Student Handout-Word

EarthEd: Your Software Toolkit (Student version)

This class uses online software tools extensively, to allow the professor and teaching assistants to spend their time assisting you to understand difficult concepts instead of doing tedious homework grading. It is also intended to help you interact with each other and the professor more easily. Most importantly, it allows you to gain access to data and data display resources that are unavailable any other way.

All of the products of your work, homework grades, writing assignments, and graphics figures, are stored in a personal storage area on the class web server. This area is keyed to your name and 6 digit ID number. This way, you can access these resources using any computer, as long as you are connected to the Internet.

The software for this class is contained on the “EarthEd-Online4” CDROM. It enables you to complete all homework assignments, writing activities, and compute your current course grade. In addition, it provides access to a wide variety of resources and data that you will need for your course assignments.

The EarthEd software has been tested carefully on many PC’s and Macintosh computers. However, bugs seem to be inevitable in complex software. EarthEd automatically emails the program developer if a software bug is detected. However, if there is problem that is not caught this way, please use the Help menu bug report system to report a problem to the program developer.

Note to teachers: it is advisable to have EarthEd installed in a public access computer lab for students whose computers are corrupted or will not run it for some reason.

PC requirements: Windows 98,XP, NT, or 2000, with at least 128 Mb of memory, and a CDROM drive. The program was extensively tested on Windows 98 and WindowsXP. A CDROM drive is mandatory. Macintosh: EarthEd runs in "Classic" mode under OSX. If you have a very new Macintosh, the "Classic" software may not be installed. The DVD version of the EarthEd CD contains a folder named "System Folder". You can install classic by dragging this folder onto your hard drive icon.

Updates: Every time you log onto EarthEd-Online, it checks for updates to the software. Download these updates. They are installed automatically (after download), so you don’t need to

Your Software Toolkit page 1

Important information about how to use the EarthEd Online software is contained here. Please keep this tutorial handy, as a reference for important software features as the course progresses. Computer experts: This class has students with a wide range of computer skills. For some, these instructions will be extremely simplistic. For others, they will cover unfamiliar skills. Please share your knowledge with those who are less computer literate than you. Thanks!

do anything special. But, they add new functionality or fix important bugs, so you should keep up with the updates.

Getting Started Tutorial:

Installing EarthEd Online on your computer:1. Insert CD in the Macintosh or PC CDROM drive of your computer.2. Mac users: the CD window will open when the CD mounts. Double click on “EarthEd-Online4

Install” to begin the installation. PC users: double click on the “My Computer” icon on the screen. When the window opens, double click on the “EarthEd-Online4”disc icon. Next, find the “EarthEd-Online4 Install” icon. Double click on it to launch the installer. Follow the instructions. If your computer does not have Quicktime installed, the installer will launch and the Quicktime Installer will be launched to install Quicktime.

3. The EarthEd installer copies files to your hard drive and puts a shortcut icon on your desktop. You can then launch “EarthEd” by double clicking on the desktop “EarthEd-Online4 Launch” icon.

4. Be sure to keep up with the online updates. This will keep your software up to date and insure the latest functionality for EarthEdOnline.

5. Advice for PC users: Get a copy of Norton SystemWorks and install it on your computer. Regular use of the System and Disc clean tools can eliminate many mysterious crash problems.

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It is tempting to skim the instructions in the following tutorial. The pitfall in this is that you will miss time-saving tips and features that you will need later on. You may even miss out on learning techniques that you will need to complete your assignments. It is worth your while to read this thoroughly.

6. **Installation trouble? Virus and spyware protection programs can interfere with the installation. For the latest information, launch your web browser to: http://EarthEdOnline.org/EED_Online/Help/Index.htmWhen you log on, the system looks for your name in the class list. If your name is not recognized, ask the professor or teaching assistant for an "activation code." If you are not in the lab, email the professor your name and perm number and an activation code will be mailed back to you.


Watch this box for network status information.

2. Enter the first 6 digits of your "perm" (or 6 digit ID) number.

3. First time login: enter any 6 or more characters. After first login, enter your password.

1. Enter your first and last name. Hit the space bar or tab to advance between entry fields

4. Click the "Log On" button to continue.

Figure 1. After you launch EarthEd, you will see the login screen shown above. If you type the wrong password, you will need to click the "Clear PW" button before entering a new one.


Figure 3. Main index for EarthEd. You will be able to access the various modules from this screen.

Dropdown menu to access the various EarthEd modules.

Quick link to assignment index.

Calculate your current course grade

Change your nickname, email, and/or password

After your login information is accepted, you will see this screen. Check the information to make sure you are logged into the correct class.

