iTunes U Tutorials for Developers
What is iTunes U?
"iTunes U" is a free, hosted service for colleges and universities that provides easy access to their educational content, including lectures and interviews, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Based on the same easy-to-use technology of the iTunes Store, iTunes U also offers typical Apple simplicity and portability. Through iTunes U, students can download content to their Macs or PCs, regardless of their location. They can listen to and view that content on their Mac or PC, or transfer it to iPod for listening or viewing on the go. Instructors can easily post and change content on their own without impacting the IT department. And, of course, students can upload their own content to share with professors or with the class." - Apple® 2007
Getting Started
Logging In and Finding Your Course
- Download and Install iTunes on your computer if you haven't done so already. (http://www.apple.com/iTunes)
- Using Safari (Mac) or Internet Explorer (Windows) navigate to https://www.wiu.edu/itunesu
- Click on the login button. It is labeled (Click here to login to WIU's iTunes site.)
- You will be prompted to enter your ecom username and password to log in. If you do not know your ecom username and password you will need to contact the UCSS help desk at (309)298-2704.
- iTunes will automatically open to the Western Illinois University iTunesU Entry page.
Finding Your Course
- Notice that there are three main areas within the iTunes U page. They include: Courses, Explore Western, and Professional Development.
- Select the area you want to explore by clicking on the links provided.
- For example, if you want to enter the Course area, click on Courses.
- Once the course area opens, locate your course and click on the corresponding link to enter.
- Dependent upon how your instructor designs his or her course area, you will find a series of tabs including media rich course material.
- Click on a tab to view its contents.
- Click the Get button next to the items you would like to download to your computer or synchronize to your mobile device.
Uploading Your Podcasts (Coming Soon!)
- Read all documentation on Creating Content for iPod + iTunes, Recommended Audio/Video formats for upload, Metadata importance, Course Artwork, Accessiblity, and Copyright Overview (It is very important that you pay close attention to guidelines for media formats and compression as the university is limited to 500GB of storage.)
- Create your podcasts. Refer to the tutorials listed on the left-hand side of this page for assistance. It is your responsibility to have any participants that will be recorded, videotaped, or photographed fill sign and date Western Illinois University's Model Release form. You must have a record of this before publishing your podcasts.
- Upload Content (Coming Soon!)
- Organize Content (Coming Soon!)
- Distribution of Content (Coming Soon!)
- Modifying Content (Coming Soon!)
- Removing Content (Coming Soon!)
Logging Out
- When you are finished, always remember to click the Logout link in the upper right-hand corner of your screen to log out of your iTunes account.
- Close your browser window.
Online Tutorials and Support Documentation
iTunes U at a Glance
http://www.apple.com/education/products/ipod/itunes_u.html
Apple's® iTunes U Support Website
http://www.apple.com/support/itunes_u/
iTunes U User Guide
http://images.apple.com/support/itunes_u/docs/iTunes_U_User_Guide.pdf
Apple's® Content Scenarios
http://images.apple.com/support/itunes_u/docs/iTunes_U_Scenarios.pdf (This will open as a .pdf document.)
Did you find what you are looking for? If you still have a question about iTunes please take a look at our Troubleshooting page or call the Interactive Multimedia Lab for training assistance. (309) 298-3076.