16 October 2013

Move Videos from the V Drive to Los Rios Google Apps

Videos on the CRC streaming media server do not automatically display within Desire2Learn. The videos are still there but there are currently issues over how mixed-content pages appear in the browser. “Mixed content” means some content is delivered via an encrypted connection (all of the D2L pages are encrypted) and some content is not delivered via an encrypted connection (none of the pages on the district’s streaming media server are encrypted). This is a problem because a bad guy could sniff the data submitted via an unencrypted form (like an account number or password). The browser manufacturers have therefore added a way to alert users that a page has mixed content.

Users can allow mixed content to appear. The problem that changed recently is that Chrome and Firefox stick a tiny shield in the navigation bar that a user would have to click on to allow the mixed content. Internet Explorer shows a popup warning and is therefore easier to see. Safari does not have this issue.

Of course it is a bad habit for users to allow mixed content, so the best solution is to use a streaming media server that delivers content via an encrypted connection. Fortunately we have one in Los Rios Gmail and Google Apps. For instructors who have been using the CRC streaming media server, the best practice is to upload your videos to your Los Rios Google Drive and re-share them via the embed code you can copy there and paste into a Desire2Learn content topic.

I have made a video showing how to do this: