18. Should I back up my course? How do I do it?

You should definitely back up your course! Here's how. From the Design tab, click on Manage Course. Then click on the Backups link.

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20. How can I move an assessment from one class to another?

From the Build tab, click on the Assessment tool. Click the check box of the assessment you want to export. Below your list of assessments there is an export button. Click on that.



Save the assessment to My Files. That way it will be available to add to any of your courses.

To import the quiz, go to the class where you want the quiz to be. From the Build tab, click on Manage Course. Click the Import button on the Manage Course menu.



Navigate to My Files and select the quiz you exported. It will be imported and placed on your Assessment page.

21. How can I add the SPS logo to my class header?

From the Build tab, click on the Page Options tab on the upper right side of your main page.


Click on Enable HTML Editor. Position your mouse in the table cell in the top of the window. (See below).



Then click on the "Add Image" icon (see above right). A new window will pop up that will let you browse for the logo image. Click the button under "Insert Image" then click the Browse button.



Select "Class Files."



Select the SPS Template from your course list. (If you teach an SPS course, you should have access to this course.



Click on the SPS Online Template Link. You will see a list of available files. Select the logo.jpg.



This will add the logo to your header. Click Save on your HTML editor. You should now see the SPS logo in the header of your course.

22. How do I reorder items in my tool pages?

From the Build tab, click on the tool (Assessment, Discussion, etc.) that you want to rearrange. From there, select the item that you wish to move by placing a check in the box.



Now, click the little yellow icon next to the number where you want it to go. This is somewhat counterintuitive. For example, in the image above, we want to move the Teacher Evaluation from number 3 to number 1. We'll click on the move icon next to number 1 after checking the box on number 3.

Now select "Move Selected Above."



The Teacher Evaluation is now in the first spot and the other items have been moved down.

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23. In Internet Explorer, I keep getting a yellow security alert bar that prevents me from downloading files. How do I stop that from appearing?

Click the Tools menu item at the top of IE. From there select Internet Options. Now select the Security tab. Next, click on the "Custom level..." button as shown below.



You will see a long list of items. Scroll down to see the Download options. Make sure that Automatic prompting for file downloads in enabled.

Click OK and then click OK again on the previous screen to accept the changes.
You may need to restart your browser for the changes to take effect.

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24. Is there a way that I can get a guest account for a visiting professor or lecturer?

There is. If you call ITS customer support at 977-4000 they will send you a form to fill out for a temporary SLU user ID. When the account is created we can set up a guest account in Blackboard CE.

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28. Is Classroom Video still available? If so, how can I add movie links to my Blackboard pages?

ITS has implemented Classroom Video v.2 which is replacing the original Classroom Video service. Your movies can be digitized and uploaded by Jonathan Grimm (grimmje@slu.edu). When your video is ready, Jonathan will send you a link for embedding into a Blackboard page.

Adding Video Links to your Blackboard Course

Note: you will need to do this for each video you want to link to. Multiple links will not
work with this method.

Step 1. From your course's home page (make sure you're on the Build tab) click on Add Folder.
Name the folder Video Links or something similar and click Save.



Step 2. Go back to your home page and click on your new video folder.

Now we'll create files that contain the actual video.

Step 3. Click on Add File and select Create File.




Step 4. When the next window pops up, put the film's title in the Title area. (see image below)

Step 5. In the content area, paste the long link that Jonathan sent you.

Step 6. Make sure the Use HTML box is checked.

Step 7. Click Save.

Step 8. Repeat steps 3 through 7 to add more film links to your video folder.

This is a Java problem. Java is a program that works in the background of Blackboard to do certain things and 'My Computer' is one of them.

Try clicking 'Check Browser' in the upper right part of your myBlackboard page. Scroll down and see if there is a red X on the Java section. This indicates a problem with your Java installation.

If this is happening on an office computer, call 977-4000 and ask them to update and enable Java. If it's your personal computer, you can go to http://www.java.com to download the latest version.

Instructions for enabling Java:

Internet Explorer for PC

* Click "Tools" --> "Internet Options"
* Select the Advanced Tab, and scroll down to "Java (Sun)" or to "Microsoft VM"
* Check the box next to the "Use JRE" or "Use Java 2" listing under "Java (Sun)" or to the "Java console enabled" listing under "Microsoft VM"
* Next, select the Security Tab, and select the "Custom Level" button
* Scroll down to "Scripting of Java applets"
* Make sure the "Enable" radio button is checked.
* In the section marked "Microsoft VM", if it exists, make sure that "Disable Java" is NOT selected. If it is selected, deselect it by selecting "High Safety".
* Click OK to save your preference.

Note: if you did not see "Java (Sun)" or "Microsoft VM" listed in the choices under the Advanced tab in your Internet Options, you will need to download and install Java on your computer.

Internet Explorer for Mac

* Choose "Explorer" from the top file menu, then choose "Preferences".
* Under "Web Browser" in the left-side pane, click "Java".
* Under "Java Options" on the right-side, make sure that "Enable Java" is checked.
* Click "OK".

Firefox for PC

* Choose "Tools" and then "Options.." form the top menu.
* From the left-side panel, choose "Web Features".
* Under "Web Features" on the right-side panel, make sure that the box next to 'Enable Java' is checked.
* Click "OK".

Firefox for Mac

* Choose "Preferences" from the "Firefox" menu.
* Select the 'Content' icon.
* Make sure 'Enable Java' is checked.
* Close the Preferences window.

30. Is there a way to increase the font size in Blackboard?

There is. From your My Blackboard page, click on My Settings in the
upper right section of the screen. From there, click on My Tool Options.



If you need to, scroll down to see the Font area. From the dropdown menu,
select the font size you want to use.