myCourses
FAQs
- Where is my course?
- Can I create my own course shell?
- How can I view the course pages so that my view is like my student's view?
- How do I add pictures to myCourses?
- How do I add someone to my course on myCourses?
- How do I add someone without an RIT Computer Account such as an off campus guest to my course on myCourses?
- How do I remove someone from the course?
- Everyone is gone from my Classlist or Gradebook or I'm only seeing part of the class. Where did everyone else go?
- How do I reuse sections of a previous course in my current course?
- Is there a default set of Discussion Forums and Topics I can use?
- My Gradebook converted from the old myCourses, but I want to add Categories to it and don't see how. Advice?
- What file types are supported on myCourses? (Upd. Oct 26, 2005)
- How do I edit someone's role in my class?
- I entered the first grades in a category and now it says "Dropped" so what do I do now?
- Some of the students are saying they cannot see all of the discussion topics. How come I can see them but they can't?
- I have uploaded files to mycourses successfully but students keep telling me that they cannot see the files.
- How do I manage files in myCourses using 'Drag and Drop'? (Windows)
- How do I manage files in myCourses using 'Drag and Drop'? (Mac)
- What access is granted to each Role in a course?
- How do I change my Course Home page?
- How do I change my course's Navigation Bar?
- How do students see their grades in the Grade Book? Changing my role to Student does not let me see this. (Upd. Oct 29, 2005)
- Why are students getting an error when trying to read the comments I have left for them in the gradebook.
- How do I get my grades from the Gradebook into the Registrar's records?
- How can I set up Internet Explorer 6.0+ to let me download files from myCourses and stop blocking myCourses pop-up windows?
- myCourses doesn't start up and I get an error about RealPlayer. What can I do?
- What are acceptable characters in filenames on myCourses?
- How can I speed up my Gradebook?
- Can I get accounts on myCourses for non-RIT users or people who do not have an RIT Computer Account?
- What are SCORM reports?
- How do I remove courses I am no longer teaching this quarter?
A: By default, the categories in the Course Listing is collapsed. To see your course you will need to click on the '+' sign next to the appropriate category to expand the listing.
| Collapsed | Expanded |
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Students do not have access to courses until one week before the first day of classes. You will not see that quarter's category or any classes for that quarter until that time.
Student enrollments take one day to appear on myCourses after the have been processed by the Registrar's Office. They will not appear immediately. If it has been one day and the enrollment is not on myCourses first confirm you can see it on your record in the Student Information System. If you can confirm it there then give tech support a call to get it added to myCourses. If it is not in SIS then you will need to contact the Registrar for assistance with your enrollment.
Faculty will receive their courses for the upcoming quarter on the 7th week of the current quarter. You will not see that quarter's category or any classes for that quarter until that time. For example, Fall Quarter courses are not created on myCourses until the 7th week of Summer Quarter.
Faculty missing a class should confirm they have been assigned to the course properly in the Registrar's records. You may confirm this through the InfoCenter or with the scheduling officer for your academic department. If the assignment is confirmed then contact Online Learning for assistance. Any changes in the Registrar's records will not be reflected on myCourses until the next morning as the information feed from the Registrar is processed once each morning ~4:00am.
Q: Can I create my own course shell?
A: You can not create official course shells for your classes, but you may request course shells for other uses.
Faculty will receive their official course shells for the upcoming quarter on the 7th week of the current quarter. You will not see that quarter's category or any classes for that quarter until that time. For example, Fall Quarter courses are not created on myCourses until the 7th week of Summer Quarter.
If you are missing a class please confirm that you have been assigned to the course properly in the Registrar's records. You may confirm this through the InfoCenter or with the scheduling officer for your academic department. If the assignment is confirmed then contact Online Learning for assistance. Any changes in the Registrar's records will not be reflected on myCourses until the next morning as the information feed from the Registrar is processed once each morning ~4:00am.
