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SAFARI Montage® Version 6.1.x



Product Release Information


Product:
Version:
Releases & Dates:
Customer Support:

SAFARI Montage
6.1
6.1.16 - 05/04/2015
http://www.safarimontage.com/support

Introduction

This document contains the release notes for SAFARI Montage 6.1. This is a full release of the SAFARI Montage System and the following sections provide details to its release.

This SAFARI Montage 6.1 upgrade is not a software-only upgrade from SAFARI Montage 4.x and earlier versions. Upgrading from SAFARI Montage 4.x or earlier versions requires a new OS drive, may require increased RAM and/or a new server. Contact SAFARI Montage Customer Service (1-800-782-7230) regarding SAFARI Montage 6.1 upgrade options.

New in this Release - 6.1.16

  • HTML 5 Player
    • Targeted playback for Home Access and Mobile platforms
    • Supports MP4, HLS and MPEG-DASH formats
    • Supports scrubbing, segmentation, captioning, language and speed control
  • Digital Learning Platform (DLP)
    • Student Groups
      • Group students together for ease of use when assigning assignments
    • Course and Lesson Development Log
      • Captures changes made to courses and lessons
    • Developer Notes
      • Provides a way for developers to make notes regarding the courses and lesson being developed
    • Dashboard and Calendar Customization
      • Provides a way to select which classes will appear on a student's dashboard and calendar
  • Universal Live Broadcaster
    • FLV Streaming
      • Support for live streaming to the Internet via SAFARI Montage SupeTube
  • Dashboard
    • New look and feel improvements
    • Expand and collapse Dashboard panels
  • Content
    • Project Gutenberg eBooks
  • Web Browser Support
    • Support for the following web browser types:

      Operating System Microsoft® Internet Explorer® Firefox® Apple® Safari® Chrome™
      Microsoft Window® 8.1 (Desktop) 11.0, 10.0 37.0 N/A 42.0
      Microsoft Window® 7 11.0, 10.0, 9.0 and 8.0 37.0 N/A 42.0
      Microsoft Window Vista® 9.0 and 8.0 37.0 N/A 42.0
      Microsoft Window XP SP3 8.0 and 7.0 37.0 N/A 42.0
      Apple Mac OS® X 10.10 N/A 37.0 8.0 42.0
      Apple Mac OS® X 10.9 N/A 37.0 7.0 42.0
      Apple Mac OS® X 10.8 N/A 37.0 6.0 42.0
      Apple Mac OS X 10.7 N/A 37.0 6.0 42.0
      Apple Mac OS X 10.6 N/A 37.0 5.1 42.0

Supported Content Packages

  • Video
    • Core K-8 Content (2014)
    • Core K-8 Content w/o Schlessinger Media (2014)
    • K-8 Expansion Content (2014)
    • K-8 Super Core Content (2014)
    • Core 9-12 Content (2014)
    • 9-12 Expansion Content (2014)
    • 9-12 Super Core Content (2014)
    • Core K-12 Content (2014)
    • K-12 Super Core Content (2014)
    • Additional Schlessinger Media® K-8 (2010)
    • Additional Schlessinger Media 9-12 (2010)
    • BestQuest Teaching Systems®
      • Algebra'scool® (2012)
      • Math'scool® (2012)
    • Best Practices for Using SAFARI Montage PD
    • National Defense Education Program STEM
    • Arab American Stories
    • Almanac Newsreel
    • National Underground Railroad Freedom Center®
    • The Video Encyclopedia Of The 20th Century®
    • BBC Shakespeare
    • Career Clips1
    • Digital Resources From NASA
    • National Park Service Natural & Historical Digital Resources®
    • Digital Resources From FEMA
  • Audio Clips
    • IRC: History Pictures
    • IRC: California History Pictures
    • U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Photographs (2013)
    • National Archives Digital Resources (2015)
    • National Park Service Natural & Historical Digital Resources
  • Interactive
    • Visual Dictionary (2014)
    • Cyber Science Interactive 3D Model™ (2014)
  • eBooks
    • Project Gutenberg eBooks
  • Web Links
    • Themed Resources from the Library of Congress
    • Khan Academy Web Links
    • Digital Resources From the Encyclopedia of Life
    • Scholastic Channel Web Links
    • Reading Rockets Web Link
    • Numberphiles Web Links
    • TED-ED Web Links
    • MIT OpenCourseWare Web Links
    • Mathispower4u Web Links
    • Mini BIO Web Links
    • Minute Earth Web Links
    • Minute Physics Web Links
    • MyWhyU Web Links
    • Scientific American Video Web Links
    • TED-Ed Web Links (2015)
    • The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History Web Links
    • The New York Times Video Web Link
  • Still Images
    • Schlessinger Image Library
    • World Factbook (2014)
    • Paintings by the Masters
    • Digital Resources From NASA
    • IRC: History Pictures
    • IRC: California History Pictures
    • National Atlas of The United States Maps
    • NOAA Weather Photos
    • U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Photographs (2013)
    • Images From The National Gallery of Art
    • National Archives Digital Resources (2015)
    • Digital Resources From FEMA
    • Cyber Science Interactive 3D Model™ (2014)
    • National Science Foundation Digital Resources

