Are All Courses Really Free For Full-Access Members?
Yes. As a SongU.com Full-Access Member, you have unlimited access to all of the instructor-led and  DIY (Do-It-Yourself) courses for no additional cost.



How Do I Know Which Courses Are Easy Or Difficult?
Courses are numbered by levels (e.g., 100, 200, 300). The higher the course level, the more complex the subject matter and material. 



What Is The "My Course" Notes Area?
You can use the "My Course Notes" area for reminders or notes about a particular course you are taking. For example, "I left off at lesson two." or "Lesson three talks about the correct mic placement for recording on guitar."  You should not use this area for any notes that you want an instructor to see since this area is only visible to you. 



When Do I Move A Course To "My Completed Courses" Area?
When you've completed all the lessons in one of the  DIY (Do-It-Yourself)/DIY courses or you have finished an instructor-led course, you may want to move the course to your completed courses area. You will still have access to the course homepage after you move it to your completed area. So you can still review the course material/notes at a later date. This is simply a way for you to mark your own progress and distinguish between courses you have completed versus those you have not yet completed. . 



When Should I Delete A Course?
If you've accidentally signed up for the wrong course or selected the wrong course from a catalog, you may want to delete it. This will not move it to your "Completed Courses" area but will remove it from your "My Courses" page. Note that if you accidentally delete a course you did not want to delete, you can simply go back to the course catalog and re-add it to your "My Courses" page.  



What If I Have An Idea For A New Course
Great! Just go to the support area of the site and submit it as a suggestion. 



Can I Get Advice About What Courses To Take?
Sure. Just go to My PLP to look at your Personal Learning Plan (PLP) which is designed to assist you in making the most of your time at SongU.com based on your specific needs and goals. If you need additional recommendations or get stuck, just complete a Help/Support request and someone will be happy to assist.


 
What Is A  DIY (Do-It-Yourself) Course?
 DIY (Do-It-Yourself) courses are   and are available to you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week all year round. Each  DIY (Do-It-Yourself) course typically contains two to six lessons. A typical lesson in any course takes anywhere from 15-30 minutes to complete and may incorporate streaming audio, interactivities and samples of hit songs to illustrate the points covered in the lesson. Please note that some courses have suggested pre-requisites meaning that the instructor will assume you have knowledge of the material covered in the pre-requisite course(s).



How Do I Take A Course?
As a Full-Access Member at SongU.com, you can take any of our  DIY (Do-It-Yourself) or instructor-led courses for no additional cost. Just go to the member catalog and locate a course that interests you. To add a  DIY (Do-It-Yourself) course to your active courses, just click the "Take the course" link in the catalog. This will automatically add the course to your "My Courses" page under active courses. For instructor-led courses, there is a registration process. Registration for these courses usually begins two weeks prior to the course start date when a signup link will appear. The signup link will be unavailable until registration begins. Once you register for the instructor-led course, it will automatically be added to your active courses list.

Once you have added a course to your active course list, just go to your "My Courses" area and click on the link to the course to be taken to the course homepage.



How Fast Should I Do The  DIY (Do-It-Yourself) Courses?
That's completely up to you. One of the benefits of  DIY (Do-It-Yourself) classes is that you can proceed at your own pace as your time allows. To obtain the greatest benefit from the  DIY (Do-It-Yourself) courses at SongU.com, we recommend completing at most one to two lessons per week and at least one lesson per month. While it is possible to read through all the information in an entire course in a week, it's unlikely you'll be able to apply and absorb all the information (meaning your writing likely won't improve). The best pace is usually one or two lessons per week (think of it more like your weekly guitar or voice lesson). Take the time between each lesson to actually write a new song that incorporates the concepts you've learned.



Do I Have To Do The Exercises?
It's up to you. At the end of every lesson is a more thorough "Putting It All Together" exercise designed to help you put into practice the concepts from that lesson. It is just for your benefit to complete the exercises.



Will An Instructor Answer My Posts?
For DIY (Do-It-Yourself) courses, you should check the instructor's in-office policy on the discussion board. Most of the instructors are pretty good about checking the board and responding to posts. Note that if they are out of town or working on another project, it may be a couple of weeks before you see a response. Don't feel like you have to wait for an instructor response to your post before moving on to the next lesson or course. But, if you do have any questions that go unanswered, you can always submit a Help/Support request and we'll make sure your question gets answered.

