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edTPA Solutions to Common Problems

I need to transfer videos from my phone/tablet/camera to a PC or Mac in order to be able to edit them in Shotcut

Although there are numerous ways to transfer files from a device to a Mac or PC, (Bluetooth, WiFi, " NFC " (near field communication), USB flash drive, etc.), the four approaches described below are not only some of the simplest, they are also quite expedient and reliable.  Please do  one  of the following  if  you need to transfer video(s) to a Mac or PC in order to perform editing operations on them before uploading to the edTPA video web site:

  • Option #1--Transfer via USB cable--(Probably the best option):   If your phone/tablet/camera can be connected to your Mac or PC via a USB cable (see  Figure 56 , below) and appears either as an external disk drive or other peripheral device (like a phone or camera) to your machine, it should be a simple matter to copy videos of any size from the device in the same way you'd copy files from a flash drive to your computer.  To employ this procedure, please follow these steps:
Figure 56:   The image on the left is one example of a typical USB cable, with a " type C " connector on one end (which connects to the phone/tablet/camera) and a " type A " connector on the other (which connects to the computer).--(Image adapted from original found at https://www.flickr.com/photos/sparkfun/46357574502.)  The image on the right is another example of a USB cable, this time with a " lightning " connector on one end (which connects to the phone/tablet/camera) and a " type A " USB connector on the other (which again connects to the computer).--(Image downloaded from https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lightning_to_USB_Cable.jpg.)
a coiled red USB cable with a "type C" connector on the left and a "type A" connector on the right another coiled USB cable (this time gray in color, with a "lightning" connector on the left and a "type A" connector on the right)

 

Please read these  VERY IMPORTANT NOTES  before beginning the procedure:

