WeCompose. Instructions on Use

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WeCompose

Instructions on Use

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Getting Started

Before the user can access WeCompose, the user must first sign into WeCompose with a Gmail e-mail address. Connecting a Google account allows WeCompose to create, store, and share WeCompose files and create contacts.

Figure 1: WeCompose’s sign-in page.

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Figure 2: WeCompose’s landing page.

Figure 2 is WeCompose’s landing page1, where users can create contacts and access, create, and share files. The user’s e-mail will appear below the application’s logo next to a sign out button.

Sign Out

The sign out button will log the user out of Google. Logging out of WeCompose means that the user will not only be logged out of WeCompose, but in which any other application that the e-mail was logged.

File List

Below the sign out button is a list of WeCompose files created by the user and shared with the user. The user may tap on the file name in order to open the file. 2

1_{“Landing page” and “home page” are synonymous for WeCompose.}

2_{Note: These instructions assume the use of a touch screen device so we will use language such as}

“tapping.” If the device does not have a touch screen (such as a Chromebook) just replace these words the non-touch equivalent (e.g. clicking).

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Figure 3: The landing page’s file list.

If a file has been created and shared with the user and is not showing up in the File List, the user may tap on the Refresh button located on the toolbar.

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Creating a New File

There are two ways to access the Create File page. There is a “New” button below the file list and another in the toolbar at the top of the screen.

Figure 5: New File buttons.

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Figure 6: WeCompose’s New File page.

On the contacts page the user may name the file he or she wishes to create and choose contacts with which he or she wants to share the file. The user may add contacts to the file by tapping on the small, white box to the left of the contact’s 3

name. When finished and the create button is tapped, WeCompose will direct the user to the file.

3_{Contacts can be accessed and created in the contacts page. This is addressed in “Getting Started -}

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Figure 7 (On the Left): Text field to enter a file name. Figure 8 (On the Right): List of saved contacts.

Creating Contacts

Figure 9: Contacts icon in toolbar.

The user may access the “Create Contacts” page by tapping on the right-most icon in the toolbar. The icon is shown below.

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Figure 10: WeCompose’s contact page.

By entering a person’s first name, last name, and Gmail and tapping “Save”, the user may add contacts to his or her account. These contacts can be accessed in the “New File” page.

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Your currently saved contacts can be viewed near the top of the contacts page.

Figure 12: Saved contacts.

Overview

Upon opening the file from the homepage the app will open up to its default

Question and Answer view but can be switched between the Question and Answer view and WeCompose’s Document view.

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Figure 13: WeCompose in “Document View” on the left and “Q&A View” on the right.

Users on the same file can edit the document collaboratively on separate devices. Changes made to the document should appear on the screen almost instantaneously. The document may lag on another user’s change depending on the network to which the user’s device is connected.

Toolbar Controls

The following sections will cover the functionality of the toolbar.

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Back to the Home Page

Tapping on the logo on the left side of the toolbar will navigate back to the home screen where you can re-access your files.

Figure 15: The “Back to Home” button.

File Name

The name of the file that is currently open can be seen in the center of the toolbar. Note that if the device’s screen is too small the file name will not appear in the toolbar. 4

Figure 16: The file’s name displayed in the toolbar.

Undo and Redo

The undo and redo buttons shown below will undo or redo the last change that an individual has made to the document.

Figure 17: The active “undo” button and disabled “redo” button.

4_{Even if the file name is not visible on the toolbar is will still be viewable through the information}

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If there is something to undo or redo the appropriate button will appear white. If there is nothing to undo or redo the button will be grayed out and will do nothing if the user taps on it.

The undo and redo functionality is user specific, meaning that the user can only undo or redo the changes that he or she made.

Once the page is reloaded (which can be caused by refreshing the page or exiting the app) the user will lose the history of his or her changes and will no longer be able to undo or redo any changes that were made prior to the reload.

Information

The user can tap on the information button (located on the right side of the application’s toolbar) to display information about the document.

Figure 18: The “information” button.

Tapping on the highlighted button shown in Figure 18 will show the following dialog (as shown below).

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The uppermost text in the dialog is the name of the current file. Below that is a list of people that are currently active in the document (collaborators).

Share

Tapping the share button opens a dialog where the user can enter the email address of people with which he or she wants to share the file.

Figure 19: The “share” button.

Once the user taps done, the people with whom the document was shared will receive an e-mail with a link to the document. The document’s file will also appear on the home page. 5

5_{If the user does not see a file despite receiving the notification e-mail, the user can refresh the app on}

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Figure 20: The share dialogue.

Switch Views

To switch back and forth between the document and the QA view the user can tap on the “toggle view” button.

Figure 21: The “toggle view” button.

Any work done before switching views is saved and can be viewed by anyone else who has access to the document.

Text-to-Speech

Any text on the screen may be spoken using the app’s Text-to-Speech button. The audio will also only play on the device that pressed the button.

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Figure 22: The “Text-to-Speech” button.

To use the text-to-speech functionality the user has to highlight the text that he or 6

she wants to listen to and then press the “text-to-speech” button. 7

6_{Methods for highlighting can be found in “Tips - Selection”}

7_{The last thing that was highlighted is saved and will be spoken by pressing the speak button until}

another piece of text is selected. This is useful for easily listening to the same text multiple times in a row.

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Document View

The Document view is very simple in functionality. It is essentially just a blank work area that multiple users can type in simultaneously. If the keyboard is not visible, the user may click on any pre-existing text or whitespace. The keyboard should appear and the user can begin typing.

Figure 23: WeCompose’s Document view.

Question & Answer View

The Question & Answer view is a space where an instructor can create dedicated input areas for a question and its answer. Like the Document view, the input areas in the Q&A view are collaborative and can be worked on by multiple users.

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Figure 24: WeCompose’s Q&A view.

Adding and Writing Questions

The Question & Answer view starts off with a single unwritten question. To write a question simply tap where it says “Write Question Here” and type the question.

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Figure 25: An empty question and answer pair.

To add more question and answer pairs, tap on the “add” button (shown below) at the bottom of the page.

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Figure 26: The “add” button.

Deleting Questions

If for any reason a questions needs to be deleted the user can tap on the “X” button on the right side of the question. Tapping the “X” button will prompt a dialog box that will ask the user if they really wanted to delete the question. Keep in mind that any addition or deletion of questions can be undone or redone by the user that performed the action.

Tips

Selection

The method for selection varies slightly depending on the device. Here we briefly go over the general methods of selection for iOS and most Android devices.

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iOS mobile Devices(iPad, iPad Minis, iPhones, etc.)

The user must tap on the text area they wish to edit, and give it focus (the keyboard will appear below) before he or she can highlight any text. Once a text area is given focus, the user must long-tap on a word for a small, black text menu to pop up. Tapping “Select All” will highlight all of the text within the text area. Tapping “Select” will highlight the word that was previously long-tapped; the user may expand the highlighted selection by dragging the dark blue dots.

Most Android Devices

The user may simply long tap on the word he or she wishes to highlight without giving prior focus to the text area. Regardless, we still recommend the user tap on the text area to give it focus and follow the instructions given for iOS.