Archive

Archive for the ‘audience-is-language-learning-center-temp-staff’ Category

Student email in Office365/Outlook.com slow on reception desk computers

2014/04/09 Leave a comment
  1. Problem: Since last week (or so; interestingly, only individual users seem to have been affected at first), we seem to experiencing regular (but not consistent) issues with meeting requests mostly
    1. slowness
    2. browser-specific behavior
      1. internet explorer 9: crashes
      2. chrome: crashes
      3. Firefox: (sometimes just seems to hang, with some coercion can bring up an “unresponsive script” warning dialogue that a script is hanging: image
  2. Workaround:
    1. Best so far: if you see the Firefox warning dialogue, check “do not warn again” and click on “continue”(?)
    2. we will try to look into common browser configuration (like popup blockers).
  3. Root cause: ?
    1. Firefox provides only this help on unresponsive script error;
    2. the slowness could be in the actual script, on the client, in the network, on the server…
  4. Resolution: ?
Categories: audience-is-language-learning-center-temp-staff, Glitches&Errors, Reception-desk Tags: , , ,

Audio player error message involving “pluginfile.php” in Moodle quiz

2014/02/24 Leave a comment
  1. LRC assistants may get called by students with this error regarding pluginfile.php in a Moodle quiz, it appears in the audio player interface itself and looks like this:DSCF0248
    1. The error messages flashes only briefly, and afterwards the audio simply will not play.
    2. In a Respondus lockdown browser quiz, you can bring up the error message again by clicking “next” and then resuming the attempt. When the quiz page reloads, the error message will briefly flash again.
  2. LRC assistants cannot work around this error, they need to alert permanent staff. Usually it is related to a quiz author needing to update the audio file link, like so:
    1. Go into the quiz, on the left, click “edit the quiz”): image
    2. Find the audio file link, edit the link: image
      1. Can you actually load the link? If it says “file not found”, you have the root cause:
      2. image
      3. Does it say “draft” in there? Not good. Copy the unique identifier from the path: image
    3. Go to in Moodle course / Files section, locate the offending file (you can use the unique id you put in the clip board to search), i.e. make sure it actually exists: image
    4. Get the correct URL for the file, puit it int the clipboard: image
    5. Go back to editing the quiz, update the wrong URL with the correct one.
    6. Save the updated quiz.
  3. Now the student can reload the quiz, if in Respondus lockdown browser, like above by clicking “next”and back.
Categories: assignments, audience-is-language-learning-center-staff, audience-is-language-learning-center-temp-staff, audience-is-students, audience-is-teachers, lms Tags: , ,

FAQs for issues with Respondus Lockdown Browser

2014/02/18 Leave a comment
  1. New to Respondus Quizzes? Read the CTL’s write-up.
  2. No Photo ID (Niner ID or other state-issued)? Use the reception desk camera to take a photo with sheet, like below, we will forward it to the teacher for verification. photo-example
  3. Issues with starting:
    1. Respondus won’t open: How to bypass a Moodle Popup Window when using Respondus lockdown browser
    2. Test won’t open and you get a warning
      1. in Moodle that this test must be run in Respondus Lockdown Browser? Close your regular web browser and double click on the desktop on the Moodle Lockdown Browser Icon:, then go to Moodle2 from in there.
      2. in Respondus that “No more attempts are allowed”, but the student has not made any attempts yet and the quiz closing date is long in the past: contact the teacher to check whether the quiz needs updating. image
  4. Issues with Audio:
    1. Students are advised to test the headsets before entering Respondus Lockdown browser assessments:
      1. Start Audacity from the desktop, click record: if you say something, you must see something;
      2. Play back to test the speakers. Hear nothing? Try the volume knob:CALIFONE-HEADSET-IMAG0006-volume
      3. (More detail here).
    2. Rewind-audio may get you stuck – to fix, next-page, then back (reloads page). More info: How to workaround Moodle quiz audio not playing to the end in Respondus Lockdown Browser
    3. How to bypass a Moodle Popup Window when using Respondus lockdown browser
    4. imageIf no audio and error “pluginfile” flashes when clicking “Next”and back: notify permanent staff.
  5. Issues with Writing:
    1. Lost the clip_image002?
      1. Clicking around nearby where it was may bring it back.
      2. Or clip_image004, quickly cancel (gets you out of lockdown browser), new attempt from desktop shortcut.
      3. Learn to use the installed US-international keyboard shortcuts. us-international.
      4. more info: Problems with accented characters in Respondus Lockdown Browser
    2. If your keyboard stops typing in English in a Respondus lockdown browser quiz…
  6. Issues with finishing
    1. If the test won’t submit, start Respondus lockdown browser on a different computer to see whether you can resume your attempt there.
  7. More issues? Let us know in the comments here.
Categories: assessments, assignments, audience-is-language-learning-center-temp-staff, audience-is-students, Glitches&Errors, Listening-Stations, lms, service-is-testing-troubleshooting-debugging Tags: , ,