  1. Connect the device to your computer with the USB cable normally provided by the manufacturer.  (In many instances, this is the same cable that is used to charge the device.)
  2. Make sure both the device and your computer are turned on.  Log into your computer in order to see the desktop and follow the necessary steps to wake and unlock the device.
  3. Open an  explorer  window if you are using a PC , or the  Image Capture App  if you are using a Mac .
  4. Within a few seconds, the computer should detect (and properly identify) the phone/tablet/camera, and the device should appear as a new disk drive (or peripheral device) in the  explorer / Image Capture App  window.  (See  Figure 57 , below.)
Figure 57:   The image below shows a typical Windows Explorer window with a newly-detected device--(in this case, a camera (highlighted in red))--displayed along with the two hard drives that were already there.
a Windows explorer window showing icons for the three main storage devices connected to the computer (namely, from top-to-bottom, a disk drive icon for "Local Disk (C:)," another disk drive icon for "Local Disk (D:)," and a camera icon for the model "ILCE-6000" camera that was recently connected to the machine)
  1. Now, open the above-mentioned drive/peripheral device in the  explorer / Image Capture App  window.  If the video(s) you wish to copy isn't immediately visible, navigate to the place on the device where they are stored.  Their location may vary for different devices.  If you do not know where the videos are located, you will need to browse through the various folders and subfolders on the device until you find them.  Video files are normally quite large (with sizes ranging from a few tens of megabytes ( MB ) at the low end to many gigabytes ( GB ) at the high end) and, as might be expected, they have names that end in a typical video file extension (like  .mov ,  .m4v ,  .mp4 ,  .mts , etc.).
  2. Once you have located your videos,  copy  them from the device to your computer in the same way you'd copy files from a flash drive to your machine.  (Note that  Mac  users can also use other programs like  iMovie  or the  Photos App  for this purpose if, for some reason, they elect to not use the  Image Capture App .)
  • Option #2--Transfer via memory card:   If both your phone/tablet/camera and Mac/PC have a slot for the  same  type of memory card--either Micro SD or SD, (see  Figure 58 , below),--you should be able to transfer files between them (with sizes up to the capacity of the memory card) by following these steps:
Figure 58:   The image below compares two common types of memory cards that are often used to expand the storage capacity of phones/tablets/cameras.  The item on the left is an older style "SD" card, while the item on the right is a more modern (and compact) "Micro SD" card.--(Image adapted from original found at https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Memory-card-comparison.jpg.)
a 2GB SD card on the left, and a similar capacity micro SD card on the right (that is about one-eighth its size)
  1. Turn both your device and computer off.
  2. Insert the memory card into the card slot on your device and then turn it back on again.
  3. Copy the video file(s) from your device onto the memory card.
  4. Turn your device off and remove the memory card.
  5. Insert the memory card into the card reader/slot on your computer and then turn your computer back on again.
  6. Finally,  copy  the video file(s) from the card onto your computer.
  • Option #3--Transfer via Microsoft OneDrive for Business :  As an ISU student, you have access to the  Office 365  suite of programs, including the  OneDrive for Business  cloud storage service where you can securely store up to one terabyte ( 1TB ) of data.  As long as the size of  each individual  file does not exceed fifteen gigabytes ( 15GB ), you should be able to upload your videos to the cloud, and then download them from the cloud to your Mac or PC for editing.  To accomplish this, please proceed as follows:
  1. On the device containing your videos, launch any modern web browser (such as Chrome or Firefox) and go to the following URL:
    http://www.office365.ilstu.edu
  2. Enter your  ISU E-mail address  and  ISU password  in the appropriate fields and then click the  Sign in  button at the bottom.
  3. In the  Stay signed in?  window that now opens, click the  Yes  button.
  4. When you are presented with a list of available programs on the  Office 365   " Apps " page, (see  Figure 59 , below), click the blue (cloud-shaped)  OneDrive  button.
Figure 59:   The image below shows the web-based  Office 365  " Apps " selection page with the  OneDrive  button highlighted in red.
a portion of a web browser window showing a sampling of the available Office 365 "Apps" (including a blue cloud-shaped icon for the "OneDrive" app, along with seven other icons for some of the remaining programs)
  1. You are now taken to your  OneDrive for Business  " Files " page in "the cloud."  This will serve as the temporary holding area for your videos.  Near the top of the  OneDrive  window (pictured in  Figure 60 , below), click the  Upload  button.
Figure 60:   The image below shows the  OneDrive  " Files " page with the  Upload  button highlighted in red.
a portion of a web browser window showing some of the available buttons (including "New," the highlighted "Upload" button, "Flow," and "Sync") at the top of the OneDrive "Files" window, along with a collection of two video files and a Word document at the bottom
  1. Then, in the drop-down menu, click the  Files  option.
  2. In the  Open  window that now appears, browse to the location on your device where the videos are stored, click on the file of interest to select it, and then click the  Open  button at the bottom to begin the upload process.  (Although it is possible to select more than one file at a time, it is recommended that you upload each file separately in order to keep upload times reasonable.  You can always repeat the procedure if you have multiple files.)
  3. Allow sufficient time for the video to upload.  If the file is several gigabytes in size, expect the process to take quite a while over a wireless connection.  Your browser should provide an indication--(probably at the bottom)--of the upload progress, and should inform you when the process is complete.