Why Won't The Song Examples Play?
There could be a couple of reasons for this. First, make sure you have the most recent version of Macromedia/Adobe Flash Player. This is used for a few of the hit song examples and the instructor audio in the  DIY (Do-It-Yourself) courses. Second, make sure you have iTunes installed. If both of these are installed and you are still having problems listening to the sound examples, it may simply be that they have moved the song to a different location in the iTunes store or that you need to adjust your store settings to the USA store (if you live outside the US). If you continue to have trouble, please submit a support request. Be sure to let us know a specific song in a specific course lesson that you were unable to listen to in order to help us troubleshoot.


 
Do I Have To Purchase The Song To Hear It?
No. The purchase option is simply there if you would like to purchase the entire song for download. You can listen to the thirty second sample clip without purchasing the song. Simply hit the play button in iTunes for the song and the sample should begin playing.



Why Can't I Hear The Complete Song?
Our agreement with iTunes is strictly for the samples. In order to be allowed to hear the complete song without violating copyright restrictions, it would be necessary to purchase it as a download.



Why Do The Song Examples Skip
In most cases, this occurs if you're on a dialup modem. If this is the case you'll want to adjust iTunes to download the entire sample before beginning playing. This will eliminate the skipping or clipping issue. You can find this in iTunes under edit -> preferences -> store. Simply click the box for "load complete preview before playing."



I Live Outside The USA For iTunes. How Can I Play The Songs?
You can adjust the iTunes store to listen to examples from any of the country stores. So, in order to listen to the song examples from the USA store, you'll want to change your store to USA. You can do that by clicking on the "Music Store" in iTunes and then scrolling all the way down to the bottom. There you'll see a choice for country that you can change to USA.



Help! I'm Having Problems Uploading My MP3
If you have a problem uploading an MP3, it's usually due to one of the following reasons:

• Strange characters in the filename - Be sure that the filename itself isn't over 40 characters and doesn't have any strange characters in it like an question mark or exclamation mark. If your song title is "Why Don't They Stay Together?", one example of a filename that might be appropriate might be stayTogether.mp3.
• The file is too big - If the file in question is at CD quality MP3 compression (256k), it may be too large to upload or take too long on your connection. There is a 5M limit on any uploads to the site, so it's important to compress the MP3 file before uploading it. For more information on how to compress the MP3 file, see the course GEN 110 - Preparing Your Audio For Uploading.
• The file actually uploaded but the notification didn't work - Sometimes, that pop-up won't that tells you that your file is uploading either doesn't appear or doesn't disappear even thought the file uploads correctly. Make sure your pop-up blocker is off. Don't forget that you can always check your file by looking at the pending evaluation to see if it appears and whether or not the file plays correctly. If it plays correctly, then it uploaded properly and the notification simply didn't appear/disappear.   
• The file isn't actually an MP3 - Make sure the file in question is an MP3 file. Simply renaming a file and putting MP3 on the file extension won't make it an MP3 if it was recorded using RealPlayer for example. 

Help! My Song Sounds Like The Chipmunks
There's a bug in the Flash Player audio streamer that causes this effect sometimes. It's not a SongU.com bug, but a Flash player bug. This bug often appears if the sampling rate is not a multiple of the common rates of 11khz, 22khz or 44khz. We are aware of this bug and have provided all coaches an alternate means to listen to the song without using the Flash player in the event this happens. So you don't know need to worry about it because the coach will be able to hear your song normally.  



How Do I Create An MP3 In iTunes Using The Right Settings?
You can find detailed information on converting to MP3 formats in the SongU.com course, GEN 110 - Preparing Your Audio For Uploading. But I've included below a quick run down of the steps to create your MP3 using iTunes. iTunes is a great little MP3 player/converter that's available for both PC and Mac (you can download iTunes for free from www.iTunes.com).

