Linking to Films on Demand
Films on Demand Links
Films On Demand [FOD] is a streaming video collection of top quality video content for every department and program District-wide from publishers like PBS, Meridian, Cambridge Educational, the BBC, National Geographic and more. Students, faculty and staff have access to over 26,000 titles.
These videos can be used in the classroom, linked to in Blackboard, incorporated into assignments, used for resume building and honing job skills, etc. Many of the titles are closed captioned.
Creating Links to FOD
A persistent link can be created to a particular title or segment in FOD. Anyone who uses a durable or persistent link must have access to the database from which the URL came. Therefore, off-campus users must be authenticated as part of Madison College through EZproxy. Off-campus users who click on a Madison Area Technical College EZproxy persistent link will be prompted to enter their username and password.
FOD Record URLs should already include the college EZproxy prefix.
Steps to create a FOD persistent link to allow off-campus access through EZproxy:
- Log in to Films On Demand
- Record URL links are specific to every video and every account. They can be used on course Web sites, online library catalog systems, distance-learning courseware, PowerPoint slides, and more.
- From a video page, click on Embed/Link located below the video player for the Record URL. DO NOT use the URL in the address bar of the browser. The Record URL should already include the EZproxy prefix https://ezproxy.madisoncollege.edu/login?url=
- Paste the entire persistent link with the EZproxy prefix into your document, Blackboard, Web page, or email.
- Set Blackboard links to open in a new Window, not the current page.
- Test the link.
FOD Madison Area Technical College EZproxy link examples:
Let Freedom Ring: Moments from the Civil Rights Movement, 1954-1965 (Title URL)
Styrene Based Plastics from Title: Modern Marvels: Secrets of Oil (Segment URL)
Films on Demand Collection (Subject Collection URL)
Plagiarism 2.0: Information Ethics in the Digital Age
Think b4 u Post: Your Reputation and Privacy on Social Networking Sites
Sample - Films on Demand Video
Embedded video and Films on Demand
Best practice for Films on Demand
Blackboard external links to videos are generally preferred over the embedded video options, since some browsers and operating systems do not display embedded videos. Also, by using an external link with FOD, students can view the transcript and all the information about the video. Follow the instructions provided for creating durable links to FOD for use both on-campus and off-campus.
Embedded video
If an instructor chooses to add an embedded FOD video to Blackboard, click Embed/Link beneath the video for the Embed Code. We suggest also including an external link to the video and title information in case a student encounters any problems viewing the embedded video.
If the video doesn't display/play when you test it, ask for help. We may need to help tweak the code.
Add the link too as an option. Some devices will not play or display embedded video.
Security issues
Recent browser security updates may block embedded video from loading automatically in a browser window. If a link is available, use that link to access the video. Otherwise, here’s the workaround to override the warning and load the embedded video. Directions may vary depending on the browser version:
Chrome – click the shield icon in the browser address bar (look right). Click “Load unsafe scripts”. The video should load and play.
Firefox – click the shield icon in the browser address bar (look left). Click options, then “disable protection for now”. The video should load and play.