Interaction Scenarios

dScribe Interactions Scenarios

Organize Module
The organize module is the "home" module for a dScribe. From this module, dScribes will access the import tool, the export tool, and will organize their content in a way which will aid in using the metadata module, the clearing module, and in overall preparation of content for publishing. The organizer will also be used for managing user preferences and information, but this is less central to OERca object processing.

The main function of this module is to establish hierarchies and groups among objects. One valuable function of these hierarchies and groups is that they can be incorporated into faceted search in order to simplify finding and processing content in the other modules.

The organize module presents users with the most recently imported content and asks them to organize it by either adding it into new hierarchies at the appropriate level or by creating a new hierarchy. The interface will instruct the user of the standard hierarchy of school &gt; course &gt; material &gt; content object and ask them to classify each new object as belonging to one of these levels, then connect them to their parents and/or children. Objects at the same level of the hierarchy (even if they have no direct relationship) can also be formed into user defined groups. For example, a user might want to create a set of images that came from the same source (even tough they may be in different materials). The organize tool should allow for groups like this to be formed.

An important distinction is that this module does not establish actual relationships between objects. Labeling a material as part of a course does not mean that the material resides in the course. The same material may be given labels for other courses. The hierarchy is merely a hierarchy of labels and not the objects themselves. It is important that the user understands this (which means we must tell them somehow) so they understand that OERca will maintain only one instance of an object, and that this organization is established by giving objects labels or tags which can be arranged as a hierarchy or as a group.

Organize module scenario #1
A dScribe has just imported the first week of lectures slides for both of the courses he is dScribing. His dScribe2 has already created objects for the school and courses he is dScribing. The dScribe's task is just to assign each material to the correct course. The new materials appear on top, and labels for existing objects appear below. He drags one of the materials to the label of the desired course, then drags the other material to the appropriate course.

Organize module scenario #2
A dScribe has found a set of images on Flickr to replace copyrighted material in one of her lectures. She uses the import tool to bring the images in directly from Flickr. They appear at the top of the screen in the Organize module. Below are labels representing her courses, which can be opened to reveal materials and opened again to reveal content objects. She opens up her materials to reveal content objects, and drags each new image onto the content object it is meant to replace. By doing this, the replacement objects inherit applicable metadata from their originals such as location and keywords.

She has also imported one image as additional material, not meant to replace anything. She drags this image onto the label of the material it will belong to.

Organize module scenario #3
A dScribe has imported five flash video files which were part of one lecture. These videos are clips from the same series, and he wants to group them and clear them as one object. He imported them a week ago but wasn't sure what he was going to do with them, so he left them uncategorized. To organize them as a group, he goes to the organize module. He changes the object view from "new objects" to "unlabeled objects. These videos are his only unlabeled objects, and they appear at the top of the window. He selects each of them, then drags them onto the "new group" icon. A menu appears which asks him to give the new group a label and description. He also chooses a course to which the group belongs, and clicks "Done."

Two days later, as he is working with these video files, he realizes that one of them is not actually a clip from the same video. He goes to the organize module, opens the group, selects the file which doesn't belong, and clicks "Remove from group." After doing this, the file appears in the list of unlabeled objects. He drags it to a powerpoint presentation into which the file was embedded.

Organize module scenario #4: Import tool
A dScribe needs to upload lecture slides from the last 3 weeks. She has downloaded the lectures from CTools and has them in a folder on her hard drive. She opens her browser and logs into OERca. She goes to the Import module. A field appears in the middle of her screen, with a "Browse" button to the right of the field. A check box below the field asks if she wants the documents she is uploading to be decomposed into individual content objects. She wants this so she leaves it checked. She clicks on the browse button, which opens up a menu listing the contents of her hard drives. She navigates to the folder containing her files, clicks on one, then holds the Command key and clicks the other two, selecting all three of them. She then clicks the "import " button on the menu. The menu closes, and on the OERca screen appear 3 progress bars, one for each file. The progress bars give a numerical indication of the progress (i.e. 45%) as well as a visual indication, such as a line which runs across the bar and changes the color of the bar behind it as it goes.

