Sakai Guide

SAKAI QUICKSTART GUIDES
These are the quickstart guides for the more popular tools used in Sakai at the Claremont Colleges.
BLOGWOW! QUICKSTART GUIDE
Overview
A blog is an online journal in which individuals can write entries, ordered by date, which they can
share with others. Members of the site can comment on each others’ entries.
The blog tool in Sakai works on a site by site basis – entries that people write in one site will not
appear in any other sites. People will not be automatically notified by email about comments on their
blogs, or about new entries in other people’s blogs.
Reading blog entries
To read someone’s blog, go to the ‘All the blogs’ page. This is the home page for the tool.




Your own blog is linked to at the top of the page. All the other members of the site are listed
below.
If you would like to see who blogged most recently, click on the ‘last updated’ heading.
Click the name of the person whose blog you would like to read. You will see all this person’s
blog entries, with the most recent entry at the top of the page.
If there are any comments on a entry, you will be able to read them by clicking on the
‘comments’ link below the entry.
Adding a blog entry
1. To add an entry to your blog, click the ‘add blog entry’ button in the actions bar.
2. Type your entry in the text box, using the icons to format it. You can include a picture by
clicking the ‘Insert/Edit Image’ icon (the picture will need to be already uploaded to the site).
Give your entry a title, in the ‘title’ field.
3. To publish the entry, click the ‘publish entry’ button.
Note: You may wish to save your work as you go along by clicking the ‘save work so far’ button.
Adding a comment to a blog entry
1. To add a comment to a blog entry, click the ‘leave a comment’ link.
2. Write your comment in the box that appears, and then click ‘publish comment’.
3. If you change your mind about leaving a comment, click ‘cancel’.
Editing a blog entry and changing availability
1. Go to your own blog by clicking the ‘My Blog’ link from the tool’s home page
2. Find the entry you wish to edit and click the ‘edit entry’ link beneath it.
3. Make your changes, and click the ‘publish entry’ settings
Removing a blog entry
1. Go to your own blog by clicking the ‘My Blog’ link from the tool’s home page
2. Find the entry you wish to edit and click the ‘remove entry’ link beneath it.
Editing and removing comments
Other people can comment on your blog. At the moment, you can’t edit or remove their comments.
RSS feeds of blogs
To get an RSS feed of someone’s blog, click on the RSS icon beside their name in the ‘all the blogs’
page. Comments on blogs will not display in the RSS feed.
Editing your profile and picture
Your blog profile and picture appear in the right-hand column beside your blog. Note that your blog
profile is not the same as your standard Sakai profile.
1. To set your profile, click the ‘my blog settings’ link in the actions bar.
2. Enter your profile description in the text box. You can format the text using the icons above
the text box.
3. If you would like to display a photo of yourself, first upload it into Sakai. You can put your
photo into the Resources area of MyWorkspace. Get the web address (URL) of the photo by
clicking on ‘edit details’ link for the photo once you have uploaded it; the web address will be
displayed at the bottom of the page.
4. Paste the web address of your picture into the field labelled ‘URL for my picture’.
5. Click ‘change settings’ to save your profile and picture.
CHAT ROOM QUICKSTART GUIDE
Overview
The Chat Room tool can be used for real-time, unstructured conversations among site participants who are
signed on to the site at the same time.
Things to consider
 Chat messages are saved and visible to all users so that all site participants can benefit from


clarifying conversations and questions and answers. By default, all Chat messages are shown for at
least three days; this can be extended.
The Chat Room tool does not provide a way to chat privately. By default, all messages are visible to
all participants.
Chat Room tool allows the creation of multiple chat rooms but only one room can be active at any
given time.
Reading Chat Room messages
To read messages in the Chat Room, do the following:
 In the menu bar, click Chat Room.
 To see who is presently in the Chat Room, look under "Users in Chat" on the right side of the screen.
 Messages appear in chronological order, with the most recent at the bottom. Messages will always
identify the sender.
 To hide or display the date or time messages were posted, select the appropriate option from the
"View" drop-down list: Time Only, Date and Time, Date Only, or Neither Date or Time.
 To limit the list to messages from only the past three days, click Past 3 Days. To return to a view
listing all messages, click All Messages.
Posting Chat Room messages
To post a message, follow these steps:
1. In the text box at the bottom of the window, type your message, and then click Add message.
Note: No one will be able to see your message until you click Add message, but once you
do, only an instructor or a participant who has special permission can delete your message.
2. To discard a message that you haven't yet sent, click Clear.
eleting Chat Room messages
You can only delete a Chat Room message if the instructor has granted this permission. To delete a
message, simply click the trash can icon next to your name of the posting, and then click Delete. If you
don't see a trash can icon, you don't have permission to delete the message.
Accessing different Chat Rooms
Instructors can set up multiple Chat rooms for a site. To access different chat rooms, click Change Room
button above the open Chat room, then click a desired room from the list to access.
EMAIL ARCHIVE QUICKSTART GUIDE
Overview
Each site has an automatically generated site email address, which you can view in the Email Archive
feature. Email sent to the site email address is copied to all site participants. The site owner can create an
easy-to-remember alias for the site's email address. All messages sent to this address are stored in the Email
Archive.
