Dear All

Recently Java released a new version for all webbrowsers, it has some security updates and one of these prevents people from uploading multiple files to blackboard content system.

Everything works fine while you open the upload and drag the files over.  However when you click the submit button nothing happens.  Blackboard corp have designed an update to resolve this problem – we will apply this update as soon as practical.

There are however ways that you can get around the problem now

1. using single file upload (look in the top right when you are uploading and you can toggle from multiple to single file)
2. Reduce the security level of your java (and then next week return it to its normal setting)

If you wish to reduce your java security level, click start, all programs, java, configure java.  A box should appear called “Java Control Panel”, click the security tab and set the security level down to medium.  Obviously this leaves your computer less secure and so you should return the setting to high when you have finished working with Blackboard.

Update – our Chrome browsers are set to auto update  the workaround using the lowering of security setting might not work with Chrome version that was released Friday afternoon, however if you use IE it will work fine

Regards

Joseph Gliddon – Learning Technologist

You can add your Blackboard calendar to Google as follows:

1. Click on your name in the top right of Blackboard
2. Click on the calendar icon
3. In the bottom left of the Calendar you will see a link called “Get External calendar link”. Click on this
4. Copy the link (Ctrl + C  or Cmd + C for Mac)
5. Open your Google calendar
6. Under “Other calendars” on the left click the drop down arrow
7. Choose “Add by URL” and paste in the link (Ctrl + V or Cmd + V for Mac), then click “Add Calendar”
8. Please note the calendar name may appear initially as a long URL (web address) , but this will then change to University of Bristol.
9. You may wish to change the Calendar name “University of Bristol” e.g. to Blackboard . To do this click the dropdown to the right of the calendar and select Calendar settings, then edit the name and Save.

Please note that any editing of events has to be done in Blackboard.

An issue has been identified that can affect assessments taken in Questionmark Perception using Internet Explorer 9. If the “Use graphic” option is selected when creating a Matching or Ranking question, images in the assessment may not be displayed. This issue has been reported to Questionmark and they are investigating.

Currently, we are recommending that, if a QMP assessment might be taken using the Internet Explorer 9 browser, you do not use the “Use graphic” option in Matching and Ranking questions. Please contact us if you have any questions about this, or for further advice.

The latest version of Blackboard has a new feature that allows staff to set “Goals” for their Courses, and then add “Alignments” between items in the Courses and these Goals. Unfortunately, references to Alignments appear in various places even when Goals have not been set – notably, on students’ My Grades pages, and at the top of any Content page created as a “Blank Page”. We have requested that Blackboard issue a patch that will enable us to remove these; until this time, please just ignore them – they have no effect when not associated with Goals.

If your courses contain materials created in Campus Pack (wikis, blogs and podcasts) the first time the link is clicked following the upgrade on the 17th August it will automatically update from the old version of the tool to the new.

To do this the following steps are requried –

Click View

 The upgrade process will start – this may take some time but it will not stop you using  another browser tab.