Getting Started with Helix Media Library The college now has its own Helix Media Library. This is a repository where you can store any videos or audio files you have produced as part of learning and teaching ready for sharing with learners and colleagues. To use Helix, click on this link to go to the log in screen: http://hml.themanchestercollege.ac.uk. You can also access Helix from the Staff Intranet by clicking on the green Resources tab in the top right hand corner and selecting Media Library from the drop down menu. Log on using your college network username and password. This takes you to the Helix home page. Watching a video To watch a video, just click directly on that video s thumbnail (image). You can view all the videos in a category by clicking on one of the options in the left-hand column. All staff and students with a college network account can log into Helix and view all the video content in normal (unrestricted) categories. Please bear this in mind when you are adding video or audio files to Helix. There are also three Restricted areas (Drama, Dance and Hair & Beauty). These are for videos that are not suitable for sharing with all students e.g. body painting or other potentially sensitive material. Students will only be able to view these restricted videos if their tutor embeds them into a Moodle course. Only students on the courses involved will be able to view these. If you require further assistance on using these areas please contact the Learning Technology Team on ext. 4332. Page 1
Uploading a video (staff only) To upload a new video click the button from the blue horizontal menu towards the top of the page. This opens up the Add New Media page where you need to enter the details of the video (or audio file) you are uploading. In the Title field, enter the name of your video. In the Category field, select the appropriate category from the drop down menu. If you are a member of teaching staff, this should be your curriculum area. In the Description field you need to add a short description of your video. In the Contributor field, enter your name. You can also enter your email address if you would like to receive an email telling you when your video is available for others to view. You can add individual tags to your uploaded video. Tags are words that describe your video and will help other users to search for relevant videos. Remember to click add for each tag you add. Click on in the bottom right hand corner of the page. Page 2
Now click on upload. and you will be prompted to choose an audio or video file on your computer to The accepted formats are: Video: MOV, AVI, WMV, MPG and MP4 Audio: MP3, WAV and WMA Once you have selected your video to upload you will see the green progress bar (below). This can take a few minutes to complete depending on the size of your file/video. Page 3
Once the video has uploaded you will be asked to choose a thumbnail (a still image taken from the video). This can be done by clicking the small button under the chosen thumbnail. Alternatively you can add your own image to use as a thumbnail by clicking the browse button and then upload (bottom left of the screen). Please note that the image you choose must be 320x204 pixels. Now click to the right of the screen Next you will be given the option to add a Captions File or to add an Associated File to accompany the video. The associated file could be a Word document or Powerpoint presentation that accompanies or supports the video or audio file you re uploading. Now click Page 4
That s It! Your video will now be processed and you will receive an email (if you provided an email address) once the video is available to view. Please note that it can take up to an hour for a video to become live online after uploading. NB Only staff can upload videos at the current time. Please contact the Learning Technology team if you would like to discuss giving your learners the ability to upload content. Sharing Your Video You can share your video with colleagues or learners in a number of ways. The easiest way to do this is to send the web address by email. You can also embed it in Moodle. If your video is for staff development purposes and you would like it to go on the Staff Intranet, please contact the Online Development team on x3352 or via email at intranet@themanchestercollege.ac.uk. To share a video by email, first click on the video to select it. Now copy the web address that appears in the browser bar (drag the mouse pointer over the web address until it turns blue and then press CTRL+C on a PC). This web address can then be pasted (CTRL+V) into an email and sent to students or colleagues. In the email you should remind people that they need to be logged into Helix first before clicking on the link you have provided to ensure they are taken straight to the correct video. Page 5
Embedding Helix Videos into Moodle Once you have selected the video you require in Helix, click on the size of video you wish to display in Moodle (640x385 is usually ideal). Now click on the Copy Code (to display in page) box above the video size area and it should turn blue. Now hold CTRL + C to copy the code to the clipboard. Page 6
Next go to your Moodle course and Turn editing on by clicking the button in the top right hand corner of the page. This enables editing so that you can add resources. Go to the topic area where you would like to display the video and click the small pencil icon. The topic Summary editing window will open. Now click on the <> button. Page 7
Text appears stating you are in text mode and code appears in the box. Highlight the code, right-click on your mouse and Paste in the video embed code that you copied earlier. Click the <> icon again to see the video display in the Topic summary editing window. Then click Save changes. Page 8
The video now displays and will play on your Moodle course page. Copyright and Safeguarding Please note that it is your responsibility to ensure that any video or audio content you upload has the appropriate copyright clearance for sharing across college. If you have created the content yourself, this is unlikely to be an issue. Please contact the Learning Technology team for advice if you would like to upload any resources you have purchased e.g. from an external supplier. In some cases, the resources may already be cleared for sharing via the VLE (Moodle) or similar internal college system. This is usually noted on the DVD case or on the disc itself. Please be aware that you cannot download video content from YouTube (and most similar sites) and then upload it to Helix as this goes against YouTube s acceptable use policy. The Learning Technology team will remove any content that does not appear to have the correct copyright clearance if the member of staff who has uploaded the video is not able to provide evidence of this when requested. It is also important that you have obtained permission to share the video from anyone appearing in it. You should get everyone in your video to sign an Image Release Form and keep this in a safe place. This form can be found on the Staff Intranet. You may wish to edit this document to request that it is returned to you (and not the Marketing department they only require the form if the footage will be used externally e.g. on the website). Getting this form completed by learners is particularly important. Help and Support with using Helix If you need any further help or support with using the Helix Media Library or need further guidance on how to make effective use of video as part of Learning and Teaching, please contact the Learning Technology Team on ext 4332 or via email ilt@themanchestercollege.ac.uk. Page 9