• STEP I: Set iTunes to the proper MP3 compression (you only need to do this once)

1. Start up iTunes
2. Go under edit -> preferences -> advanced
3. Click on the "importing" tab
4. Make sure the "import using" dropdown box has "MP3 encoder" selected
5. Under the setting dropdown box, choose "custom". A box with settings will pop-up
6. In the customs settings box, set it to 64kbps (or some value less than 128kbps)
7. Uncheck the VBR checkbox if it's checked
8. Leave the sample rate dropdown box at "auto"
9. Change the channels to "mono"
10. Click "ok"

• STEP II: Create and Save The MP3:
  1. Pop in your CD with your song and it should appear in the iTunes playlist
  2. Right-click on it and you can choose "convert to MP3". Note that it will save it in whatever location on your computer is specified in the settings in iTunes
  3. You can change that or see where it is by going to edit -> preferences -> advanced and then clicking on the "general" tab
  4. You should now have an MP3 of your song that you can upload!

Are The Pre-Requisites Enforced?
For DIY (Do-It-Yourself) courses, the pre-requisites are suggested pre-requisites. For the instructor-led courses, they are enforced. The pre-requisites are in place not only for the knowledge that's required. Often instructors like to become familiar with your writing and you to become familiar with their teaching style prior to taking one of the upper level courses.



What's An Instructor-Led Course?
Instructor-led courses are "live" courses that meet in the SongU.com e-Classrooms on a regular basis. Most instructor-led courses meet once a week for an hour for one or more weeks. 



When Do Instructor-Led Courses Run?
Instructor-led courses are offered many times throughout the year with the most popular courses repeated (usually at different times). At SongU.com, we typically divide the year into three calendar sessions -- fall, spring, summer with fall and spring being the busiest sessions with courses running almost every night of the week. Summer offers more flexible scheduling with several one and two-week e-Workshops to accommodate most summer schedules.
 


Where Can I View The Instructor-led Course Schedule?
You can find this in the "catalog" area. Note that the fall instructor-led schedule is usually announced in August/September while the spring schedule is typically announced in December/January. Summer schedule is usually announced in late May. You can view the instructor-led course calendar for information about registration dates and also watch the campus news for announcements.
 


Why Are Courses Marked As TBA?
TBA means "To Be Announced". For instructor-led courses that are currently in session or have recently completed, you will see a marking TBA next to the course until the next instructor-led schedule is posted. You can view the instructor-led course calendar for information about registration dates and also watch the campus news for announcements.
 

 
Why Do I Have To Register For Instructor-Led Courses?
In order to ensure that you get the personal attention you need from an instructor-led course, all these courses do have a maximum headcount. For this reason, it will be important to register for an instructor-led course at the point when registration is announced. You can view the instructor-led course calendar for information about registration dates.
 


I'm Having Trouble Registering For A Class
If you're having trouble, you should receive a system message as a pop-up that gives you additional information. If you are not seeing this message, it might mean you have a pop-up blocker turned on. When you have trouble registering for a class, it is usually caused by one of the following:

• You don't have the pre-requisites to take the class
• You are already signed up for the class
• You are trying to sign up prior to the registration date of an instructor-led course. Please note that registration for instructor-led courses begins at 10:00am ET on the day of registration. The current server time is listed on the catalog page so you can easily see whether registration has begun
• You are attempting to register for more than one FDBK course at a time. If you are already signed up for a FDBK course, you will not be able to sign up for another one until that one has finished. If you'd like to delete one of your FDBK courses, go to the "My Courses" area and you'll be able to delete it.

The Class I Want To Take Is At A Bad Time
Audio transcripts are posted 1-2 days after each class that will allow members to observe and listen to the class exactly as it happened. Many members have taken instructor-led courses this way and it works great. You can still submit your assignments and questions to the discussion board and instructor for feedback. You can think of a voice transcript much like a "webcast" so it's still a very effective learning tool. Note: You must be registered for the course as a participant or as "Transcript Access Only" in order to have access to the transcripts. Remember, if you can't do the class this time around, you can always take it the next time since most courses are run multiple times during the course of a year. For FDBK classes, if you want feedback on a song, you must register for the class as a participant. You must also leave a note for the instructor in your locker/backpack entry in the "Story/Notes" area so the instructor knows you are unable to attend due to a time conflict.



