Problem to address
Currently, in Moodle faculty have to upload files used for Resources separately into each course. There's no central point where they can link to their files to make the in course resource. Here's how one person described what he'd like:
"I just want to upload all my files to a single place that I can link to from Resources in any course"
How Elgg_Files might work
From within Moodle the course Teacher has available an "Elgg_Files" link within the Administration box (in addition to the Files area). This links to the person's File repository on Elgg. The user employs the Elgg file handling to upload multiple files, describe and tag them. Back in Moodle the user 'chooses' the file, a URI gets inserted into the resource location, the description gets copied into the summary field and Elgg keywords are copied into moodle tags.
A new Elgg access control is required : moodle.This prohibits read access to the file (or content object?) to everyone except the owner (=private) unless the request comes from the associated moodle instance (how it could do this I'm not sure, but it will depend upon how the systems are linked together). Thus on it's own the URI will be useless. The teacher owner of the file can change the access from "moodle" to "private" and this will prevent course members from viewing the file. New moodle role : elgg_read, elgg_write Participants in the course will need the "elgg_read" role in the context of the course in order to have read access to the file. This will prevent Moodle users not in the course from viewing the file.
Backup
When the course owner performs a course backup he will be given the option to have all the files copied from the Elgg file store into the backup. This will maintain the integrity of the course backup.
Elgg_Files for students
When a student uploads a document submission for an assignment what he sees is an interface to his own Elgg Files area where he can choose an existing file or upload a new one. Here again the moodle access control makes the file accessible only to moodle and the owner.
The Teacher makes comment and assigns a grade to the submission within Moodle and optionally uploads the marked-up submission into a holding area. Student gets the option of attaching the comment text and grade (both write protected somehow -- a graphic image?) to the file, and also downloading the marked-up document into his ownElgg_Files area. Then she can use this combination as an item in her eportfolio!
Quite how this might work I don't know. The deal is that access to files used as moodle resources located in the Elgg File Repository has to be defaulted to private from the Web and read from the associated Moodle instance. With the system I have descibed a single file could be readily used in different courses and the owner could perhaps make it available to other users vis a 'group' access control.
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