Adding new channels

When you add new channels to a showcase, you can aggregate content into them automatically by using a search term or linking to a Mediasite folder and optionally filtering on a search term. You can also allow multiple users to aggregate content in a channel by allowing them to add presentations to it using the Publish tab.

To add a new channel:

1.  Click Publishing > Channels > Add Channel.

2.  Enter a name and description for the channel that will help you and other users identify it easily.

3.  Specify a Friendly Name for the channel to customize its URL. This value will replace the channel ID number in the URL. For example, if you give a channel “mychannel” as its friendly name, the URL uses this name instead of the channel ID:

 

URL using channel ID:

http://myserver.mynetwork.net/Mediasite/Channel/ ed968dc9872f456e93500b35872b334e21

URL using friendly name:

http://myserver.mynetwork.net/Mediasite/Channel/mychannel

4.  Click in the Menu Bar Color field to update the color that will be used for the channel’s menu by entering the color code or using the color selector.

5.  If modules are available on your system, click Add Module to search for and select the modules you want to associate with this channel. This is useful if the channel will be associated with a course in a Learning Management System (LMS).

6.  From the Add content to this channel...drop-down list, select the aggregation method you want to use:

Settings

Details

Automatically by linking to a Mediasite folder

Select this option to aggregate content in a channel by linking it to a Mediasite folder. All presentations in the folder and its sub-folders are visible in the channel at the same level since channels are flat lists. In addition, all permissions assigned to presentations carry over to the channel. You can optionally filter the linked channel using a search term.

 

Click in the Link to Folder field to see a list of available folders or use the search feature. Click on a folder to select it.

     You can also add a linked channel by right-clicking a folder in Management Portal and selecting Publish to Channel. However, in this case, only the name, friendly name, and description settings are available. Additionally, in the dialog, you will see a listing of all channels published using this folder.

Some features, such as continuous playback can be set on a channel, but do not apply when a channel is included in a showcase.  In this case, you need to globally enable continuous playback on the showcase, which turns this feature on for all channels in the showcase.

Automatically by using a search term

Select this option to aggregate content in a channel by automatically discovering presentations matching specific search criteria. When you create a search-based channel, it will only include presentations you have read and write permissions on.

Under the Content Options, specify the search term and select the check box next to the presentation metadata you want included in the search. For example, if you want to search only titles and tags, select the check box next to each of these items.

Manually by using a presentation’s Publish tab

Select this option to aggregate content in a channel by allowing users to add presentations to it using the Publish tab. Since this method allows multiple users to add content to the channel, you can optionally link terms and conditions to it. Users must accept the terms specified to publish content to the channel.

Once you select this option, click Add Terms & Conditions and select the terms and conditions agreement you want to associate with this channel. Users must accept this agreement before they can publish to this channel.

Add new channel aggregating content using the presentation’s Publish tab

7.  Click Channel Options to specify the features that will be available in the channel, to show folder navigation (only for channels linked to folders with subfolders), and to select what presentation metadata will be displayed.

Settings

Details

Show Top Banner

Select to display a banner at the top of a page.

Show Thumbnail

Select to display thumbnail wherever the channel appears.

Show Record Date

Select this check box to include the date the presentation was recorded on the Player page. In some instances, if you are re-using on-demand presentations you may want to hide the date, so content does not appear outdated.

Show Views

Select this presentation to show how many times the presentation has been viewed on the Player page.

Show Tags

Show the presentation’s tags on the Player page.

Allow Login Controls

Select to allow users to log in and out of Mediasite from a channel.

Allow Sharing and Embedding

Select to display controls in the channel that will allow users to share or embed presentations with others. Typically, if integrating a channel with a Learning Management System (LMS), you will disable this feature to ensure users are only accessing content in the channel through the LMS.

Allow Annotations

Select to allow users with appropriate permissions to add annotations to presentations.

Allow Comments

Select to allow users to provide feedback on presentations via comments.

Allow Presentation Download

Select the check box to allow users to download podcasts and vodcasts from the channel.

  For users to be able to download podcasts and vodcasts, they must have permission for the “Download Mediasite Content” Portal resource. For more information, see the Mediasite Configuration Guide.

 CAUTION: Once you download a podcast or vodcast, it is outside of the Mediasite system. Therefore, the security features available with live and on-demand presentations are not available with downloadable content.

Enable Continuous Playback

Select this check box to allow auto-play of a channel’s presentations. When a user watches a presentation, successive presentations will automatically load and begin playing in the channel’s player. External videos, and presentations containing quizzes, will be excluded from continuous playback.

Show Folder Navigation

Select this check box to allow users to navigate through a channel’s folders and sub-folders. This feature is available only for channels that have been linked to folders that have subfolders.

Change Default Sort

Select this check box to update how presented are listed in the channel by default. Once you select this option, you will see a drop-down list that you will use to update this setting.

 

 

Some features, such as continuous playback can be set on a channel, but do not apply when a channel is included in a showcase.  In this case, you need to globally enable continuous playback on the showcase, which turns this feature on for all channels in the showcase. For more details on the features included in Channel Options, see Adding new channels.

8.  Click Save.

9.  Click the Edit tab on the channel’s properties page to link to a module, add a thumbnail image for it or add a banner image. To update or add a channel’s top banner to reflect your organization’s brand, update the settings as follows:

Settings

Details

Top Banner Image Upload

Browse to the image you want to use for the top banner. The recommended size of the image is 320 pixels x 60 pixels.

Top Banner Area Background Color

Specify the color you want to appear behind the top banner area. Click Match Banner Image to match the background color based the colors in the right most pixels of the uploaded banner image.

Top Banner Link

Enter a URL to link the top banner to a web address. When a user clicks on the Top Banner image in the channel, the specified web address will load in another browser window.

 

Channel top banner properties

10. Click the Security tab to assign permissions to the channel. Make sure to click Save.