How Do I Get Into The e-Classroom At Class Time?
Go to My Courses and locate the course in your active course area. Then click on the link to go to the course homepage. Once you are on the course homepage, click on the "Enter Classroom" link to enter the e-Classroom. The room is opened automatically 15 minutes before class time in case you would like to enter a bit early to look around. Note that you cannot enter the e-Classroom earlier than 15 minutes prior to the session start time.



e-Classroom Systems Requirements
PC Requirements: Operating System - Windows 2000, XP 32-bit (SP3), 2003, Vista 32-bit/64-bit, Windows 7 32-bit/64-bit. Browser - Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher, Firefox 3.x or higher or Chrome 9.0 or higher.
Mac Requirements: Intel based Mac (i.e., 5 years old or less. old G-series not supported). Operating System - 10.5 or higher. Browser - - Safari 4 or higher, Firefox 3.x or higher, Chrome 9.0 or higher.



Do I Need A High-Speed Connection To Use The e-Classrooma?
Generally speaking, it depends on the class itself and what features the instructor is using. The audio alone usually does fine on a dial-up, but video features can be a bit choppy. If you are on a dial-up connection, the best way to test it is to simply register for one of the upcoming instructor-led courses and decide based on your experience. 



Do I Need Special Software For The e-Classroom?
The first time you enter the room your system requirements will be verified. It is possible that you may be asked to download and install a small plug-in for the e-Classroom. If you are prompted to install it, you will want to do so since it is required to use the e-Classroom.



Do I Need A Microphone In The e-Classroom?
That's up to you. Our e-Classroom comes with the ability to handle several different modes of communication, from simple text chat to audio to video. For small FDBK (feedback and mentoring) sessions, it's probably a good idea to either use a headset or combination mic/webcam simply because it will allow you to communicate more easily with the instuctor. But if you don't want to use either, that's fine too. You can simply communicate with others and the instructor by typing your questions or comments in the e-Classroom via the text chat window.



I Want To Use A Microphone. What Kind Should I Buy?
If you decide to purchase a mic to use, you don't need anything fancy. Just a simple mic or headset for your computer will do the job (note: cell phone headsets usually cannot be used on a computer). A computer microphone or headset can range from the simple $5 plastic standup microphones to a top of the line wireless computer headset. A headset is preferable to a standalone microhpnoe because it usually eliminates you having to worry about the sound from your speakers feeding back into your microphone. You can pick up a decent headset for about US$20-$30 from Amazon.com. I use a $30 headset at home, but at my college, I have just a simple plastic clip-on mic that came free with my PC. They both get the job done.



Do I Need A Webcam In The e-Classroom?
That's up to you. Our e-Classroom comes with the ability to handle several different modes of communication, from simple text chat to audio to video. For small FDBK (feedback and mentoring) sessions, it's probably a good idea to either have a mic/headset or a combination mic/webcam because it will allow you to communicate more easily with the instuctor. Note that virtually all webcams also have a built-in microphone. So if you're in your pajamas, you can simply have the microphone portion active while leaving the webcam visual turned off. In other words, your webcam can also serve as a stand alone microphone giving you some flexibility. If you do not wish to use either a microphone or webcam, that's fine too. You can simply comnmunicate with others and the instructor by typing your questions or comments in the e-Classroom via the text chat window.



I Want To Use A Webcam. What Kind Should I Buy?
If you decide to purchase a webcam to use, there are a lot of options. It really depends on how much you plan to use (whether you are going to use it for long distance writing sessions, etc.) what kind you should buy. I do recommend getting one that is a combination webcam/microphone. That will give you the most flexibility in using it as just a microphone and might eliminate the need for you to purchase a separate headset. The typical range is about $25 for the low-end versions and $100 for a higher-end one. You can pick up a pretty decent one for about US$30-$40 like this one from Amazon.com. I use the Logitech C910 Webcam which I think is both Windows and Mac compatible. It's a slightly higher end combination webcam/mic but it does a great job for me.



Is It Hard To Hook Up The Headset or Webcam To My Computer?
No. It's actually pretty easy. As long as you purchase a USB headset or Webcam, you can usually just plug it into an open USB port on your computer, install the software and you're ready to go.



