Students with Issues Accessing Zoom Through Courses

You may have issues accessing Zoom through Courses, and receive an error page (shown below). If this is the case, follow the instructions on this page to fix the problem.

1. Clear Your Browser Cache

First, you will need to clear browsing data and history. See this post for instructions.

2. Update Chrome

Ensure that your Chrome browser has been updated so that it can run the necessary programs. See this page for instructions.

3. Activate Zoom

Next, activate your Zoom account by following these instructions.

4. Reboot Your Computer

After following steps 1-3, reboot your computer to refresh all pages and save your work.

5. Try Courses Again

Now, go ahead and try accessing Zoom from the Courses page again. If you still have issues accessing, please contact the IS desk using the information below.

IF YOU NEED ANY TECHNOLOGY ASSISTANCE, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO REACH OUT TO INFORMATION SERVICES AT (310) 506-7425 OR SUPPORT@LAW.PEPPERDINE.EDU. GOOD LUCK!

How To: Create an RTF File

An RTF file, which stands for Rich Text Format file, is a word processing document file. At the end of a RTF file, you will see the extension “.rtf.” Note that the ideal way to convert documents into RTF is through Microsoft Word, so it is recommended that your text is in that form originally.

When uploading questions to Examsoft, you will need to first convert your files into RTF form. To do so, please follow the instructions for converting from Word and Google Docs below.

Microsoft Word

  1. Open Microsoft Word and click File.

2. Then click Save As.

3. Then, in the File Format drop-down menu, select Rich Text Format (.rtf)

Google Docs

For Google Docs, navigate to the File icon, and then click on Download. Then click the Rich Text Format (.rtf) option.

Safari and Courses Zoom Pro

You may receive the message shown in the screenshot below in Safari. To resolve this issue so that you will not receive this message, and will not be re-directed to Chrome, please follow the steps below.

  1. Navigate to Safari and click the Safari tab in the top left of your screen. Click Preferences.

2. Click the “Privacy” tab, and then make sure the following options are unchecked. 

IF YOU NEED ANY TECHNOLOGY ASSISTANCE, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO REACH OUT TO INFORMATION SERVICES AT (310) 506-7425 OR SUPPORT@LAW.PEPPERDINE.EDU. GOOD LUCK!

Classroom Tech: Audio and Visual Settings in Zoom

If you are teaching a class in person, and will have a zoom screen as well for online students, there are certain audio and visual settings you will need to select. Please see the options below.

Audio

For the microphone, you will need to select the Echo Cancelling Speakerphone (Core-Mendenhall). For speakers, you should select Crestron (Intel(R) Display Audio.

Visual

As you can see in this screenshot, there are a few options for selecting a camera.

The Clearview HD-USB shows a screen of the professor, as shown in the screenshot above.

The Mini USB shows a view of the students, as shown in the screenshot above.

Finally, the Video (Pro Capture) setting is not in use. If selected, you will be presented with a “No signal” screen.

For a more in-depth review of the audio and visual information, please see the video below.

IF YOU NEED ANY TECHNOLOGY ASSISTANCE, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO REACH OUT TO INFORMATION SERVICES AT (310) 506-7425 OR SUPPORT@LAW.PEPPERDINE.EDU. GOOD LUCK!

Upload Exam File

  1. Begin by taking clear pictures of your exam pages with your phone. Ensure that each page has your exam ID written on it as well as the page number (e.g. Page 1 of 5). The pictures should not cut off any corners of the pages, or obscure what is written in any way. See examples below.

2. Send your photos to your computer. Two easy ways to do this are through airdrop, if your computer is compatible, or email.

3. Navigate to the “Accounting and Finance Final Exam Upload” google form. For the third question, choose “add file” and then “select file from your device.”

4. Select your file from your computer. Only choose one of your pages per submission; you will need to fill out a new google form for each page.

5. Select “open” and your file should appear as attached. Submit the document and repeat for other pages.

IF YOU NEED ANY TECHNOLOGY ASSISTANCE, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO REACH OUT TO INFORMATION SERVICES AT (310) 506-7425 OR SUPPORT@LAW.PEPPERDINE.EDU. GOOD LUCK!

Microphones Best Practices

Classroom Microphones

Two microphones are installed in each classroom, a lapel, and a handheld microphone. These microphones are used to share your audio in the classroom and over Zoom. 

Best Practices for Microphones

Make sure the microphone is pointing towards your mouth. 

Speak loudly and clearly. Speak as if you’re talking with someone in the last row of seats. 

Return the microphones to the charging station when not in use. 

Do not drop the mic. 

Lapel Microphones

Lapel microphones have a bodypack and a clip-on microphone. The bodypack can be clipped onto a belt or placed in a pocket. The clip-on microphone should be placed around the top third of your chest. The microphone clip rotates, so rotate it so the microphone is pointing towards your mouth. The power switch is on the top of the bodypack. 

Lapel Microphone Best Practices:

Do not wear a necklace that rubs against the microphone. 

Do not wear low-cut shirts. The microphone may not be close enough for clear audio. 

Make sure the microphone is pointing towards your mouth. 

Speak loudly and clearly. Speak as if you’re talking with someone in the last row of seats. 

Return the microphone to the charging station when not in use. 

Handheld Microphones

Handheld microphones have the microphone at one end and the transmitter at the other end. The power switch is on the side of the microphone. Hold the microphone by the body and point the microphone end towards your mouth. 

