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July 1, 2000
Backup Plans
By Bill Bateman
I started this series a few months ago using the scenario that your Internet Service Provider (ISP) crashed before class and your brilliant Internet-based lesson became stuck in limbo due to the outage. We've talked about how to make the most of that downtime by keeping your machine tidy internally and running some of the maintenance functions. I also promised that we would spend some time talking about backup plans for such an occasion by using a method I call "Web Whacking." So let's get to it.
That isn't my term, by the way. Our former principal used it all the time after hearing it at a conference and it stuck. It's a darn good idea. In some schools where connections can be few and far between, or simply too slow to use on a real-time basis, it makes sense to save your lesson to a disk. It is also a lifesaver when the 'Net goes down, as you needn't be signed on in order for your browser to work.
Simply put, you select the material from the Web site you plan to present, such as a map, chart, or photo, and then save it to a disk. When it is time to present your lesson, use your browser to open the file from the disk (rather than the Internet) and display your material.
For someone new to the Internet and/or doing presentations, I recommend this method as a good way to self-edit. It appears as if you are online, without the broken links. I'm sure most people have had to sit through a well-intentioned presentation that went astray because of fumbling to find a Web site, untested links, or an overabundance of material. (A strong indicator that you didn't edit is when people in the audience begin faking chest pains in order to leave early.)
By viewing the pages in advance as you edit the names, you can see what your audience will see. If there are three pages of unrelated copy between the first and second bits of information you plan to use, do everybody a favor and edit them out.
Whacking is a good way to make sure that your lesson will be there, even if the Web isn't available for whatever reason. ("Oh didn't I tell you? We're having testing today in the Library. You'll have to move to Room 17 until 5th period.") Those disks will travel with you even if the Web connection can't. The how-to is simple on the surface but, just like everything else, has some parts that need extra attention.
Direct your browser to the site you want to save for your lesson. For this exercise, let's go to a site we know has value: www.techlearning.com. I use Netscape, so I'll be making reference to that program, but the process will work with Microsoft Explorer as well. In fact, as I compared the two, the size of the box into which you type your search is about the only real difference.
Type the location you want into your browser. (If you're feeling creative, copy and paste it from this article.) Once you are at the site, choose the File command on the menu bar at the top of the screen and select Save As. This will allow you to save your information to the location of your choice. This can be your floppy drive A, your Zip drive or, if you have the space, your internal drive. I strongly recommend an external disk, so the lesson can be shared between team teachers. As you build a collection of files, the space they occupy can grow very quickly. So you either transfer your material to a disk or delete them monthly.
If you must set up an internal folder, I use My Documents on the desktop and give the work its own private folder so it is easy to find. For our discussion here, I've chosen to use the A drive. I always begin with a newly formatted disk for presentations - the less clutter the better.
Use the folder with the up arrow icon in your Save As display to navigate to the desired file. As we are using the A drive, I must find My Computer, then the A drive. Create a folder there with Whacking as the title. (To do this, click on File>New and then Folder.) Open this folder by clicking on it (click on your file), and you should see the location in the box at the bottom. In this case: www_techlearning_com.html. Click on Save and it is yours. (On the Mac, you must choose between saving as text or source - select source or you will lose the html formatting.)
Now that you have saved your sample, let's see what happens when you try to use it. At the File command in your browser, select Open. Depending on which version you have, you could get either a drop-down menu (4.0 or earlier) or a box (4.5 and later), both of which allow you to Browse the system. We want the file you just created on your A drive. Use the up arrow as before, find the Whacking folder, select your entry to open by clicking on it, and then say OK. If things are going well, the page you saved should be there in your browser window - almost.
If you look closely, you should see one or two "broken" icons with a question mark. These are images that were not saved and, as such, cannot be loaded. Depending on the page you visit, you may get one or two of these or almost the entire page with question marks and a few lines of type. (My ISP's home page is like that as much of its site is composed of .gif files.) Aren't you glad you checked? You can save the additional material by clicking directly on it and saving, as before, though you must be careful to keep all of the files together. If they end up on different disks, they won't show up on the page.
Two more things need to be done. First, go back to the A drive and rename the file. When you do a long presentation, a disk full of files with names like :www_techlearning_com.html can become confusing in a hurry. To rename it, left-click on the name once, and it will highlight. (Sometimes this can take a bit of practice.) Hit delete over the name portion. Rename it anything you want, but leave the .html at the end so your browser will recognize it. For practice, call it: test.html and try to call it up. There it is, huh?
Now rename it simply test and see if it works. No luck? Without the .html tag, the browser won't recognize the file. You can add the tag back on. (When I do this on my Mac, the last letters end up being .htm. Just make sure the file extensions are the same as they were when you began. If you save on a Mac, and then run your lesson from a Windows machine, don't be surprised if you have to add the extra "l" to the .htm.)
Second, load the corrected site on your browser and set a bookmark for it. That way you don't have to go through all of the open, select, and browse business. Bingo! You have just whacked your first Web site for classroom use. You can also move back and forth between online sites and the saved sites on your disk while you present if you wish.
This process will become faster and easier the more you do it. There is also the added benefit of working within your software and learning what it can do. I hope you were really paying attention when I mentioned the importance of editing your material. My rule on self-editing? Get it just where you think it is perfect, then cut out 20%. It is a lot of work, but very few people are faking heart attacks when I do presentations these days.
One final point we need to cover is the subject of copyrights when you use information from the Web. As a general rule of thumb, classroom use is generally acceptable. Re-posting or public distribution of materials that you have downloaded off the 'Net is NOT. Copyright regulations are not only confusing, they can have some potentially serious implications if you violate them. The one safe bet is to write to the site and ask if you may use the material. Before you do that, consider the type of site - educational, commercial, or individual.
I would also suggest you visit the Forums archive on this site and read through the series of articles on Copyright Dos and Don'ts by Hall Davidson. I've read it and I think it will be a big help to you while you navigate the minefield of fair use and copyright regulations. Remember: you are responsible for knowing the rules when you use copyrighted material.
Now you have the basic tools to build offline presentations. If you start feeling curious about what else you can do, then I've been successful as that's the whole idea of what I'm doing here. See if you can add your site information to PowerPoint presentations. Maybe you'd like to track down and experiment with some of the software that does this process for you.
What's up next time? I never did much with the right mouse button until I got Windows 95. But now? Good stuff as well as some handy utilities. Let's see what we can get into by "clicking with the right side of the mouse."
Email: Bill Bateman
First Electronic Serial Rights: The Well Connected Educator
All others: Copyright Bill Bateman 2000
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