Installation and Upgrade Notes

  • Installation and Upgrade
    • See the SAFARI Montage 6.1 Upgrade Instructions tab above.
  • Minimum System Requirements
    • See the SAFARI Montage 6.1 System Requirements tab above.

6.1.16 Release Details

Notes

1Requires SAFARI Montage Media Player for playback.

Microsoft® Windows®

Operating System
  • Windows 8.1 (Desktop Mode)
  • Windows XP Service Pack 3
  • Windows Vista®
  • Windows 7
Web Browsers
  • Internet Explorer®
    • 11.0 (Windows 8 Desktop Mode and 7)
    • 10.0 (Windows 8 Desktop Mode and 7)
    • 9.0 (Windows 7 and Vista)
    • 8.0 (all supported Operating Systems)
    • 7.0 (Windows XP)
  • Firefox®
    • 37.0 (all supported Operating Systems)
  • Google Chrome™
    • 42.0 (all supported Operating Systems)
Minimum Hardware
  • 1.8 GHz CPU (Recommended: 2.0 GHz or greater)
  • 512 MB RAM (Recommended: 1 GB or greater)
  • 128 MB of Video RAM
Apple® Mac OS®

Operating System
  • Mac OS X v10.101
  • Mac OS X v10.9.21
  • Mac OS X v10.8.31
  • Mac OS X v10.7.31
  • Mac OS X v10.6.82
Web Browsers
  • Safari®
    • 8.0 (OS X 10.10)
    • 7.0 (OS X 10.9)
    • 6.1 (OS X 10.8 and 10.7)
    • 5.1 (OS X 10.6)
  • Firefox®
    • 37.0 (all supported Operating Systems)
  • Google Chrome™
    • 42.0 (all supported Operating Systems)
Minimum Hardware

1

  • Mac with an Intel Core 2 Duo, Core i3, Core i5, Core i7, or Xeon processor
  • 2GB RAM
  • 7GB of available space

2

  • Mac with Intel® processor
  • 2.0 GHz CPU
  • 1GB RAM
  • 5GB of available space
Browser Plug-ins (All Platforms)

  • SAFARI Montage Media Player
    • Plays both Windows Media® and Apple QuickTime®

      • Installers

    • Version 6.1.1 (32-bit Windows 8, 7, Vista, XP)
    • Version 6.1.0 (OS X 10.9, 10.8, 10.7, and 10.6)

      • Required for:

    • Microsoft Windows Vista and Windows 7 Compatibility
    • Digital Curriculum Presenter™ (DCP)
    • Pathways SM™
    • SAFARI Montage Managed Home Access Module
    • Closed Captioning Toggle
    • Alternate Language Audio Tracks
    • Enhanced Full-Screen Playback
    • Playback of Career Clips Content
  • VideoLAN

    The SAFARI Montage Media Player is compatible with the use of the VideoLAN VLC media player for streaming media playback.