Adding the Email Archive to your site
To add
1.
2.
3.
the Email Archive tool to your site:
In your site's menu bar, click Site Info
Near the top, click the Edit Tools link
Under Choose tools to include on your site, check the box next to "Email Archive", and then scroll
down and click Continue.
4. Under "Email Archive", in the field next to "Site email address", enter a name for the site email
address (e.g., SCHIST101A) with NO spaces. This will be the name (alias) that goes before the “@”
in your course email address, e.g. [email protected].
5. Click Continue, and on the subsequent confirmation screen, click Finish to return to the Site Info
screen.
You should now be able to see and click Email Archive in your site's menu bar.
Change Default Settings
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
In the menu bar of your course or project site, click Email Archive. If you don't see Email Archive,
it has not been added as a tool for this site—see “Adding the Email Archive to your Site” above
Permissions: to control permissions for an Email Archive:
a. In the menu bar of the course site or project site, click Email Archive
b. Click Permissions
c. Place checkmarks in the appropriate boxes to control which roles will be able to create, read,
revise, and delete messages in the Email Archive
d. When you have made your changes, click Save.
View Options: to customize the way you view an Email Archive:
a. Use the Viewing drop-down list above-right of the list of messages to change the number of
messages displayed on each page
b. Click the heading of any column of the message list to sort by that column. Click the heading
again to change the display order from ascending to descending, or from descending to
ascending.
Set the Email Address: change the alias email address for the site:
a. Click Options
b. Under Mail Address, type a new name WITHOUT any spaces
c. Click the Update Options button
Access Options: to customize how messages are sent to an Email Archive:
a. Click Options
b. On the Customize screen under Mailbox settings:
 click the corresponding radio button to have messages accepted from anyone, or only site
participants
 click the corresponding radio button to set the Reply To address to the Email Archive, or to
the Original Sender
c. Once you have made your desired changes, click Update Options.
Sending mail to course or project site participants
To send an email to your course or project site:
1. From your email program, send an email to the email alias that you created Messages will go to all
participants in your course or project site—to their individual email account—and will be stored in
the Email Archive.
Note: You cannot use Email Archive to send messages to particular individuals. Messages
sent to your site's email address are received by all site participants.
Reading messages in the Email Archive
To read messages in the Email Archive:
1. To navigate through multiple pages of messages, use the arrows above the Date Received column
header. Click > to go to the next page, and < to go to the previous page. Click |< to go to the first
page of messages, and >| to go to the last pages of messages.
2. You may also search the archive using the Search box and button (see below).
3. When you locate the message you want to read, click its highlighted subject line to read it. The
Next Email and Previous Email buttons allow you to move from message to message. Click View
Headers to see the full headers, and Hide Headers to hide them.
4. While viewing a message, you may remove it from the archive (if you have sufficient permissions)
by clicking Delete. On the following confirmation screen, click Remove to complete the deletion,
or click Cancel to return to the message without deleting it.
Searching an Email Archive
To search for a word in the email messages within an archive, follow these steps:
1. In the Search box near the top of the screen, type the desired word > then click Search.
Note: The Email Archive search is not case sensitive. Also, you can search only for a single
word. Do not use quotation marks around your search term unless you are searching for a term
in quotation marks.
2. A list of search results will appear. You may click the linked subject line to view a message. Once
you are viewing a message, click Return to List to return to your search results. Click View
Headers while viewing a message to see the full headers; click Hide Headers to hide them (the
button toggles between these two options).
3. On the search results screen, click Clear Search or the reset button to return to the default Email
Archive display (the list of all email messages in the archive). Or you may search the archive again.
Deleting an Email Archive message
To delete an Email Archive message, follow these steps:
1. In the menu bar of the relevant course site or project site, click Email Archive.
2. Click the linked subject of the message you want to delete to open it > then click the Delete link
3. Click Remove to confirm the deletion.
Message formatting and attachments in the Email Archive


The Email Archive uses plain text to format messages, even if their original format was HTML or rich
text. If a message is sent in a format other than plain text, site participants can view it in its original
format by clicking the link provided in the Email Archive message.
The Email Archive also uses links to handle attachments. Instead of receiving an attachment directly in
the body of an email message, site participants can click a link to view the attachment. This feature
helps prevent site participants from going over quota.
FORUMS TOOL QUICKSTART GUIDE
Overview
Forums is a communication tool that instructors can use to create discussions for their course or project
sites. An instructor can modify permission levels for participant roles; permissions must be changed for
students to be able to create Forums. Forums can be graded and added to the Gradebook.
Creating a forum
A forum is a subject - topics must be created within forums for posting. When creating a forum, at least
one topic must be added so the forum is visible and site participants can post messages. To create a new
forum:
1. Click New Forum; the Forum Settings screen will open.
NOTE: A Forum is a subject; comments and discussions should be posted as Topics.
2. In the Forum Title field, type your forum's title
3. In the Short Description field, you can type a brief description
4. In the Description WYSIWYG text editor, you may enter a more detailed description of your forum,
instructions, etc. – do NOT enter a discussion as this is done within topics.
Note: To copy and paste from Word, you must use the Paste From Word tool on the text editor toolbar:
5.