Faculty may request a shell for course development, non-credit courses, for use with a Committee, or a Community shell for use by a club or group. Shells for student groups must be requested and managed by a Faculty/Staff advisor.
Q: How can I view the course pages so that my view is like my student's view?
A: There is a Role Switch widget on the Course Home page. You can select a role that you would like to assume from the drop down menu. This will enable you to view the course as someone with the selected role views the course. Note: You must be in the Instructor mode to save changes or view items set for release in the future.
Q: How do I add pictures to myCourses?
A: You can add pictures to Discussion postings, News Items, Quiz questions, or anywhere else that the HTML editor icon (
) is displayed.
Students may only link to images hosted on another web server by their URL address.
Faculty may link to images as well as upload the files directly to their course for hosting.
To do so, you need to edit your pictures so they are web ready, which usually means they are relatively small and are in a web format (jpg, gif, png). While adding or editing the text where you want the image to appear, click on the HTML Editor icon (). Once the HTML Editor opens, place your cursor within the text where you would like your picture to appear and click on the Insert Image icon. If it is a new image, you will select the Upload Image option to begin. When you are completed with the upload process, you will save the image file to your course (so it may be re-used without re-uploading).
Advanced Tip: Click on the HTML tab at the bottom of the HTML Editor window as your last step, and look for the "<img src" tag in the HTML text and insert "align=left" or "align=right" at the end of the tag to better format your image. If using Internet Explorer on Windows, you can also right-click the image and choose 'Set Image Properties'.
Q: How do I add someone to my course on myCourses?
A: You can add anybody that has an account on myCourses to your Classlist.
Regular enrollments will be handled automatically by the daily information feed from the Registrar's Office. This feed runs once each morning ~3:30am, so enrollments will not appear on myCourses automatically.
To add a user to your class click on the Classlist link on the blue navigation bar of your course. Select "Add participant" to be taken to a search page. In the "Search for" box, you can enter the last name or the username of the person you would like to add. Once you press search, all of the matching names on myCourses will appear below. When you find the person you are looking for in the list, check the "Enroll" box to the left of their name and be sure to give them the desired role in the course by using the pull-down bar on the right. Once you have done that, you can click the "Enroll" button and you are all set.
If your search does not return the name of the person you are looking for they are either in the course already or they do not have an account on the myCourses server.
Please note, only users who have been enrolled in or are teaching a class will have myCourses accounts. Users with an RIT Computer Account that are not on myCourses may contact the ITS Helpdeskk or Online Learning to have their account added to myCourses.
Non-RIT users can be granted myCourses accounts but these accounts are subject to a licensing fee. For more information please contact Online Learning.
Q: How do I add someone without an RIT Computer Account such as an off campus guest to my course on myCourses?
A: RIT's license with Desire2Learn for the myCourses courseware covers any account associated with a RIT Computer Account. Accounts for non-RIT users are an additional charge per our licensing agreement.
Level 1: RIT Credit-Bearing Activities
For RIT credit-bearing activities, clients are not charged for professional staff time. Clients are charged the licensing fee for accounts.
Level 2: RIT Non-Credit Activities
Informational or instructional productions, which are not to be used in credit-bearing classes, but rather for other purposes within the Institute, are considered Level 2 projects. Level 2 clients are charged the licensing fee which includes service and reasonable support for the accounts from the Online Learning office.
A chargeback will be processed on account creation, not based on account usage.
For assistance with account creation or any questions please contact Ken Kindler at keketc@rit.edu or 585-475-5089.
Q: How do I remove someone from the course?
A: The daily Registrar feed should remove students who drop or withdraw from your course automatically.
If the user is in the Student Role in your course shell then an Instructor can remove them manually if needed.
Go to Edit Course on the right of the second navigation bar in your course, then click on Registration on the grey naviagtion bar. You will see a list of all users who have the Student role in your course.
