WebCT User's Guide

To initiate access to the PASSWORD-PROTECTED COURSE MATERIALS portion of the course web site, you first need to set up a "myWebCT" page. To do this, go to the WebCT access page directly; once here, type in your family name as your USER ID and your family name (both with a capitalized first letter) as your PASSWORD to begin the set up process (as explained and outlined on the access page).

REMEMBER that this task must be done by going to the WebCT access page directly, not by using the link on the course web pages (which will only work AFTER you have established your "myWebCT" page).

To access the password-protected portion of the course web site thereafter, however, you need only click on PASSWORD-PROTECTED COURSE MATERIALS on the HOMEPAGE (or any other web page) on the course site.

Note: Usernames and passwords are case-sensitive, so make sure to type in the name and password exactly as they were assigned to you or as you selected them in designing your "myWebCT" page.

NOTE TO AMERICA ON LINE USERS:  Some students using AOL browsers have experienced problems with portions of the WebCT programs, particularly those involving posting messages and sending email.  If you have similar troubles, first, be sure you are using the latest version of the AOL browser; if not, download the newest browser software from AOL, install it and see if things improve.  Another "fix" involves setting your current browser so that it accepts Javascript commands.  To do that, follow these steps (as worked out by Mark Prestien, a CSU student enrolled in HIS 393, Special Topics -- Local History Seminar in Spring 1999):

• Click on MY AOL at the top of your browser screen.
• Select PREFERENCES.
• Click on the WWW button.
• Select SECURITY ALERT button.
• Click on the ADVANCED button.
• Check the Box "Run Scripts".

THE PASSWORD-PROTECTED COURSE MATERIALS HOMEPAGE

    Bulletins

 Clicking on the Bulletins icon divides the window into 3 frames. The left frame contains various selection options; the top right frame contains the listing of messages; the bottom right frame is used to display an individual message.

 WebCT keeps track of which messages each user has read, and by default displays only messages which have not yet been read (these messages are denoted by a "New" icon to the right of the message in the message listing). To view all messages, whether read or unread, select "All" in the "Show:" drop-down list in the left frame, and then press the "Update Listing" button.

 To compose a new message, click on "New Message" in the top right frame. A composition window will appear, into which you can type in a subject and the body of the message.

The Bulletin Board allows you to perform a number of search operations to extract messages. Refer to the online help (by clicking on the Help button in the left frame) to find out about all of the bulletin board features.

      Web Teaching Unit Presentations

This is the spot to which you will upload your contribution to our common teaching unit project as well as your own web-based teaching unit and where you will find those being constructed by others.
 

1. Once you have constructed an .html web page in Netscape Composer [and saved to a your 31/2 Floppy (A:) disk] and are ready for it to be seen by others, go to the password-protected portion of the course web site and click on the PRESENTATIONS icon.
2. In the list of presentations, click on EDIT FILES beside the name of the presentation to which you are adding your file.  [Click on GROUP to get a list of all the members working on that presentation.]
3. In the lower EDIT FILES screen, click on UPLOAD, then BROWSE to the file on your A: drive that you wish to transfer; highlight the name of the file and click OPEN, then hit CONTINUE twice -- if all goes well, you should then be back on the EDIT FILES screen.
4. Repeat the step above for any additional files you wish to upload -- be sure, for example, that you upload any image files associated with the web pages you have already transferred.
5. Once all the files are uploaded, click on the BACK button to return to the list on the PRESENTATIONS page; then click on the name of the PROJECT itself to bring up the presentation 9in its own separate window) so that you can check to see if all the links work, the images load correctly and all is well.  When finished CLOSE the browser window; you should be back on the PRESENTATIONS page from which you can go elsewhere on the web site..
6. If the process goes wrong, return to the first step and repeat until the presentation material works the way you hoped it would in the first place!

      Email Contact with Fellow Students

The Mail tool allows you to send a private message to one or more course participants. Unlike bulletin board messages, which are readable by everyone, mail is only visible to the originator and recipient(s) of the message. The layout and functionality is very similar to the Bulletin Board.

       Student Grade Records

This tool allows you to view the grades that the instructor has released. You can also view the statistics for the class by clicking on a hyperlinked column label.

   Change Password

The Password tool allows you to change your WebCT account's password.

    Back to the Course Homepage

Click this to return to the non-protected portions of the course web site.