    • Version 2.0.3 (Windows all versions)
    • Version 2.0.3 (OS X all versions)
  • Apple QuickTime

    Required for Windows operating systems and Mac OS for playback of QuickTime and H.264 content, and Managed Home Access.

    • X (OS X 10.10, 10.9, 10.8, 10.7)
    • 7.7 (OS X 10.6 / Windows 8, 7, Vista and XP)
  • Microsoft Windows Media Player 11 (Windows XP and Windows Vista) or Microsoft Windows Media Player 12 (Windows 8 and 7)
    • Required for the playback of Windows Media. Windows Media playback not available on Mac OS.
  • Adobe® Flash® Player 11 - Required for Visual Dictionary interactive image package.
  • Adobe® Acrobat® Reader XI.
  • Sun® Java® 7 or higher - required for CreationStation uploads.
  • Cyber-Science 3D v4 Viewer
    • Required to view Cyber-Science Interactive 3D models

      • Installers

    • Version CS.4.0b.2075 (Windows and OS X all versions)
Additional Local Software

Additional software maybe required to create or view certain CreationStation content.

  • Software clients for the associated file types
    • SMART Notebook® software / SMART Notebook Interactive Viewer software - .NOTEBOOK / .NBK
    • Promethean® ActivInspire® / ActiveStudio® / Flipchart Viewer - .FLIPCHART / .FLP / .AS3A
    • Hitachi® StarBoard® - .YAR
    • eInstruction® Workspace™ - .GWB
    • Microsoft Office / Office Vewiers - .DOC/.DOCX, .XLS/.XLSX, .PPT/.PPTX
    • OpenOffice.org® - .SDW/.ODT, .SDC/.ODS, .SDD/.ODP, .ODG; .ODF, .SDP
    • Apple iWork® - .PAGES, .NUMBERS, .KEY
    • Adobe Acrobat Reader - .PDF
    • An EPUB® Reader - .LIT, .EPUB
  • Interactive Whiteboard Integration - supported software versions.
    • SMART Notebook Software / Notebook Interactive Viewer - v 9.5 or greater
    • Promethean ActivInspire (v 1.5 or greater) / ActiveStudio (v 2.5 or greater) / Flipchart Viewer
    • StarBoard (v 8.11 or greater) / StarBoard LE - Viewer Only (v 3.0 or greater) / StarBoard for OS X (v 9.2 or greater)
    • eInstruction Workspace for Windows (v 8.90 or greater) / eInstruction Workspace for OS X (v 5.10 or greater)
Managed Home Access Clients Using SAFARI Montage Media Player Plug-in
  • SAFARI Montage Media Player 6.1.x
  • Appled QuickTime
  • 768kbps Broadband Internet Connection
Local Area Network
  • 100Mb Wired Ethernet
  • NetBIOS Protocol
    • Windows: "Client for Microsoft Networks" protocol must be active on client machines.
    • OS X: The "Samba" suite of protocols is already active. No changes are required.
  • Switched Backbone
  • Full Duplex

Instructions for Upgrading SAFARI Montage OS to Version 6.1.x

Please note that these upgrade instructions are ONLY for upgrades to installations of version 5.0.29 or later. If you are currently running a version prior to 5.0.29, you will need to first upgrade your server. A server upgrade to version 5.0.29 will require a hard drive and memory upgrade. Please contact Technical Support at 800-782-7230 if you have any questions or concerns regarding the current status of your SAFARI Montage server.