As these files are uploading, she remembers that she needs to clear a website used in the class. She has this site bookmarked, so she copies the link from her bookmarks, then clicks on the text field (which is still available even when other items are being uploaded) and pastes the url, then clicks "import." A new progress bar appears, and soon the other 3 files have finished.

When all materials are finished uploading, the "Finished" button becomes active, and she clicks it. She is then redirected to the Metadata module.

Metadata module
The overall concept behind the metadata module is to eliminate as many inefficiencies in data entry as possible and make it as simple as possible to add metadata to objects.

The metadata module will, by default, present all objects to the dScribe An object can be a CO, material, course or school (anything created as a part of the hierarchy). Note that not all levels of the hierarchy can be visualized at once. CO's and materials will appear together, or the view could be switched to courses and materials or school and courses. The most common view for a dScribe should be the material and CO view. Also note that the user can view only CO's or only materials etc. if they choose. The dScribe can then make use of faceted search to narrow down objects to just what they want to see. OERca2 will rely heavily on faceted search to navigate and organize objects.

From the metadata module, dScribes can select an object or select multiple objects and add metadata to them. The metadata module should also be include the capability to view enlarged versions of content objects as well as view the context image.

When a dScribe goes to edit the metadata of an object, the interface should bring empty metadata fields to the user. Once metadata is entered, the dScribe in most cases will not need to see it. What the dScribe needs to see is what metadata is missing. Metadata that has been entered should be hidden initially in the editing interface, although the user should have the option to see it if they need to.

When multiple content objects are selected, the interface becomes an edit-only tool. Metadata which is missing for all selected content objects is still presented first. But other metadata is not shown (since it will likely be different for each object). If the user wants to edit metadata for the group which has already been entered for at least one of the objects, there needs to be an indicator that existing metadata will be overwritten. This interaction will require very careful thought and design.

The metadata module should make it easy to enter metadata by offering suggestions which are clickable where possible. Much of the content a dScribe will need to enter will be repeated from other content. OERca should have a simple interface for allowing users to choose from existing metadata as well as enter new metadata. A similar interface can be used to suggest keywords.

Metadata module scenario #1
A dScribe has just imported the last three weeks of lectures into OERca. He needs to add the basic metadata to all the objects. Using faceted search, he narrows his objects to just these three lectures. He clicks the "Select All" button and then clicks edit. In the edit interface, he wants to give them all the same author. When he clicks on the author field, it offers two suggestions. One is the instructor of the class who authored most of the materials so far, and the other is a guest lecturer who has one set of slides. He clicks on the name of the professor, then clicks "Done."

Metadata module scenario #2
A med student dScribing the Cardiovascular/Respiratory Sequence wants to separate and label all the graphs. She views all content objects in the sequence using faceted search. She then scrolls through all content objects and selects the graphs. Occasionally she cannot tell from the thumbnail if something is a graph, so she enlarges it to check and returns without losing what she has already selected. Once she has selected all the graphs, she clicks "Edit." The field for "Content Type" is near the top of the page because none of these objects have been identified as graphs yet. She changes the dropdown to graph then clicks "Done."

Metadata module scenario #3
After uploading a replacement for a copyrighted photograph, a dScribe needs to add new metadata for the object. The location in the material is copied over from the object which is being replaced, as well as keywords, but all other metadata still needs to be entered. The object is selected and opened in the editor. The dScribe enters the name of the new author, selects the object's license from a dropdown menu, chooses a content type from a dropdown menu, and adds a description into a text field. The dScribe then clicks "Done."

Metadata module scenario #4
A dScribe is unsure which license should be used for a series of images. He uses the communication tool to ask a dScribe2. The dScribe 2 responds with instructions about the licensing. Some of the images will require one license and some will require a different license. The communication tools allows content objects in question to be selected in either the metadata or clearing modules. The dScribe uses this to select some of the objects in the metadata module, click edit, then add the license. He then goes back to the communication tool, selects the remaining objects into the metadata module, opens the editor and adds a license.

Metadata module scenario #5
A dScribe is looking for a replacement for an image, when she remembers finding a similar image from some site, but can't remember exactly where. She searches for that image in the metadata tool, adding a couple of filters in the faceted search and then scrolling until she sees it. She clicks the edit button which is directly on the object, clicks the button to see existing metadata rather than the missing metadata, and looks at the source information. She copies the url and opens the link in a new tab to begin searching for a replacement for her other image.

Metadata module scenario #6
A dScribe has just logged into OERca and plans to work in the metadata module. He is dScribing a course with two other dScribes. They have divided the work in such a way that one will add metadata to all the objects, another will clear or find replacements to the objects, and another will work on editing and publishing the final documents. As he is working on adding metadata, a flag appears on the communication tool icon. He opens the communication tool and sees a new object on the list. One of the other dScribes has asked a question about the metadata for this object. The dScribe2 has already responded, but gave an inconclusive response. The dScribe who had originally entered the metadata has more information about it and can give a better response. He clicks "Respond" and answers the question. When he clicks "Done" the window closes and he is left in the communication tool.

Clearing Module
The clearing module will provide dScribes with a set of tools to help them determine an action for each object and execute that action.

The main interface for the module will allow users to select an object or objects and assign an action. It will include a helper for determining the appropriate action.

Once an action is chosen, other tools can be engaged to help execute the action. A search tool will let users do searches across open content sites based on the metadata already entered for the object. A crowdsource tool will let dScribes engage others for help or suggestions with content objects. The communication tool will let the dScribe talk to others about processing the object.

Clearing module scenario #1
A dScribe has about 30 images which she quickly recognizes will fall under Fair Use because they are all incidental. In the Clearing module, she uses faceted search to narrow her objects down a bit, then selects the objects she knows fall under Fair Use. After selecting these images, the clicks the "Choose Action" button, which brings up a menu from which 'Retain: Fair Use' can be selected. Below this menu is a text field for entering a rationale. She enters her rationale and clicks "Done."

Clearing module scenario #2
A dScribe is unsure what action to take with an image of rockstar. He uses the communication tool to ask the dScribe2 about the image. The dScribe2 responds, telling him to search for a replacement. The dScribe2 sets the action to replace using her Clearing module. The object now appears in the Search tool, and the dScribe can take advantage of its functionality to find a replacement.

Clearing module scenario #3
A dScribe is trying to search for new images of skin cancer. She is having a hard time finding anything that will work well, so she decides to see if others have come across skin cancer images in their searches. In the clearing module, she selects the images she is searching for and drags them into the crowdsourcing tool. When she releases the mouse button, a menu opens up which asks her to offer any useful information about these images which will help others better understand what she is looking for in a replacement. After she enters this information, she clicks done.

A few days later she notices the crowdsourcing tool has a little flag telling her that someone has responded to her. She clicks the tool to enter and see what has happened.

Clearing module scenario #4
A dScribe has a question about three images, as well as a question about the material they are labeled under. These questions are related, so he wants to ask them together. He is working in the clearing module, and selects the content objects and the material and drags them to the communication tool. A window opens which shows thumbnails of the objects and a field to enter the question. He enters his question, clicks "Done," and the window closes.

Later that day, a flag appears on the communication tool. He clicks the tool and sees a list of objects that he has asked about, and another list of objects that he has been asked about. Next to his most recent object is an indicator that he has received a response. He opens the object, and a window opens showing the objects and his message and the response in a threaded view. The response gives him the information he needed to make a decision about these objects. He closes the window, goes to the clearing module and sets an action for each object.

Review module
The review module will let dScribes have an overview of the processed objects/docs prior to editing and again prior to publishing. They will be able to share this preview with others for approval and comments. It will also allow them to make sure they haven't missed anything or made any mistakes.

Review module scenario #1
After clearing all content, a dScribe feels confident that his course is ready for editing. He enters the review module to look at all his work in context. He clicks the course he has just finished clearing, and a new window appears inside the interface with the original context image, as well as each content object and any replacements. He looks at each context image and is satisfied he has finished everything. He does want to make a comment about one of the replacements for the dScribe2, so he clicks the "comment" link which opens a text field below the image. He enters his comment, clicks "save" and continues reviewing the course. When he comes to the last slide he moves to the export tool to recompose and download the documents for a final edit.