  • You can not be heard if you’re using the wrong end of the microphone 
  • You can not be heard if you’re using the microphone as a pointer. 
  • Your voice will be muffled if you hold the microphone end. 
  • The connection may drop if you hold the transmitter end. 
  • Do not drop the mic. Mic drops always cool but dropping it will break it. 

Charging Station

Please return the microphones to the charging station when you’re done with class. This assures that the microphones are fully charged and do not go missing. 

IF YOU NEED ANY TECHNOLOGY ASSISTANCE, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO REACH OUT TO INFORMATION SERVICES AT (310) 506-7425 OR SUPPORT@LAW.PEPPERDINE.EDU. GOOD LUCK!

Zoom: A Guide for Students

Pepperdine University has a university-wide site license for the popular video conferencing product, Zoom, for all students, faculty and staff at Pepperdine. This site is great for joining or hosting meetings, study groups, workspaces and webinars–whether it be for attending a remote class lecture or creating a personal audio/video chat.

Usage and Benefits

As opposed to FaceTime’s often unreliable quality of connection when conversing with multiple users, Zoom’s webinar feature allows you to host large online events with video, audio and screen sharing for up to 100 participants and 10,000 viewers (note that the webinar feature is dependent upon special access to a webinar license – make sure to coordinate your event through the Caruso Law Events Team). Or just use the regular Zoom meeting functionality for remote club meetings or group project sessions! You may even record and save a meeting (with a complete transcript) on your local device or to the Cloud.

Note that Zoom is more than just a competitor to other video conferencing products like FaceTime and Skype. It also integrates seamlessly into your Google Calendar if you use Google Chrome for your browser. It also can be used as a telephone alternative and/or a conference phone system, so there is no need to use the video component if you don’t need or want that feature.

Downloads and Installation

Students automatically have a Pepperdine University account under their user name and password via Central Authentication Service (CAS). To log-in and use the online web browser version, simply go to zoom.pepperdine.edu and use the SSO (single sign-on) option. If you are prompted for a “domain” enter Pepperdine.

You may also install the Zoom browser extension on to your personal computer. Once the Zoom extension for the Chrome Browser is installed, you can schedule a Zoom meeting right from your Google Calendar! This feature automatically fills in the Zoom meeting link and other information including optional phone numbers for folks to dial in from a regular phone to participate in your meeting.

For tips on how to maximize your remote internet experience, please click here.

For training, support information, and links related to Zoom at Pepperdine please click here: https://community.pepperdine.edu/it/tools/zoom/training.htm.

Creating Branded Surveys in Qualtrics

Qualtrics is an amazing survey tool that is available to all faculty and staff at Pepperdine University. This article will cover how to make a blank survey with Caruso School of Law branding.

To access Qualtrics, please go to https://community.pepperdine.edu/it/tools/qualtrics/ and select the link to the Qualtrics website. You may need to scroll down on this page to access the link. 

This will send you to the Pepperdine Single Sign-On page. Please enter your Pepperdine Credentials to proceed. 

This will take you to your Qualtrics homepage. Select ‘Create new project’ in the upper right corner of the screen.

Select the Survey button under choose your own, this is in red in the picture. There are amazing templates for surveys. This article will cover blank surveys only. 

Name the survey something that you will remember, such as Caruso SOL Branding. Select Blank Project under the name, then select Get Started in the upper right-hand corner. 

This is the survey creating a page where you can create questions and edit the survey. The Preview button on the upper right-hand corner will show you what the published survey will look like. 

The preview opens in a new tab and shows both the desktop and mobile versions of the survey. As you can see, the default branding for blank surveys the Graziadio Business School. 

Go back to the survey edit tab and select the Look & Feel button in the upper left corner.

This brings you to a page where you can edit how the survey looks and how the questions flow. 

Select Theme in the upper left-hand corner to see the different themes for each school. Select Caruso School of Law and then save.

You can confirm you have the correct by checking the Preview again.

Now the Caruso School of Law branding is in this blank survey. 

You may want to create a branding folder to save this blank survey. To do so, go to your Qualtircs homepage and select Add new folder in the upper left-hand corner.

Name the folder.

Then drag and drop the survey into the folder.

Now, you can select  From a Copy to create a branded, blank survey.

You will then see a list of your folders and can select the branded survey that you want to use.

Highlighting Feature in Examplify

For essay questions in exams through Examplify, you may have the option to highlight your text. Please see the guide below for how to access and use this feature.

  1. Open your exam and locate an essay question. Next to the Flag Question button at the top of the page, you should see a highlighter icon. (If this icon is not present, you do not have the option to highlight your text). Click on the icon.

2. Next, select the color of highlight you would like to use.

3. Finally, click on the selection of text you wish to highlight.

IF YOU NEED ANY TECHNOLOGY ASSISTANCE, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO REACH OUT TO INFORMATION SERVICES AT (310) 506-7425 OR SUPPORT@LAW.PEPPERDINE.EDU. GOOD LUCK!

Your Zoom Identity Matters

Why your Zoom identity matters. It impacts your course participation and attendance. If your professor is relying on your Zoom screen name to assign you participation points, then you’ll want to make sure your name is accurate in the participant list. If you are attending a Zoom class session that takes attendance via Zoom chat and your professor has asked you to type “here” in the chat to comply with the academic attendance policy, and your name is not showing up. You need to log into Pepperdine Zoom SSO before starting your course Zoom session.

Here are the steps to ensure your name is showing up in Zoom.

Step 1. Go to Pepperdine Zoom website at zoom.pepperdine.edu

Step 2. Log in with your Pepperdine network account at the CAS/SSO log in page.

Step 3. Once you get to the next page you can go to Courses to join your class Zoom Pro session.