Warpwire is a tool dedicated to streaming media. If your course has multimedia content such as videos and audio, Warpwire is the best solution. Warpwire can also be used to create short videos and screen captures by you and your students. It is possible to create a media library associated with a course, but also make it open to anyone with a NetID, which makes it easy to share media across courses and store video content.

This page covers:

Incorporating Warpwire into Your Canvas Course

There are a number of ways to use the Warpwire tool in Canvas. 

  1. Warpwire can be a tool in the Course Navigation Bar. This allows you and the students to access the full library easily. 
  2. Warpwire can be added as a Module item. This allows students to access the full Warpwire library inline with other course content in Modules.
  3. In any tool that has a Rich Content Editor, a Warpwire item can be embedded into it. So for example, an audio file or video could be embedded in a Discussion, Assignment or a Page. This can be done either by an instructor or student.

Below are instructions for these options and rationales for why you should choose one over another. Note that we suggest you and your students open the interface to a full size tab for ease of use.

Important: By default, only the instructor can upload or record media in your Warpwire library. To allow students to add media to your library, you’ll need to change the setting of your Warpwire library to allow all users to upload.

Adding Warpwire into the Course Navigation Menu

Use Cases: Course Content and Media Projects

Course Content

You would like students to interact with course content in Warpwire, such as artworks or film clips, and navigate easily to the full library. 

Media Projects

You may have students upload or record their own media to Warpwire. You are interested in having students navigate easily to the Warpwire interface. 

Note: you can allow all students to see each others’ projects, or you could change the settings in Warpwire to make the content only visible to the instructor. Be sure to allow students to upload content to the Warpwire library.

  • Pro: This is the most direct way for students to see the full media library for the course. 
  • Con: In this approach Warpwire videos are not automatically attached to Grades.

Instructions

  1. In the course navigation bar, go to Settings.
  2. Click on the tab Navigation at the top of the window.
  3. Scroll down to find the Warpwire menu option, click the three-dot button beside it, and select Enable. Or you can drag the Warpwire item up to the top menu to make it visible to students.
  4. Scroll down to the bottom and click Save.

Using Warpwire in Modules

Use Case: Insert Course Content in Modules

You have built out weekly content in the Modules tool for students to navigate through the course. You want them to open the whole Warpwire library from there.

Instructions 

  1. In the module you want the Warpwire assignment to appear, use the + symbol at the far right to add a new item to the module.
  1. In the pull-down menu, select External Tool. Then scroll down to find Warpwire and click on the name.
  2. You may be asked to log into Warpwire and then be returned to the first screen. Select Add Item at the bottom of the box.

Adding a Warpwire Media Item Using the Rich Content Editor

Use Cases: Instructors or Students Embed Warpwire into a Discussion, Page, Assignment, etc.

Embedding Warpwire content into a Discussion, Page, Assignment, Announcement, etc.

Instructors may want to embed Warpwire content directly into a Rich Content Editor (RCE) box. For example, they might insert an audio recording or an introduction video into an announcement.

Creating or uploading a video, image, or video directly into a Discussion, Page, Assignment, Announcement, etc.

Because the Rich Content Editor is available to everyone in a Canvas course, the Warpwire plugin in the editor can allow all to record or upload a Warpwire item within many tools. This could be a video within a discussion for all to see, or a student recording within an assignment that is primarily for the instructor to view and grade. Be sure to allow students to upload content to the Warpwire library.

Instructions

  1. In a Rich Content Editor, find the Warpwire icon that looks like a blue circle with a “W”. If you do not see the Warpwire option right away, click View All to navigate through the plug in options.
  1. You may be asked to log into Warpwire. A window will open where you can either insert an existing item, or add a recording or upload a file directly from that interface.
  1. If you’d like to add a new item, click the plus button, and there are options of Upload Files, Camera Capture, and Screen Capture. You may find the instructions for these options useful: Upload to a Media Library, Multi-Source Capture.
  1. If you ask students to record or upload a media item within an editor in an assignment, you can assign a grade and leave feedback to the students. Select “Online” as the assignment submission type, and check “Text Entry“ in Online Entry Options. Be sure to explain to students how to find the Warpwire plug in with the Rich Content Editor if you expect them to record themselves.

Note: you can also enable “Media Recordings” in Online Entry Options to have students record media in a Canvas built-in tool. The drawback is that there is no common location for these media items. They will only exist within the assignment submission for each student, but that may be fine for the purposes of your assignments.

Get Help

Warpwire Resources

I Am Having Trouble Using Warpwire and Need More Help

For technical questions, please reach out to Duke OIT or contact Warpwire for assistance.For questions related to teaching and learning, contact LILE and we’ll connect you with a LILE consultant to address your concerns.