Studymate Campus-Wide License

Overview
Conditions Of License
How To Obtain Installation Media

Renewing Your License Each Year
System Requirements
Installation Instructions
Obtaining Studymate Patches (updates)
How to Install a Patch or Hotfix
Support For Studymate
Studymate Documentation and Resources
Sign Up for the VCU RESPONDUS-L Listserv
Consultation and training available by appointment

Overview
Studymate allows instructors to easily create Flash-based learning activities and games that can be published directly into Blackboard. This is available as a free download to all VCU faculty.

Advantages of Studymate
This tool offers many enhancements to the current methods of authoring and distributing assessments in Blackboard.

  • Interactive activities can be created from existing content
  • Choose from ten Flash-based activities and games
  • No programming or HTML skills are required
  • Microsoft Word (a tool used by nearly all faculty) can be used to create activities
  • Studymate easily imports items from MS Word files and publisher test banks into Blackboard

Authoring & Importing

  • Create Flash-based activities and games using an "offline" Windows interface
  • Create activities for use on iPods, Sony Playstation Portable(PSP) and other small screen devices
  • Four templates let you create ten activities and games (view sample activities here)
  • Import existing content from Respondus, MS Word, rich-text, IMS QTI, and other formats
  • Download publisher test banks for use with StudyMate Author from the Respondus Test Bank Network
  • "Spell check" an entire file (includes dictionaries for American English, Canadian English, British English, French, German, Spanish, Dutch, Finnish, and a comprehensive medical dictionary)
  • Insert graphics such as gif, jpeg, bmp, png, and pcx
  • Embed audio files such as mp3 or wav
  • Convert oversized graphics to a suitable size with one click
  • Create algorithmic questions using the "Calculated" template
  • Insert mathematical and scientific symbols using the built-in Equation Editor or MathType
  • Add links to content on other servers with the Web Link tool
  • Use the Quick Copy Wizard to quickly assemble activities from existing StudyMate Author files or publisher test banks
  • Randomize questions and answer choices so the activity is different each time it's started

Preview, Publish and Settings

  • Select from six language interfaces for activities (Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, and Spanish)
  • Choose settings that meet your accessibility objectives
  • Preview activities and games before generating the Flash object
  • Select only the activities and games wanted for the final Flash object
  • Publish activities directly to Blackboard Basic or Enterprise (6.0 or higher), WebCT CE (4.0 or higher), WebCT Vista (2.1 or higher), or ANGEL LMS (6.3 or higher)
  • Export activities as a SCORM 1.2 learning object or as a standard Flash (.swf) object
  • Print questions or items directly from StudyMate Author, or save them to MS Word or rich-text format

Also includes

  • Full context-sensitive help
  • StudyMate Author User Guide (MS Word/Wordpad format)
  • Access to over 1,000 publisher test banks that can be downloaded and used with StudyMate Author -- FREE to instructors who adopt a participating textbook

Conditions Of License
Use of Studymate, included in this license is subject to all of the following conditions:

  • All VCU faculty and staff are licensed to use the product at no cost.
  • The product may be installed on VCU owned PC's and on privately owned PC's.
  • The installation media may be shared among licensed VCU users. That is, Studymate installation media may be used to install Studymate on multiple PC's, but licenses for such additional installs must be registered at: https://www.pubapps.vcu.edu/wss/software/myDownload.asp?ff_sid=5303.
  • The use of the product under this license is restricted to VCU-related purposes ONLY. (Note that this applies regardless of how the installation media is obtained and who owns or uses the PC on which the products are installed.)
  • The product may be used for VCU academic and administrative purposes.
  • When you leave VCU you lose the right to use the product, and you must immediately uninstall it from all PCs on which you had installed it and on which you had authorized it's installation.
  • You may NOT resell this license and/or the product it covers.

How To Obtain Installation Media
The installation software can be obtained at the VCU download website.


Renewing Your License Each Year
Your Studymate software will expire on July 31st each year unless you annually obtain and apply a new installation password.

Several weeks prior to the expiration date, Technology Services will email registered users with instructions for obtaining and installing the new password. Anyone who downloads from the VCU download website is automatically registered to the Respondus listserv where they will receive emails concerning product updates for both Respondus and Studymate.



System Requirements
The minimum hardware and software requirements for Studymate:

Operating System
Windows 98, NT4, ME, 2000, XP, Vista
Memory
32 MB RAM minimum.
Hard Disk Space
10 MB of free hard disk space for program files.
Monitor
800x600 minimum (1024x768 recommended).
Course Management System
Studymate is compatible with Blackboard 6.0 and higher (Basic and Enterprise)
Browser Plug-ins
StudyMate activities require Macromedia Flash Player 7.0 or higher.


Installation Instructions
The link to instructions for installing Studymate on a Windows PC: Downloading and Installing Studymate


Obtaining Studymate Patches (updates)

  • VCU Download:  After a patch/hotfix has been made available for Studymate, it will usually be available from the VCU Technology Services VCU download website.
  • Studymate Internet Updates: To check for a Studymate update at any time, go to the Help menu and select the 'Check for Update' option.

Support For Studymate
Product support for Studymate can be found at the Respondus web site:

Issues downloading the installer for Studymate or technical issues connecting to Blackboard can be reported to the VCU Help Desk. You will be contacted by a Help Desk or Blackboard support representative.


Studymate Documentation and Resources

  • User's Manual 2.0 - A detailed guide that covers all aspects of Studymate
  • Quick Start Guide - A 1-4 page guide with essential information for getting started with Studymate
  • Teaching with Technology - Center for Teaching Excellence web site.
  • Demo Movies and Screenshots - View the Studymate product web site.
  • Online Help - Online help is available from within the Studymate application. Context-sensitive help is available by pressing the F1 key. Or, go to Help > Help Topics to access the main help system.

Sign Up for the VCU RESPONDUS-L Listserv (mailing list)
Listserv subscribers receive notifications of both Respondus and Studymate upgrades and maintenance fixes. If you downloaded Respondus or Studymate from the VCU download website, you should have been automatically subscribed to the RESPONDUS-L listserv. To manually subscribe, login to your VCU e-mail account and send an e-mail message addressed to:

listserv@lists.vcu.edu

The Subject: field may be left blank. In the body of the e-mail message, type only the following single line:

subscribe RESPONDUS-L firstname lastname

Example for Jane Doe:

subscribe RESPONDUS-L Jane Doe

If you have configured your email program to automatically include signature text at the bottom of your emails, you should (temporarily) turn off that feature when sending this subscription request.


Consultation and training available by appointment

  • Please contact the CTE at (804) 827-0838 to talk with staff about setting up consultations on assessment design, using Studymate or Respondus, or any issues related to the delivery of online assessments.
  • Instructor-Led Courses are available on campus at VCU.
 

701 W. Broad St., Box 843059
Richmond, VA 23284
(804) 828-1177
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VCU