  4. Once the video has been successfully uploaded to the cloud, it's time to reverse the process and download the file to your Mac or PC.  Just as you did on your mobile device, launch a modern web browser on your PC or Mac, visit the same web site you visited in  step 1  (above), log in using the same credentials you provided in  step 2  and, once again, open the  OneDrive for Business App .
  5. Click the bubble to the left of the file you uploaded in the proceeding steps, and then click the  Download  button near the top of the  OneDrive  window.  (See  Figure 61 , below.)
Figure 61:   The image below shows the  OneDrive  " Files " page with both the  Download  button and the file that is to be downloaded highlighted in red.
a portion of a web browser window showing some of the available buttons (including "Share," "Copy link," the highlighted "download" button, and "Delete") at the top of the OneDrive "Files" window, along with a collection of two folders and the highlighted video file that is to be downloaded (named "My Video File.mp4) at the bottom
  1. Depending on the web browser you are using, the video may either be automatically downloaded to the default download location--(such as the  Downloads  folder)--on your machine, or you may be prompted as to whether you would like to  Open  or  Save  the file.  If the latter is the case, choose the  Save  option and save the file to a familiar place on your computer.  As was the case with the upload process, your browser should provide some sort of progress indicator--(probably at the bottom)--that will let you know how things are going and inform you when the download process is complete.
  • Option #4--Transfer via ISU's  " SendTo " service:   Like  Option #3  (above), this procedure involves first the uploading of videos to an intermediate location--(in this case, the ISU  SendTo  server)--and then the downloading of these same files to a PC or Mac where they can be edited in Shotcut.  Unlike the previous procedure, however, this option seems to work best with video file sizes of a few gigabytes ( GB ) or less.  (Tests have revealed that use of file sizes above this limit result in video corruption, apparently due to excessive compression.)  To employ this procedure, please follow these steps:
  1. On the device containing your videos, launch any modern web browser (such as Chrome or Firefox) and go to the following URL:
    https://sendto.illinoisstate.edu/
  2. Enter your  ISU ULID  and  ISU password  in the fields provided and then click the  Login  button to the right.  (See  Figure 62 , below.)
Figure 62:   The image below shows the ISU  SendTO  service login page with the  Login  button highlighted in red.
a portion of a web browser window showing (from left-to-right) the "ULID" field, the "Password" field, and the "Login" button
  1. Under the  You may perform the following activities  heading on the page that now appears, click the large red  Drop-off  button near the top.
  2. Then, at the bottom of the  Information about the sender  page, click the  Next  button to continue.
  3. In order to send the video file(s) to yourself, you will need to designate yourself as the recipient.  To do this, first, click the  Add recipient  button on the left of the  Form  that is now displayed on your screen.  Then, in the tiny address window (shown in  Figure 63 , below), enter your name in the  Name  field and your  ISU e-mail address  in the  Email  field.  Finally, click the Add recipient button at the bottom, and then the  X  at the top-right, to complete the address entry process and close the tiny window.
Figure 63:   The image below shows the ISU  SendTO  service address window with the  Add recipient  button highlighted in red.
a portion of a web browser window showing (from top-to-bottom) tabs that allow you to "Add one" or "Add many" recipients, a field where you provide the recipient's "Name", another field where you provide the recipient's "Email" address, and the "Add recipient" button
  1. Now, near the bottom of the same ( Form ) window we saw in  step 5  (above), click the  Choose File  button near the bottom (immediately to the right of  File 1 ).  (See  Figure 64 , below.)
Figure 64:   The image below shows the ISU  SendTO  service  Form  window with the  Choose File  button highlighted in red.
a portion of a web browser window showing the bottom of the "Form" window with the "Choose File" button on the left, and the "Drop off files" button further to the right
  1. The familiar  Open  window is now displayed on your screen.  Browse to the location on your device where the videos are stored, click on the file of interest to select it, and then click the  Open  button at the bottom.
  2. You are now returned to the Form window where you can either select more files to be uploaded or initiate the upload process.  Opt for the latter choice by clicking the  Drop off files  button near the bottom of the screen.  (Although it is possible to select additional files, it is recommended that you upload each file separately in order to keep upload times reasonable.  You can always repeat the procedure if you have multiple files.)
  3. The upload process can be monitored with the aid of the provided progress indicator (shown in  Figure 65 , below).
Figure 65:   The image below shows the upload progress indicator.
a portion of a web browser window showing a bar graph indicating that the upload process is about half complete, with text below stating that there is "53%" remaining
  1. Upon completion of the upload process, you will be taken to a  Drop-Off Summary  page.  You may now turn off your device and check your  ISU  e-mail on your Mac or PC.  There should be a message from you, addressed to you, with the following subject line: " [Send To Illinois State] (your last and first names) has dropped off a file for you ."  After you open this message, click on the link within.  It will take you to a page on the ISU  SendTo  site where you will find a download link for the file you just uploaded.  Click this link to download the video to your computer.
  2. Depending on the web browser you are using, the video may either be automatically downloaded to the default download location--(such as the  Downloads  folder)--on your machine, or you may be prompted as to whether you would like to  Open  or  Save  the file.  If the latter is the case, choose the  Save  option and save the file to a familiar place on your computer.  Your browser should provide some sort of progress indicator--(probably at the bottom)--that will let you know how things are going and inform you when the download process is complete.
2024-07-30T13:30:57.529542218-07:00 2024