General

LumiNUS Trailer

What is LumiNUS?

LumiNUS is the evolution of IVLE, NUS' learning management system (LMS). IVLE has existed since 1999, almost 20 years.

In that time, NUS has grown and technologies have advanced. CIT needs to make sure that our LMS is able to cope with ever larger loads and keep up with changes in technology. So, our team has developed the new LMS from the ground up.

When visiting LumiNUS, you will notice that it looks very different from IVLE.

But the changes are more than skin-deep. The entire underlying architecture and database have been changed.

These changes are significant enough to warrant a new name. Hence, LumiNUS.

What does LumiNUS mean?

LumiNUS alludes to luminous, which is defined as giving off light, or bright and shining. We hope that we can work with academic staff to light students' educational path in NUS.

When does LumiNUS launch?

LumiNUS launched in Alpha in January 2018.

We expect LumiNUS to launch in Beta in August 2018. The Beta period will last at least until August 2019.

The schedule is shown below.

Where can I access LumiNUS?

You can log in to LumiNUS using your NUSNET ID and password at https://luminus.nus.edu.sg/.

What does Beta mean?

LumiNUS Beta means that you can start using LumiNUS for your modules/classes.

Some features may still be unavailable, but LumiNUS should be stable enough for actual use.

Despite that, we ask for your patience and understanding if things do go wrong.

LumiNUS and IVLE

What happens to IVLE?

IVLE will run concurrently with LumiNUS during the LumiNUS Beta period.

However, development of IVLE will cease. IVLE development will be limited to critical security and bug fixes.

Once LumiNUS Beta period is over, IVLE will go into read-only mode - no new content will be able to be created/hosted on IVLE. This is scheduled to go into effect from AY19/20. At a later date, IVLE will be shut down.

Are IVLE and LumiNUS connected?

No, IVLE and LumiNUS are not connected.

If you create a module and content in IVLE, they only exist in IVLE.

If you create a module and content in LumiNUS, they only exist in LumiNUS.

This is because they do not share a common database nor a common database structure.

Can I export my module and content from IVLE to LumiNUS?

Unfortunately, no.

This is because IVLE and LumiNUS do not share a common database nor a common database structure.

Also, there are many legacy items which users have created in IVLE that have not been used for very long time or have never been used at all.

Thus, we hope to start fresh with LumiNUS.

Why have IVLE and LumiNUS run concurrently, if they are not connected?

We want to ease academic staff into LumiNUS, so we are running both concurrently to give you time to adapt to LumiNUS.

The comfort level for a beta product will differ from person to person, so we have decided that both should be available while we polish LumiNUS up for actual launch.

Running both concurrently also allows LumiNUS to gradually deal with actual-use load.

Choosing between LumiNUS or IVLE?

We encourage you to choose either LumiNUS or IVLE for each module.

1. If you record new Web Lectures (webcasts), you must use LumiNUS as the new Web Lecture system is only in LumiNUS.
2. If you use the Project tool, it is only available in IVLE. There's no Project tool in LumiNUS. However, Evaluation tool is currently in development for LumiNUS.
3. Are you co-teaching the module? Have a discussion with your co-teachers about this.
4. How comfortable are you (and your students) with new technology?
5. Is your tolerance of bugs low or high?
6. What is your class size? If it is small, you might considering using LumiNUS.
7. Is your use of IVLE mostly passive (e.g. announcements, distributing lecture material, collecting assignments) or does it involve grading (e.g. online quizzes, forum participation marks etc.)? If you use IVLE in a mostly passive manner, you may consider switching to LumiNUS.

We do not encourage you to host one module on both LumiNUS and IVLE. However, in some situations, it may be inevitable. Please read a possible scenario suggesting how to resolve these situations.

Are there any tools in LumiNUS that will not be available in IVLE?

Web Lecture Recording

Yes, Web Lectures (or webcasts) - will not be in IVLE, starting in AY18/19. New Web Lecture recording will only be available in LumiNUS.

This is because we are moving to a new Web Lecture system, which has been integrated into LumiNUS but not IVLE.

Academic staff who want to use Web Lectures should use LumiNUS for their modules.

For those use Web Lectures who are not ready to move to LumiNUS, you will need to:

• Create a module in LumiNUS and IVLE.
• Set up your module in IVLE as per normal.
• Set up your module in LumiNUS, hiding all the tools except Web Lecture.
• Apply for Web Lecture as per normal.
• In IVLE, create weblink(s) to your module's Web Lectures in LumiNUS.

That said, we encourage Web Lecture users to stick to using one platform - LumiNUS.

For more details, please visit our web lecture FAQ.

Are there any tools in IVLE that will not be available in LumiNUS?

Project

Project tool will not be available in LumiNUS. It will be replaced by another tool - Evaluation, which is yet to be developed.

Gradebook export to IMMS

Direct export of grades from LumiNUS to IMMS is currently not available.

This features is dependent on NUS IT providing an API that will allow LumiNUS to connect to IMMS.

Direct export to IMMS should be ready by the start of AY19/20, at latest.

In the meantime, you can export marks to a spreadsheet, then import the spreadsheet to IMMS.

When the export integration is built, it will be similar to how IVLE works with IMMS.

Staff/Student Photos

Some of the staff and student photos are not available yet. Thus, you most likely will not be able to view the student photos in the Class & Groups.

Attendance (Student)

Attendance view for students is not available for students yet. It should be ready by end of August 2018.

Participation

Participation will not be available in LumiNUS as the usage is rather low in IVLE.

I co-teach a module with other lecturers. How should we choose between IVLE and LumiNUS?

We encourage one module to be on one platform only. We discourage setting up the module on both LumiNUS and IVLE.

How will students know if a module is on IVLE or LumiNUS?

Academic staff will have to inform students whether your module is on IVLE or LumiNUS.

This will only affect AY 18/19 as IVLE is scheduled to go into read-only mode in AY 19/20.

LumiNUS Features

What is new in LumiNUS?

You can read about LumiNUS' features here.

Where can I get help with LumiNUS?

You can report a bug, ask a question or make suggestions at

LumiNUS Help Desk (NUSNET login required)

Staff and students may also email itcare@nus.edu.sg.

Staff

Staff Guide (being developed)

Students

Student Guide (to be developed)

Online information sessions

From April 2018 onwards, CIT has been holding webinars to introduce LumiNUS to the NUS community.

Please refer to the webinars page for details.

During these online information sessions, you will find out our plans for LumiNUS and IVLE and learn more about the new and improved features in LumiNUS.

You may post your questions during the live online session.

Training

Training workshops will be conducted by CDTL from AY18/19 Semester 2 onwards.