WebCT First Steps

Putting Your Documents Into WebCT

In this section we will:

View files and folders in WebCT
Create folders
Upload documents
Download files
Zip and unzip files and folders

 

Manage Files

The "Manage Files" area is where you will store your documents (e.g. word, HTML, PowerPoint, etc.) Typically, you will prepare files for your course on your personal computer. Then you must transfer these files from your computer to Manage Files, which resides on the WebCT remote server.

Once the files are moved to Manage Files, they can be linked to various areas in your course. In Manage Files, files are organized and stored in folders and subfolders. You can view the contents of a folder by clicking its title.

You can use Manage Files to:

• * browse through the WebCT built-in files for files and images
• * upload your files to the WebCT server
• * download files from the WebCT server to your computer
• * zip and unzip files on the WebCT server
• * copy, delete, rename, and move files
• * create folders

View Folders and files in WebCT | Top
In Designer view, click the Control Panel button.

From the Control Panel, click Manage Files

1. Manage Files contains two default folders:
1. My-Files is your personal folder in which you can store, create, and edit files for your course. You can create subfolders to manage your course files.
   
   
2. WebCT-Files contains the default files that are packaged with WebCT. These include graphic files for background images, banners, and icons. Although you cannot alter these files, you can use them to design your course.
   
3. To view the content of a folder, under Folders and Files, click the folder. The subfolders and files contained in the folder are listed below it. To view a file, click the preview icon next to the filename. The file appears in a new browser window. To return to the Folders and Files list, close the browser window. To close an open folder, click the folder.
   
   

Creating folders | Top

You can create folders to organize your files. Note: You cannot create folders in the WebCT-Files folder.

1. From the Control Panel , click Manage Files. The Manage Files screen appears. Under Options: Folders, click Create folder.

2. The Create Folder screen appears. In the Create a folder named text box, enter a name for the new folder. Folder names can contain any of the following: a–z, A–Z, 0–9, comma, space, _, &, ( ), –, . , and ~. The following cannot be used as the first character in the folder name: dash (-), tilde (~), and space. The following cannot be used as the last character in the folder name: period (.) and space. From the Within the folder drop-down list, select the destination for the new folder. Click Create.
   
3. The Manage Files screen appears and the new folder appears under Folders and Files.
   
   
   
2. Upload documents | Top

You can upload a file from your personal computer to the WebCT server hosting your course. Files can be in any file format including: .doc, .txt, .html, .htm, .xls, .ppt, .pdf, .jpg, and .gif.

Note: You want to upload multiple files, zip them with a file compression program and then upload the zip file.

1. You cannot upload files to the WebCT-Files folder.
2. Filenames can contain any of the following: a–z, A–Z, 0–9, comma, space, _, &, ( ), –, ., and ~
3. The following cannot be used as the first character in the filename: dash (-), tilde (~), and space.
4. The following cannot be used as the last character in the filename: period (.) and space.

Under Options: Files, click Upload. The Upload File screen appears. To select the file, do one of the following: If you want to search for the file, click Browse. Your computer's file manager appears. Click the file name you want to upload. Click Upload. The Manage Files screen appears.

3. Download files| Top

You can download a course from the WebCT server hosting your course to your personal computer.

Note: If you want to download multiple files, zip them first and then download the .zip file.

Under Folders and Files, select the file that you want to download. Under Options: Files , click Download.


The Download File screen appears. Click Download.

Your computer's file download dialog box appears.

Follow the instructions in the dialog box to save the file to your computer.



The Download complete box appears.

Zipping files and folders | Top

You can zip (compress) several files into one file. Use this feature if you want to download more than one file at a time.

1. From the Control Panel, click Manage Files. The Manage Files screen appears.
2. Under Folders and Files, select the file(s) that you want to zip. Under Options: Files, click Zip.



3. The Zip Files screen appears, displaying the file(s) to be zipped. From the Zip the selected files to drop-down list, select a destination folder.



4. In the Filename text box,enter a name for the zip file. Filenames can contain any of the following: a–z, A–Z, 0–9, comma, space, _, &, ( ), –, . , and ~. The following cannot be used as the first character in the filename: dash (-), tilde (~), and space. The following cannot be used as the last character in the filename: period (.) and space. Click Zip .



5. The Manage Files screen appears and each file has been zipped.

   

After you download the zip file to your computer, you can unzip the file with WinZip (PC), ZipIt (Mac), or another file compression application.

Unzipping files and folders | Top

You can unzip the contents of a zipped (compressed) file. A zipped file can be identified by the .zip extension .

1. From the Control Panel, click Manage Files. The Manage Files screen appears.
2. Under Folders and Files, select the file(s) that you want to unzip. Under Options: Files , click Unzip

   

3. The Unzip File screen appears. From the Unzip drop-down list, select a destination folder. Click Unzip

   

4. The Manage Files screen appears. Each file has been unzipped.