FAQs about iTunes U and Podcasting
What is iTunes U and what is Podcasting?
Podcasts are online multimedia files which are available for downloading to your computer or your compatible mobile device. These podcasts are often syndicated, so that users can subscribe to them and receive updates or new editions automatically. Apple's iTunes is one of the most popular systems for distributing podcasts. The iTunes site has mechanisms for distributing music, radio programs, movies and audio books.
Apple now has a special area called iTunes U which educational institutions can use for teaching purposes. Like a number of other universities, Boston College has built a site within iTunes U. The iTunes software is available for both PC and Macintosh computers.
What are the advantages to the student?
Some professors have placed academic content onto the iTunes U site. These may be video files, lectures, Powerpoint presentations, audio presentations, or similar material. Typically, it is “multimedia content.” By doing this, the student has the opportunity to look at this material wherever and whenever they wish. They can download the material to their computer and look at it there, and/or they can copy it to their iPod mobile device and take it with them as they themselves become mobile. Having content available in this way allows the student to have access to important course material at all times.
What do I have to do to take advantage of this new learning opportunity?
- You have to be enrolled in a course where the professor has put content on iTunes U.
- You must have the iTunes software installed on your PC or Mac (or go to a computer that has it installed.)
- You need to spend a little time getting used to the iTunes interface.
- You would then access iTunes U through the Agora web site, just as you do to get to many of your other BC services.
- Once you select the iTunes U link on Agora, you will see a list of the courses to which you have access. If you get an empty page, this means that your instructor is not using podcasts or iTunes U.
- You would select the course that you are enrolled in and download the files of interest to your computer, where you can watch them later (or copy them to your mobile device).
How do I get iTunes on my computer?
Installing iTunes
- Go to http://www.apple.com/itunes/download/ and follow the instructions on how to install iTunes. You can install iTunes on the Windows or the Macintosh platform. Macintosh users should scroll down to the Macintosh link at the bottom of that page.
- Restart your computer after installation.
ITunes is on my computer already, will it work?
You need to have the latest version of iTunes installed. Currently, that version is 8.1. If you have an earlier version, it would be a good idea to go to the link mentioned above and upgrade to the latest version.
Can I see some examples of what content is available at iTunesU?
Certainly. Once iTunes is installed, launch it and you will see a link to iTunes U. If you click on that link you will be able to look at content from several universities (e.g. MIT, Stanford, Berkeley, Duke). Some of the material is public and may be of interest to you.
Why isn’t Boston College listed on the iTunes site as one of the iTunes U schools?
BC is in its very first year as an iTunes U member and all of the material is currently restricted to classes. As the pilot progresses, BC will evaluate whether it will be added to that list.
Do I have to have an iPod to listen to or watch podcasts?
Definitely not. In fact, many students will simply watch the podcasts on their own computer and keep them there for reference. Having an iPod does give you much more flexibility however, since you can take the files anywhere you wish and watch or listen to them without having to have your computer handy.
Can I use a mobile device that isn’t an iPod to watch or listen to podcasts?
Theoretically, you can use any device that will play back “mpeg4” files. We haven’t had a lot of experience with this yet and would be very happy to hear from students about their successes or failures using other mobile devices.
Will there be enough room on my computer to hold the podcasts?
Well, this is an interesting question. It depends on what you are downloading and how much available space is on the computer you are using. Some audio files can be very small. Some video files can be very large. You need to examine the Properties of your hard disk (on a PC) or the Get Info menu (on a Mac) to see how much available storage space you have. Then, you need to look at the content you want to download from iTunes U and see how much of your available space it will take up. iTunes U does not tell you how large a file is. Generally, video files are the ones to be concerned with. You can make an estimate of how much space they will consume by looking at the video window size (if available) and the length of the video. One example is that a 4 minute podcast file at a 320x240 video window size is about 20 MB in size; at 640x480, it would be about 50 MB in size.
Can I download podcasts to a computer in a public computing facility or computer lab?
This is a bit tricky. It depends upon the security measures that the facility administrator has put into place. Some facilities do not allow public users to save files on a public machine. In addition, the machines in the facility or lab must have iTunes installed. This may or may not be the case – and iTunes is less likely to be already installed in a PC lab. Another point to remember is that the podcast files are saved on the computer you are using. Therefore, if it is not your machine, those files may be deleted from that computer at some time in the future by someone else. If you do use a public computer (or someone else’s computer), you may want to bring along an external hard drive, your compatible mobile device, or a memory stick so that you can copy the podcasts and take them with you. If possible, check with those who are in charge of managing the lab or facility that you want to use and ask if (a) iTunes is installed, and (b) if you can download files to the computer. If nobody is available, you can always give it a try and see.
Note: Currently, the CTRC public computing facility in O’Neill has iTunes installed on both the Mac and PC computers there. If you use a computer in the CTRC, you can download a podcast to the computer in the usual way. Also, be advised that you should bring your own headset to listen to the audio. The computers in the CTRC do not have headsets. The O’Neill Library Media Center now has iTunes loaded on both its Macintosh and PC listening stations.
If I have questions or am experiencing problems accessing podcast material, where do I go?
The professor of your course may be helpful. It depends upon how technical the question is. You may also email Instructional Design and eTeaching Services, the department heading up the iTunes effort, at eteach@bc.edu.
Why does Firefox not always work with iTunes U?
(tip provided by Apple Engineering, view forum post)
Firefox needs to be properly configured to open URLs that are supposed to be handled by iTunes (prefix for these URLs is itms:// or itmss:// ).
Firefox has security checks which may prevent it from launching a helper application such as iTunes. The first time Firefox attempts to open one of these URLs, it will prompt the user with a panel asking if they are sure they want to use this helper application. If the user chooses not to use the helper application, then they will not have the abiility to transition from Firefox into iTunes U or the iTunes Music Store. Secondarily, Firefox for the Mac does not render this panel correctly if the URL is too long and the user may not be able to enter iTunes U.
We recommend that you tell your users to allow iTunes to be a helper application for Firefox. If they need to reset Firefox, then follow these instructions:
- Enter "about:config" in the address bar, which will open the advance configuration options of Firefox.
- In the text field labeled "Filter" enter 'itms'
- Look for items with the Preference Name that start with 'network.protocol-handler'
- If the Preference Name is network.protocol-handler.external.itmss or network.protocol-handler.external.itms then the Value column needs to contain "true". Double-click on the word "false", to change it to "true".
- If the Preference Name is network.protocol-handler.warn-external.itmss or network.protocol-handler.warn-external.itms then the Value column needs to contain "false". Double-click on the word "true", to change it to "false".
If I have feedback about my iTunes U experiences, where should I send it?
Certainly talk with, or email your course professor. In addition, Instructional Design and eTeaching services would be very grateful for your feedback (email: eteach@bc.edu)
For Students
Downloading Content in iTunes U