Blackboard Tips and Tricks
Decrease file download time
Create a course banner
Open multiple threads on a Forum
How to archive messages
Add a divider line under navigation bar
Create hotlinks for navigation
Find student names in the gradebook
Updating items on second page of gradebook
View gradebook columns horizontally
Adding images and attachments
Screen Readers (JAWS, etc) and Blackboard
Textbox missing in discussion board
Tip #1 Decrease file download time
Save your file in a web format (as a web page) before you post it. This will allow your information to load faster and become accessible for those students without the proper software.
Choose the “Save As” option when you are working on your document and change the Save As Type drop down box to “Web Page”. Click on the Save button and load it into your Blackboard site.
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Tip #2 How to create a course banner
You can create really great banners by going to one of these sites:
http://www.3dtextmaker.com
http://www.flamingtext.com
1. Select a graphic that you like from the site
2. Right click on the image with your mouse
3. Choose the Save Image As or Save Picture As option
4. A pop-up screen will appear – decide where you wish to save the image (Desktop, Hard drive, Floppy drive, etc.)
5. Click the Save button
6. Go to Blackboard
7. Go to the Control Panel, and Select Settings, under the Course Options area
8. Select Course Design, and Course Banner
9. Click the Browse button and find your graphic (where you saved it)
10. Select the graphic and Open
11. Scroll down in Blackboard and Submit, OK
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Tip #3 Discussion Board – How to open multiple threads within a forum
To read all related threads within a forum
1. Open Discussion Forum
2. On the right side of the screen, click Show Options
3. Click with the mouse the boxes of the threads you want to open at once
4. Click the Collect Button
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Tip #4 Discussion Board – How to archive messages
To archive discussion Forums
1. Go to the Discussion Board
2. Open the Forum you wish to archive
3. Scroll to the bottom, and click the Click Here for Archives button
4. Click Add Archive
5. Type in an Archive Title and Description, and check the box if you want the archive and messages available to students
6. Click Submit
7. Click Modify Archive Forum name
8. Scroll to bottom and select thread(s) names to archive
9. Click Submit
10. Open archive Forum name
11. See the thread(s)
12. (Keep clicking OK to get back to regular discussion board)
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Tip #5 Navigation Bar – How to add a divider line under your navigation bar
To provide dividers in your Navigation Bar
1. Go to the Control Panel
2. Select Manage Course Menu under Course Options
3. Select Add Tool Area
4. Select Area Type from Drop Down Box
5. Type in the Area Name <hr/> and check box if available to students
6. Click Submit / OK
7. Resequence bar where you want it placed
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Tip #6 Navigation Bar – How to create hotlinks for navigation
To create links in your Navigation Bar
1. Go to the Control Panel
2. Select Manage Course Menu under Course Options
3. Select Add Course Link
4. Type in an Area Name
5. Click Browse button to find Link Location
6. Click Radio Button where to link to
7. Click Submit / Submit / OK
8. Re-sequence if desired
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Tip #7 Grade Book - Finding student names
Rolling cursor over an item in the grade book gives you an Alt tag with student’s name
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Tip #8 Grade Book – Updating items on the second page
Upon making a change to a grade on the second page of grade book, Blackboard will always default back to the first page. This does not mean that your update was unsuccessful. While annoying, there is no fix for this as of yet.
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Tip #9 Grade Book – How to view column headings horizontally
When viewing headings horizontally, it is not possible to freeze the columns headings. However, the column widths can be changed, to allow more columns to display at a time.
1. Go to the Grade book in the Control Panel, under Assessment
2. Select Manage Items at the top of the page
3. Click the Modify Button on the right side of the screen, for the item to be modified (Notice the sequence of items can also be changed, with the drop-down box number.)
4. Change the Item Name to a shorter name
5. Click Submit / OK / OK
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Tip #10 Announcement – Adding images and attachments
Images can be placed in Announcements. However, at this time the option is not available. I will check out why! Also, attachments cannot be added in the Announcements option in Blackboard 6.1. You can link to an area that has attachments, however by scrolling to the bottom of the Add Announcement / Modify Announcement option and click the Browse button.
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Blackboard tip for Students using JAWS 5 and IE 6 browser:
The Blackboard text box editor is based on a Microsoft-authored Active-X control, and does not work with screen readers. The suggested remedy to this is to disable the Blackboard text box editor, leaving the standard text box functionality available to students using screen readers.
Also if you are unable to post to the discussion board and are using Windows Vista you can download Mozilla Firefox at http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/ or follow these steps:
To disable the text box editor (from within Blackboard):
- click on "Personal Information" in the Blackboard left hand navigation box
- click "Set Text Box Editor Options"
- select "Disable" under "Enable/Disable Text Box Editor" to disable the WYSIWYG editor for IE
- click Submit
Please let us know if you are still having problems with the text box after following these directions.
wa-online@ctc.edu
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