This guide will demonstrate how to download Class Collaborate Ultra recording files and how to upload those files into your Echo360 library. A video demonstration is also provided at the end of this guide.
Collaborate recordings are only stored for 1 year and only exist in the course where they originated. If you wish to retain or reuse these recordings, follow these instructions to upload them to Echo360 for permanent cloud storage and easy access to share in other Blackboard courses.
Access the Course Collaborate Page
Recordings can be found on the course Collaborate page. Therefore, navigate to this page by clicking the link to the Collaborate page that you created.
Open the Collaborate Page Menu
Click the menu button in the upper left corner.
Click the Recordings Link
When the menu expands, click the Recordings link.
Search for Recordings
By default, only recent recordings appear on the Recordings page. To search for recordings that are not recent, (1) click on Filter by: Show Recent Recordings menu and select (2) Recordings in a Range
Searching for Recordings in a Range
to search for recordings within a date range, click on the beginning and ending dates to select the desired beginning and ending of the desired time period to search recordings.
Accessing a Recording
You will see a list of recordings. To see additional recordings, use the page buttons at the bottom to navigate between pages. To view a recording now, click on the recording name. To view additional options, click on the Options menu for the desired recording.
Downloading your Collaborate Recording
From the menu that pops up, select Download from the menu and save the video file to your computer
Do not upload video files directly into Blackboard content areas. Like Collaborate, Blackboard courses have a finite amount of storage space and these tend to be large files. Upload the saved video file to Echo for permanent cloud storage, video editing and organizing options, and easy sharing to Blackboard.
Uploading Media to Echo360
Once you have downloaded your file, log into echo360.org with your UToledo email address and then enter your UTAD information once you are redirected to the UTAD Single Sign On page. Once you have logged in, you will see your Echo360 Library
If you don't already have an Echo360 account, you can easily create one by clicking on any Echo link inside one of your Blackboard courses. Please see the guide on accessing Echo for the first time for step-by-step instructions.
Uploading Content
On the Echo360 platform home page, click the Create button on the topand select Upload Media from the menu.
Selecting Files to Upload
To upload a file:
- Select the source to upload the file from on the left.
- If uploading from your computer, drag a file within the square or click the Select Files to Upload link. If uploading from a service, you will see a message asking you to connect to that service.
Uploading Files
- Files selected for uploading will appear here.
- Click Upload More to upload additional files.
- Click Upload to upload the selected files to your library.
Confirmation
You will see a dialog box pop up indicating that your files have been uploaded successfully. Click Close to dismiss the message, and you will find your uploaded file in your library.
Linking your Recording in Your Course Site
Once you have uploaded your content to your Echo360 library, you can then follow the steps below to link or embed your content in Blackboard.
Creating a Content Item in Blackboard
In an open content area in Blackboard,
- Click Build Content at the top of the page
- Select Item from the menu
Accessing the Echo360 Video Library Mashup Tool
- Name: Enter a name for the content item
- Add Content: Click on the plus icon in the bottom row of the toolbar to add additional content types.
You will now see a dialog box with the heading labeled Add Content. On this screen, select Echo360 Video Library from the list of options.
Searching Video Content
To search for Echo360 content under Choose From My Home
- Search: Enter search terms in the search bar.
- Filter: Click the Filter button to filter by course/section/term (see step below for details).
- Select which video from the list you wish to use.
To filter the displayed content:
- Term: Select a term to view content from a specific term.
- Course: Select a course to view content uploaded to a specific course.
- Clear All: Click this button to clear selected filters.
- Apply: Click the Apply button to apply the selected filters to the shown results.
Inserting a Video
- Select size: Use the dropdown menu to select the embedded video size.
- Start at: Click here to modify the start time for the video
- Autoplay: Select this option to automatically play the video (recommended setting is off)
- Automute: Select this option to mute the audio volume by default.
- Link: Select this option to create a link to the video instead of embedding (recommended for assignment submissions, as the embed feature does not work for assignments).
- Authenticate: Select this option to require users to log in with Echo360 in order to view the video.
- Click the Insert button to insert the video into the text editor.
Finishing Up
After selecting a video, click the Submit button to create the item.
Confirmation
The video will now be embedded in a Blackboard content item.
Want to see these steps in action? Below is a video demonstration of downloading from Collab, uploading to Echo360, a brief review of options in Echo360, and publication of an Echo360 video inside the Blackboard course using the Power of Plus in the content editor.