Message-ID: <2665007.1182488887865.JavaMail.joeescobar@joe-escobars-computer.local> Date: Sun, 8 Oct 2006 08:15:18 -0700 (PDT) From: moodleadmin Subject: Re: Inactive links in Moodle, and other concerns Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary="----=_Part_1252_11947948.1182488887864" GWItemID: 45285126.LCC-Mail.MC_PO3.100.1346735.1.1BB4.1 ------=_Part_1252_11947948.1182488887864 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Jennifer, Sorry you didn't hear back from me before now; I was off on Firday and have been busy troubleshooting issues with the Macintosh labs today. My first thought about students having problems with your assignment links is that their browsers are probably misconfigured or out of date. This is particularly true if we're talking about resources not appearing in pop-up windows like they're supposed to; students should turn pop-up window blocking off for moodle.lanecc.edu. That's alluded to in the LCC Moodle FAQ, although for a different reason--specifically, it'll prevent them from taking quizzes if they don't. Now, browser configuration is the first thing I would look at. It's not the only cause, but it's almost always the reason behind problems which are inconsistent, i.e., where some students have them and some students don't. Students can get a certain amount of assistance from the SHeD on this--they can help make sure that students' browsers are up-to-date, that they've got the necessary patches, and that they're properly configured. We're not really well-equipped to provide that much assistance with the functions of Moodle yes, mostly because there hasn't been any time to provide the staff with thorough training. That's not a reason for students NOT to contact the Student Help Desk; I just want to make it clear from the outset that we in IT are still learning the ropes of Moodle. That includes me. On the email problem: can you give me the sequence of exactly what you're doing--emailing individual students or emailing a group? And precisely what the error message is (if possible, can you cut and paste it)? There are some issues with email, particularly when it involves recipients whose email addresses are invalid (because they haven't supplied on in Banner--Mandy Perez is the only person in your class in this category). It will help if I know precisely what you're trying to do (by which I mean, literally, click-by-click recounting--it's tedious, I know, but in this case it may be important). Finally, on the problems you're having with forums: this too may be a browser issue, but I'm not sure; I don't see it hapening when I click the reply link on any of the postings in your forums. Can you give me a specific example (i.e., which forum, which post) where this is happening? I've cc:d this to the faculty webmasters, since they are much better versed at troubleshooting the usability issues of Moodle than I am, and may know specifically what problems you're alluding to and how to solve them. David =============================================== David Walton Moodle System Administrator Lane Community College Email support: moodleadmin@lanecc.edu Voice: 463-3367 =============================================== >>> Jennifer Love 10/06/06 2:20 PM >>> David, I would like to ask if you could help me with a "Moodle function" problem some of my students are experiencing in my Moodle class (WR 122, 24466). (I have a couple of other "function"-related concerns, as well; please see below.) A couple of students have told me that some of the hyperlinks in my class have not been working for them. The problem links seem to be those that link to outside-the-class websites. Some students have told me that the links in my Assignment for this week, called "Forum/Discussion Topics--Week 2," are not working for them. (They work for some students, just not all.) I tried to remedy this problem by putting an important link (to a handout on "argument") directly on my Week 2 block in Moodle. But the student who is having the most difficulties said that this link didn't work for her, either. To be honest, for this reason and others, I am personally frustrated with Moodle. The "message" (email) feature within Moodle is particularly trying. When I try to email individual students who are not already on my Moodle contact list, a message pops up saying "Something went wrong - Some may have received the email." (This message usually seems to mean "The person did not receive the email.") I can't think of any reason why this would be happening, since, to my knowledge, I am going about the email procedure correctly. I also have not had success emailing all of my students within Moodle. When I tried this the other day and asked for feedback from students on whether they'd gotten the email, most of them said no--and one said yes. Email is my primary mode of communicating privately with students in my online classes. If this feature is unreliable, the quality of my class will suffer. Add to these problems strange issues in the "forums" function (for example, lately, when I go to reply to a student's forum/discussion message, the message I'm responding to "disappears" off to the far right-hand side of the screen); and various other quirks, I'm distressed and feel that I am spending more time troubleshooting than giving quality attention to my students' work. Could you tell me if these problems are simply part of the bag? Have others experienced these problems? My sincere thanks, in advance, for any help you can offer. Sincerely, Jennifer Jennifer M. Love, Ph.D. Instructor of Writing Division of Language, Literature, and Communication Lane Community College 4000 E. 30th Ave. Eugene, OR 97405 Email: lovejm@lanecc.edu Office phone/msg.: 541.463.3393 Homepage: http://teach.lanecc.edu/kenz/llc/staffpage.html?userid=48 ------=_Part_1252_11947948.1182488887864--