6.
7.
8.
Click Add Attachment to attach a file from your computer or Resources, or add a URL
To moderate forum postings, under Forum Posting, click the Yes radio button next to Moderate
Forum
o Under Permissions, you can modify permission by roles: select a role > then either select a
predefined Permission Level from the list, or check permission boxes as needed.
Next to Gradebook Assignment, use the list to choose an assignment already in the Gradebook
When finished, click one of the following:
o Save Draft: Save your forum as a draft. Drafts are not available to other site participants
o Save Settings & Add Topic: Save your changes and add a Topic to your Forum. You will
need to add a Topic to a Forum so site members can post messages.
o Cancel: Cancel your changes; you will return to the Forums screen.
Creating a topic
1.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
8.
Go to the Forums screen and find your forum's title. To its right, click New Topic.
Next to Topic Title, enter a title in the text box.
Next to Short Description, you may type a brief description
In the Description text editor, enter a more detailed description of your topic, or post a discussion
NOTE: Use the Paste From Word tool if you copy and paste text from a Word document
Click Add Attachment to attach a file from your computer or Resources, or add a URL
To moderate topic postings, under Topic Posting, click the Yes radio button next to Moderate
Topic
When you're finished, Save your changes, or Cancel to discard.
Changing the order of forums and topics
1.
2.
3.
Click Organize.
Use the drop-down lists to manipulate the order of forums and topics.
When you're finished, click Save Settings. To cancel, click Cancel.
Revising a forum or topic
Note: You cannot delete an individual forum message. You can, however, revise the message and remove its
contents. Also, you can delete the forum or topic entirely, which will remove any associated messages.
To revise a forum, a topic, or the default template for newly created forums and topics:
1. Under Forums, click to choose one of the following:
o Template Settings opens the default Template Settings screen where you can change
default Permissions and Moderate Topics settings.
o Forum Settings opens the Forum editing window where title, description, and default
settings can be changed, attachments added or deleted, and the forum deleted.
o Topic Settings opens the Topic editing window where title, description, and default topic
settings can be changed, attachments added or deleted, and the topic deleted.
2. When you're finished, click one of the following:
o Save Settings saves your changes and returns you to the Forums screen.
o Safe Draft saves your forum as a draft and returns you to the Forums screen.
o Save Settings & Add Topic saves your changes and opens the Topic Settings screen
o Delete removes your Forum and/or Topic with all associated messages
o Cancel will cancel your changes and return you to the Forums screen.
Deleting a forum or topic
1.
On the Forums screen, find the forum or topic you wish to delete, and next to its title click one of
the following options:
Forum Settings opens the Forum Settings screen.
Topic Settings opens the Topic Settings screen.
At the bottom of the screen, click Delete.
You'll see a warning message to confirm deletion. To delete the item, click Delete. To cancel, click
No.
o
o
2.
3.
Viewing Forums and Topics








Each forum appears in an enclosed box with its title and short description displayed below the title.
If a full description of the forum exists, click Read Full Description to view it.
Beneath the forum title, topics are listed by title, and include a short description
Clicking the title of any forum will open an isolated view of a particular forum and its topics.
Clicking the title of any topic will display a thread of messages for that particular topic. Each
individual thread appears in an enclosed box with a count of messages below. Use the arrows to the
left of the messages to expand the threads
To expand all threads and messages, click Display Entire Message. To mark all of the messages as
read, click Mark All As Read.
To open a printable version of all Topic messages, click the printer icon at the top.
Clicking the title of the topic thread will open an isolated view of a particular thread and its
individual messages. Use the View drop-down list to change the display of messages.
To open an individual message, click its subject link.
Posting a new message
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
From the Forums tool, click the title of the topic for which you'd like to post a message
Click Post New Thread; the Compose Forum Message screen will open
Next to Title, type the subject (i.e., title) of your message
Under Message, use the WYSIWYG editor to compose your message
NOTE: Use the Paste From Word tool if you copy and paste text from a Word document
Under Attachments, you can attach a file from your local computer or from Resources, or specify
the URL for a file on the web
When you're finished, click Post Message or click Cancel.
Note: If the forum or topic is moderated, the message will appear as "PENDING" until approved by a
moderator.
Posting a response to a message or topic
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Click the Title of the desired topic
Click the subject of the desired message
Click Reply to Thread or Reply
In the text field next to Reply Title, give your reply a title
Under Message, use the WYSIWYG editor to compose your reply. To insert a quote of the original
message, click Insert Original Message (located above the WYSIWYG editor).
NOTE: Use the Paste From Word tool if you copy and paste text from a Word document
Click Add Attachment to attach a file from your computer or Resources, or add a URL
When you're finished:
o To post your message, click Post Message
o To cancel your message without saving it, click Cancel.
Note: If the forum or topic is moderated, the message will appear as "PENDING" until approved by a
moderator.
MESSAGES QUICKSTART GUIDE
Overview
The Messages tool is a communication tool that allows site participants to communicate using internal
course email. Private messaging between groups is also supported. A WYSIWYG interface allows rich text,
plain text, and HTML editing. You can also add attachments.
The Messages tool is intended for private correspondence with other individuals or groups in your site.
