Learn To Investigate Classroom Suite Activities Like A Detective!

Intellitools Classroom Suite® is such a powerful application that you may wonder how you’ll ever learn all that it can do. The answer is, you can’t–but you really don’t need to learn everything to be a power user.

You do need to know the basics of using the templates and saving activities. But after that, plan to learn new things at the point when you need to use them.

This workshop will equip you with the strategies you need to be an efficient detective. With these skills you’ll be able to mine the wealth of activities you download from the Attic, have as part of your ICS installation, and receive from others or the Activity Exchange.

A Page From Detective Work

Workshop Resources
The workshop consists of a PDF file that discusses in detail eight strategies for analyzing activities. There is an examples activity called Detective Work to give you hands on experience in using these strategies. There are also some brief additional notes that I hope will be valuable to someone conducting this workshop.

Hands-On Examples
Detective Work is a mine of information on tricks and techniques. I also think you’ll have fun working the assignments in it. Prepare to learn more about page and button actions, sneaky toolbars, elusive buttons and graphics, and two entirely different ways to use IntelliMation! The workshop covers the following strategies:

• 1. If it happens automatically when the page or activity opens, look at Page Actions by control-clicking part of the background.
• 2. If it happens when a button in a toolbar or on the page is clicked, begin by inspecting its Properties/Button Actions.
• 3. It’s not always possible to tell what is background by inspection, so check the Page Background. Plan to control-click and check the Properties windows of all page items for clues, including item type.
• 4. Be alert for invisibles such as transparent page buttons, graphic objects hiding on the page, and regions. Use Control-A followed by Control-L to find all but regions. Use IntelliPics Studio/Show Regions to make regions visible. The Edit/Select Object list names all page items on the current page. Choosing Edit/Properties after selecting opens the Properties of hard to select items.
• 5. Use Edit/Custom Toolbars and Buttons to find hidden toolbars. The Toolbar menu that appears lists all toolbars in the activity.
• 6. If different toolbars appear on different pages, check Page Actions on each page to see how these toggling toolbars are controlled.
• 7. If what is apparently the same button on a toolbar has a different effect on different pages, you have deceptive toolbars. Look in the Toolbar list for of a set of similar-appearing toolbars whose buttons look the same but have different actions.
• 8. Investigate IntelliMation by opening the timeline, clicking each red animation time point, and observing what has changed. Check for items that have moved, been added or deleted, changed size, shape, rotation, and/or Design Layer. Look for both Page Actions and Button Actions that use what you found on the timeline to play all or part of the timeline smoothly (Play IntelliMation and Page Sound, Play Range) and/or jump to points on the timeline (Set IntelliMation Time).

I’ve packaged up Detective Work and the Classroom Suite Detective tutorial in one zip file, so that participants in a workshop can install and have both the tutorial and examples open in ICS.

There is a separate file that includes the tutorial, extra notes, and a Quickstart list of the eight strategies. Also, the Quickstart list alone makes a nice handout with any Classroom Suite workshop. For more IntelliMation tips, refer to the Who’s In The Barn? post.

Application needed: IntelliTools Classroom Suite, Acrobat Reader.
Subject area: Workshop
Level: Author

Downloads-Activities

DetectiveWorkActivity.zip (15.9 MB) Detective Work activity and tutorial to install into Classroom Suite v.3 or later.

ICSDetectiveResources.zip (1.7 MB) All Detective documents in one file. ICS Detective tutorial, strategy list, and notes to print. No movies. Acrobat Reader.

ICSDetectiveStrategyList.pdf (800 KB) ICS Detective Strategy List handout alone to print. No movies. Acrobat Reader.

Online Tutorials

ICS Detective Tutorial online ICS Detective Tutorial online, ready to present to a group.

ICS Detective Strategy List online ICS Detective Strategy List handout online, ready to present to a group.

ICS Detective work notes online ICS Detective work notes online, ready to assist a presenter.