Xerte Handout

Introduction

The Xerte Project aims to offer top-notch free software to schools all over the world and create a global user and development community around products. Xerte is open-source software for the purpose of producing interactive projects and learning objects for educational systems. It has been hosted on our own Karnataka Education server and is available for free download from the Xerte Community website. It is being used to provide resources for language learning.

Advantages of Xerte

Xerte puts simple tools in the hands of teachers. Learning materials are easily assembled without sacrificing the functionality that designers, developers and media specialists demand. Xerte is a content authoring tool that lets you bring together different types of material in order to present information on a topic. You can include text, images, video, audio as well as embed web pages or web widgets. In addition, you can add activities which allow the viewer to interact with the content.

Working with the application

Working with Xerte is as easy as it appears to be. Before that, we'll go over the procedure for creating an account for Xerte login. Please use the method listed below to establish your account.

Account creation

Only the Tech team admins are permitted to establish Xerte accounts, so anyone wishing to do so must send an email to the Tech team's inbox at "tech-team@itforchange.net". The user ID and password for your Xerte account will be sent to your official email address once the tech staff has created it.

Login and Logout

• Once you have your login information, you can log in to https://karnatakaeducation.org.in/lcads/ webpage, as shown in Figure 1 by entering the credentials.

Interface of tool

The Xerte online tool's interface is depicted in Figure. 3, and the marked areas are described in full below for your reference.

1. Edit: This option enables users to make additions, deletions, and modifications to all different types of Xerte elements in an already-created Xerte project in the workspace.
2. Properties: This option allows the user to view all of the project's properties. The user has the ability to modify, access and manage sharing.
3. Preview: The user has the ability to preview the project online in order to test it.
4. New folder: For easier understanding, the projects can be organised into folders. The "New folder" button can be clicked by the user to add a new folder to their workspace.
5. Delete: Deleting unnecessary projects or folders will help you free up some space in Xerte. Users can delete their project or folder by clicking the "Delete" button.
6. Duplicate: If a user wishes to create a second version of the same project or folder, duplication can be useful.
7. Publish: It is utilized to maintain control over the project specifics, license, and access.
8. URL of Xerte tool: This is the URL for the Xerte online tool, which is embedded in the Karnataka Education server.
9. Folder structure: Created folders or directories will appear as shown in Figure 3, numbered 9.
10. Created project: Created projects will appear as shown in Figure 3, numbered 10.
11. Search: It is used to search for a certain project or folder by name or keyword.
12. Sort option: Sorting by name (from ‘A to Z’ and ‘Z to A’) and by age (from ‘new to old’ and ‘old to new’) is made easier with the help of this option.
13. Project details: In this, you can find all the information you need about the project, including the project name, ID, created date, last modified date, URL link to share with others, code to embed the project, size of the project, current access granted to the project, number of views, and shared status of the project.
14. User Information: It will display the username.
15. Password change option: After clicking this button, the user has the option to modify their password.
16. Logout button: It is used to log out from the session.
17. New project creation: The user can create their new projects by clicking the ‘create’ button, entering the name, and then clicking the ‘create’ button again.

Creating/Editing project

The Xerte project is incredibly easy to create and edit. Click the "create" button to start a new project, and to edit click on the “edit” button, as indicated above (Figure 3), to make changes. You may now see all the components or alternatives that Xerte offers to enhance the richness and interactivity of your projects. As soon as you begin developing or changing your project, click the ‘insert’ button (as shown in Figure 5) to access further options and add any Xerte elements that are accessible.

NOTE : Whenever you want to add an element to the Xerte project, once you choose the element type, you would have three options.

Before: If you want to add the element ‘before’ the current element, choose this.

After: If you want to add the element ‘after’ the current element, choose this.

At the end: If you want to add the element ‘at the end’, choose this.

Inserting Text

Plain text

It is used to add plain text to the project so that the user can contribute material like a story, any important information, a summary, an overview, etc.

The user must select “insert→text→plain text” in order to use this element.

Once the element has been added, the user can edit the page's title in addition to add the content according to the requirements. User can also format the content by selecting the "Show toolbar" option. Please go through the sample below.

Title page

The title page is a good reminder to include a title page as the first page of your resource because it will highlight the topic's primary relevance.

The user should select "insert→text→title page" to use this element.

Once the element has been added, the user can edit the page's title, update the title content according to their needs, and do the text formatting by selecting "Show toolbar". Please go through the sample below.

Inserting Media

Audio slideshow

When users wish to play audio and a collection of images or presentations simultaneously, audio slide shows can be quite useful.

The user should select "Insert→Media→Audio slideshow" to use this element.

Once the element has been added, the user can upload audio by selecting the "import media" option, which will open the new window depicted in (figure 6). Users can choose audio from their system by clicking the "no files selected" (figure 7) button and then click "upload."

After uploading is complete, the user can effectively add a file to the project by double-clicking on it. Using the same technique, the user can also add photos to the project, sync the images, and add audio by adding the audio in seconds format in sync points. Additionally, users can format their text content by selecting the "Show toolbar" option, and they can even alter the page's title. Please go through the sample below.