The first time you log on, you will see a screen where you enter a nickname and your email address. After you enter this information, you will return to the login screen of figure 1.

Figure 2. After the system recognizes your name, ID, and password, you will get this screen. Click the "Go to Class Assignments" button to continue.

Each screen has several dropdown menus that allow you to navigate EarthEd. The "Locations" menu takes you to various EarthEd screens, and the "Data" menu takes you to the various data modules you will need to complete your assignments. Depending on the class configurations, all

of the items shown in figure 4 may not appear. Figure 5 shows the "Help" dropdown menu

options. These will open the Guide window, open your browser to current web based help information, open you browser to the class web page, or open an email window so you can send a bug report, or comment to the program developer. Feedback is always welcome.

The Online Guide


Figure 4. The "Locations" and "Data" dropdown menus take you to the screens where you access EarthEd assignments and resources.

This dropdown menu lets you navigate to various data modules for your assignments.

Figure 5. The "Help" dropdown menu brings the Guide window to the front, opens your browser at the online help page, to your course web page, or lets you send a bug report email to the program developer.

If the online Guide window is not showing, select "Guide Help" from the "Help" dropdown menu. It will provide you with detailed instructions on how to access the features of the screen that you are viewing. It is important to use this both to learn the software, and to find advanced features that you will need later.

Figure 6 shows two views of the Guide window. The one on the left is the one you will see when you first enter a particular screen. It is usually set to an introductory tutorial. Read the text, then click on the “Next” button to advance through the tutorial. Notice the flashing arrow that points to important features on the screen. Follow the instructions carefully, as each step may require a specific action that changes the screen display for the next step. If you click on the “Index” button, you will get the screen shown at the right. Click on a subject, then a topic in the field below. You should then see a display of step 1 of tutorial for the selected topic.

Assignment IndexReferring to figure 3, click on the "My Assignments" button to get the a screen that summarizes information about each of the class assignments.


The online Guide is the best tool for mastering EarthEd software. It provides step by step tutorials that show you important features and operations. Click on the Guide window, or use the "Help" dropdown menu to display the Guide.

Title bar: Click here to bring the Guide window to the front. Click on the EarthEd title bar to send it to the back.

Figure 6. Guide Window: The Guide is your main tool for mastering the EarthEd software. The Guide window opens up behind the main screen, at the upper left, every time you enter a new EarthEd module. To view it, click anywhere on the Guide and it should appear in from of the main screen. It is set to help you use the module you are currently viewing. Use it to learn how to access the features of each module. This will take a bit of attention, but will be worth your time in the long run.

Entering your Homework answers:Click on a homework line in the assignments index then click on "Do Selected Assignment". This will take you to the entry screen for the assignment. You should get a screen similar to that shown in figure 8. This screen will vary, depending on whether the problem requires a numeric answer, multiple choice, etc.

Figure 8. Numeric entry screen. To enter an answer, click on "Enter Answer." An answer entry box will appear. You cannot enter answers directly into the boxes labeled "Your Answer." Use the Guide to help you learn how to do the assignment.


Click on the "Hand in Assignment" button to score your entries. Careful, you start losing points after too many tries.

Click on a date to display the corresponding week's assignments.

Information about the selected assignment is displayed in these text boxes.

Click here to go to the selected assignment.

Click on a line in any of the assignment list fields to select an assignment.

Figure 7. Assignment index screen. You can get the due date, points, etc for any of the Oceanography assignments here. You click dates on the calendar to display assignments for the week of the date. Click on future dates to see what assignments are going to come due during subsequent weeks.

When you click the "Enter Answer button, you can enter your answer.

The question

Click here to open the Guide window.

Select question

Dropdown menu selects a week of the course.

To enter an answer, click on the "Enter Answer" button. This screen requires a number, and exponent, and correct units to be entered. The list of recognized units is contained in the dropdown menu labeled "Units". You must use one of the units from this list, or the program will not recognize your answer.

Figure 9. Homework entry screen for a multiple choice question.

After grading the problems by clicking on the "Hand In Assignment" button, use the “Results” dropdown menu to determine which ones are correct. Each problem has a line indicating which portions of the problem are correct ("T") or incorrect ("F"). For numeric entry problems, the first item is for the numeric answer, the second is for the units, and the third is for the significant figures. Choose a line from the "Results" dropdown menu and the corresponding problem will appear. Your previous answer is automatically entered for you. Your updated answers are saved when you click the " Hand In Assignment" button, so you can improve your score without re-entering all of your answers.