Check off the users you wish to remove. At the top of the student listing you will see the Unenroll Selected icon which looks like a diploma with a red "X" above it. Click this icon and the student will be removed.
Please note: If you try to remove a student from a course who has not officially processed a drop or withdrawal from a credit-bearing courses they will return the next morning with the Registrar's Feed.
At this time you cannot delete users in other roles from your course. You will have to contact Online Learning (585-475-5089 or online@rit.edu) for assistance.
Q: Everyone is gone from my Classlist or Gradebook or I'm only seeing part of the class. Where did everyone else go?
A: The majority of the time this is because some text is left in the Search field.
Make sure the Search field on that page is clear. If it is not, delete anything in the field and then click the Search button. myCourses remembers the last search until it is cleared, even if you logout of the server.
In the Gradebook you can also View By Groups or Sections and limit the list to a specific one. To see the entire class make sure your Gradbeook is also set to View By: Users.
If that does not resolve the problem please contact Online Learning for support.
Q: How do I reuse sections of a previous course in my current course?
A: In the Edit Course menu, click the Components link. Select the course you want to copy the information from, select the sections you want copied over, and click Copy.
Q: Is there a default set of Discussion Forums and Topics I can use?
A: You can batch add Forums and Topics easily in myCourses. Go to Discussion and select "Modfy Forums and Topics" and then in the next window select "Add Forums and Topics." This will bring you to a window where you can enter a complete set of Forums and Topics in one step. Below is a default text list that provides a very good starting point for online courses. Simply copy and paste this into the text box and submit:
Introduce Yourself $$$ Please post an introduction of yourself here and read the introductions other students have posted. $$$ Introductions ### Q&A $$$ Ask questions about course mechanics and other aspects of the course here. Please participate in the discussion with helpful comments where feasible. $$$ Course Questions %%% myCourses ### General Course Discussion $$$ Feel free to post course related message here that are not part of the Weekly assigned discussions. $$$ General Discussion ### Out of Class Discussion $$$ Feel free to post any message that is not directly related to the course here. $$$ Open Discussion ### Weekly Discussions $$$ This area is for assigned discussion topics that contribute to your particpation grade for the course. $$$ Week 1 %%% Week 2 %%% Week 3 %%% Week 4 %%% Week 5 %%% Week 6 %%% Week 7 %%% Week 8 %%% Week 9 %%% Week 10
Q: My Gradebook converted from the old myCourses, but I want to add Categories to it and don't see how. Advice?
A: Begin by making the Categories you want such as Participation, Homework, Quizzes, and so on. Once you have your new Categories, you can click on the "Edit All Grade Items" and you will be able to put all your old grade items into the appropriate category from that one editing window. And when you are don with that you can use the "Re-Order" button to get everything into the proper sequence.
Q: What file types are supported on myCourses? (Upd. Oct 26, 2005)
A: Certain file extensions are restricted and may not be uploaded as Content Topics or linked in Topics because they pose a security risk to the myCourses server.
If you need to give your students access to these types of files place the file in a ZIP archive.
| Restricted Upload Extensions | |
| .asp | .csproj |
| .aspx | .ini |
| .exe | .jsl |
| .bat | .licx |
| .dll | .rem |
| .com | .resources |
| .asa | .resx |
| .asax | .shtm |
| .ascx | .shtml |
| .ashx | .soap |
| .asmx | .stm |
| .axd | .vb |
| .cdx | .vbproj |
| .cer | .vjsproj |
| .config | .vsdisco |
| .idc | .webinfo |
| .cs | (no extension) |
If you encounter an error linking to a file with an extension not on the Restricted list please inform Technical Support. The myCourses server is not aware of how to handle all file extensions and we may need to add it to the listing to be handled properly.
Q: How do I edit someone's role in my class?
A: You will need to contact the Online Learning department to have someone's role changed.
Q: I entered the first grades in a category and now it says "Dropped" so what do I do now?
