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Frequently Asked Questions
Q. Text copied from Microsoft Word is filled with question marks when copied into Blackboard. How do I stop this from happening?
A. The problem probably has to do with Microsoft's so-called "smart" quotes. Microsoft automatically converts standard straight quotation marks (", ') into angled "smart" quotes. This works great in MS Word...but looks terrible on the Web.
Make sure to turn off smart quotes when creating text intended for Blackboard! Here's how:
1. In Word, go to "Tools-->Autocorrect Options-->AutoFormat As You Type"
2. Uncheck "Straight quotes" with "smart quotes"
While you're at it, uncheck "Hyphens (--) with dash (--)," which is another source of irritation.
Unfortunately, this fix doesn't convert previous documents embedded with "smart" quotes. These will have to be fixed by hand...or via search & replace. Please note that this *does not* apply to Word documents that have been *uploaded* into Blackboard. "Smart" quotes only affects text copied and pasted into Blackboard.
Q. What is the Blackboard System?
A. Blackboard is an easy-to-use online course management system. Blackboard delivers tools that enable you to provide your students with course materials, discussion boards, virtual chat, as well as online assessments. You can incorporate word processing, audio and video, spreadsheets, and presentation files into your course without learning HTML.
Q. What if I forgot my Blackboard password?
A. If you have forgotten your password you can click the "Forgot Your Password" link on the Blackboard login screen and complete the form. An e-mail will then be sent to the account specified within your Blackboard account profile. If you do not receive this e-mail, please contact Don Brummett at DonB@spokaneschools.org to request that your password be reset.
Q. How do I get into my Blackboard Course?
A. Ensure you are running IE (Internet Explorer), version 5.5 or later before logging into Blackboard. There are two ways to access the Blackboard site. 1) In your browsers address bar enter the Blackboard Web site address http://class.spokaneschools.org. Once at the site, it is recommended that you add this address to your favorites.
Q. How do I print in Blackboard?
A. Printing in Blackboard is the same as printing on other Internet sites. Since Blackboard uses frames to divide up the screen you need to first click the area of the page that you want to be printed. Rather than clicking on the print icon on the browser tool bar, you have more control over what you print by choosing File --> Print from the browsers menu bar. From there you can make selections about what you want to print (e.g. all pages, one page, a range of pages).
Q. How do I change my Blackboard password?
A. To change your password login to Blackboard and click the "Personal Information" link under the "Tools" menu on the "My Institution" page. You can then click on the "Change Password" link were you will be presented with a form to enter your new password. Remember to click the "Submit" button when finished.
Q. Does Blackboard have a spell checker?
A. Yes, Blackboard does have a spell checker. After entering content into a text box, click the spell check button located in the text box editor menu bar.
Q. What are the recommended requirements to use Blackboard?
A. The following are a list of recommendations when using Blackboard. (PLEASE NOTE: These are not requirements. The system may work without these recommendations being met but Blackboard may be slow or problematic.)Platform: Windows 95, 98, 2000, NT, ME; Mac OS 9 or Mac OS X
Hardware: 64 MB of RAM and 1 G of free disk space
Software: (may vary from course to course) Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft PowerPoint, Adobe Acrobat Reader Browser: Internet Explorer 5.5 or higher (Java and cookies must be enabled.)
Modem: 56K or higher
Q. Students are reporting problems when taking online tests/quizzes.
A. If students are experiencing problems when taking online tests/quizzes, here are a few things to look for that may be the source of the problem. 1) Make sure no pop-up blockers are installed or currently running on the system. 2) Make sure the system is free from Spyware/Adware by using free scanning utilities such as Ad-aware or Spybot Search & Destroy. 3) Clear the browsers cache and delete any temporary Internet files.
Q. Why does Blackboard give me an error message saying "There was a problem with this login request. Contact the system administrator." when I try logging in?
A. This problem occurs when you access Blackboard from a Bookmark/Favorite that is going directly to the login screen. To prevent this from happening you must enter Blackboard by first going to the opening page (http://class.spokaneschools.org), clicking the "Login" button, and then entering your username and password. If you wish to have Blackboard added to your Favorites, make sure that you bookmark the main screen and not the login screen.
Q. Question (and answer) not here? Who do I contact?
A. Feel free to contact:
Don Brummett
DonB@SpokaneSchools.Org
(509) 354-7545
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