Description
The document conversion tool is part of the Accessibility+ Toolkit and allows faculty to access multiple file formats of existing file resources within a Moodle course.
This guide will help you to:
Recognize Document Conversion File Types
When documents such as MS Word, PDF, and PowerPoint files are uploaded into a Moodle course, the file conversion tool icon will now appear beside them.
[Note: As new files are added, you may not see the file conversion tool icon immediately; however, refreshing the Moodle page will make it appear.]
Depending on the type of original file being converted (e.g. Word document, PDF, etc.), the toolkit provides several conversion options such as:
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Text
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Audio
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Ebook
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DAISY
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Braille
The conversion types are also broken down into multiple formats. For example, the following options are available when requesting a Text file format for a Word document:
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PDF – Tagged PDF
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TXT – Plain text
[Note: Each different conversion type has a different range of formats on offer. For instance, if you select Audio, you can also select the language of the original document as well as the speed you want the audio conversion file to be.]
Request a Converted Document
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Click on the file conversion tool icon, and a pop-up window will appear that lists the options to choose from in drop-down menus.
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Select the file format you’d like from the pop up screen (e.g. Text, Audio).
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Select Request.
If the specific conversion has already been processed, the alternative file will already be stored and instantly produced as a file that can be downloaded. So, for instance, if you know in advance that one of your students will need audio conversions (and which speed format they prefer), you can request those conversions to get them processed in advance so that they will be ready for instant downloading whenever your student wants them.
If the file has not already been converted to the specified conversion type and format, you or your students can request the alternative file and will then see a confirmation message displayed. This means the conversion request has been queued, and you can safely return to the course main page. To exit out of the pop-up screen, either select the “Close” button or on the “X” icon in the top right corner of the pop up, or else select anywhere on the screen outside the pop up screen.
Retrieve a Newly Converted Document
The file conversion can usually take between a few minutes and an hour, depending on the size and type of the file content being converted. Once the requested file is converted, you will see a new notification alert in Moodle ISU.
Select this notification pop up and select the “(Filename) is ready for download” link to bring up the new file to open or download. You can also select the relevant “View full notification” link to view all notification messages.
On the notifications page, you will see the entire notification message, which contains the message similar to: “Your document conversion request for 'Accessibility Basics Handout original.mp3 Audio' is now ready for download.” You can select this link to open or download the new file.
Seek Further Assistance
For additional assistance, please contact the ITRC at (208) 282-5880 or itrc@isu.edu.
This work was created by the Idaho State University Instructional Technology Resource Center and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.