A: You selected the "Drop the Lowest" grade option and the since there is only one grade to report, it is the lowest so it gets "dropped." But don't worry, the grades are still there and you and your students can still get to them. If you want, you can delete the "Drop the Lowest" grade option until you have at least two grade items in the category.
Q: Some of the students are saying they cannot see all of the discussion topics. How come I can see them but they can't?
A: When creating the topic, you may have accidentally put a time restriction for the students to be able to view the topic. Edit that particular topic and look in the availability section. Make sure the topic is not hidden and that it has the correct start and end dates.
Q: I have uploaded files to mycourses successfully but students keep telling me that they cannot see the files.
A: Students do not have access to the files section within mycourses. Any content that you wish the student to view must be placed within the content section of mycourses.
Q: How do I manage files in myCourses using 'Drag and Drop'? (Windows)
A: WebDAV stands for "Web-based Distributed Authoring and Versioning." It allows a user to manage files for his/her web site(s) as if the files were stored on a local hard drive.
Course designers can quickly and easily copy, move, delete, rename and upload/download course files for their Desire2Learn (D2L) courses directly from their own computers, without having to log into the D2L website and upload files via the Manage Files interface.
WebDAV is an ideal option for course instructors that have a large number of course files to edit and upload on a regular basis.
Setting up WebDAV on Windows 98/2000/ME/XP
To setup a web folder that connects to your D2L course from your Windows desktop:
1. If you are using Windows 98:
- Double-click My Computer (or select it from inside 'Windows Explorer').
- Double-click Web Folders.
- Double-click Add Web Folder.
The Add Web Folder Wizard screen displays.
OR, if you are using Windows 2000/ME/XP:
- Double-click My Network Places.
- Select Add a Network Place.
- Windows XP users only:
- Click NEXT.
- Select Choose another network location and click NEXT.
2. Type in the URL for your D2L course in the location/address field. The URL should follow the format: https://mycourses.rit.edu/content/enforced/<CoursePath>
<CoursePath> = The location of the applicable course within the Course folder in D2L. If you are unsure of the course path, you can confirm it by going to the Manage Files area of D2L's Course Management Console. Simply go to the Homepage of the applicable course and click Content in the navbar, and then Manage Files. Your course path will be displayed near the top of the page beside a yellow file folder icon.
3. Click NEXT.
4. Type your RIT username and password.
5. Label the new web folder with a name that will help you easily identify it in the future (e.g. 'Hist 101 – History') and click FINISH (Windows XP users will need to click NEXT and then FINISH).
A new network folder displays in My Network Places with the label you specified in Step 5.
You can now create, move, copy, and delete files and folders through your Windows interface using this new network folder. Keep in mind that you need to be connected to the Internet in order to access or modify any files within the network folder.
NOTE: You will need to create one WebDAV folder for each D2L course that you are managing. Follow the steps above for each course that you need to access.
Q: How do I manage files in myCourses using 'Drag and Drop'? (Mac)
A: WebDAV stands for "Web-based Distributed Authoring and Versioning." It allows a user to manage files for his/her web site(s) as if the files were stored on a local hard drive.
Course designers can quickly and easily copy, move, delete, rename and upload/download course files for their Desire2Learn (D2L) courses directly from their own computers, without having to log into the D2L website and upload files via the Manage Files interface.
WebDAV is an ideal option for course instructors that have a large number of course files to edit and upload on a regular basis.
At minimum, to use WebDAV, Mac users must have a PowerPC-based Macintosh computer running MacOS 8.1 or higher. For MacOS versions 8.1-10.3, the current version of Goliath (a free third-party Macintosh WebDAV client software) is also required.
Important Note: there are actually 2 different versions of Goliath software. Make sure you download the appropriate version as specified below!
MacOS version 8.1 to 9.x
Goliath for these versions of MacOS can be downloaded at: http://www.webdav.org/goliath/installs/Goliath_1_0_1.sit.hqx (2.1 MB BinHex encoded Installer).
