Datalynx create

General comments

This page will show you how to create a simple datalynx activity. It is a step by step guide how to setup an activity for collecting and discussing photos in a course. This is the most basic setup for a datalynx activity. There are far more complex usages of the module like certification workflows, or course programme catalogues.

Activity goals of this example activity

Students should upload photos with a shallow depth of field using manual settings of their digital camera. By chosing the right combination of aperture and shutter speed, the object in the foreground should be completely sharp, whereas the background should be blurred. Teachers should rate the activity and comment on the photo quality.

In order to achieve that we need the following:

Views

• A view for creating an entry
• A view for seeing all entries with thumbnail images
• A detailed view with large images

Fields

A field of type Image. And user profile fields such as Username in order to identify who has made the entry

Other components

• Comments tag
• Notifications for comments and ratings

Step 1: Add a new datalynx instance to the course

1. Click on Add an activity or resource
   

   Add a datalynx instance
2. Fill out the settings
   1. Name: The name of the acivity
   2. Introduction: Contrary to other activities, the introduction is not used to be displayed within the activity. You can use it to display additional information on the course page by checking the box "Display description on course pageHelp with Display description on course page"
   3. Timing: For this activity not applicable, you can set availability options if you want that the activity can only be acces within a certain timeframe
   4. Rating: Define how to rate the activity: Points or stars, etc.
   5. Entry settings: If it is required, that student must make one entry and not more than one entry, you can set "Required entries" and "Maximum entries" to 1.
      • Required entries
      • Entries required before viewing
      • Maximum entries
3. Common module setings: Leave default values
4. Click on "Save and display"