Blackboard News

The Blackboard upgrade to version 9.1, Service Pack (SP) 10 was complete and fully operational since December 20.

New features that are now available include:

• Recording from a webcam directly to YouTube
• New “My Blackboard” navigation menu
• New question analysis reports for tests and quizzes
• New Calendar feature
• Social Learning Tools

Video Everywhere allows the user to record video to YouTube and embed it in a text editor. This can be used by both students and instructors. One use would be for students to record videos that they can embed in the discussion board.

Mozilla recently released a new version of Firefox which has caused problems with  opening PDF files on websites including Blackboard. Users are either getting a missing plugin error or a blank screen when trying to open a PDF file in the browser.

If you are having these problems, in Firefox click on “Firefox” menu, then “Preferences”, go to the “Applications” tab, search for “pdf” and change the “Action” for pdf to “Always ask”. This will give you the option to save the file or open it with either Acrobat Reader or Preview.

If this does not work for you use an alternate browser such as Safari or Chrome or save the pdf file and then open it.

The Fall is here!

The place to start for blackboard help is http://library.uoregon.edu/scis/blackboard/help.

Coursesites from summer term will remain available for about a week, then will disappear from students’ My Courses lists.

Instructors please make your site “available” to allow your students to access content. Visit Control Panel > Customization > Properties and change Availability to “yes.” For more information see the FAQ at http://library.uoregon.edu/scis/blackboard/faq/instructors/i47.html.

Also ignore the Quick Setup Guide by checking the hide box in the lower left hand corner and apply to never see that prompt again.

Beginning September 2012, the Blackboard Mobile App for iOS & Android has moved to a subscription model that works on all carriers/networks as well as WiFi.

Previously, the Blackboard Mobile Learn App available to UO students and faculty was available only on WiFi, and not available via cell networks. Blackboard’s new Personal License option allows students and instructors to access to the fully functional app. Bb users will be able to choose between two different introductory pricing options: $1.99 per year or a one-time / lifetime fee of $5.99. The app is available for iOS and Android users on all carriers and networks.

For more information, please see attached or see Blackboard’s official announcement:

http://www.blackboard.com/Platforms/Mobile/Products/Mobile-Learn.aspx

If you have any further questions please feel free to contact CMET Consulting and below you’ll find more resources.

Blackboard Mobile Learn Feature Guide

Best Practices for Mobile Friendly Courses

Handout for Faculty

Many faculty have received emails from Lore with the UO logo claiming to be a blackboard alternative. Their predecessor was “coursekit”, and this company has a reputation for aggressive advertising and has hired many students from enrolled institutions to do marketing on their behalf.

We’ve evaluated the product (along with various other course management systems), and will continue to look at it, but for now we see a number of issues that could limit widespread adoption at the UO. If you have any further questions please feel free to contact us at blackboard@ithelp.uoregon.edu

Some professors have not been able to view the last student in their grade center.
The final row is not showing up and the scroll bar does not enable the instructors
to scroll all the way down to see their last student. This issue has occurred more
commonly when instructors are using Mac laptops with a Firefox web browser.

We have a workaround in the following FAQ which has to do with the “zoom” set on their browser.
http://library.uoregon.edu/scis/blackboard/faq/instructors/i56.html
If you are using a Mac press “Command + 0″ key to zoom out in order to view the entire Grade Center.

Another quick way to check is to reorder the grade center rows by clicking the “last name”
column to sort it in descending rather than ascending order so that the last student is
displayed first and you can see whether they have been getting grades recorded or not.

Summer term is here.

Reminder: the place to start for blackboard help is http://library.uoregon.edu/scis/blackboard/help.

Students: notice that your My Courses still lists courses from spring and may not list all of your summer courses.  That’s as expected.

As usual, coursesites from spring term will remain available for about a week, then will disappear from students’ My Courses lists.  And summer term coursesites will only appear when the professor makes them available.

Instructors: remember that you must make your site “available” to allow your students to see it. After you have added some content, visit Control Panel > Customization > Properties and change Availability to “yes.” For more information see the FAQ at http://library.uoregon.edu/scis/blackboard/faq/instructors/i47.html.

The duckid.uoregon.edu system for changing passwords was down on Saturday, but is is now back in operation. Please contact UO Information Services for more information.

Spring term is here.

Reminder: the place to start for blackboard help is http://library.uoregon.edu/scis/blackboard/help.

Students: notice that your My Courses still lists courses from winter and may not list all of your spring courses.  That’s as expected.

As usual, coursesites from winter term will remain available for about a week, then will disappear from students’ My Courses lists.  And spring term coursesites will only appear when the professor makes them available.

Instructors: remember that you must make your site “available” to allow your students to see it. After you have added some content, visit Control Panel > Customization > Properties and change Availability to “yes.” For more information see the FAQ at http://library.uoregon.edu/scis/blackboard/faq/instructors/i47.html.

There will be a series of power outages during spring break, 3/27 and 3/28. .

We don’t have many details from Campus Operations, but best guess is that there will be several campus-wide outages early in the mornings of 3/27 and 3/28. Most buildings and systems should be back on line by 8am