WARNING: DO NOT ATTEMPT TO APPLY THIS UPGRADE TO A SAFARI MONTAGE SERVER RUNNING SOFTWARE VERSION 4.4.X OR EARLIER. DOING SO WILL RENDER YOUR SERVER INOPERABLE.
Contents

An email from SAFARI Montage containing a download link

Please read these instructions in their entirety before you begin:
  • These instructions and all related documents are available online at http://www.safarimontage.com/support
  • It is important that you review the SAFARI Montage 6.1.x Release Notes available online, as these may include Known Issues that you should understand before running the upgrade.
  • Review the SAFARI Montage 6.1.x System Requirements, which include important information that will ensure your environment meets all requirements.
  • Allow for time to backup your system in your update planning.
  • No one should use the SAFARI Montage System during the update process, so please perform this update during off-hours.
  • Review any questions with Technical Support in advance. Please note that SAFARI Montage Technical Support is available Monday - Friday from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Eastern Time and they may be contacted by telephone at 800-782-7230 or online via http://www.safarimontage.com/support/.
Important Considerations:
  1. We recommend you update all client computers to the current version of the SAFARI Montage Media Player prior to running the OS upgrade. Not doing so will result in all users receiving an alert upon logging in to SAFARI Montage instructing them to upgrade the player. Administrators can suppress this notification in the following location: ADMIN -> Settings -> System -> Alert to Install SAFARI Montage Media Player. The latest version of the player is available for download at http://www.safarimontage.com/support.
  2. If monitoring the update from the console, be aware that the system may appear to be inactive at certain times during the upgrade. This does not mean that the upgrade has stopped.
WARNING: DO NOT interrupt the update in any way or power off the server at any time during the update process or database optimization. Doing so may severely and irreparably damage your Safari Montage system.
If you are running WAN Manager with Expansion Server(s):
  1. The Expansion Controller must be upgraded first. See Upgrade Instructions below.
  2. Once the Expansion Controller has been upgraded, it will automatically push the upgrade to all of the Expansion Servers. The progress of the upgrade can be viewed by navigating to Admin -> Expansion Server -> Expansion Servers.
If you are running WAN Manager with Remote School Server(s):
  1. The WAN Manager Parent server must be upgraded first. See Upgrade Instructions below.
  2. Once the upgrade is completed on the WAN Manager Parent server, you will be able to automatically 'push' the upgrade to the Remote School Servers, thereby eliminating the need to upgrade them separately on-site.
    1. Navigate to Admin -> WAN Manager -> Remote School Servers
    2. Either check 'Remote update all servers', which will update five servers at a time until they have all been upgraded, or select individual servers to be upgraded by checking the box next to the server name.

Total time to upgrade all expansion and/or remote school servers will depend upon the total number of servers and available bandwidth. The upgrade will be downloaded to each remote server, where the upgrade process will run automatically and take approximately one to two hours. If 'Remote update all servers' is selected, servers will be processed in groups of five, and upgrades will run concurrently on each group of remote servers.

Download and Upgrade Instructions:
  1. Backup your SAFARI Montage system via the Administration tools:
    1. Navigate to Admin -> Data Recovery -> Backup
    2. Perform a full backup using one of the following methods:
      • SAFARI Montage version 5.9.19 or earlier - Set Data Only to No and select to either keep or overwrite the previous backup.
      • SAFARI Montage version 5.9.28 or later - Set Type to Data & User Content and select to either keep or overwrite the previous backup.
  2. Download upgrade media (ISO) using the link provided in the email from SAFARI Montage.
  3. Upload the downloaded ISO file to the SAFARI Montage system via the Administration tools:
    1. Navigate to Admin » Tools » Software Update History.
    2. Click on the Upload an ISO image of the update and install link.
    3. Browse to the location of the ISO file downloaded in Step 2 and click on Open.

    The ISO will begin uploading to the server. Once the upload is complete, the upgrade will begin and will take approximately one to two hours, after which the server will reboot.

~ THIS COMPLETES THE SERVER UPDATE PROCESS. PLEASE TEST FROM A CLIENT BROWSER. ~
Deploying the SAFARI Montage Media Player:

Go to http://www.safarimontage.com/support/ to download the latest version of the SAFARI Montage Media Player and for instructions on how to deploy the player to your client environment.