Perform the following steps to install Goliath:
1. Download Goliath from the above link.
2. Once the Goliath_1_0_1.sit.hqx file is downloaded to your hard drive, run the installer program to start the setup process. The "Goliath 1.0 Installation wizard" will appear.
3. Click on the pop-up installer shareware notification from MindVision Software to dismiss it. Then click Continue.
4. Read and accept the license information displayed.
5. A "Readme" file will be displayed. Read it and click Continue.
6. Select the desired "Installation Location" from the drop-down list and click Install.
7. When Goliath has finished installing, a pop-up message should inform you that the "Installation was successful". Click Quit to leave the Installer.
Mac OS X 10.0 - 10.3.9
A Goliath "DiskCopy archive" for Mac OS X is available at: http://www.webdav.org/goliath/installs/Goliath1_0_1.dmg.gz. Decompress the file and double click on the .dmg file. A disk image named "Goliath 1.0" will be mounted. Open the disk image and drag and drop the "Goliath" folder to the desired location on your hard disk. The software is now installed.
Connecting to myCourses
Perform the following steps to connect to myCourses through WebDAV:
1. Start the Goliath application by double-clicking it. The Goliath icon looks like a globe partially hidden by a folder.
2. When you start the program for the first time, the "New WebDAV Connection" screen will automatically appear.
3. Enter https://mycourses.rit.edu/content/enforced/<CoursePath> as the location and click Next.
* <CoursePath> refers to any directories under the Content directory to which the user has access. The best way to find this path is by clicking Edit Course then Files and copying the coursepath as indicated below.
4. Enter your RIT username and password in the boxes displayed and click OK when finished.
5. If the "New WebDAV connection screen" is not displayed, select File -> New Connection in the Goliath application.
6. A web folder will be created. To upload files to myCourses, simply drag-and-drop files to the WebDAV folder.
7. If you want to keep this web folder connection permanently on your computer you have to save the connection before you close the folder. To do so, click on the File select Save Connection. Type a name for your WebDAV folder, select the desired location for the folder and click Save.
8. We strongly recommend that you read the "Help" files in Goliath. To do so, click on the Help menu and select Help On Goliath.
Note: You'll need to create one WebDAV folder for each course you design. To create new connections, start the Goliath application, and then click New Connection under the File menu. You can then repeat the above steps to finish creating and save your connection.
Mac OS X version 10.4 and up ("Tiger")
The new version of Mac OS X has secure WebDAV built in to the operating system. To create a connection to a course:
1. In the Finder click on Go and Connect to Server (or press command k)
2. In the Server Address box, Enter https://mycourses.rit.edu/content/enforced/<CoursePath> as the location. If you would like to remember this location click the '+' to the right of the server address. When finished, click Connect.
o <CoursePath> refers to any directories under the Content directory to which the user has access. The best way to find this path is by clicking Edit Course then Files and copying the coursepath as indicated below.
Example:
For more help on how to set up Goliath, please visit this web site http://www.webdav.org/goliath/help0.9/index.html.
To learn more about WebDAV on Mac, please visit this web site http://www.WebDAV.org/goliath/.
If you would like to learn more about WebDAV in general, please visit their site at http://www.WebDAV.org/.
Q: What access is granted to each Role in a course?
A: When enrolling a user into a course you may select the Role to assign them in that course.
A detailed listing of the access a Role is granted with a course is available at the myCourses Permissions by User Roles area.
A quick summary of access:
Student - The general Student Role. Participate in the course with access to only their course related information that would be considered of a personal nature such as the Gradebook, Dropbox submissions, etc.
Instructor - The general Instructor Role, has full control over the course.
Interpreter/C-Print - All the access a Student has except they can not be graded, take quizzes or surveys, and their progress is not tracked. Intended for Sign language Interpreters and C-Print Captionists.
