iTunes U

We have partnered with Apple to provide easy access to educational content, including lectures and video. We capture the majority of lectures across the curriculum and through iTunesU, our learners can download and view that content on their Mac or PC, or transfer it to an iPod for listening or viewing on the go. This has transformed our teaching. Some faculty are beginning to use this technology to deliver their lectures online, reclaiming classroom time for small group problem-solving or simulation exercises. Students can view lectures at their own pace, pause and review content, rewind, or even fast forward.

How does it work?

The lecturer or podcast creator needs software on the laptop or computer they are using to give the talk. This software will record the contents of the screen during the presentation and an attached microphone is needed to capture the audio of your voice. We have listed some software on this page, but please feel free to contact us to discuss this. Note: if your talk is in Schwartz E or F, there are built in capture systems. You do not need any special software in those rooms to get your talk on iTunes U. Inform Media Facilities that you would like your talk captured if speaking in Schwartz E and F.

Ideally this "screen casting" software on your compter would convert the captured video file of your talk into an iTunes compatible format (details of the formats at the bottom of this page). Camtasia does this very well and we can help set it up for you. If your software cant do this conversion we can take care of this for you, just drop off the video file on a CD or DVD in Coles 202.

How do my students access the material?

Your content on iTunes U is only available to those who can log into ALEX (NYULMC faculty students and staff). It is not publically available. There are two ways to access the content once its posted. The first, and easiest is to click on the iTunes U tab within an ALEX course - this opens iTunes on your computer, logs you in, and brings you directly to the corresonding area within our iTunes U site for your course. The second way is to log in via http://itunes.med.nyu.edu which brings you to our iTunes U homepage; from there you navigate through sections or courses to find your content.

How do I upload content to iTunes U?

If you are a curriculum administrator or a program director, you can upload new files to iTunes U using the following steps:

1. Login to ALEX using your Kerberos ID and password: http://alex.med.nyu.edu

2. Select a course to add/manage iTunes U files, then select "iTunes U" from the side menu. If you dont see the iTunes U link on your site, email us.

3. If a box pops up asking which application you would like to use, select iTunes.

4. The iTunes application will launch, and you will see the iTunes U page for the selected course. Click "Upload and Manage Files" from the menu on the upper right hand side.

5. The "Upload and Manage Files" window will open in your browser. From this page you can:
       Edit Existing Files:
              To edit an existing file you can select the checkbox next to the file, and then choose the desired action
              from the "Choose Action" select box at the bottom of the page. You can also click on the appropriate icon next to
              the desired file.
        Add New Files:
              1. Click "Add New File" at the bottom of the window (if there are many tracks, you will have to scroll down
              to see the link).
              2. Click "Browse" and then choose the file you would like to upload and press Open.

FAQs

What are the file formats required of iTunes U?

Content Upload requirements:
PDF Files PDF booklets must have the .pdf extension.

Audio Files
Audio files can be in AAC or MP3 format with the appropriate file extension (.m4a or .mp3).

For audio files, Apple recommends the following:
* Audio Format: AAC-LC (Music)
* Data Rate: 128 kbits/sec
* Channels: Stereo
* Output Sample Rate: 44.100 kHz
* Encoding Quality: Better

Video Files

Video files can be in MPEG-4 format with H.264 compression with the appropriate file extension (.mp4, .m4v, or .mov).

For video files, Apple recommends the following:
* Video Format: MPEG-4 with H.264
* Data Rate: 256 kbits/sec
* Image Size: 320 x 240