Review module scenario #2
A dScribe has given his material a pre-edit review. Using the export tool in the review module, he downloads the document by selecting it from a list of his documents labeled as a material, and clicking "Download." The document is recomposed, where objects are replaced, removed, and metadata is added to the document pages. He opens the document in Open Office and edits it in order to make it a polished, presentable document. When he has finished, he goes back into OERca and enters the import tool. The import tool asks him if he is uploading an edited version of an existing document, and he clicks "Yes" and chooses the existing document from a list. When the document is finished uploading, a window opens which displays two sets of context images, one from the original document and one from the edited document. The interface allows him to scroll through the context images of both files together for comparison. There is a comment field, and the dScribe adds comments on slides that he removed from the original file and explains to offer an explanation to the instructor and publisher. When he has looked over each slide, he clicks "Done." This releases the pre-publish version to be reviewed and commented on by others.

Organize Module
A dScribe2 can use the organize module to help dScribes build their hierarchies and to create groups for their own processing as well as to help dScribes and publishers.

Organize module scenario #5
A dScribe2 is looking over the work that one of her dScribes is doing and looking at how he organized his content. She notices that he labeled one of the videos from the course as a material when it should be labeled as a content object. She drags the file onto the "Remove from group' icon. It now appears as an unlabeled object, and she drags it into the material to which it belongs.

Organize module scenario #6
A dScribe2 notices a group that one of his dScribes has created. He feels that this group should include some other objects and should be given a better description than what the dScribe has given. Using faceted search, he sorts objects until he finds the new images to be added to the group. He selects them and drags them onto the group's label. Then, he clicks the label to reveal an "Edit" button. He clicks the button, and a window opens showing the objects, a label and description field. These fields have text already, and he changes the text in the description field. He clicks "Done" and the window closes.

Metadata module
The dScribe2's goal in using the metadata module is similar to a dScribe's. dSribe2's need to be able to view and edit the metadata of objects as efficiently as possible. It is likely that a dScribe2 will spend more time looking at higher levels of the hierarchy, such as school and course metadata, than a dScribe who is concerned mostly with material and content object metadata. This is why OERca2 will offer visualizations schools and courses in the same space (but not at the same time) as materials and content objects.

Metadata module scenario #7
A dScribe has asked a question about the source information for a content object using the communication tool. The dScribe2 is notified of this question, and looks at the image. He recognizes it as having been reused from another of this instructor's courses from a previous semester, which had already been cleared and published. The dScribe2 uses faceted search to locate that object from the old course. In the metadata module, he opens the old object and clicks the "copy all metadata" button, then closes the object. He uses faceted search again to return the object from the new material. He selects it and clicks the "paste metadata" button. He retunrs to the communication tool to remark that the object now has all metadata.

Metadata module scenario #8
A dScribe2 is working on finishing some content that her dScribes couldn't finish before the end of the semester. She is using the metadata module to add metadata to a content object. She needs to add an author to this object. She clicks on the author field, and below the field a list of names of authors who appear at other places in OERca appears. She clicks the name of the correct author, and this name fills the field. She moves on to source information. When she clicks on the field, another list appears of sources that have been previously used. The source for this object has not been previously used, so she ignores it and pastes the correct information into the field.

Clearing module
dScribe2's will use the clearing module to set or change actions to objects, and also to use the various tools to clear objects.

Clearing module scenario #5
A dScribe2 is sent notification that one of his new dScribes has set an action for 20 objects. He wants to check what the dScribe did, so he enters the clearing module, uses faceted search to filter the objects by dScribe, and looks at which actions were set. He sees that the dScribe has marked several images as search when they clearly fall under Fair Use. He selects each of these object, clicks the "Set action" button, and changes the action to "Retain: Fair Use." He adds a comment to these images using the communication tool to explain why they can be claimed as Fair Use.

