ADDING MULTIMEDIA CONTENT
Sample page where Add Multimedia has been used to add a Youtube video. For Youtube videos, you should go to a page showing the specific video you want, and simply copy the URL from the address bar at the top of the browser.
Sample of the dialog when you click on the Edit button.
You can add movies, Flash presentations, Youtube videos, other web sites, etc., to your page.
If you use Add Resource they will appear as a link which your readers can click.
If you use Add Multimedia they will appear in a box within your page. An example is shown at the right.
Lesson Builder will recognize the type of file you are using and put an appropriate player into the page.
Once you have added an item, you will probably want to use the Edit button to adjust the size of the box. Unfortunately Lesson Builder is unable to determine the size of the movie or other content automatically, so it uses a "safe" default size. Lesson Builder will show a black box around the item, so you can see whether the item fills the box you have specified. Students will not see the black box.
For Youtube videos, you should go to a page showing the specific video you want, and simply copy the URL from the address bar at the top of the browser. Do not use "Copy embed html".
Accessibility
If you are concerned about accessibility for handicapped users, please make sure you use the Edit button and insert textual descriptions for images and multimedia objects. You may want to consider creating a separate page that presents the content in a more accessible form and providing a link to it. One way to do this would be using Add Subpage.
MULTIMEDIA FAQ
Caution about Internet Explorer
NOTE: While Lesson Builder is compatible with Internet Explorer, we still recommend using something else (e.g. Firefox) when preparing a page with "Add Multimedia." Because of the way Internet Explorer implements security, it is possible to get a page into a situation where IE won't let you edit it.
(If IE has a problem on the page, it sometimes doesn't finish loading the page, and thus the dialog boxes that would let you make changes aren't there.)
Also, when working with IE, you will want to make sure that every URL you use on the page starts with "https:". Otherwise, your users will get warning messages, and some multimedia content will break. If this is not possible, use Firefox.
Recommended Formats
For the moment, we recommend FLV video, if you don't need to use Apple portable devices such as iPad. Lesson Builder uses a Flash player, which does a pretty good job.
If you need to work with Apple devices, your best bet is probably MP4. However the MP4 files will need to be prepared specially. MP4 has many options, not all of which work with iPads and iPhones. Also, not all converters produce files that will start playing immediately, rather than waiting for the whole file to download. You can use Quicktime Pro, and export using the profile "Movie to iPhone." Then rename the file from .m4v to .mp4.
Unfortunately experiments with MP4 on Windows produced mixed results when using Windows' built-in players. For that reason Lesson Builder has been set to play MP4s using Flash if it is available. I strongly recommend telling your users to install Flash. Quicktime and Windows Media can sometimes play MP4 files, but results were mixed on Windows. There were particular problems getting the files to start playing immediately when Flash wasn't available.
URLs for video sites
If you want to use a URL to another site, you'll need the URL of the actual video. Many times you'll have a URL that points to a whole page with the video showing in the middle of it. You want the video itself. Many sites have a way to get an "embed" code. That is normally a piece of HTML code with a URL as part of it.
For example, a user gave us the following URL: http://www.myspace.com/video/mystery-hole/studs-terkel-39-s-working-broadway-theatre-archive/17687576. If you look at it, you'll find a page with lots of text, and a video in the middle of it. This will not work. Right below the video there's a button "embed". It gives you an "embed code"
<object width="425px" height="360px" ><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"/><param name="wmode" value="transparent"/><param name="movie" value="http://mediaservices.myspace.com/services/media/embed.aspx/m=17687576,t=1,mt=video"/><embed src="http://mediaservices.myspace.com/services/media/embed.aspx/m=17687576,t=1,mt=video" width="425" height="360" allowFullScreen="true" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent"></embed></object>
Within the embed code you'll find the URL that will work with "add multimedia":
http://mediaservices.myspace.com/services/media/embed.aspx/m=17687576,t=1,mt=video
HOWEVER, if your Sakai system uses a URL starting with https: (which is the case at most institutions), then you must use the https: version of this URL in order for Chrome to work:
https://mediaservices.myspace.com/services/media/embed.aspx/m=17687576,t=1,mt=video
Note that not all sites permit tools such as Sakai to refer to their videos directly, but this approach will work with many sites.
Problems with Image Size
After sele Add multimedia, you will probably need to use the Edit button to adjust the size. The size starts out 300 pixels high and the full width of the window. This size should let you see the content, but you may need to adjust it to match the size of your movie or Flash program.
Some players will stretch or cut off the image if you don't set the right size. Older copies of Windows Media Player (e.g. on Windows XP) seem particularly prone to this. So for movies, it is safest to adjust the size to match the actual size and shape of the movie.
Where File Uploads Go
The "Upload file" feature will normally put files in a separate folder for each instance of the tool (i.e. each button in the left bar). If you prefer to organize the files yourself, you might prefer to upload your file using the Resource tool and get them organized. Then you can use "Choose Existing File" to put the file on a page.
URLs are actually stored as files in a subfolder of the unit's folder called urls.
Helping your Users
Unfortunately the ability to play movies, Flash, etc, tends to vary from browser to browser. You may want to create a unit that has one of each type of file you're going to use. That way students can make sure that they have the right plugins installed at the beginning of the course.
Known Issues
- The Macintosh Windows Media player will sometimes give you a blank image unless the file is public. You can make files public in the Resources tool using Edit Details. If you have a number of files that need to be public, you can make an entire folder public.
- With Safari on the Macintosh, if you edit a Youtube video, and change the URL, when the page updates the player isn't there. If you refresh the page it works fine. Everything works fine for normal users.
- Internet Explorer will give warning messages unless all content on the page uses https: URLs. Files that are stored on Sakai will automatically be served with an appropriate URL, but if you define any URLs for yourself, you shold be careful about this.
- On Windows, users may need to adjust the security settings in Internet Explorer. For some player types, Active X needs to be enabled. You may not get any sign that this is the problem with IE, just an empty box where your content should be.
- Chrome requires a URL starting with https: if your Sakai site uses https:. Many video services support https:, so you can usually take a URL starting with http: and convert it to https:
- Some players will not play content if you are using an https: URL and the site you're pointing to does not have a proper certificate installed.
- If a plugin needs to talk to the user, it may fail. E.g. after installing Acrobat, the first time you run Acrobat, you need to accept the license. With Firefox you are prompted to do this. With Internet Explorer, it simply gives you an empty box where your content should be.