Working with files in Resources

Note: To complete these procedures, you must be assigned a role having the necessary permissions. To determine your role, follow the directions in Participant roles. For a basic understanding of roles and permissions, see Permissions and roles: Overview.

On this page:

Uploading new files

Note: The following instructions are for uploading new files to the Resources tool. To replace an existing file with a new version, see Updating a file's contents below.

To upload files using Resources, in your site's menubar, click Resources, and then:

  1. Next to the folder to which you want to add a file, from the Add menu, click Upload Files.

  2. Click Browse to find the appropriate file on your computer or network, and then click Open.

    Note: Filenames that include certain characters cannot be accepted. For a list of unsupported characters, see Unsupported characters.

  3. Next to "Display Name", type the name you want displayed in Resources. If you don't add a display name, the filename will be used.

    Note: When you use WebDAV to access your item, you'll see only the filename, not the display name.

  4. To add a description or any other details, such as who can access the file or when it should be visible, click Add details for this item, which will allow you to do the following:

    • Type a description of your resource in the text box provided.

    • Choose your resource's copyright status, add copyright information, and display a copyright alert:

      • If you select Use copyright below, a text box will appear in which you can add information about the copyright.
      • For information about copyright and fair use, click more info.
      • If you would like to display the terms to users when they access your resource, select Display copyright alert and require acknowledgment when accessed by others. This option will require users to agree to the copyright terms to view the resource. To see the alert, click what's this? . You cannot edit this alert.

    • Under "Availability and Access", control who can access the file and when it's available, as follows:

      • To display the resource to site members only, select Only members of this site can see this file. (This option is not available if the folder to which you're adding the resource is publicly viewable.)
      • To share the resource with another site to which you belong (e.g., as an attachment to a syllabus item for another course or project you're leading), select This file is publicly viewable. (This option is not available if the folder to which you're adding the resource is publicly viewable.)
      • To display the resource only to selected groups, select Display this file to selected groups only. , and then select the group(s) that should have access. (This option does not appear if you don't have any groups in your site; for more, see Managing groups.)
      • To show or hide your resource, or set a beginning and/or ending date for its visibility, click the appropriate selections. (This option does not appear when you're adding an item to Resources in My Workspace.) Site administrators will always be able to see hidden items, even when they are hidden from other users.

    • To add detailed descriptors, click Optional properties. You can then add information to the following fields:

      • Alternate Title
      • Creator
      • Publisher
      • Subject and Keywords
      • Date Created
      • Date Issued
      • Abstract
      • Contributor
      • Audience
      • Audience Education Level

  5. To upload more than one file, click Add Another File.

    You can add any number of files at once, as long as the total file size does not exceed the limit set by your system administrators. This limit will vary depending on your institution's policies, and is displayed at the bottom of the file upload screen.

    Note: To remove a file from the list of files to add, click the red X next to it.

  6. Next to "Email Notification", specify whether or not you want to have members of the site notified automatically via email when the resource is posted. (This option does not appear when you're adding an item to Resources in My Workspace.)

  7. Click Upload Files Now to finish.

Note: You can also use WebDAV to drag and drop files from your computer to your Resources area. See:

Back to top

Editing a file's details

To edit the name, description, availability, access settings, or optional properties for a file, from the Actions menu next to your file's name, click Edit Details. Make your changes, and then click Update to save them.

Back to top

Updating a file's contents

Whenever you open a file from Resources, such as a Word document, your computer creates a temporary copy and displays it, while the original file stays on the server. If you make any changes to the temporary copy, they are not saved automatically to the original. If you want to change the contents of the original, you will need to open it, make and save your changes, and then replace the original version with your updated version.

To replace a Resources file with an updated version from your computer, from the Actions menu next to your file's name, click Upload New Version. Click Browse to select the updated file from your computer, and then click Upload New Version Now.

Back to top