Grader - May pickup assignments from a Dropbox, grade items in the Gradebook, import/export grades in the Gradebook, and grade Quizzes. All other access is the same a Student has except they can not be graded, take quizzes or surveys, and their progress is not tracked.
Support Staff - All the access an Instructor has but is just is listed as Support Staff on the Classlist.
Teaching Assistant - Generally the same access as an Instructor Role with some restrictions to deleting and editing access. Please refer to the detailed listing linked above.
Q: How do I change my Course Home page?
A: There are a number of ways to access the "Build Homepage" screen. For most users the two easiest ways are 1) click on the small E (for Edit) in the lower right corner of the homepage you wish to edit or 2) Click the "Edit Course" link and then the "Homepages" link.
The first method is generally easier but only allows you to change the current homepage and doesn't give you the option to create custom widgets. After clicking the "E" you will be in the Build Homepage screen. In the Build Homepage screen select one of the five homepage areas (the five areas are header, Column 1, Column 2, Column 3, and footer) either by clicking in the graphic or on the appropriate tab. The header and footer run the full width of the page while the three columns have widths measured in pixels. If the width is zero or very small (say less than 30 pixels), the widgets placed in that column may not display well if at all. When changing the width of a column, click the small floppy disk icon next to the width box. Width is not saved using the Save button at the bottom of the page.
Once you have chosen an area to work on, click on a widget in the Available Widgets list (to add a widget) or the Active Widgets list (to remove a widget). Click on the appropriate arrow between the list to move a widget from Active to Available or vice versa. Widgets in the Active Widgets list can be reordered by clicking on one widget and then using the up and down arrows to move the widget to the desired place in the list.
Click the Preview button at the bottom of the page to see what your new homepage will look like. When satisfied, click the Save button.
Using the second method is a bit more involved but does make it easier to add custom widgets to a homepage. Click Edit Course and then Homepages to bring up the Manage Homepages screen. Rather than just changing the homepage, you must create a new one from scratch by clicking on the Create New Homepage button. You need only one homepage for a course but you can create many homepages for a course and easily change between them if you wish. After clicking Create New Homepage, you must enter a title for the homepage and you may add a description. Click the Save button to access the Build Homepage screen. You can now follow the instructions listed above to add widgets to the Active Widgets list.
When creating a new homepage, especially the first one, you may want to write down what widgets are in the default homepage since a new homepage will start with all the widgets in the Available not the Active list.
Old homepages can be deleted from the Manage Homepages screen simply by clicking on the trash can icon for the homepage you want deleted.
The lower part of the Manage Homepages screen is devoted to widgets. Here you can create or edit custom widgets for a homepage.
Q: How do I change my course's Navigation Bar?
A: There are a number of ways to access the "Edit Navigation Bar" screen. For most users the two easiest ways are 1) click on the small E (for Edit) in the upper left corner of the navigation bar in your course or 2) Click the "Edit Course" link and then the "NavBars" link, and then click on the title of the navigation bar you wish to edit.
On the Edit Navigation bar screen select one of the four navigation bar areas (the four areas are top left, top right, bottom left, and bottom right) either by clicking in the graphic or on the appropriate tab.
Once you have chosen an area to work on, click on a link in the Inactive Links list (to add a link) or the Active Links list (to remove a link). Click on the appropriate arrow between the list to move a link from Active to Inactive or vice versa. Links in the Active Links list can be reordered by clicking on one link and then using the up and down arrows to move the link to the desired place in the list.
If you wish to create a link to a course file or to a webpage outside of myCourses, you can use the New Link and Edit Link buttons to do so. Although the recommended link target is "Bottom Frame", you may want to select "New Window" or "Entire Window" to minimize conflicts with the webpage or file you are linking to.
Click the Preview button at the bottom of the page to see what your new navigation bar will look like. When satisfied, click the Save button.
