Using WebTycho |
You will have access to our classroom on WebTycho after log-in. Log on from your registered web address using your ID and password (once assigned). (You may log in as a guest before receiving your password to explore WebTycho, complete the tutorial, and use the help facilities.)
Each student is to complete the on-line tutorial in WebTycho by the end of the first week of class. Also download the print version of the help files.
If you have a "site download" utility (WebWacker is one), you may be able to download the entire help file area without visiting every page.
Otherwise, visit every page of the site in a single session, clicking on all the links. Do not bother to study the material on-line; scan it so you know which links you need to activate. Make sure all the images appear on your screen. Then log off and use your browser's history function to go back through the pages which you have downloaded to your computer.
Be prepared to return to these pages frequently during the first weeks of the course.
Make this a quick general review at first so you know the nature of the on-line help facilities available.
Make liberal use of the help files and the on-line chat forum with Tycho technical support. If you cannot access the site, contact Tycho Technical Support by email.
a. Check our classroom once every three days at a minimum throughout the course.
b. You will see all the areas, conferences, study groups, etc. you have access to as you review the site. If you are not assigned to a particular group, you will not see that part of the classroom.
c. You will have read-only permission on some pages, read and write permission on others.
d. Check the Announcements section first each time you log on.
e. Sign-in on the weekly Sign-in Log.
f. My biographic data and policies are on my web site which is linked from our WebTycho classroom.
g. Check the Class Conference area.
1) Initial Conferences will be
a) Course Admin. Issues
b) Gripes, Complaints and Faint Praise
c) Student Biography Addendum (Focus on background relevant to this course - strengths, weaknesses, desires and goals. Include data on where you are physically located, including country and support base.)
d) Your personal goals for this course
e) Confirm you have read the Course Syllabus and Guidance documents that provide a common starting point for this course.
f) Explore the UMUC on-line library and databases for databases and material related to our course.
g) Confirm textbook availability
h) State your on-line chatting desires and ability
2) Within each conference, if a Main Topic has not started on an issue you want to discuss within the Conference, start a New Main Topic. If such a Main Topic has been started, continue the thread with a Response to the Topic. You may make side comments on a specific Response as well.
3) Initially view all Notes. Later if you have kept up with the discussion, you may choose just to read the "unread" messages.
h. Check for a "Lecture" or assignment in the Course Content area.
i. Uploading files to Conferences and study group areas:
1) Upload files in the appropriate format. Do not attach .html or .htm files to any postings. Use an appropriate file extension (for example, .zip, .pdf, .doc, .rtf, .ppt, .xls, .gif, or .jpg). Virus screen all files that you will upload with an up-to-date virus checker prior to uploading.
2) HTML files (and scripting files) cannot be uploaded directly to WebTycho. When you need to upload such files there are two things to consider. HTML pages that are linked together (as they might be on a web site) will lose those links unless you put all the linked files into a folder, use relative addressing for all internal links, and zip the folder (create an archive) with WinZip (the file needs .zip as the extension). To be able to upload HTML or scripting files as attachments, they must be virus checked and zipped.
3) Graphic files, spreadsheets, presentation slides, etc. can be uploaded to WebTycho with relative ease. Sets of files and complex or embedded files should be placed in a single folder and zipped prior to upload.
4) File names of uploaded files should be UNIX -friendly. Use NO SPACES or special characters. Keep the title short (15 characters). Put you initials followed by an underscore at the start of each file name.
5) Label every contribution with a meaningful title. Use the notes area to explain your posting. Do not upload a file without identifying what it is and why it is there.
6) Most students and I can reliably open zipped folders (.zip archives) and extract the files. Relative links normally are kept intact and the files can be opened in a web browser. Compressing files also reduces upload and download times.
7) Remember to scan each file with a current anti-virus utility before posting. Similarly scan each downloaded file - just in case.