Messages are organized into default Received, Sent, and Deleted folders. New folders can be created.
Sending and replying to messages
Using Messages, you can send email to other site participants, and reply to messages sent by other
participants.
Sending a message
To compose and send a message, follow these steps:
1. In your site's menu bar, click Messages.
2. On the Messages screen, click Compose Message, or, while viewing the contents of a Messages
folder, click Compose Message.
3. Next to "To", use the list to select the individual(s) or group(s) whom you want to receive the
message. To select multiple participants, use Ctrl+click (in Windows) or Cmd+click (in Mac OS X).
You can also choose to send your message to the entire site, or to all users with a particular role
(e.g., all instructors or all assistants).
4. Next to "Send CC", check the box for ‘Send a copy of this message to recipients email addresses’ to
send email to site participants selected.
5. Under "Label", use the drop-down list to change the priority status for your message.
6. Next to "Subject", type the subject (i.e., title) of your message.
7. Under "Message", use the WYSIWYG editor to compose your message.
Note: To copy and paste from Word, you must use the Paste From Word tool on the text editor toolbar:
8.
9.
Under "Attachments", you can attach a file from your computer or from Resources, or specify the
URL for a file on the web.
When you're finished, click Send to send your message. Or, click Cancel to cancel your message.
Replying to a message
To reply to a message someone sent to you, follow these steps:
1. In your site's menu bar, click Messages.
2. On the Messages screen, click Received to view the messages you've received.
3. Click the message to which you are replying.
4. Click Reply.
5. To compose and send your reply, follow steps 3 through 9 above.
Viewing and managing messages
The following functions are also available in the Messages tool:
 To create a new personal folder, click New Folder > give it a Title > click Add
 To forward your messages to an email address of your choosing, click Settings. Next to "Auto
Forward Messages", click Yes. Type the desired email address in the text box provided > then click
Save Settings.
 The total number of messages and unread messages for each folder is displayed next to the folder's
title. To see the contents of any folder, click the folder's name.
Inside a folder, you will see a list of messages arranged by date.
 To sort messages, click the relevant column title for Subject, Authored By, Date, or Label.
 To change the way messages are displayed, from the "View" drop-down list, select either All
Messages or By Conversation.
 To view another folder, click Previous Folder or Next Folder.
 To compose a new message, click Compose Message (see above)
 To view the contents of a message, click its subject.
Inside a message, you will see the message contents and other details.
 To view another message, click Previous Message or Next Message.
 To compose a reply, click Reply.
NOTE: Use the Paste From Word tool if you copy and paste text from a Word document
 To move a message to another folder, click Move to folder. Use the radio buttons to select a
destination folder, and then click Move Message.

To delete a message, click Delete. To confirm the deletion, again click Delete.
Searching Messages
To search for text in a message, follow these steps:
1. In your site's menu bar, click Messages.
2. Click the folder you wish to search.
3. Next to "Search for text:", enter your search terms in the text box, and then click Search.
4. To modify the search parameters, click Advanced Search. Available parameters are:
o Subject: The subject line of the message
o Authored By: Who sent the message
o Body: The body of the message
o Label: The label associated with the message
o Date Range: Enter the beginning and ending dates in which the message was sent
5. To clear a search, click Clear Search.
6. To end an advanced search, click Normal Search.
NEWS (RSS) TOOL QUICKSTART GUIDE
Overview
The News tool uses RSS news feeds to bring dynamic news to your worksite. RSS is a data format that is used
to syndicate news on the web. An RSS news feed is a specially formatted list of news articles. It allows
continuously updated content from a remote news site to appear in another website.
Adding, editing, or deleting an RSS news feed
You can set up a worksite to display news by entering a URL for an RSS news feed. You can add more than
one News tool at any time.
Adding a news feed
To add a news feed, follow these steps:
1. In the menu bar of your course or project site, click Site Info, and then click Edit Tools.
2. Check the box for News, and then click the Continue button.
3. In the "Title" field, enter a title for the news feed that will appear in the menu bar.
4. In the "URL" field, enter the URL for the news feed.
5. If the worksite already contains news feeds or web content, you will see information in the Title
and URL fields:
a. Click the More News Tools drop-down menu,
b. Select the number of News tools to be added,
c. Complete the Title and URL for each.
6. Click Continue. You will see a summary of your changes to the site's tools.
7. Click Finish.
You should now see a link in the Menu Bar to the news feed(s) displaying the title you provided.
Editing a news feed
To edit a news feed, in the menu bar, click the title of the feed you wish to edit. Click Options, and then
change the "Title" and "URL" fields as needed.
Deleting a news feed
To delete a news feed:
1. In the menu bar, click Site Info, then Edit Tools.
2. From the list of tools, uncheck the news feed you wish to delete, and then click Continue.
3. On the "Customize Tools" screen, review your information, and then click Continue.
4. Click Finish to delete your feed.
Viewing a news feed
If your course or project site has a link to a news feed, you will find it in the site's Menu bar. To view news,
simply click the title of the news feed from the Menu bar and current news will display.
POLLS TOOL QUICKSTART GUIDE
Overview
The Poll tool allows users to set up an online vote and obtain results:
 Vote: Users can vote for one or more of any number of answer options. The structure of the vote is
governed by a maximum and minimum number of options that may be selected.