To manage your navigation bars, click on the "Edit Course" link and then the "NavBars" link. From here, you can click on New Navigation Bar to create a new navigation bar.
When creating a new navigation bar, especially the first one, you may want to write down what links are in the default navigation bar since a new navigation bar will start with all the links in the Inactive not the Active list.
On the Manage Navigation Bars screen, the navigation bar with the check next to it is the active one. To change the active navigation bar, click on the X symbol next to the navigation bar you wish to make active.
Old navigation bars can be deleted from the Manage Navigation bars screen simply by clicking on the trash can icon for the navigation bar you want deleted.
Q: How do students see their grades in the Grade Book? Changing my role to Student does not let me see this. (Upd. Oct 29, 2005)
A: For Instructors the Gradebook offers a preview option with any student enrolled in your course. In the Gradebook click on a student's name in the left hand column to be taken to a summary for that student. On the summary page there are two Preview buttons, one at the top of the frame and the other after the Final Grade section. Clicking on either Preview button will show you that student's view of their grades just as they will see it when they click on the Gradebook in the Navigation Bar. When you use the Role Change feature you are a generic 'Student' without any real records in the course. That is why you do not see the Gradebook as a student would using the Role Change.
Q: Why are students getting an error when trying to read the comments I have left for them in the gradebook.
A: (Text from the front page news announcement posted to myCourses October 18th-25th)
There was a bug introduced for students viewing gradebook comments that are displayed as links. Normally these links pop open the comments in a new window. Now students get an error in that window instead of seeing the comment.
The instructor can go to the comments and make sure the 'In HTML' box is checked for these comments. Then the student will not receive an error and will view the comment properly.
Comment links will be displayed for two reasons when a student views the gradebook. When a professor uses an Overall Comment for a gradebook item and a Personal Comment for individuals on the same item. A 'More...' link will be displayed if only one comment is used but it is longer then a couple lines of text.
The bug has been reported to Desire2Learn. We are told a maintenance release is being worked on to address this issue.
Q: How do I get my grades from the Gradebook into the Registrar's records?
A: myCourses is not integrated into the Registrar's record for submitting grades. You must manually enter your grades in to the Registrar's system.
Integration to have grades transferred is feature we would like to have added but there is no timeline for this addition at this time.
Q: How can I set up Internet Explorer 6.0+ to let me download files from myCourses and stop blocking myCourses pop-up windows?
A: Internet Explorer 6.0+ includes new security features to protect users from pop-up advertising and to try and prevent users from inadvertently downloading files which may have a virus. Unfortunately this can be annoying when you do need to download files or use pop-up windows. You can give myCourses "clearance" on your computer to keep Internet Explorer from intervening.
- Under the Tools menu select Internet Options... to open the Internet Options dialog.
- Click on the Security tab to change to those settings.
- Click on the Trusted Sites icon which is a green Circle with a Check-mark on it.
- Right below the icons click on the Sites... button to open the Trusted Sites dialog.
- Add this Web site to the zone: field enter: https://mycourses.rit.edu
- Click on the Add button.
- Click on the OK button, this will close the Trusted Sites dialog.
- Click on the OK button, this will close the Internet Options dialog
- Close all your Internet Explorer windows to quit the web browser.
- You may now open Internet Explorer and use myCourses normally.
Q: myCourses doesn't start up and I get an error about RealPlayer. What can I do?
A:Step by step instructions on configuring Windows to Windows Media Player instead of RealPlayer for WAV files can be found at the Associating WAV files to Windows Media Player page.
Q: What are acceptable characters in filenames on myCourses?
A: Files posted on myCourses should use only alphanumerics [0-9a-zA-Z], or the special characters $-_.+!(), in their filenames.