Writing All of your writing assignments will be done with the writing tool. This tool will make it much easier for you to create your writing assignments without the hassle of getting printouts, formatting, figuring out what to do with figures, etc. Figures are linked from your personal graphics library, or the class graphics library. You can edit, notate, or create your own figures using a simple built-in image editor. Your paper is “handed in” at the click of a button and you can hand in as many updates as you want, until the paper is due. After the due date, depending on the assignment, you may begin the "Peer Review" process or a TA who grades your paper will make comments and return it to you with another click. Hopefully you will carefully review the grades and comments to improve your next paper.

When you select a writing assignment, you will get the the screen shown in figure 10. The screen will look slightly different, depending on whether the assignment is a peer review assignment, or whether it will be graded by the teacher or TA.


Choices. Click on the correspond-ing line to make a choice.

Problem text

Your choice appears here.

List of your previous scores for this assignment.

Be sure to use the Guide to learn about the writing assignment index screen.

Grading and Calibrated Peer Review of Writing AssignmentsOne of the most interesting innovations in teaching is the idea of "Calibrated Peer Review." It's based on the idea that if students can successfully critically review the writing of others, they have learned even more about the material they are writing about, and will improve their own writing in the process. Practicing scientists review others' work regularly, prior to publication, and this helps keep science rigorous and honest. This method was first implemented by UCLA Biochemists. It has been used successfully by hundreds of teachers.

Here are the steps in the process:1. Carefully read the instructions for the writing assignment.2. Write your paper in the Writer.3. Hand in your paper by clicking on the "Hand in" button, before the due time.4. One day after the due time for the paper, begin doing the "Calibration Reviews". These

are papers prepared by the instructor and graded according to a grade "Rubric", which is basically a score sheet. The goal is for you to attempt to get as close to the instructor's grade as possible.

5. After you have graded 3 calibration reviews, you will begin grading your peers' papers. The EarthEd system keeps track of where you are in the process, so you don't have to worry about keeping track. You will not be able to determine whose paper you are reviewing unless the author puts his/her name in the paper text. Please don't put your name in the text, so anonymity is be preserved.

6. After you have graded 3 peers' papers, you then grade your own paper.

You will be able to get a status report on your grades after you complete the assignment. You will receive two grades. The first grade is your grade for the quality of your writing. The second grade is for the quality of your reviews. Your writing grade is based on the grade given to you by your 3 peer reviewers. These grades are weighted so that a peer that gets closer to the "correct"


Figure 10. Writing assignment index and resources screen. From this screen, you can edit/create your paper, do the calibration and peer reviews, and review your own paper. Use the Guide to identify important functions.

Choose to edit your own paperu

Instructions for the assignment.

Assignment reading and resources. To view, click a line, then click "View Resource"

Peer review status

Do next step in peer review process

If example papers are available, click on a line, then click the "View Example" button

answers for the calibration papers will have a greater effect on your grade than one who does poorly on the calibration papers.

The grade for your reviews depends on how close you come to the "correct" answers for the 3 calibration papers, how close your assigned peer grades come to the grade they actually received, and how close your grade for your own paper comes to the actual grade you received.

If you feel that the peer grade you received in not accurate, you may ask the TA or professor to review the assigned grades. Grades that have a large difference between the grade you give yourself and the peer grades are usually graded by the TA or professor anyway.

The Writer Entry ScreenThe writer screen organizes your paper for you, according to the headings that have been specified in the writing assignment. Figure 11 shows a screenshot. The various edit and control buttons are shown or hidden, depending on what you are doing. For example, if you are reviewing someone's paper, you will not need to hand it in, save it to your network storage area, or link graphics.

The writing tool is easy to use. Be sure to move the cursor over each of the buttons so, after a short delay, the button label will appear to remind you of the function. the Guide can help you.


Figure 11. Writer entry screen. The control buttons give you access to the various writer operations. Be sure to save your writing to the network storage before quitting, or your work could be lost. But, not to worry, your work is saved to the hard drive of the computer you are using every 5 minutes. If your computer crashes, restart EarthEd, go to this screen, click the "Disaster Recovery" icon, and select the version of the paper you want. If your computer crashes often, your system or hard drive is probably corrupted.

Select or scroll heading. Use the dropdown menu or click the scroll arrows to step through headings

Expand text size in entry field

Instructions for selected heading

Enter your writing here. Click the "Edit" button first. To test your links to figures, you need to click "Read". Use the Guide to learn how to use the Writer most effectively.

Editing Your Graphics (Please pay special attention to this section. You will need these skills when writing your papers)The effective use of graphic images requires careful thought. You should plan on editing your graphics to point out important features. It is good form to be economical with the number of graphics you use in a presentation. This means that you may want to combine graphic images. The graphics tool allows you to perform these operations.

The graphics editor is built into the Writer. To open the panel, just click on the "Edit Fig" tab on the right side of the screen (see figure 11). The editor is best learned using the Guide tutorials.

The screen shown in Figure 12 was created by loading multiple images into the graphics editor and sizing and positioning them on the screen. You can load up to four graphic images on the screen. Resize them by moving the mouse over the lower right hand corner of the image. When it turns to a cross, drag the mouse and the image will resize. Just drag the image to position it on the screen. Note that the first images you load appear beneath those loaded later. If an image has a white region and you can't find the corner, load a colored image first and position it under the lower right corner of an image that was loaded later, to find the corner. Then resize the image.

Figure 12. Graphics edit panel. This panel allows you to compose, edit, and upload graphics to the class server. You will see this panel in several tool screens (Writer and Image Manager) and it will work pretty much identical. This is a very basic graphics editor intended only for creating simple drawings and annotation figures.

Basic Writing: Tutorial #1:At the assignment index, select "First Writing Assignment" from the list and Go to the Writing screen.


Be careful, because if you save a flawed paper, it will over-write the previous version. So, use the storage and backup capability wisely. Before clicking the “Backup” button, carefully step through each heading, checking the text for accuracy. If this happens, don't despair! Use the "disaster recovery" feature to recover versions from your last hour's work.

Drag image at lower right corner to resize.

Upload image to your personal storage on class server.

Click on a drawing tool to activate it.

Move the mouse over a button and wait a bit and a “ToolTip” help field will pop up.

1. Do the "Overview" tutorial using the online Guide. 2. Click the "Index" and do the other tutorials. If time is short, note the subjects of the

tutorials so that you can remember to use this as a resource to figure out how to use the writer most effectively when you need it for your future assignments.

3. Load the "FirstWriting" assignment. The instructions will appear for each heading. There will be two headings. Follow the instructions. It's ok to be brief.

4. When you are completed, be sure to save your writing to your personal storage area. 5. After you have saved your writing, click on the "Disaster Recovery" button. If you have

spent more than 5 minutes on this assignment, you should see at least one version of your writing that has been automatically saved. In case of computer crash or mistake, you can recover any of the previous versions. Load a previous version to see how this works.

Image Editing and Annotation: Tutorial #2:Begin this activity at the writer screen. Open the first writing assignment, read the instructions, then click the "Edit My Paper" button.Step 1: Click on the "Guide" title bar to activate it. Click on the "Index" button on the online Guide window (upper right of the window). Select the "Using Graphics" line of the "Subjects" field, as shown in the figure to the left. Do each of the tutorials listed in the "Topics" field, for using the graphics editor. Careful attention to

these steps will pay off later.

Step 2: Make a figure like the one shown in the next image (figure 13). Load the images for this from the "Lib Figures" popup menu, under the "Speed_Wr" item. You should be able to do the necessary operations after completing the online Guide tutorial of step 1.

Step 3: Click on the "flatten image" button (button label will appear when you hold the mouse over a button). The "flatten image" button opens the image edit panel. It also prevents you from further changes in the position or size of the individual images you loaded, so be sure they are arranged the way you want. Now draw an arrow to any location on the image, and create a text box and label it: "My Image Location".

Step 4: Now save the image to your personal graphics library. By now, you've done the tutorial so you should know how to do this. The button has a floppy disc icon on it.

Capturing Images:Your images are all stored in your personal graphics library on the class server. This means that you can access and display your images from any computer that is connected to the web, and that page 16 Your Software Toolkit

QuickTime™ and aTIFF (LZW) decompressor

are needed to see this picture.

Figure 13. Image editor screen, for activity #1.

has EarthEd installed. To manage your online graphics library, you will need to select the “Image Manager” from the "Locations" dropdown menu. The instructions are very self-explanatory, so be sure to read the screen text.

Your grade in this course, your satisfaction, and your efficiency doing the writing assignments will be increased immeasurably if you become proficient in getting images into your image library, annotating them, and linking images to your writing. The Image Manager makes the process of capturing and uploading images to your graphics library a quick and simple process. But, if you have questions, don't hesitate to ask a friend, a teaching assistant, or the Professor.

You can capture any image that you can get displayed on your computer screen. In an Internet browser, typically you click the right mouse button (PC or Mac if you have a right mouse button) or hold down the control key and hold down the mouse button (Macintosh) (until a popup menu appears) and Select the "Copy" or "Copy Image to Clipboard" or "Copy Image" choice. The choice will depend on which browser you use. Once the image is copied to the clipboard, you can use the Image Manager module in EarthEd to upload it to your personal graphics library. Some images displayed in a web browser cannot be captured this way, but all is not lost if it doesn’t work. Read on.