 Results: You can choose when results are available to voters: immediately, after voting, after the
closing date, or never.
Things to Consider:
 Voting is anonymous.
 Participants may only vote once per poll.
 A poll can only consist of one question. If you want to ask a set of related questions it might be
better to use the Tests and Quizzes tool.
 You can allow spoilt votes by selecting zero as the minimum number of answer options.
Setting permissions
To control who may or may not vote, as well as who may create, edit and delete polls, click on Permissions
in the options bar. Once you have adjusted the permissions by ticking the relevant boxes, click Save.
Creating a Poll
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
To create a poll, click on Add.
Enter the Poll Question and any additional instructions such as the number of answers that the
voter may select.
NOTE: Use the Paste From Word tool if you copy and paste text from a Word document
Choose an opening date and a closing date, between which participants will be able to cast their
votes.
Next, select the maximum and minimum number of answer options that a user may select. If you
want users to only select one option from the possible answers given, set both numbers to 1. If
users may select more than one option, adjust these settings accordingly.
Decide how and when results will be visible:
o Always allows participants to see the results from the open date, even if they haven’t
voted.
o Never restricts participants from seeing the results
o To participants who have voted allows participants to see the results from the open date,
but only after they have voted
o After closing date restricts access to the results until the closing date, after which all
participants (regardless of whether they have voted or not) will be able to view them.
Click on Save and add options
Type in the first answer option available for the question and then click on Save and add options.
Repeat until all answer options have been entered, then click on Save.
Editing a poll
To edit a poll, click Edit. Adjust the settings in the form. Links will be provided to add, edit and delete
answer options. Click Save to finish.
Deleting a poll
To delete a poll, tick the relevant box in the Remove column and then click Update.
Viewing Poll results
To view results click the Results link alongside the relevant poll. The number of votes for each answer
option, the percentages associated with these figures, and the total number of votes will be displayed.
PROJECT SITE QUICKSTART GUIDE
Overview
A course site is the official work site for a particular academic course for an institution, and will be
automatically created prior to the start of each semester by the Sakai Administrator. Instructors do not have
the ability to create new course sites.
Project sites are designed to facilitate collaboration; they are identical to course sites with all of the same
tools and functions available. You can create your own project site and add anyone you wish to join the
site. A project site is a great tool for managing information for groups.
Creating a new project site
To create a work site, follow these steps:
1. In your My Workspace menu bar, click Worksite Setup.
2. At the top of the Worksite Setup page, click New.
3. Under "Creating a new site", click the radio button next to Project Website, then click
Continue.
4. On the "Project Information" page:
a. In the Site Title field, type a title for your project; this will appear on the Navigation Bar
b. In the Description box, type a description which will appear on your site's home page
Note: To copy and paste from Word, you must use the Paste From Word tool on the text editor toolbar:
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
c. Type a Short Description for this to appear on the public list of all sites on the system
d. If you'd like to insert an icon image above the Menu Bar, type in the URL in the "Icon URL"
field. This image should be no larger than 150 pixels on the long edge.
e. In the Site Contact Name field, enter your name
f. In the Site Contact Email field, enter your email address
g. Click Continue.
Under "Tools", click a box to place a checkmark next to the tools you want to provide on your site,
and click Continue.
a. If you select Email Archive, on the “Customize Tools” page which you will see later, you
will be asked to provide an alias (username) for your site's email address on the next page.
Recommended: use the Project name with no spaces; do not use your Sakai username.
b. If you select News, on the “Customize Tools” page you will be asked to provide a title and
source URL for your news feed. To add more feeds, use the "More News Tools" drop-down
list
c. If you select Web Content, you will be asked to provide a title and source URL. To add
more links, use the "More Web Content Tools" drop-down list, and then click Continue.
You have the option of re-using material from other sites you own. Choose one of the following and
then click Continue:
a. No, thanks
b. Yes, from these sites: Select the sites with the material you want to re-use; on the
next page, check the boxes for the tools you want to copy, and then click Continue.
Note: Imported materials will be posted as DRAFT copies. To make them viewable to
others, open each item and click the Post or Add button at the bottom of the
page.
On the "Set Site Access" page, under “Site Status,” select Publish site to make it available to site
participants. If you don't want to publish your site at this time, you can do it later through Site Info.
To indicate who can access your site, on the "Set Site Access" page under Global Access, select one:
 Private: Only the people you add as participants can see your site.
 Display my site in the directory, and share files I select: Anyone with authorization to log
into the system can see your site in the site directory, and can access shared files.
Also, on the "Set Site Access" page you can set your page to be joined by anyone with authorization
to log into the system; to do so:
a. Click to place a checkmark in the box next to “Can be joined by any Claremont
consortium student, faculty or staff member…”
b. Use the drop-down list to select a role to assign people who join your site.
c. Click Continue.
10. On the "Confirm Your Site Setup" page, review the information about your site. If you need to make
changes, click Back; to cancel, click Cancel; if it is correct, click Create Site.
Your new site will be listed in My Workspace on the Worksite Setup page.
