Supporting eTEACH

1
Supporting eTEACH

• Mike Litzkow
• University of Wisconsin Madison

2
Overview

• Part I Supporting Users
• User requirements
• Common problems
• Part II Supporting Authors
• Content creation process
• Overview
• Recommendations
• eTEACH Authoring
• Author requirements
• Installation issues
• Part III Authoring Workshop (hands-on)

3
Part I User Support

• User Requirements
• Audio Problems
• Video Problems
• Troubleshooting tips

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User Requirements

• Windows OS (98, ME, NT4, 2K, XP)
• Internet Explorer 5.5 or above
• WMP 6.4 or above (7.0 or above for CC)
• Windows Media 9 beta NOT SUPPORTED!
• Appropriate video and audio codecs
• Our material mostly uses
• Video Windows Media Video V8
• Audio ACELP.net

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Common Problems - Audio

• No sound card, no speakers, etc
• Headphones plugged into CD-ROM?
• Audio muted or volume turned down
• eTEACH volume/mute control
• Windows mixer
• Physical device
• Missing codec
• Download conditions
• WWW access
• Admin Privileges (or FAT)

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Common Problems - Video

• Bandwidth
• http//computingcentral.msn.com/internet/speedtest
  .asp
• Missing codec
• Video optimization
• WMP
• Windows
• Video driver
• Direct X version

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Troubleshooting Tips

• Play sounds (non eTEACH)?
• Play video (non eTEACH)?
• Right-click Media Player in eTEACH
• Learn URL of video file
• Learn bitrate of video file
• Learn codecs used in video file
• Control optimization
• Play eTEACH video in standalone Media Player?

8
Part II Author Support

• Content creation
• eTEACH Authoring one step in process
• Production quality depends on quality at each
  step
• Goals
• Support authoring
• Advise on other steps

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Content Creation Workflow
Create Slides (PowerPoint)
Edit Video/Audio
Publish to CD
Combine Materials With eTEACH Author
Record Video/Audio
Compress Video/Audio
Publish to WWW
Copy to Computer
Create Closed Captioning Data
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Create Slides

• Can use GIF, JPEG, HTML, Flash,
• But, most authors use PowerPoint
• PPT Animations
• Help students focus
• Use eTEACH to coordinate with video
• Supported PPT versions 2000, XP

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Shooting Video Our Setup

• Consumer grade cameras (2)
• Sony Digital-8 (DV format) cameras
• Tripods
• Lights
• Background and clothing
• Wireless Mics
• Homemade teleprompter

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Copy Data To Computer
12 GB/hr!

• DV is 3.6 MB/sec
• IEEE 1394 (Firewire) connection
• 7200 RPM ATA 100 disks
• Archive all source tapes

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Edit Video

• Vegas Video from Sonic Foundry
• Alternatives
• Windows Movie Maker
• Adobe Premiere
• Avid Xpress DV
• Academic Superstore

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Vegas Video
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Compress Video For Streaming

• Major streaming formats
• Windows Media
• Real
• Quicktime
• Bitrates
• 300 Kbps Campus LAN/CD
• 100 Kbps Broadband/CD
• 37 Kbps 56 Kbps dialup
• 16 Kbps (Audio) Slower dialup

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Recommended Codecs Compression Settings

• Audio
• ACELP.net
• Video
• Windows Media V8

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Adding Closed-captioning

• Closed-captioning data
• Transcript
• Timing
• Supported format SAMI (.smi)
• Sami info
• Tools
• Magpie
• Caption-it
• Text editor

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eTEACH Authoring

• Start with
• edited video
• slides (PowerPoint, HTML, JPEG, GIF, )
• Add table of contents
• Coordinate slide and animation changes
• Add link tables (optional)
• Fine-tune layout geometry (optional)

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Publish to CD

• Simple procedure
• Copy project directly from hard drive to CD
• More typical procedure
• Copy multiple lectures to staging area
• Remove extra video files (multiple bitrates)
• Create index page (html)
• Add autoplay files
• Copy to CD

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Publish to World Wide Web

• Windows Media Server
• Runs on NT Server, Win2K Server, .Net Servers
• No additional cost
• Web Server
• Any web server OK IIS, Apache,
• Must be responsive

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Part III Authoring Workshop

• Installation requirements
• Hands-on demo
• Authoring tool limitations
• Work-arounds
• Animation problems
• Work-arounds

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Authoring Requirements

• See README at
• http//eteach.engr.wisc.edu/Downloads/README_2_1_2
  0.html
• Main Points
• Windows Installer 2.0
• .NET Framework
• ASFChop.ocx (wmrk7)
• Media Player 7.0 or later
• WM 9 ß NOT SUPPORTED!
• Internet Explorer 5.5 or later
• PowerPoint 2000 or XP

Hands-on Authoring Workshop
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Authoring Tool Limitations

• No way to remove video, slides, alter slides
• Make alterations to source materials
• Start new eTEACH project
• Import new materials
• Import timeline from previous project
• Use multi-select to move multiple events

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Animation Problems

• General limitations
• Use Start On Click, not built-in timing
• Use grouping, not Start With Previous
• Some animations dont work right
• Send PPT file to mike
• Meanwhile, use simpler animations

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Resources

• eTEACH Users Manual (text)
• http//eteach.engr.wisc.edu/Documentation/StudentM
  anual/eTeach_Web_Help.html
• eTEACH Authors Manual (text)
• http//eteach.engr.wisc.edu/Documentation/AuthorMa
  nual/ETAT_Web_Help.html
• eTEACH Authoring Tutorial (eTEACH)
• http//eteach.engr.wisc.edu/AuthoringDemo/top.html

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Contact Info

• Website
• http//eteach.engr.wisc.edu
• Greg Moses
• moses_at_engr.wisc.edu
• Mike Litzkow
• mlitzkow_at_facstaff.wisc.edu
• 608-262-6122