TABLE OF CONTENTS
- About Course/Organization Size Limits
- Managing Media
- Managing Course/Organization Files
- Tips for Reducing File Size
About Course/Organization Size Limits
By default myLesley courses have a 5 GB size limit and organizatiions have a 50 MB size limit. Once you have reached the maximum size limit you will no longer be able to upload or attach files. This will not affect your students' or community members' ability to post content.
This article will walk you through best practices for managing your course/organization files and provide some tips for reducing your file's size before uploading to myLesley.
Managing Media
Media files tend to have a large file size and can quickly cause you to hit your course/organization size quota. As a best practice, you should not upload media (video or audio) files directly into myLesley, as this can cause a multitude of issues including:
- Compatibility: Whichever format you use for your media is the format that your audience will have to view, regardless of their device or browser. This can cause compatibility and playback issues.
- Accessibility: Media uploaded directly into myLesley will not be captioned, leading to issues with accessibility.
- File Size: Uploading large files into your course/organization requires users to then download large files, which may be a strain on their system. Additionally, media files tend to be very large will contribute to the overall size of your course.
- Privacy and Security: Media files can be downloaded and shared, leading to potential security and privacy concerns.
Media You Created
If you have created media content, or will be creating your media content, we recommend uploading your content to myLesley by using Kaltura Media. Kaltura provides a lot of advantages, both to you and your users, including:
- Compatibility: Kaltura will accept a large amount of media types and automatically convert it to versions your users can view, regardless of their device.
- Accessibility: Kaltura will automatically caption your media content and provide a transcript. Accurate captioning of audio and video content ensures that people who are Deaf and hard of hearing can understand your content. Additionally, captions and transcripts are very useful to non-native English speakers, viewers watching in a sound-sensitive environment such as a library, can help viewers with learning disabilities or attention deficits maintain concentration, and can help all learners improve comprehension.
- File Size: Users do not have to download content. Instead, the media is hosted on Kaltura's servers and streams through myLesley. Additionally, uploading your media to Kaltura does not impact your overall course size.
- Privacy and Security: Kaltura media cannot be downloaded by anyone who is not the owner, nor can they be shared on other websites.
You may use Kaltura to upload media you have already created or record a new video from your webcam or by recording your screen. Instructions for using Kaltura may be found here:
- Upload and post a video in myLesley via Kaltura Media
- Uploading to Kaltura from a Mobile Device
- Use Kaltura Capture to record any combination of your screen, camera, and audio
- Kaltura Media: Captioning Video Content
Media created by others
If you are not the creator of the media or do not have permissions from the publisher, you cannot upload the media into your course/organization as this may be a violation of copyright. This includes copies of DVDs and CDs that you have purchased. If the content exists on the web (ex YouTube, PBS, the library media databases), you may either link to it or embed it in your course.
Ultra Course/Organization View:
Original Course/Organization View:
Narrated PowerPoints
If you created a narrated PowerPoint, save your file as a video and upload it to Kaltura. This will ensure that your video is easily viewable by your users, whether or not they have PowerPoint installed on their devices.
Zoom Recordings
The best way to share your Zoom recording depends on how you recorded your meeting and how you want/need to share these recordings. For more information on recording your Zoom meetings see Zoom: Getting Started with Recording.
Link to Cloud Recordings
If you recorded your Zoom meeting in the cloud, simply post a link to the recording. Users can then watch the recording online at their convenience. Please note that only the owner of the Zoom account can download recordings.
- Zoom: Managing and Sharing Cloud Recordings
- Blackboard Ultra Course View: Add Links
- Blackboard Original Course View: Add a Hyperlink
Upload Local Recording to myLesley Via Kaltura Media
If you recorded your Zoom meeting locally (to your computer), upload the recording to myLesley via Kaltura Media so that your users can watch the recording from within myLesley. Please note that only the owner of the video can download content from their Kaltura Media.
Upload Local Recording to OneDrive
If you record your Zoom meeting locally you can upload your video to OneDrive and share it from there. Users can view the video online in OneDrive and, depending on the settings you choose, they will be able to download the recordings.
- Access OneDrive: http://lesley.edu/office365
- Share OneDrive Files and Folders
- Blackboard Ultra Course View: Add Links
- Blackboard Original Course View: Add a Hyperlink
Managing Course/Organization Files
All files (documents, PDFs, images, etc.) that you upload into myLesley are stored in your Course or Organization's Content Collection and contribute to the overall size of your course. As a best practice, you should link to content you that you find online (including the library databases, journals, etc.), re-use files, overwrite files rather than upload another version of your file, and delete unnecessary our outdated files.