Adding participants to a project site
To add participants and assign them participant roles, follow these steps:
1. Click Site Info in the Menu Bar; click Add Participants.
2. Under "Username(s),” type each participant's username, including their school’s three-letter code
(e.g., jdoe@cmc), on a separate line. The codes are: cgu, cmc, hmc, jsd, kgi, lib, pom, ptz, scr.
3. For guest participants, enter the full email addresses, one per line.
4. Under Participant Roles, select “Assign all participants the same role” or “Assign each participant a
roll individually, then click Continue.
5. On the next page, select role(s) for your participant(s); click Continue.
6. On the next page, if you would like to send email to the new participants notifying them of the new
site, click the radio button for “Send Now,” otherwise click “Don’t Send.” Click Continue.
7. On the next page, click Finish and the participants will be added.
Editing a project site
To edit a project site that you created:
1. While in the site you wish to edit, click Site Info in the Menu Bar
2. At the top of the page, click Edit Site Information to edit the site title, description, short
description, icon URL, site contact name, or site contact email address.
3. To add or remove tools from your site, click Edit Tools.
4. Click Manage Access to change the publishing status of your site, modify who can see or join
your site, and change the default role for people who join.
5. To create a duplicate of another of your sites that includes material posted by the instructor, click
Duplicate Site. This will copy only from the tools you have selected for the new project.
6. To add material from another site you own, click Import from Site. The tools available for
importing are:
 Schedule
 Announcements
 Assignments
 Syllabus
 Discussion
 Wiki
 Resources
Some items (e.g. Announcements, Assignments, Discussions) will be imported as DRAFT copies. To
make them viewable to others, open each item and click the Post or Add action button at the
bottom of the page.
Note: You can re-use material only from other sites that you own. You can combine
material from more than one site.
7. To import materials from a zipped file, click Import from File, browse for the file, and then
click Import.
Deleting a site
To delete a work site that you created, follow these steps:
1. In your My Workspace menu bar, click Worksite Setup.
2. Click the box to place a checkmark next to the site you want to delete. Then, at the top of the
Worksite Setup page, click Delete.
Note: Deleting a site removes the entire site's content and cannot be undone. No one else
will be able to access the deleted site or its contents.
3. On the confirmation page, click Remove.
RESOURCES QUICKSTART GUIDE
Overview
In the Resources tool, you can make many kinds of materials available online, including word
processing documents, spreadsheets, slide presentations, images, links to websites, and simple text
documents that display right on the page. You can also post items outside of folders, create folders
inside other folders, upload images for Presentations, and create HTML documents.
Creating/adding an item in Resources
Open the Resources tool on your site’ Menu Bar. To view all items in your Resources tool at once,
click the double arrow on the left side of the Title Bar to Expand All; click again to collapse.
Adding a new folder:
By default, your Resources tool contains one folder named after your site. To add a subfolder:
1. Next to the existing folder, under "Actions", click Add > click Create Folders
2. Type in the name of your new folder
3. If you wish to add more folders, click ‘Add Another Folder’
4. Click the Add Folders Now button
5. To Change the name or add a description, click Actions next to folder name > click Edit Details.
Adding resource items:
Click the Add link in the "Actions" column, which is to the right of the folder in which you want to create
the new item. In the page that opens, from the "Add Item Type" drop-down list, select your resource
type:
•
Upload Files: An existing document or other file from your computer:
1. Click Add > Upload Files
2. For each resource, click the Browse button > select a file to upload > enter Display Name
3. To Edit the resource description, click ‘Add Details for this Item’
4. Under "Availablitiy and Access", select the access rights you prefer. The default should be
that only site members can view these files.
5. Next to "Email Notification", specify whether or not you want to have members of the
site notified via email when the resource is posted – select ‘High’ to send email.
6. Click ‘Upload Files Now’ to finish.
•
Add Web Link (URL): Specify a URL to a website that will be the resource:
1. For each resource, type the URL in the box.
2. Add a title for the linked web page. If you don't add a title, the URL will be used as the title
of the resource. To add a description, click ‘Add Detals for this Item’
3. Under "Availablitiy and Access", select the access rights you prefer. The default should be
that only site members can view these files.
4. Next to "Email Notification", specify whether or not you want to have members of the
site notified via email when the resource is posted – select ‘High’ to send email.
5. Click 'Add Web Link Now’ to finish.
•
Create HTML Page: Create an HTML document:
1.
Enter the content of your page, a title, and an optional description in the text editor >
Continue
Note: To copy and paste from Word, you must use the Paste From Word tool on the text editor toolbar:
2.
3.
4.
5.
•
Choose your page's copyright status, add optional copyright information, and choose whether
you want to display a copyright alert.
Under "Availablitiy and Access", select the access rights you prefer. The default should be
that only site members can view these files.
Next to "Email Notification", choose whether or not you want to have members of the site
notified automatically via email when the resource is posted - select ‘High’ to send email.
Click Finish.
Create Text Document: Create a plain text document:
1. 1. Type the content text > Click Continue a title, and description in the appropriate text
areas
2. Select the copyright status, enter optional copyright information, and choose whether you
want to display a copyright alert
3. Under "Availablitiy and Access", select the access rights you prefer. The default should be that
4.
