Here's How to Make Online Materials with Hot Potatoes

We are going to make a multiple choice file.

1. Data Entry

Open Hot Potatoes and choose the JBC icon.
Then, follow these instructions:

2. Configuration

Go to Configuration under the Options bar. Here you can change prompts, the instructions, whether or not this page will link to other pages or an index, color schemes, or reading options.

Here's what's important: if you donšt have an index, make sure the index box (under Buttons and Captions) is NOT checked. Also note the Caption on Next Exercise Button and Caption on Previous Page Button. If you donšt have any previous or next pages, these check should not be checked.

To get back to your data entry, go to Edit Exercise under the Options toolbar.

Creating the web pages

1. Go to Make HTML Page in the File toolbar. Give your page a filename. (Note: Mac users will need to put .htm after the filename.) For now, use the filename test.htm.

2. The program will tell you that it has produced three files and where it put them.

It is important to understand what these files are and why they are all needed. In this case, the files will be:

test.htm: the main frameset document. This is the root file; if you want to make a link on another page to your exercise, then this is the file you should link to. This file creates a frameset which contains the other two pages.
testw.htm: the w in the filename stands for welcome, and this is the file which appears in the top frame of the exercise when you first load it into your browser. It contains only a welcome message and instructions for doing the exercise.
testc.htm: the c stands for code, and this file is the main part of the exercise which contains the questions and all the code to make the exercise work.

When you upload to the internet, all three of these files must be in the same folder or directory, and the root file must be loaded into the browser in order for the exercise to work. (In other words, to get to your page, type in the root file in the URL.) DHTML Web pages usually consist of only one file, but all of the HTML exercises have several files.

Now, you can do different things with your files.

Upload them (all 3 of them) to a server and make them available on the internet.
Install them on a server for use in your building.
Install them on computer(s).
Put them on disc(s) to be used wherever.

Trouble-Shooting

If you need to edit your page.

Open Hot Potatoes.
Open the file you want to change (it should end in .jmt).
Make any changes, including to the Configurations.
Re-create web pages. Do this by going to Make HTML Page in the File menu, just like you did originally. You can save it with exactly the same name (thus deleting the previous file you originally opened) or give it a new name. Three new files will be made, just like the first time. If using on the internet, youšll need to upload the new files.

Online Tutorial

Online tutorials are at: Windows: http://web.uvic.ca/hrd/halfbaked/wintutor/index.htm

Mac: http://web.uvic.ca/hrd/halfbaked/mactutor/index.htm

Registration

In order to create exercises with more than 3 questions, youšll need to register (free*) your version of Hot Potatoes. Registering is a 2-step process:

Complete the online registration form. Go to the URL http://inigo.call.uvic.ca/admin/register.htm, complete the form online, and then submit it. They wll send registration information to your email address immediately, so go to your email account and get the numbers they sent you.
Enter the registration information in on your Hot Potatoes program. Open the program. Under HHelp in the Toolbar youšll see Register. Open it and enter the information you just got from your email account. Now you should be able to create more exercises.

*Hot Potatoes specifies that free registration is only given to people who create educational materials and put them on the internet for everyone to use.

The other types of Hot Potatoes files are:

JQuiz: Makes quizes
JMix: Makes mixed-up sentences. Students put the words of the sentence in the correct sequence.
JCross: Makes interactive crossword puzzles.
JMatch: Match pictures with the appropriate words.
JCloze: Makes gap-fill exercises

Now you can do it! HAVE FUN!!!