I've Never Been In The e-Classroom. How Does It Work?
If this is going to be your first time in our e-Classroom, you would benefit from watching our tutorial video for the e-Classroom which will show you what to expect and how to use the main features of the e-Classroom. It's also probably a good idea to get into the e-Classroom about 10-15 minutes before class so you can familiarize yourself with the basics of how the room works.



I Won't Have Internet Access At Class Time. Can I Attend By Phone?
Yes. All instructor-led classes have a dial-in option where you can dial a phone number, enter the meeting code and attend the session in real-time. When you register for an instructor-led class, you automatically receive a confirmation email that will have the dial-in number and meeting code in it. Note that when you dial-in by phone, you will be able to participate by voice or text. If you have a smartphone, depending on the phone, video may also be supported. If you have trouble dialing in to the session, recorded transcripts of the session are available usually 12-24 hours after the class meets.



I Want To Test Out The e-Classroom. Can I Try It Before Class?
The classrooms are only available if a SongU.com instructor or Administrator are present. Otherwise they are "locked" by the software. They automatically open 15 minutes prior to the class meeting time. So you can arrive 10-15 minutes early to make sure you can enter the e-Classroom, test your microphone or webcam and familiarize yourself with some of the main room features. If this is going to be your first time in our e-Classroom, you would benefit from watching our tutorial video for the e-Classroom which will show you what to expect and how to use the main features.



Do You Have A Troubleshooting Guide For The e-Classroom?
Yes, absolutely. Here's a link to the "Getting Started" guide for the virtual writer's room which is the same software as used in the instructor-led courses: http://www.songu.com/eClassroom/eClassroomGettingStartedMember.htm. In addition, we have a troubleshooting guide for members available in the event you have a problem: http://www.songu.com/eClassroom/eClassroomTroubleshootingGuideMember.htm



What Does It Mean To Register As "Transcript Only" (Audit)?
This is an option available when registering for an instructor-led course that provides you with access to the transcript. Choosing this option when you register means that you do not plan to be a participant in the class and don't need any feedback from an instructor on your song. You simply want to listen to the transcript to learn. If you do want to have an instructor give feedback on your song or assignment, then you should not choose this option. Instead, register for the class as a participant. Then be sure to leave a note for the instructor in your locker/backpack song in the "Story/Notes" area. That way the instructor will know you are unable to attend due to a time conflict. You will then be able to hear the instructor's feedback on your song or assignment when you listen to the transcript.



Can I Still Get Instructor Feedback With "Transcript Access Only"?
No. Transcript Access Only will only give you access to the transcripts page for the course so you can listen to the information as presented by the instructor. If you would like instructor feedback on assignments, you should register as a regular participant in the course, even if you cannot attend the meeting.



Can I Still Attend The Session In Real Time If I Register As "Transcript Only" (Audit)?
No. This will only give you access to the transcripts page for the course so you can listen to the information as presented by the instructor. If you want to attend in real-time or would like instructor feedback on assignments, you should register as a participant in the course.



When Are Transcripts Posted For Instructor-Led Courses?
Voice transcripts are posted 15-20 minutes after each class. You must be registered for the course as a participant or as "Transcript Access Only" in order to have access to the transcripts.



Where Are Transcripts Posted?
For instructor-led courses, voice transcripts are posted 15-20 minutes after each class and are linked off the course homepage. Note that you must be registered for the course as a participant or as "Transcript Access Only" in order to have access to the transcripts. 



How Long Are Transcripts Available?
In most cases, transcripts will remain available for 14 days after the session meeting date. After that time, the transcripts are automatically deleted to make room for new transcripts.



I Don't See The Chat  Text On The Transcript?
To view the chat text that occurred during the session, click on view followed by chat on the menu after the transcript launches.



I Don't See The Songs They Are Talking About On The Transcript?
In Feedback and Mentoring sessions (FDBK), all the backpacks are "live" pages, even on the transcript. This means that if a member removes the song from their backpack after class, you won't see it on the transcript. While many members leave their songs in their backpacks for a while, some members remove them right after class.



Can I Download The Transcript To Review?
No. That would violate the agreement with have with instructors and also be a violation of the copyright for the transcript.



What If I Have Other Problems Or Questions?
Submit a support request and we'll try to assist.


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