Security Settings and Opening PowerPoint or Other Files

Sometimes when students indicate they cannot see a PowerPoint presentation (meaning they click the links in your course and the presentation doesn’t open) it may be due to the security settings in their browser. When using Internet Explorer, the user may get a notice from IE that a download has been prevented because of potential risks. The cue is a yellow strip with warning text that appears at the top of the browser window. If this occurs the user can click the yellow strip and choose the option to proceed with the download. At times this action will kick the user out of the course but when they log back in they’ll be able to open the presentation. If the student holds the Ctrl key (Windows users) while clicking the link to the presentation, it should open without the yellow warning strip. Holding the Ctrl key while clicking a link is a way of telling the browser “I’m aware of the risks associated with this type of action but want to open this file anyway”.

Thanks to Davy Jones for the tip.

Allowing Students to Add Web Links

While you, as an instructor, can add web links (using the Web Links tool) to a course, you can also enable your students to add Web Links (keep in mind that only the author of a Web Link can remove it). To enable students to add web links you must:

• On the Build tab, enable the Web Links tool (select Manage Course à Tools and select the check box preceding the Web Links tool name under Content Tools and then select the Save button).
• On the Build tab, enable student Web Link creation (from the Manage Course screen select the Settings à Web Links option and set the “Allow Web Links to be created [by] roles other than designer” option button to True…then select the Save Values button).
• On the Teach tab, go to the Web Links tool and create a new Category (such as “Student Contributions” or whatever you want to call it). Add a description if you wish (such as “A place for you to share web links.”). Then select the “Allow Student to assign links to this category” option button and select the Save button.
• If you go to the Student View tab and select the Web Links tool, you’ll now see a Create Web Link button for the student to use.

On Lurking or Working and Being Invisible

By default when you’re online, students can use the Who’s Online tool to see if you’re online. By default, you’re visible and available. You can change the setting for the current session or you can change your default setting using these steps:

1. From the My Blackboard screen, select the My Settings link.
2. Next select the My Tool Options tab.
3. Scroll down to the Who’s Online area.
4. Next select the status you wish to be your default status (starting with the next time you log-in to Blackboard CE). Your options are:
   
   * If you want your name to appear on the list of online users and appear available to chat, select Visible/Available.
   * If you want your name to appear on the list of online users but do not want users to send chat invitations, select Visible/Unavailable.
   * If you do not want your name to appear on the list of online users, select Invisible.
5. Select the Save button.

If you want to change your “visibility” for only the current session in a specific course, you can:

1. Go to the Who’s Online tool,
2. Set the status on the top of the screen to the desired setting
3. Click the Update button.

This process only effects the course in which you change the setting.