Forums Tool

The Forums tool allows you to create message boards on your site, allowing for asynchronous communication between members. The chief difference between this tool and the Discussion tool is that the Forums tool provides the ability to grade users posts, as well as track how many posts they have made, and how many posts they have read. The two tools also differ in their appearance and organization (and the terms forum, topic, reply, and message do not necessarily correspond between the two tools).

In the Forums tool, the top level consists of one or more forums. Each forum holds one or more topics. Each topic, in turn, holds one or more threads. Each thread consists of an original message, which may then have one or more replies attached to it. Furthermore, replies can in turn be replied to, creating a deep hierarchy of messages.

The main page of the Forums tool shows each forum, and all the topics within that forum. Next to each topic is listed the number of messages (total of all thread roots and replies) and the number of messages you haven't yet read. On the right side is a settings link for each topic and forum, and links to add new topics (in the case of a forum).

Clicking on the name of a forum changes the view to show just that forum and its topics. Above is a breadcrumb path that shows where you are in the forums, and allows you to jump to anywhere in the path by clicking on the names in the path.

Clicking on the name of a topic (in either view) takes you to a topic view, with a table of all threads in the topic. Each thread has a black arrow to the left which allows you to expand/collapse the reply messages hung off that thread (the arrow in the table header will expand/collapse all threads). Each thread is listed with the number of reply messages hanging below it, and how many of those messages you haven't yet read.

Clicking on the title of a thread from this view will take you to a page that shows the thread's root message and all subsequent reply messages (either to the root or to other replies) in a hierarchical view. This is Thread view. You can change to other viewing types using the View selection box (either by date or only unread messages). Only Thread view shows the hierarchical structure.

For each message, you can click on Reply at the right to create a new reply to that message. You can click on Other Actions to expand a list of further options to Grade the message, Revise the message, or Delete it.

When you click on the name of a reply message in either view, you are taken to a page which shows only that message. Above it are options to Reply (either to the specific message or its parent thread), Delete, or Grade.

On the Forums tool main page, there are four tabs at the top. New Forum allows you to create a new forum. The resulting page allows you to fill out the settings for the new forum, including the title, short and long descriptions, and any attachments if desired. Under Forum Posting, you can choose to lock the forum, preventing members from posting messages within that forum. You can also choose to moderate topics, meaning that you will get a chance to approve any topics that your members try to create in the forum.

Under Permissions, you can check which actions each different type of member (student, TA, etc.) on your site can take in this forum. You can also set whether individuals have the ability to edit their own or even anyone's posted messages. You can also choose whether to associate a Gradebook assignment with this forum. Click an appropriate button at the bottom when you are finished with your forum. You can revise these settings by clicking on one of the Forum Settings links for this forum.

The Organize tab on the main page allows you to change the order that your forums are listed in, as well as the order of the topics within them. The resulting page shows a simplified table view of the forums and topics, with a selection box to the left of each. Choose the number of the position each forum/topic should have from its selection box. When you are finished, press the Save Settings button.

The Template Settings tab allows you to set the default options for new forums and topics. The settings you choose here will be selected automatically whenever you create a new forum/topic (although you can still change them there if you desire). Press Save Settings when you are satisfied with your selections.

The Statistics tab on the main page shows you a table of all members, how many messages they have posted, how many messages they have read, how many messages they have not read, and the percentage read. Clicking on the name of a member shows you two tables, one of messages they have posted and one of messages they have read.

When you create a new topic (from one of several links in the Forums tool), you are presented with the same options as when creating a forum. You can also revisit your selections for a topic by clicking on one of the Topic Settings links for that topic. To add your topic, press Save Settings. To add your topic and begin creating a new one, press Save Settings & Add Topic.

When viewing a single topic (after clicking on the name of the topic in the main page table or the single forum view), you can create a new thread under that topic by clicking on the Post New Thread tab. When adding a thread you can enter a title, the message content, and add attachments. Press Post Message when you are done.

Clicking Display Entire Message / Display Subject Only will toggle the topic view from displaying just the subject of each message, or displaying the message content as well.

Clicking on the printer icon in the tab bar will open a printable version of the topic, showing the title and content of every message of every thread, in a new window.

When viewing a single thread, you can click on Reply to Thread in the tab bar to create a new reply message under that thread. You can click on Mark All as Read to tell OWL-Space to remember that you've seen these messages (to distinguish them from new, unread messages in the future). You can click on the printer icon to open a printable version showing all the messages in this thread.

When creating a new message (as a new thread or a reply) you can enter a title (automatically filled in for replies, though you can edit it), message content, and add attachments. Press the Post Message button when you are done.

When you click on the Grade link for a message, you will be taken to the Grade Forum Message page. Here you can enter the number of points to award, choose which assignment this grade should be applied to from the Assignments selection box, and enter any comments if desired. Press Submit Grade when you are done.