If you're having trouble opening or printing a file attachment stored on Blackboard, you may find opening or printing a copy that you've saved to your computer much easier.

1. Navigate to where the file link is displayed, and right-click on the link.

2. The shortcut menu that appears will include an option for saving the file to your computer:

Internet Explorer 6.0	Mozilla

Be sure to save the file to a memorable location!

3. Updating Your E-mail Address

For step-by-step instructions, refer to Checking and updating your email address, name, and password in Blackboard

4. Sending Email

Blackboard does not store copies of messages that you send, but it does send you a copy of those messages.

1. On the site's Course Menu, click the Communication button.

2. Click Send E-mail.

3. In the Send E-mail window, click the link which best identifies your audience:

All Users
All Groups
All Teaching Assistants
All Instructors
Single/Select Users
Single/Select Groups

4. The message window opens. If you've chosen either Single/Select Users or Single/Select Groups, click the checkbox(es) for the user(s) or group(s) to which the message should be sent.

5. In Enter Message Details, type in the subject and the body of the message. Note that e-mail messages sent through Blackboard are in plain text; HTML coding is not supported.

6. If you'd like to attach a file to your message, click Add in section 3, Add Attachments.

a) A new window opens. Click Browse in section 1, and locate the file on your computer.

b) Click on the file once to highlight it, and then click on Open.

c) Click Submit. The message window reopens.

d) If you wish to remove an attachment, click on its Remove button, to the left.

7. Click Submit to send your message.

5. Editing Your Homepage

For step-by-step instructions, refer to How do I create a Student Homepage in a Blackboard site?

6. Viewing Homepages

For step-by-step instructions, refer to How do I view Student Homepages in Blackboard?

7. Using the Digital Dropbox

Before you send a file, check its filename carefully. Filenames should include only letters, numbers, hyphens or underscores: no spaces or other characters.

1. On the site's Course Menu, click Tools.

2. In the Tools list, click Digital Dropbox.

3. Click Send File (not Add File):

4. If you have previously uploaded to the Digital Dropbox the file you want to send, click on the drop down menu arrow next to Select File.

5. Click on the file name to select the file you want to send.

6. Click Submit to send the file to the instructor's Digital Dropbox

7. If you have not previously uploaded to the Digital Dropbox the file you want to send, enter a title for the file, and click Browse to locate the file on the computer's hard drive or disk.

8. Click Submit to send the file to the instructor's Digital Dropbox.

9. Click OK to return to the Digital Dropbox. The sent file will appear at the top of the list.

8. Discussion Board

The discussion board is a medium for written communication. Unlike email messages, messages posted to the discussion board are organized by topic and kept in a central location.

9. Accessing the Discussion Board

1. If your instructor has added a button for Discussion Board to the left navigation bar, click that button. If you don't see a button for Discussion Boards, click Communication. A link for Discussion Board will appear in the list of Communication tools to the right.

2. From the Discussion Board list, click the link for the discussion forum you want to enter.

10. Reading and Replying to a Message

ITS highly recommends composing your discussion board posting outside of Blackboard in a word processing program and then pasting them into Blackboard. Otherwise, your hard work could be deleted by an internet disruption.

1. Once you've entered a discussion forum, you will see a list of messages. Click the link for a message's subject line to read that message. Note that if you click on the writer's name, you will be sending an e-mail message to the author instead of posting to the forum.

2. To reply to the message that you are reading, click Reply at the bottom right corner of the message.

3. A response window will appear. In the first half of the window is the form to enter and submit your reply. Below it is the text of the message to which you are responding.

4. If you'd like, you can customize the default Subject line.

5. Follow steps 3-5 for Adding a New Discussion Topic (Thread) to a Forum.

11. Adding a New Discussion Topic (Thread) to a Forum

1. To create a new discussion topic within a forum, click the Add New Thread button in the top left corner of the list of messages.

2. In the Create New window, enter a subject line in the Subject textbox.

3. Enter the body of the message in the Message textbox.

If you are using Windows Internet Explorer as your browser, you will see formatting toolbars at the top of the Message textbox.
Regretably, if you are using Mozilla, Firefox, or any browser on a Macintosh, you won't see these toolbars. However, you will see some very rudimentary formatting options below the Message field. Unless you are entering a message composed entirely in HTML code, keep the default Smart Text option. Smart Text allows you to use the enter and space keys to insert white space into the message and to use HTML code to format parts of your message. Smartest of all, it converts full web addresses (with the http:// prefix, e.g., http://www.unc.edu) to hyperlinks.