8) If the upload is successful, you will get a confirmation message and your file title will appear on the index page. DOWNLOAD your own file (yes, the one you just uploaded) and review it to make sure that it was properly uploaded. At times the confirmation message is slow in appearing. Be patient, otherwise you will see your comment posted several times. (If that should happen to you, please delete the redundant comment.) Alternatively, you may see the message name and icon, but the file will not download properly.
j. Check the Study Group areas.
1) Perhaps the most important Study Group is your personal one where I will leave you feedback on your assignments and performance. Only you and I will have access to it.
2) You will see other study groups to which you are assigned in the same area. Review activity in each. Short comments may be typed in on-line. If you want to save on-linetime, cut and paste longer comments into the Discussion or Group Document areas. Upload files in the appropriate format in the discussion area as discussed above.
3) I prefer for discussions to be held in the Study Group Conference area. There you can post attachments and each contribution is logged and date stamped so you can track the progress of the discussion more clearly.
4) Alternatively, download a file and make your comments on the downloaded file, amend the title and upload the file(s) back onto the same thread.
5) Unless instructed differently, do not use the Collaborative Documents area.
1) This is a two-way, private exchange area for the two of us. I will mark your assignment as "Read" when I download it.
2) Typically you will post your Journals and your response to the take home final exam in your assignments area.
3) I will review your work and, for graded assignments, pass out your grade and my comments via your personal study group area.
4) I will normally share only general comments with the whole class for work posted by you in the assignments area (unlike contributions in the class conference areas where my comments will normally appear in the conference itself).
l. Chat Room (and Alternatives):
1) In the past some students have indicated a desire to use the chat facility. You can chat to any student in our class who is on-line and has the chat room window open (otherwise, the student will not know you are there). So if you want to chat, open the chat room window and leave it open while you browse the rest of our classroom in a separate window.
2) If you are familiar with ICQ/IRC, instant messaging, or any of the other chat facilities, you may prefer to exchange ICQ or instant message numbers with other members of the class. With those facilities, if you activate the software when you go on-line, you will be notified if any correspondent is also on-line and be able to establish a link with willing partners.
My ICQ number is 56469537.
3) A major benefit of the chat facility is that you can chat with WebTycho Tech Support when you are having problems. You will see one Tycho Tech Support representative in the chat room for our class, but I have found it is best to go to the HELP button (in a separate browser window so you can move back and forth between where you are having problems and your chat session) and click on the link for an on-line, real time conference with Tech Support.
You need to give him or her the full class identification, and details of exactly what you tried to do or want to do, how that failed, what message the computer displayed for you, etc. The more details you can give the better. This real time facility is much better than emailing Tech Support, but do that any time you have problems with WebTycho and do not chat with a representative.
4) I really prefer to use an alternative to keyboarding. It is called talking. However, that takes a fast connection and the right equipment.
a) Those who have audio (Internet telephony) or video conferencing capability using programs such as NetMeeting, CU-SeeMe, Internet phone, etc., may want to use them rather than keyboarding in a chat room. Let me know if you want to try to connect.
b) MS NetMeeting, packaged with MS Internet Explorer, is reportedly "Best of Breed" video conferencing program for Windows based machines. CU-SeeMe is an inexpensive commercial (formerly shareware) package for the Mac that achieves the same end (slightly less capable version is still available as freeware).
5) Unless specifically noted, you are not required to attend chat or audio/video conferencing sessions.
a. We need to be prepared to supplement WebTycho with the direct exchange of formatted documents using the capabilities of Microsoft Office 97-2004 or a similar software package (which you use to save your work in MS Office formats). Such documents must be scanned with current virus checkers prior to transmission. (See also: Email Attachments.)
b. Graphic files, spreadsheets, presentation slides, etc. can be emailed with relative ease. MS Office formats like .doc, .xls, or .ppt files ride the Internet just fine; to be safe, place any other files or linked files (as discussed above) in a single folder and zip the folder prior to attaching to an email.
| Phil Richardson; prichard@faculty.ed.umuc.edu |
ICQ:
56469537
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Revised
2 April 2005
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