Figure 14 shows the Image Manger screen when an image save is initiated from within the image editor in the Write screen. Clicking on the "Upload" button on the image edit panel (see figure 12) automatically launches the image manager and sets you up to save the edited image. The image that will be saved is shown in Image Manager window. You can name the image whatever


Save the displayed image.

Access additional image library management functions.

Close the Image Manager window.

List of images in your personal online graphics library.

Type here to set the image file save name.

Figure 14: This shows the Image Manager screen if you choose “Upload Images to Lib” from the image edit panel in the writer (see Fig. 12). Click the button and the image that is shown in the edit panel will be loaded into the Image Manager and you can click the "Save" button to initiate the save process.

you want, but if it is named the same as an existing image, the suffix "_R1" is added to the name, to protect you from over-writing the original image.

You may choose to upload an image directly by accessing the Image Manager from the Locations dropdown menu. You will see a screen similar to that of figure 14, except that you will be able to display and/or delete any of the images in your image library. Click on the "Store Images" tab at the upper right of the window and you will see a screen similar to that of figure 15. The "Choose Local Loc" dropdown menu gives you a choice of several places where your image might be. If the image is already on the clipboard (the easiest way to access an image for upload), choose the "my Clipboard' option. You can select any image file on your hard drive with the "Browse" option.

If you click the "Manage Your Lib" tab, you see a list of all of the images in your library. You can view images and delete them if they are not linked to a writing assignment.

Capturing arbitrary images (PC Users): Some images that are displayed in a web browser cannot be copied to the clipboard. But, most PC's have a "Print Screen" or "Prt Scr" key. This copies your entire screen to the clipboard. You need to run the ImageManager module of EarthEd-Online click on the "Store Images" tab, and select "my Clipboard" from the "Choose Local Loc" dropdown menu. The image will be displayed at a reduced size. You can magnify the image using the scroll bar at the right side of the image display and select the part of the image


Dropdown menu that selects a folder that contains your desktop computer images.

List of images in the selected folder. Click on a line to view and select the image.

These tabs select different functions for the Image Manager. A blue color indicates the active function.

For images that are larger than the display area, you can drag this to change its size. Drag the image itself to change its location in the display area.

To start the image save process, click here.

Type here to set the image file save name.

Display more information about file saving.

Figure 14. Image Manager screen. You can upload, delete, and view images in your personal graphics storage area on the class server.

you want to keep by dragging the image (using the mouse) in the display window. The display window shows the portion of the image that will be saved.

Capturing difficult images (Mac OSX Users): Use the “Grab” program that comes with your computer. It is easy to use. The Help function gives more details. Save the image to the desktop and use the "Browse" choice in the "Choose Local Loc" and find it on your desktop.

Once the image file is displayed, you can save it by clicking on the "Initiate Image Save" button. Follow the onscreen instructions to complete the image save.

Note the round button . Any time you see one of these buttons, you can click it to get information that is useful for operating the software.


Image Capture Tutorial:This tutorial will show you how to capture images from a web browser and upload it to your online graphics library.

1. Open the web browser to http://EarthEdOnline.org/eed/data/dataindex.html. You should also be logged into EarthEd.

2. Scroll down to find the "Lamont Data direct links" item. Click on the "Wind Monthly" link. Or, if you prefer, choose one of the other data types from the Lamont Data selections.

3. When the image appears, copy it to the clipboard. If you don't know how, read this text a few paragraphs back to refresh your memory.

4. Now select "Image Manager" from the "Locations" dropdown menu.5. Click the "Store Images" tab on the upper right part of the Image Manager window.6. Choose the "my Clipboard" line from the "Choose Local Loc" dropdown menu. 7. A "myClipboardimage" line will appear in the image list. Click on it. Your captured

image should appear.8. Click the "Initiate Image Save" button.9. When you get to the next screen, read the on-screen instructions and follow them.10. When you image has successfully uploaded, click the "Manage Your Lib" button. Read

the on-screen instructions. Experiment with its features. You can use this to delete junk images and see a list of images, and view them, in your online image library.


Access this link for the latest instructions on how to get images into your personal graphics library. http://earthedonline.org/EED_Online/Help/NtBk/Index.htmWhen you get to the help page, click on "Go To Noteboook", then "Index of Operations", then click the triangle next to "Capturing and uploading graphic images….." You will then see the instructions. You might want to print the page.

Student Handout-Word

Documents

choose local

calibrated

personal graphics

personal storage

online graphics

image manager

online guide

writer entry