Category: Working with Files

You can link to a video in a forum post, an online text assignment link or in a wiki textbox. For videos posted on YouTube, the video player will display directly in Edspora. 

1. Open a Textbox in Edspora
   • In a forum—Click on Add a new discussion or Reply to open a textbox. Click on the link labeled Use advanced editor in the lower right corner of the screen to bring up the editing toolbar shown in the illustration provided below.
   • In an assignment—Click on Add submission to open the textbox.
2. Prepare to Insert Link in Edspora
   • Enter any text that you wish to accompany the video link. Type “video clip” (or the name of the video—if the video player is displayed after you save the text box, this text won’t show after you link to it). Select the text you just entered and click on the Link icon in the editing toolbar.
3. Insert Link
   • In the Create a link dialogue box, paste the video’s URL in the field labeled URL using Crtl+V. Click on Create link to display the linked text as a web link (highlighted in red) in your text box. (The video player will be displayed after you save your submission.)
4. Save Changes
   • Click on Submit to post your forum response or click on Save changes to submit your assignment or save your wiki page.
5. View Your Clip
   • Reopen the page, post or assignment submission to view and play the video.

Edspora makes it easy to attach or insert photos in a forum post or other textbox. 

Important information about images and Edspora

• Images must be saved as individual files in order to be inserted in Edspora.
• Acceptable image file types are .jpg, .gif, and .png.
• To insert an image in a forum post, click on Use advanced editor and other options before you begin typing your response.
• You cannot copy and paste or drag and drop an image into Edspora. You must use the Insert/edit image icon on the toolbar, as described at right and in the guide linked below.
• Images will display in their “native” (original) size, so be prepared to adjust them for best fit.

Large image files (more than 500K) are slow to load and take up valuable storage space. Use a photo editing program to reduce a big image or contact the Help Desk for assistance.

Add an Image Using the File Picker

1. In the Text editor toolbar, click the Image icon. The Image properties window will open.
2. In the Image properties window, click Browse repositories…. The File picker window will open. 
3. In the File picker window:
   1. To upload a file from your computer, click Upload a file (at left).
   2. To use a file already uploaded to Edspora, click Recent files, Server Files, Private Files or Embedded files.
   3. To copy a file from Google Drive into Edspora, select Google Drive.
4. Navigate through the folders and files in the selected repository to locate your image.
5. Click the icon or name for the image to use. The Select window opens.
6. In the Select window, click Select this file. You’ll be returned to the Image properties window.
7. In the Image properties window:
   For Describe this image for someone who cannot see it, (required) enter a brief description of the image or check Description not necessary. We strongly recommend describing each image to make your content accessible to all.
   Note: You will be unable to insert an image unless you provide a brief description of the image in Describe this image for someone who cannot see it or check Description not necessary.
   1. o resize your image, check Auto size, then enter a new width or height. (When you click away from the entry box, the other dimension will auto-complete).
   2. To align your image to the left or right of the text (for example), use the Alignment drop-down menu.
8. Select Save image. The image will be inserted in the Editor window.

Note: You can reopen to the Image properties window by double-clicking an image to adjust the alignment, size, etc.

Add an Image Using a URL

If the image you will add is stored on another website, you can embed it using its URL.

1. In the Text editor toolbar, select Add Image. The Image properties window will open.
2. In the Enter URL field, enter the complete URL for your image. (Important: Be sure to include the http:// or https:// prefix.)
3. Set additional image properties:
   • For Describe this image for someone who cannot see it, (required) enter a brief description of the image or check Description not necessary. We strongly recommend describing each image to make your content accessible to all.
     • Note: You will be unable to insert an image unless you provide a brief description of the image in Describe this image for someone who cannot see it or check Description not necessary.
   • To resize your image, check Auto size, then enter a new width or height. (When you click away from the entry box, the other dimension will auto-complete).
   • To align your image to the left or right of the text (for example), use the Alignment drop-down menu.
4. Select Save image.

Note: You can reopen to the Image properties window by double-clicking on an image in the Editor.

Align an Image

The alignment of images loaded in Edspora is configured in the Image properties window of each image.

1. In the Editor entry box, double-click the image. The Image properties pop-up will open.
2. The Alignment drop-down menu gives you an option to select either Top, Middle, Bottom, Left or Right alignment.
   Select Save image. The Image properties window will close and the image will appear in the Text editor entry box aligned as set.

Resizing images 

Edspora will scale each image automatically to fit within the available area the image is placed in, such as a forum post, label, or block. This makes images “responsive” (meaning that even a very wide image will fit on the screen, whether viewed on a mobile phone, tablet or large computer display).

