University Computer Help Desk

Uploading files to the iTunes U

iTunes U contributors can upload files to iTunes U.

Before You Begin

To you must also be an iTunes U contributor. Files uploaded to iTunes U are publicly available through Apple's iTunes store.

Safari is Required

To upload files, you must use Safari. You can download Safari from Apple if you do not already have it. Before installing Safari on a university-owned computer, discuss it with your department's technical support staff.

Upload Files

To upload files to iTunes U, do the following:

  1. Using Safari, go to https://itunesu.ilstu.edu/.
    • You must use Safari to upload files to iTunes U.
  2. Click Log-in in the upper-right corner of the page.
    • You will be taken to an iTunes U site manager web page.
  3. Enter your Apple ID and password to log in.
    • Your Apple ID is an email address (which could be your Illinois State email address or another email address). You must use the Apple ID that has been authorized to be an iTunes U contributor.
    • Your password is your Apple ID password (not your ULID password).
    • If you have problems logging in to the iTunes U site manager web page, try logging in with the same Apple ID using iTunes software. Occasionally, Apple will disable Apple ID accounts, which can prevent you from logging in to the iTunes U site manager web page, but logging in to iTunes software will give you the option of unlocking the account.
  4. After logging in, you can upload files.

You must upload files to a collection. You can create a new collection for your files, or you can use an existing collection.

Create a Collection

To create a new collection, do the following:

  1. Within the iTunes U Public Site Manager website, click the plus sign (+) next to Add Collections.
  2. Click the Choose a Feed Source... menu and select Apple-Hosted Feed.
    • The option, Provider-Hosted Feed, is used to create a new collection on iTunes U for files that are being hosted by Illinois State University or another provider. The instructions in this article assume you have selected Apple-Hosted Feed.
  3. Click Add.
  4. Complete the form.
    • You are required to specify a title and author for the collection. You may also want to provide additional information about the collection and upload an image for the collection.
  5. When you are done, click Save.
  6. You will see a message indicating that your changes have been saved.

You can now upload files to the collection you just created. However, new collections must be approved by the iTunes U administrator at Illinois State before they are published to iTunes U.

Upload Files

To upload files to a collection, do the following:

  1. Within the iTunes U Public Site Manager website, do one of the following:
    • Create a new collection as described above. You must save the new collection before you can upload files to it.
    • Click Edit Feed on an existing collection to add files to it.
    • When creating or editing a collection, you will be taken to the Feed Editor page.
  2. On the Feed Editor page, click the Items tab.
    • The Items tab is located near the top of the page next to Channel.
  3. Select desired options for the order, category, and subcategory of files you will be uploading to iTunes U.
  4. Click Upload New Items.
  5. Click Choose File.
  6. Browse to the location of the file you wish to upload. Select the file and click Open.
    • The file you selected begins uploading immediately. When it is done, it will appear in the item list located at the bottom of the page.
    • You can upload additional files by clicking Upload New Items again.
  7. Click Return to Collections Manager in the upper-left corner of the window.

If you uploaded files to a collection that has already been approved, the files are immediately available. However, if you uploaded files to a new collection that has not yet been approved, they will be unavailable until the collection is approved by the University's iTunes U administrator.

View Collections in iTunes U

To view your collection in iTunes U, including the files you just uploaded, do the following:

  1. Within the iTunes U Public Site Manager website, locate the collection you want to view.
  2. Click the red arrow icon next to the name of the collection you wan to view.
    • This will launch iTunes.

If the collection has not yet been approved, you will see a red banner across the top of your iTunes window that says, "Preview." This means that the collection is awaiting approval by the University's iTunes U administrator.

Moving, Editing, and Deleting Files

iTunes U contributors cannot move, edit, or delete files once they have been uploaded to iTunes U. These changes can only be made by an iTunes U administrator.