Link to Online Resources and Library Resources
As a best practice, you should link to content that you find online (including journal articles and library resources). This helps to drive additional traffic to the site and show that the content is being used. Additionally, downloading files, journal articles, and library resources and then uploading them to your course/organization may be a violation of copyright.
If you are linking to electronic materials from the Lesley Library, click on the title of the resource in your search results to view the full record. Then click the Permalink button and copy that link that pops up. Please note that links copied from the URL bar at the top of your browser will not work for others even if they work for you.
Reuse Files
Are you using the same file or image multiple times in your course/organization? Instead of uploading the same file multiple times (and creating multiple copies in the Content Collection), upload it once then link to it.
Ultra Course/Organization View
You can upload a file from your Content Collection into your Course/Organization Content area, into a Learning Module or Folder, or into an Ultra Document.
From your Course/Organization Content area or from within a Learning Module or Folder, click on the + button and select Content Collection.
Or, from within an Ultra Document, click the Insert Content (+) button and then select Content Collection.
This will bring you to your Content Collection. You may browse your files or use the Search feature to find your desired file. Select your file and click Submit.
Your file will be added to your desired location.
Original Course/Organization View
When you click the Add Attachment or Insert/Edit Image button you will see multiple options for adding the file. Select Browse Course/Organization.
This will bring you to your Content Collection. Select your file and click Submit.
This will create a new link to your file.
Replace/Overwrite Files
Do you need to make changes to your file? Instead of re-uploading your file (and creating duplicate copies in the Content Collection), replace or overwrite your file. This will replace the file in your content area as well as in the Content Collection.
Ultra Course/Organization View
If your file is located in your Course/Organization Content area or within a Learning Module or Folder, click the More Options (...) button next to the file. This will open a menu. Select Edit.
In the File section, click Replace.
You will then be prompted to upload the new file. This file will replace your existing file both within your myLelsey content and in your Content Collection.
Original Course/Organization View
Locate your file and click the chevron next to your file.
This will open a menu. Select Overwrite File.
You will then be prompted to upload the new file. This file will replace your existing file both within your myLelsey content and in your Content Collection.
Delete Files
Delete outdated files to reduce the overall file size in your course/organization. You may delete individual files or bulk delete content from the Content Collection.
Ultra Course/Organization View
Deleting files from your course/organization will also remove the file from your Content Collection.
To delete files from your Course/Organization Content area or from within a Learning Module or Folder, click the More Options (...) button next to the file. This will open a menu. Select Delete.
To delete a file attachment from an Ultra Document, Discussion, Assignment, Test, Journal, etc., click Edit to edit your item. Then select the file and click the Delete button.
You may also bulk delete unused files in your Ultra course/organization. From the Course/Organization Content page, click on the More Options (...) button at the top of the page to open a menu. Select Unused Files.
This will bring up a list of unused files in your course/organization. Select the files you wish to delete and click Delete Files.
Original Course/Organization View
Deleting a file from within your course/organization will NOT delete it from your Content Collection. In order to remove old or duplicate files from your Original Course/Organization, you will need to delete them from your Content Collection.
Go to your course menu, scroll down to the Control Panel, select Content Collection, and select your course/organization.
This will open your Content Collection. Here you may view all of the files in your course/organization, delete files, organize your content into folders, download files, and more.
For more information on using the Content Collection in Original Course View, refer to the Organize and Manage the Content Collection support article.
Tips for Reducing File Size
As a best practice, you should minimize your file size prior to uploading to myLesley. This will help keep your course/organization size low from the start. Reducing your file size is also helpful to your users, as downloading large files can be time consuming and take up a lot of space on their hard drive.
Documents (Microsoft Word)
On their own, Word documents are typically not large files. However, once you start adding images the file size increases dramatically. Before uploading your document into myLesley, reduce your file size by compressing your images:
PDFs
PDFs can be optimized to reduce file size by compressing images and flattening objects. If you have a large PDF, optimize it before uploading it into myLesley:
Presentations (PowerPoint)
Does your PowerPoint have a lot of images or media files? These may be contributing to your overall file size. Before uploading your presentation into myLesley, reduce your file size by compressing your images and media files:
If you created a narrated PowerPoint, save your file as a video and upload it to Kaltura. This will ensure that your video is easily viewable by your users, whether or not they have PowerPoint installed on their devices.
Images
If you uploaded your image from a camera or mobile device, resize your image and reduce its file size before you upload it to myLesley. The tool you use may vary based on your device and available apps/software.
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