While Edspora also allows you to force the size that an image appears on a page, the image file still downloads at its original dimensions. Therefore:

• If you upload a large image (e.g., from a camera) and set it to display very small, page-load time will be slow.
• If you upload a very small image and set it in Edspora to appear larger than it’s actual pixel dimensions, the image will appear blurry.

We strongly recommend that you resize an image before uploading to Edspora, ideally no wider than 500 or 600 pixels for insertion into Edspora. We also recommend that you resize photos before inserting them into a Word or PowerPoint file. This helps to keep the file size manageable, especially if you plan to post that file in Edspora. Fortunately, it’s not hard to resize photos, even without special editing software. 

• Resizing images for Macs
• Residing images for Windows

Set Image Size Attributes

To force the maximum dimensions that an image displays:

1. In the Editor text box, add a new image or double-click an already existing image. The Image properties pop-up will open.
2. In the Image properties window locate Size. Select Auto size (at right) to prevent distorting the image.
3. Change the value inside one of the boxes to shrink the image (we do not recommend enlarging). The editor will automatically adjust the other dimension (width x height) .
   To confirm changes, click Save image.  The Image properties window will close and the image will appear in the Editor text box.

Note: This process only changes the size an image is displayed in Edspora. It does not affect the image file. This process can be repeated as many times as needed without affecting the original dimensions of the uploaded file

Instructors have access to several tools and reports that can be used to assess student performance in their Edspora courses. Quickly gather information about a particular student’s grades and last access to any activity or resource in a course by viewing a student’s Profile reports.

Today’s Logs

Today’s logs will provide you with information regarding the student activity in your Edspora course within the same day of your request. To request a Today’s log report from Edspora:

1. On your Edspora course page, select the Navigation tray toggle (hamburger menu, top left), and the Navigation tray will open. 
2. In the Navigation tray, select Participants, and the Participants page with enrolled users will open. 
3. On the Participants page, click the Profile image of the student you want reports for. The Student profile page will open.
4. On the Student profile page, under the Reports section, click Today’s logs. The Today’s logs page will open showing the individual student activity of a single day throughout your Edspora course.

All Logs

All logs will provide you with information regarding the student activity in your Edspora course during the last month. To request an All logs report from Edspora:

1. On your Edspora course page, select the Navigation tray toggle (hamburger menu, top left), and the Navigation tray will open.
2. In the Navigation tray, select Participants, and the Participants page with enrolled users will open. 
3. On the Participants page, click the Profile image of the student you want reports for. The Student profile page will open.
4. On the Student profile page, under the Reports section, click All logs. The All logs page will open showing the individual student activity throughout your Edspora course from a period of over a month.

Outline Report

The Outline report helps instructors to collect and view a summarized version of an activity and grades in all the Activities and Resources in your Edspora course. The activities and resources are displayed in the same order as they are in the main course page. To request an Outline report from Edspora:

1. On your Edspora course page, select the Navigation tray toggle (hamburger menu, top left), and the Navigation tray will open.
2. In the Navigation tray, select Participants, and the Participants page with enrolled users will open. 
3. On the Participants page, click the Profile image of the student you want reports for. The Student profile page will open.
4. On the Student profile page, under the Reports section, click Outline report. The Outline report page will open summarizing the individual student grades and last logs of the activities and resources of the Edspora course.

Complete Report

The Complete report helps instructors to collect and view a detailed list of an individual student’s last log and activity in the Activities and resources in your Edspora course. The activities and resources are displayed in the same order as they are on the main course page. To request a Complete report from Edspora:

1. On your Edspora course page, select the Navigation tray toggle (hamburger menu, top left), and the Navigation tray will open.
2. In the Navigation tray, select Participants, and the Participants page with enrolled users will open. 
3. On the participants page, click the Profile image of the student you want reports for. The Student profile page will open.
4. On the Student profile page, under the Reports section, click Complete report. The Complete report page will open summarizing the individual student grades and last logs of the activities and resources of the Edspora course.

Statistics

Statistics will provide you with information regarding the student activity on your Edspora course after the creation of the Edspora course. To request a Statistics report from Edspora:

1. On your Edspora course page, select the Navigation tray toggle (hamburger menu, top left), and the Navigation tray will open.
2. In the Navigation tray, select Participants, and the Participants page with enrolled users will open. 
3. On the Participants page, click the Profile image of the student you want reports for. The Student profile page will open.
4. On the Student profile page, under the Reports section, click Statistics. The Statistics page will open showing the individual student activity throughout your Edspora course from the creation of the course.