If your keyboard stops typing in English in a Respondus lockdown browser quiz…

2014/01/24 Leave a comment
  1. Short answer
    1. press key combination LEFT ALT + SHIFT, then try typing:
    2. Are you back at typing in English?
      1. If not, repeat, until you are.
      2. If yes: Do not rejoice too soon. Try inserting a character with the Respondus Lockdown Browser accent bar. If it only inserts a “?“, then repeat also, until this works also.
  2. Long answer
    1. The Respondus Lockdown browser blocks use of most key combinations, but  not this default combination on Windows for switching keyboard languages (and it cannot – the user may need access to other language keyboards for the quiz!).
    2. A user may inadvertently have switched the keyboard from the default (which works fine in most language quizzes in Respondus).
    3. The Respondus Lockdown browser hides the language toolbar near the notification are in the lower right, so the change is not obvious, and also cannot be undone from the menu there.
Categories: audience-is-language-learning-center-temp-staff, audience-is-students Tags: , ,

Layout of the Language Resource Center (LRC)

2014/01/22 3 comments

The numbers in the layout correspond to the numbers we posted (to facilitate teacher and student orientation and to aid in LRC temp staff troubleshooting)  on the computer monitors and also (for IT staff) to the number part of the underlying computer names which can also be displayed in the classroom management systems NetOP School and Sanako Study 1200 on the teacher computer (32).
lrc-layout-map-marked-numbered5

Categories: audience-is-IT-staff, audience-is-language-learning-center-staff, audience-is-language-learning-center-temp-staff, audience-is-students, audience-is-teachers, documentation, e-infrastructure, Institution-is-University-of-North-Carolina-Charlotte Tags: ,

Protected: How LRC assistants help with LRC room and resource mailboxes

2014/01/21 Enter your password to view comments.

This content is password protected. To view it please enter your password below:

Categories: audience-is-language-learning-center-temp-staff, e-infrastructure, service-is-hr-managing, Spreadsheets Tags: ,

How LRC assistants help maintain the film collection

2014/01/21 Leave a comment
  1. You may find your self confronted with a box like this (at any given time): image
  2. Has the movie already received one of our 4-digit labels?
    1. yes
      1. check it into the LRC Film collection spreadsheet
    2. no =  Cataloguing new movies
      1. can you find the title of the movie in the LRC Film collection spreadsheet,
        1. yes: then find the label this movie has to be assigned
        2. no: take whatever label you need from the pre-printed sheets (coed436) and attach it to the new unlabeled movie box
  3. put the movie, now labeled, on the stacks in proper sort order
  4. movie reserve shelf: consolidate it with the film collection (weekly)
  5. movie stacks: consolidate it with the film collection (monthly)
Categories: audience-is-language-learning-center-temp-staff, checklists, service-is-library Tags:

New supervisor role for senior LRC Assistants

2014/01/13 Leave a comment
  1. A new LRC Assistant list, sorted by hire date, has been posted on the inside LRC reception desk. Use it to determine who is currently the most senior LRC assistant at the desk. The current most senior LRC assistant serves as supervisor and always wears the green supervisor badge pictured below. When the supervisor leaves, the supervisor passes on the badge to the next senior LRC assistant in line.
  2. image
  3. Supervisors do not have to perform clerical tasks (meeting requests, equipment handling, etc.) as long as there are enough less senior LRC assistants to handle the client load. Rather, supervisors monitor less experienced LRC assistants operating the reception desk computers, equipment etc. , help train them and avoid mistakes.
Categories: audience-is-language-learning-center-temp-staff, Reception-desk, service-is-hr-managing