Clearing module scenario #6
A dScribe2 is meeting in person with a dScribe, who is asking questions about copyright policy and choosing actions. The dScribe2 pulls up the clearing module and shows the dScribe the copyright tutorial available there. This tutorial opens in a window with a series of slides, the same interface as the review module. After looking at these slides, the dScribe2 shows the dScribe the workflow descriptions. These appear as a separate link next to the link for the copyright tutorial. After clicking the link, a similar window opens, and slides appear which explain the workflow for each action. When all the slides have been viewed, the dScribe2 clicks "Close."

Review module
dScribe2's will use the review module to look at completed materials and objects, particularly those cleared by a dScribe. They will need both the pre-edit and pre-publish modes of the review module. The ability to comment on objects will be crucial to dScribe2's using this module.

Review module scenario #3
A dScribe2 receives notification from a dScribe that all content is cleared. The dScribe2 goes to the review module and selects the course from a list of all courses she is working on. A window opens up which shows the first context image for the course, and which has a list of all content objects which can be scrolled. The replacements appear next to each other. A few of the objects have comments, indicated by a link that says "1 comment" under the objects. The dScribe2 clicks the link and the comments open up below the object. She needs to make a comment, so she clicks the "Add comment" link and a field opens for her to write. When she has scrolled through all content objects, she clicks "Done." A message now appears in the communication tool attached to this material which indicates that the dScribe2 has reviewed the material and that new comments have been added.

Review module scenario #4
A dScribe2 is using the review module to look at the pre-published version of a document. The dScribe2 notes a number of problems with the way the dScribe has formatted the document. He clicks the comment link at each instance and explains the problem. After reviewing everything, he clicks "Done," then opens the manager tool. He selects this dScribe from a list. He clicks the "Add a task" button. A window opens with text fields into which information about the new task is entered. He enters the task to reformat the document, then clicks "Done" and the window closes.

Organize module
Publishers will need to create labels and groups from objects.

Organize module scenario #7
A publisher wants to create a set of "Featured Courses," and wants to designate these courses in OERca so they receive special attention. He goes into the organize module, sets the view to see courses and materials, then uses faceted search to filter the courses until he finds the courses he is looking for. He selects these course, then drags them to the "Create new group" icon. A window opens up which lets him enter a title and description for the group. He does this, then clicks "Done."

Metadata module
Publishers will need to have access to all the metadata for the content they are publishing. Using the metadata module, publishers need to be able to quickly find their content, view their metadata and copy it or change it if necessary.

Metadata module scenario #9
A publisher is preparing to post course materials. She wants to include some basic information about the course, as well as all citations from the materials. She logs in to OERca, and clicks the "Courses" button above faceted search, then clicks the "Materials" button so that she sees courses as the top level object and the materials within each course. Using the faceted search tools she narrows her results down to just the course she is currently publishing. She selects the course then clicks "Edit" to see all the course level metatadata. She highlights the information she is looking for, presses Ctrl+C to copy, then pastes into her editor. She returns to OERca, closes the course metadata and selects the first lecture and clicks "Edit." Not all metadata has been entered for this material, so she must click "view all info" to see the info that has been entered (note: this could be a preference, publishers always see all data instead of being told what is missing like dScribes). She finds the citation info, copies it and pastes into her editor. She repeats this for each material.

Clearing module
Publisher from time to time may need to clear their own content.

Clearing module scenario #7
A publisher is working on the presentation of the website, and wants to use a series of images and quotes. He is using OERca to clear these objects. He is looking at the objects he has cleared and realizes he inadvertently cleared an object that he hasn't actually looked at yet. He needs to undo this action. He changes the action to "No action assigned."

Review module
Publishers need to review materials and export them before they can publish them. The review module will allow them to make comments and work with dScribes to finalize materials.

Review module scenario #5
A publisher logs into OERca and sees a notification on the review module that new materials are ready for review. There is a new version of a document which the publisher had previously reviewed and suggested some changes. In the review module, she selects the newest version and the previous (post-edit) version and clicks "Review." A window opens with the newest version on top and the previous version below. She looks through each context image, using the scroll button which scrolls both versions simultaneously. Whenever the comment link says there is a comment, she clicks it and the comment opens underneath. When she finishes going through all context images and examining them compared to the previous version, she checks the box "Publisher approval" and clicks "Done."