5.
only site members can view these files.
Next to "Email Notification", choose whether or not you want to have members of the site
notified automatically via email when the resource is posted - select ‘High’ to send email.
Click Finish.
Editing a resource item
You can revise plain text and HTML documents; for other document types, the edit option only allows
you to revise the information about the resource (e.g., the description), or replace the document's
contents (e.g., picture or URL). You can only replace document content with documents you upload
from your computer.
1. If it is a document type for which you can revise the content, click Actions > Edit Details
2. Make any changes needed.
3. Click the Update button at the bottom of the page when done.
Moving an item in Resources
1. In the menu bar, click Resources.
2. Place a checkmark in the box next to the file you wish to move > Click Move
3. Folder icons will appear to the right of folder names > click the folder icon for the
destination folder
Copying an item in Resources
1. In the menu bar, click Resources.
2. Place a checkmark in the box next to the file you wish to copy > Click Copy
4. Folder icons will appear to the right of folder names > click the folder icon for the
destination folder
Reordering an item in Resources
1. Click Actions > Reorder link to the right of the folder which contains the file(s) to be
reordered; You may not see a Reorder link if the folder contains less than two items
2. Drag and Drop the items to their new positions in the list
3. Click the Save button.
Deleting a resource item
1. Check the box to the left of the Resource name
2. Click the Remove Link above the list of resources
3. A confirmation screen will appear > Click Remove to confirm, or click Cancel.
SIGN-UP TOOL QUICKSTART GUIDE
Overview
The Sign-Up tool allows site organizers to create and organize events such as office hours, review sessions,
study groups, or other activities.
Creating a new event
An organizer can create three different types of events: a multiple-slot event, a single-slot event, and an
open meeting. In a multiple-slot event the total time is divided into multiple meeting slots. In a single-slot
event there is one time slot with a limited or unlimited number of participants. An open meeting does not
require participants to sign-up.
1.
2.
3.
Important note: Before using the Sign-Up tool please make sure that you have also added the
Schedule tool to your site. The Schedule tool must be present in order for the Sign-Up tool to work
properly. The site must also be Published. You cannot add the Sign-Up tool to an Unpublished site.
In your site, from the menu bar, click Sign-Up, then click Add.
Fill out the fields to describe your event:
a. Title: name of your event
b. Location: where the event will take place
c.
Description: a description of your event (optional)
Note: To copy and paste from Word, you must use the Paste From Word tool on the text editor toolbar:
d.
e.
f.
g.
4.
Start time: day and time event will begin
End time: day and time event will end
Meeting frequency: how often event will occur (optional)
Sign-up begins: when participants can begin signing up based on the starting time of the event
(optional)
h. Sign-up ends: when participants can no longer sign up; they can still cancel (optional)
i. Available to:
i. Current site: you can allow all site participants to sign up or restrict it to certain groups
ii. Other sites: you can also allow participants from other sites to sign up
j. Meeting type
i. Choose “Multiple slots” if you want the total time to be divided into multiple meeting slots.
If you choose this option you will also need to specify the number of slots available for
sign up, the number of participants per time slot and the duration of each time slot.
ii. Choose “Single slot” to specify one time slot with a limited or unlimited number of
participants.
iii. Choose “Open meeting” to create an event that does not require participants to sign up.
Click Next.
a. There are three checkboxes that you can specify:
i. Display Participant Names: display names of participants to others
ii. Receive Notification: receive email notification when a participant signs up or cancels an
appointment
iii. Announce Availability: send email to notify all the potential participants of your event
b. Other Default Settings: click to expand this list if you want to use these options:
i. Allow Wait list: Yes, add Wait List option. Participants can join Wait List
ii. Allow Adding comment: Yes, participant can add a comment during sign-up
iii. User ID Input Mode: Yes, I want to use User ID input Mode for adding participants
iv. Auto Reminder: Yes, send email to remind attendee of the meeting, one day in advance
c. Click the Publish button to save and announce your event. If you know some of the participants
and want to sign them up yourself you can also choose the Assign Participants & Publish
button.
Your published event(s) will also appear in the Schedule tool.
Viewing your events
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
In your site, from the menu bar, click Sign-Up.
Click the View dropdown menu to change the timeframe for the view.
Click the Title of an event to see details of the event.
Click the box for ‘Expand all recurring meetings’ to view a list of recurring items
You can add participants from the detail view of an event. Click the Add Participant button next to an
event time slot in order to add a participant. Select a participant from the dropdown list and then click
OK.
To modify the details of an event click the Modify button in the upper menu.
Once you have made your changes click the Publish Modifications button to save your changes, or the
Cancel button to cancel them.
Removing an event
1.
2.
3.
4.
In your site, from the menu bar, click Sign-Up to view all events.
Next to the event, check the box under Remove.
Click the Remove meetings button.
Click OK.
Signing up for an event as a participant
To sign up for an event as a participant, follow these steps:
1. In your site's menu bar, click Sign-Up.
2. Click the title of the event you would like to sign up for.
3. If there are slots available you can click on the Sign Up button to sign up for the event.
4. If the event is full you can click on the Join Wait List button to join the wait list.
Canceling an event for which you are signed up
If you are signed up for an event as a participant and want to cancel, follow these steps:
1. In your site's menu bar, click Sign-Up.
2. Click the title of the event you would like to cancel.
3. Click the Cancel Sign-up button next to the time slot that you are signed up for.
SITE INFO QUICKSTART GUIDE
Overview
The Site Info tool provides information and allows modification of the worksite that you are currently in.
