpage)
- Trial software for Vegas Movie Studio, Sound Forge and ACID
- Free FTP software
- Various Kansas City area files
- Programs You Can Run from Your USB stick (on disk or here: http://portableapps.com)
- More items as well
- Free Data-DVD disk as a resource
for classes - at the PACE office (104 Scofield) - ask at the desk
- Web Page Requirements
Creating Web Pages - For assignments in most courses (not 400D)
You should already have taken a course in web page creation (that is a prerequisite because these classes assume you already know how to make a web page and how to make it operational on the web.
If you merely uploaded a set of HTML files to your teacher and you never actually put those files on the website area reserved for you at UMKC, you do not have a website, just a set of HTML files. So the first thing you will need to do is to take those files you have and copy them or FTP them directly to your UMKC website space. After that you can add the extra page to the site which you will need to complete this lesson. -
If you really are in a class and don't have the prerequisite or are just confused about the web page creation and posting, look at the 310P class and view the exercises and explanations in that course.
- Locate Your Files
For those courses requiring a web page you need to know where your file space is at UMKC for the web page and how to get there.
Go To: FileLocations.asp for examples on locating your website area at UMKC from UMKC campus and from home or business.
- Video Tutorial for file transfer (via FTP) and for HTML editing
(via Windows Explorer)
- Use the Play link if you are
on campus at UMKC.
The download link may fill up your file-space allotment. - For Download links Right Click
the link and choose "Save Target As" or "Save Link As"
to save as file which you can play from your hard drive (or memory stick).
- Use the Play link if you are
on campus at UMKC.
Assignment
DUE DATES are Soft Dates: They are NOT do-or-die dates.
Dates were requested by students as a guide and are intended as an aid to help you pace yourself and get done on time. You can do assignments in any order, any time, as long as they are all in by the end of the semester. Remember, this is on the web, not a classroom so hand-in dates make less sense.
A data DVD with exercise files for Video (423P) (same disk for 421)is available in the PACE office (104 Scofield) or email or phone me and I will be glad to snail-mail you one. There is no charge, this is yours to keep. (note "data dvds" have files on a dvd and do not play as a video dvd, although the files can include video files.)
The video editing software is loaded onto the machines in Royall 303/304. In the Windows menu system go to "Start/Programs/Special Software." Look for Sony Vegas Movie Studio Platinum 11.0.
Working with storage at UMKC while editing your media files
The labs won't allow you to use files the size of your media files for long.
If you store the files in your own space you are liable to run out of alloted
space.You have basically two kinds of work space.
1) There is a temporary work space available in C:\Temp.
2) You can use external storage (your own) in the form of a flash drive
(jump drive) from the USB port in front or USB Hard Drive.
To use the temporary storage copy your work files from your CD to C:\temp to work on. Then edit and render as web-versions (small, WMV at 256kb) to your UMKC web site. Remember, C:\temp gets wiped (erased) each night automatically.
The other, and overall best, way to handle this is to copy the CD files to a 1gb or 2gb flash drive (for the USB port, a.k.a. jump drive) and use the jump drive as your work drive at UMKC. That way you can keep the files to work on over a period of time and not worry about files being wiped out overnight.
You may also want to use a USB-powered Hard Drive if you are doing video, just for more speed and more storage area.
Download Portable Applications for Use From Your USB stick
FileZilla FTP program (application) - This is a terrific small FTP program which handles UMKC sites very well. FileZilla allow you to move (copy) files between your own machine (local) and the web server (remote). FileZilla is especially nice in that it can be installed on a thumb drive and used on any machine you are at where you can install a thumb drive.
Download Page: http://portableapps.com/news/2009-02-21_-_filezilla_portable_3.2.2
Documentation: http://filezilla.sourceforge.net/documentation
Basic Instructions for using FileZilla with UMKC user sites (opens in new window)