As of July 31st 2009 WebCT was no longer be available at Brock University. Learn more about Isaak, Brock University's Sakai-Based LMS here. This wiki is available for others using WebCT Vista & CE versions 6 through 8 but is not maintained by Brock University.

PowerPoint:PDF:Mac

From WebCT Wiki

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1 Why is PDF the best option?
2 Creating Your Own PDF Document
3 Uploading Your Documents
4 Flash Video Example

[edit] Why is PDF the best option?

Using a PDF creator produces a version of a PowerPoint presentation that can be viewed on all most all web browsers and printed with very little formatting loss. Documents can also be made with six slides a page, saving paper and condensing the information into something that can be kept with your students' other notes.

The PDF format is wide support includes tools used by individuals with learning and other disabilities. Additionally, PDF documents protect (but do note prevent) your information from being "stolen" as it's no longer in its original format.

[edit] Creating Your Own PDF Document

Find the "Save as PDF" option at the bottom left of any OS X print window

In OS X (10.2+) Simply pull down the 'File' menu and select "Print". You will have all the normal print options available to you ie. One, Two, Four or Six slides per page, etc.

Please Note: You have the option of selecting "Handouts" from the "Print What" option on the right of the window, this will allow you to print six (or other multiples) of slides on each page - a common request by students.

Next, instead of pressing print press "Save as PDF" and choose a location to save it in, remember, do not uses any spaces in the name. Save the PDF document to a location on your hard drive that you will be able to find later.

[edit] Uploading Your Documents

To upload your file to WebCT you will have to log in to WebCT (https://webct.brocku.ca ) and enter into your course. While in the "Build" tab you can add your PDF file on the Course Content Home or go inside a Folder to save it inside that Folder. You can create a folder to oranize all of your similar files by clicking "Create Folder".

Get Files

On the Course Content Home click on the "Get Files" button. Select "Browse for Files" from the drop-down context menu.

My Computer Icon is Loading, Please be patient

A pop-up dialog box will open
Wait until the My Computer icon appears. If after 90 seconds, it does not appear you may need to update your Java or do some of the trouble shooting described in the My_Computer_Applet article.
Once the My Computer icon appears, click on it to choose files from your computer
Locate the file from the location you saved it on your hard drive (You can use the Shift or Ctrl keys to select up to 10 files to upload at once).
Click Open
An upload file status window will let you know how your upload is progressing. Depending on the speed of your connection and the size of your file(s), this may take a while.

When the upload status window is removed your PowerPoint should now be in WebCT and accessible by students. You might want to confirm this by entering the "Student View" tab.

For troubleshooting tips please see our My Computer Applet article.