You can change available tools, information about the site, and access to the site, and also publish the site
here.
Editing information about your site with the Site Info tool
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
In your site, from the menu bar, click Site Info, then click Edit Site Information.
In the "Site Title" field, edit the title of your site.
Note: You can edit the title of a project site you created, but not a course site.
In the "Description" field, type information that you want displayed in your site's Worksite
Information box. This can also be done in the Home tool by clicking the Options link in the Worksite
Info window.
Note: If you have chosen to display a web page in Worksite Information on the Home menu,
then the text in the description field will not appear.
If your site is publicly joinable, in the "Short description" field, type information that you want
displayed in the list of joinable sites.
Type the appropriate information in the "Site Contact Name" and "Site Contact Email" fields, and
then click Continue.
On the confirmation screen, click Finish. To cancel your changes, click Cancel.
Adding or deleting tools in your site
Following are the steps for changing the tools in a course or project site:
1. In your site, from the menu bar, click Site Info, then click Edit Tools.
2. Check or uncheck boxes to add or remove tools from your site.
3. Click the Continue button, and on the next page click the Finish button.
Controlling access to your course or project site from Site Info
1.
2.
3.
4.
In your site's menu bar, click Site Info > then click Manage Access.
For others to see your site, check the box next to Publish site.
For project sites, under "Global Access" you may choose from the following:
o To keep your site private, click the radio button next to Private so that only your active
site participants can view the site.
o You may select Display in public site list. Your site will then appear in the list of sites
on the Sakai welcome page under “Sites”. You can then choose to make individual items in
your site visible to outside users by choosing the Public option when adding content to your
site. Choosing this radio button does NOT make your entire site visible to the outside world,
only those items that you choose to make Public.
o To make your course or project site accessible to any Claremont Colleges user, click the
checkbox next to ‘Can be joined by any Claremont consortium student,
faculty or staff member...’ Next to "Role for people that join site", select the
“Access” or “Student” role. Do NOT choose “maintain” or “Instructor” since then anyone who
joins your site would have the ability to delete items in your site, and even delete the entire
site.
For course sites, the only option under Global Access is ‘Can be joined by any Claremont
consortium student, faculty, staff...’ You can still make individual items public by checking
the Public checkbox when adding new items to a site, for example in the Resources tool.
5.
Click Update.
Adding, editing, or removing participants with Site Info
Adding participants
1.
2.
In your site’s menu bar, click Site Info. Under the Name heading you will see a list of site
participants, their roles and status.
Click Add Participants > On the next page:
o For participants with Claremont Colleges usernames, under "Username(s)", type the
participant's Sakai username, including the school’s three-letter code (e.g., jdoe@cmc). If
you wish to add more than one participant, enter each username on a separate line.
Note: The three-letter codes are: cgu, cmc, hmc, jsd, kgi, lib, pom, ptz, scr
o For participants without Claremont usernames, under "Guest(s) Email Address", enter the
full email addresses, one per line.
Note: Sakai will send guest users an email with their temporary password when
their account is FIRST created. It will not send the password again even if the
guest is added to another Sakai site. Guests use their email address as their login
name.
o Under "Participant Roles", choose whether to give all your newly added participants the
same role or different roles. Click the Continue button.
IMPORTANT NOTE TO INSTRUCTORS: If you are adding a Claremont student to a course site, you
must add them using the Auditor Role. Once they are added to the student database, when the Sakai
server is updated their role will be changed to Student. (If you add them as Student, when Sakai
updates it will see a “conflict” and inactivate their account in the Sakai course site.)
3.
4.
5.
On the next page, choose the roles for the participants you are adding, then click Continue:
o If you selected “Assign all participants to the same role,” click the appropriate radio
button
o If you selected “Assign each participant a role individually,” use the drop-down list next to
each name to select the appropriate role.
On the next page, you have the option to automatically send email to the new participants,
notifying them of the site's availability. (This is NOT the same as the email that Sakai sends to
guests with their password.) Select the appropriate radio button, and then click Continue.
Confirm that the information for the participant(s) you're adding is correct, and then click Finish.
Editing/Removing participants
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
In your site’s menu bar, click Site Info.
Under the Name heading, you can change a participant's role using the drop-down list under "Role".
Under "Status", use the drop-down list to change a participant's status; choose Active or
Inactive.
To remove a participant, check the box next to the participant’s name in the Remove column.
Click Update Participants for the changes to take effect.
Page Order
You can change the alphabetical order of the tools as they appear in your site’s toolbar and even rename
them by using the Page Order Tool.
1. In your site's menu bar, click Site Info > then click Page Order.
2. To reorder the tools simply drag and drop the tools into the order you want.
3. To rename a tool click the Edit icon next to the tool you want to rename.
4. When you’re done be sure to click the Save button.
For additional information, please refer to the online Help
feature in the Sakai tool.
Scripps College May 2014
">