Question and Answer

• What is Flex TV?
• What does FlexTV look like?
• What do I need to use FlexTV?
• I'm a teacher. How can I activate FlexTV in my classroom?
• How do I use FlexTV?
• SEE A DEMO OF FLEX TV

Question: What is FlexTV?

Answer: FlexTV is a new feature in the Ucompass.com, Inc. Educator Learning Management System designed to help students and teachers find television programming where they live that is supplementary or complimentary to the subject material of their courses.

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Question: What does FlexTV look like?

Answer: Below you can see a sample screen capture of FlexTV. It shows a user taking a Meteorology course searching for television programming relative to the keyword, Climate.

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Question: What do I need to use FlexTV?

Answer: You need the latest version of the Flash Player from Adobe. The latest version is Version 9.

Below is a direct link to Adobe's website to download the latest version of the free Flash Player:

http://www.adobe.com/shockwave/download/download.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash

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Question: I'm a teacher. How can I activate FlexTV in my classroom?

Answer: FlexTV has its own CGI identifier called flextv. So you can either add a button to your navigation menu that is pointed at FlexTV:

Or, you can add an object link to flextv to an Educator content area:

<object:flextv::Flex TV>

Of course, if you need more specific instructions, you can e-mail one of our E-Learning Technicians at support@ucompass.com.

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Question: How do I use FlexTV?

Answer: When you first access FlexTV, you'll be asked to input your zip code. Enter a five-digit zip code (currently only United States and United States territories are supported) then press the 'Go!' button.

Then, you will see a list of all registered television service providers and cable operators assigned to your zip code. Simply click on the company you use as your television provider. Unfortunately, while our data is very complete, we may not have all providers in all parts of the country.

At first, you will see a grid that lists all of the current day's television programming, fast-forwarded to the current time of day.

You can use the time pull-down interface controls to move forward or backward in half-hour increments. You can also use the calendar interface control to move ahead up to 2 WEEKS into the future to display television programming by time.

When you click on a TV program, you'll see something similar to the following:

Searching for TV Programming by Keyword

By default, television programming is displayed by time of day and by date. If you click the "Keyword Search" tab, you can search for programming either by course keyword or by generic keyword.

The terms under the 'Course Keyword' pull-down interface come from any GLOSSARIES you have in your current Educator classroom. To learn more about Glossaries, see the Educator tutorial, or contact an E-Learning Technician at support@ucompass.com.

Learning More About a TV Program or Actor from IMDB

When you click on the name of a TV program, you'll see a dialogue that lets you click on the name of the program and (sometimes) the names of any actors/actresses in the program. When you click on these links, you'll see info within the FlexTV interface straight from the IMDB (Internet Movie Database):

Adding a TV Program to Your Educator Calendar

Upon clicking on the name of a TV program, you'll see an "Add to Calendar" icon. Upon clicking this, the television program will be added to your Educator calendar.

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