The following characters cannot be used in files names, as they may be refused outright by myCourses or cause problems with downloading:
| \ Back Slash | / Forward Slash | : ; Colon/Semi- |
| * Asterisk | ? Question Mark | " Double Quote |
| < Less Than | > Greater Than | | Pipe character |
| & Ampersand | ' Single Quote / Apostrophe | |
| Any Symbols and Accented Characters including, but not limited to: Ä À Â Á Ã Ç æ © Ø Ω ¥ | ||
| Multiple periods in a row, ThisReportIs...Boring.doc or syllabus..doc | ||
Even if myCourses does allow a file with these characters to be uploaded they will give errors when a user tries to interact with them. Most commonly the user will be told the file cannot be found or there was a "Bad Request".
The myCourses dropboxes will also list files with accented characters in their filename with the standard letters. The file may appear okay in the list when the file itself includes accented characters. For example the file ÀliçiäJournal.doc will be listed as AliciaJournal.doc. The only solution is to have the user post the file again without inappropriate characters in the filename.
Q: How can I speed up my Gradebook?
A: Here are some tips to help you tune-up your Gradebook to help it stay responsive.
Reduce the number of users shown per page.
We recommend 10 to get the fastest response. At the top of the Grades List view select a lower number from the "Paging" menu. You can then quickly jump to a new page using the "Page" menu at the top of the Grades List, or use the page numbers and arrows at the bottom of the Grades List. You can also set the default paging for all of your Gradebooks at once by going in My Preferences on the My Home page of myCourses and setting the number for Grades under the Paging tab.
Have your Gradebook view set to Users.
Using the Groups or Sections in the "View By" menu at the top of the Grades List view requires that additional information is gathered. If you use one of the other views try to get in the habit of setting it back to Users when you are done.
Turn off grade and user details you don't need.
In the Gradebook go into "Grades Setup" and under the Personal Display Options uncheck the details you don't really need. Clicking on the question mark icon after each item will give you a bit more information about each one to help you make your decision of what to keep. To get the best speed benefit we recommend leaving off all of the additional user details. For the grade details we recommend turning off Grade Colours, and choosing just one of the the three grade types. Click the "Save" button to save your changes before returning to the Grades List.
Turn off Dropped grades in your Categories until the end of the quarter grading.
This is calculated each time the Grades List is viewed so it can slow you down as well. Click on the category name to edit it and set the dropped items to zero. When you are ready to grade at the end of the quarter just edit the category again to set the dropped items as appropriate for your course.
Q: Can I get accounts on myCourses for non-RIT users or people who do not have an RIT Computer Account?
A: RIT's license with Desire2Learn for the myCourses courseware covers any account associated with a RIT Computer Account. Accounts for non-RIT users are an additional charge for each account per our licensing agreement.
Level 1: RIT Credit-bearing Activities
For RIT credit-bearing activities, clients are not charged for professional staff time. Clients are charged the licensing fee for accounts.
Level 2: RIT Non-Credit Activities
Informational or instructional productions, which are not to be used in credit-bearing classes, but rather for other purposes within the Institute, are considered Level 2 projects. Level 2 clients are charged the licensing fee which includes service and reasonable support for the accounts from the Online Learning office.
A chargeback will be processed on account creation, not based on account usage.
For assistance with account creation or any questions please contact Ken Kindler; keketc@rit.edu or 475-4089.
A:
SCORM stands for Sharable Content Object Reference Model. Certain software packages allow you to create SCORM-compliant content. This content can be imported into myCourses and then tracked using the SCORM reports feature within the Content area.
For more information on SCORM, go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SCORM.
Q: How do I remove courses I am no longer teaching this quarter?
A: The first step is to make sure the academic department removes the course assignment in the Registrar's records.
You must then contact Online Learning to have the course assignment removed from your account on myCourses. Faculty assignments are not tracked with a "drop" like a student enrollment so myCourses is not informed of the change to remvoe assignments automatically.
If the course was not removed from the Registrar's records properly by the academic department, the course will reappear on myCourses the next day due to the information feed from the Registrar.