Important

ITS strongly recommends composing your message in a word processor and then copying and pasting it into the Message box. If you are using Windows Internet Explorer, the formatting you've applied in Microsoft Word will also apply in the Message box. Regrettably, if you not using Windows Internet Explorer, only plain text with line breaks will be applied.

4. If you would like to attach a file to your message, click Browse, select the file you would like to add, and click Open to attach the file.

Use only letters, numbers, hyphens, and underscores in filenames: no spaces or other characters. Any file you attach must end with a file extension (.doc, .ppt).

5. Click Preview to reread your message before submitting it. Once you are satisfied with your message, click Submit.

12. Reading Message Attachments

1. If a message has an attachment, a paper clip will appear next to its subject line in the list of messages. Click the link for that message's subject line to open the message: clicking the paperclip won't work!

2. In the message header, you'll see an Attachment: line. Click on the filename link to open the file.

3. If you are using Mozilla view Blackboard, you will be prompted to Open or Save the file. Select Open. If you have software that can open the file (e.g., Microsoft Word or PowerPoint), that software will launch and open the file.

4. If you are using Internet Explorer to view Blackboard, the file may either open within the Blackboard window, or you may be prompted to either Open or Save the file. If the latter is the case, select Open. If you have software that can open the file, that software will launch and open the file. Note: if you are using Internet Explorer 6, you may need to Save the file in order to view its contents.

13. Sorting Messages

1. Scroll down to the bottom of the list of messages. Sort By: options will appear to the left.

2. Options are by Date, Author, Subject, or Default. Default sorts threads chronologically, with replies included below initial messages.

14. Other Viewing Options

When the list of messages has become long, you can click the minus sign to the left of a thread to collapse the list, and only the initial message in the thread will then display. You can expand a thread by clicking the plus sign ( +)to the left of a collapsed thread. Options for Expand All and Collapse All (threads) appear at the top right of the message list.

When you have not yet read a message, it will have a yellow New icon. You can list unread messages, excluding the ones you've read, by selecting View Unread Messages at the top left. Once clicked, this option is replaced by View All Messages. Click View All Messages to display all messages in the forum. Note that all threads must first be expanded for View Unread/All Messages to work correctly.

15. Collecting Messages into a Single Window for Viewing, Printing, or Saving to a File

1. Make sure that all threads are expanded by clicking Expand All at the top right of the message list.

2. Click Show Options, the tab toward the top right. A toolbar appears, as do checkboxes next to the messages.

3. Click the check boxes next to the postings you want to view, print, or save. If you want to view all of the postings, click Select All.

4. Click Collect to display the contents of all selected posts in a single window.

5. If you want to print the messages, click once anywhere in the area that the messages appear, and click Print on your browser's toolbar.

6. If you want to save the messages to a file on your computer,

a) Go to your browser's Edit menu and click Select All. The message text will be highlighted.

b) Then return to the Edit menu and click Copy.

c) Open a new Microsoft Word document.

d) Go to the Edit menu and choose Paste Special...

e) In the Paste as options window, select Unformatted Text and click OK. Save your document and return to the Blackboard window.

7. Click OK to return to the default message list.

16. Using the Group File Exchange Area

The File Exchange area allows members of a group to share documents and other files. Please note, however, that any member of the group can remove any file.

Note also that the filename of any file you attach must include only letters, numbers, hyphens, and underscores (no spaces or other characters) and end with a file extension ( .doc, .ppt).

1. In the main course view, click Communication in the navigation bar to the left. In the Communication menu that opens, click Group Pages.

2. Click the link corresponding with the desired group. The Group Pages window opens.

3. Click File Exchange.

4. Click Add File. The File Information window opens.

5. Enter a title for the file in the Title field. Click Browse to open your browser's Choose File/File Upload window.

6. In the Choose File/File Upload window, navigate to the file you would like to share. Double-click on the filename. The Choose File/File Upload window closes and the file path appears in the File: field on the File Information page.

7. Click Submit. Note that if you are using Internet Explorer, a Runtime Error alert may appear. Click No to close the alert and to continue the submission process.

8. Click OK to return to the File Exchange window. The file you have uploaded will now appear in the list of files.

9. Never click Remove to remove another student's file. You will delete it permanently from you and your fellow group members' views.

17. Viewing Assignment Instructions

1. After navigating to the assignment's location, click the View/Complete link:

2. The Upload Assignment page opens. Note that the page is divided into three sections: Assignment Information, Your Files, and Submit:

3. Depending upon how your instructor has set up the assignment, you'll find the assignment instructions on this page, or in one or more Assignment Files linked to this page. To view linked assignment files, right-click (Mac users, Control-click) on their links and save them to your computer. Internet Explorer users choose Save Target As... from the short-cut menu that appears; Netscape users choose Save Link Target As... Once saved to your computer, you can open and view the assignment file.

4. Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click Cancel. Important: do not click the Submit button until you have finished your assignment and are ready to turn it in. If you do click Submit, you will be locked out of the Upload Assignment page and will need to ask your instructor to clear your assignment attempt.

18. Submitting Your Assignment

Note that the filename of any file you submit must include only letters, numbers, hyphens, and underscores (no spaces or other characters) and end with a file extension ( .doc, .ppt).

1. Navigate to the assignment's location and click the View/Complete link. On the Upload Assignment page, scroll down to section 2, Your Files. Again, depending upon the instructions that your instructor has given you, you will either paste your assignment in the Comments box or Attach a File.

If you're pasting in text from a word processor, note that any formatting you use (except for line breaks) will not be preserved. Note also that if you paste in more than 4000 characters, you'll receive an error message. In that case, you'll want to Attach your response as a file.
Bug alert: even if you are attaching a file, you still must type something in the Comments box (for example, "assignment response attached") before your assignment can be submitted.

2. To attach a file, Click Browse... Your web browser will open a window in which you locate and select a file to attach. Use the Look in area's drop down menu at the top of this window to navigate to where the file is stored.

3. Once you find the file you want to attach, click once on its name. Then click Open in the lower right corner. You can also double-click on the name instead.

4. If you need to attach more than one file, click Add Another File. After clicking, a link for the first file that you attached will appear right below. Scroll down and repeat steps 2 and 3 above to attach that file.

5. When you've finished, click Submit at the bottom of the page. Important: If you click Save, you'll be able to access this file later, but your instructor will not be able to view your work.

6. After you've clicked Submit, an assignment receipt page will display. Click OK. If you want, you can further verify that your assignment was submitted successfully, by clicking the assignment's View/Complete link. An Assignment Already Completed page will open. Click OK to view the Assignment Information and your submitted work.

19. Checking Your Grades

1. On the site's Course Menu, click Tools.

2. In the Tools list, click View Grades:

On the view grades page, you will see a table listing each assignment along with the date, your grade, the possible points and the class average for the assignment. If your instructor uses Blackboard's weighting features, you may also see the weight listed for each assignment.

Items which have been submitted but not graded will be marked with an exclamation mark. A dash indicates that either your work has not been graded or that you haven't yet submitted your work. For some assignments completed and graded through Blackboard, you can review your work and feedback from your instructor by clicking on the underlined grade for an assignment. If you have questions about the information displayed here, contact your instructor.

20. Taking a Test or a Survey

Your instructors may use Blackboard to create a test or a survey to administer to the class. Depending on how your instructors set up their tests, you may be able to take a test only once or more than once, or the test may even be timed. If a test has no short answer/essay questions, you'll be able to view your score immediately after completing it.

Important Testing-Taking Tips

Use Mozilla, rather than Internet Explorer. If your computer experiences an Internet disruption, Internet Explorer will display an error page and not allow you to return to your quiz answers.
Click links and buttons only once: avoid double or repeated clicking.
Compose your responses to essay questions in a word processing program and copy and paste them into the answer box.

If your network connection is disrupted during the course of a test and you cannot finish completing it, you should contact your instructor, not 962-HELP. Only your instructor has permission to "clear" your test attempts.

1. To begin taking a test, click the test link:

2. The following alert will appear: "Are you sure that you want to take this assessment now?" Click OK to begin taking the test.

3. Carefully read the instructions and other information in the gray box at the top of the quiz page. In the example below, students are allowed only one attempt at taking a quiz, and the quiz must be completed in a single sitting:

The example quiz above was designed so that only one question is displayed at a time.

4. Save your quiz answers periodically: If the quiz is displayed one quesiton at a time, moving to a new question will automatically save your answer. If the quiz is set to display all questions in a single page, you will have Save and Submit buttons at the bottom of the page:

Click Save periodically just in case you get disconnected from the Internet or the campus network.

5. Once you've finished the test, click Submit. If the test presents one question at a time, you'll find the Submit button on the last page of the quiz:

6. After clicking Submit, you will be alerted if you've left any questions incomplete. Click Cancel to return to the test or click OK to continue submitting your test.

7. Another alert will appear: "Are you sure that you want to submit this assessment now?" Click OK to submit your answers.

8. A receipt page will display, with a message that you've successfully completed the assessment. Click the OK button to view the results that the instructor has specified to be displayed. If you want to review this information at a later time, go to View Grades, and click the link where your score is displayed.

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Blackboard: Student Guide