BLACKBOARD 9.1 TEXT EDITOR

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1 The Text Editor within Blackboard allows you to create and edit HTML-based content, without needing to know HTML code. It is a WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) editor. If you are familiar with Microsoft Word, using the Text Editor within Blackboard will be comparatively straightforward since many of the features and icons are common to word processing in general. How does the Text Editor work? The Text Editor consists of a text entry box where content is created and displayed as it will appear to the end-user. Above the text entry box are three rows of graphical toolbars, which contain the icons and commands that can be used to format the text. Hovering over the icon with your mouse will reveal the name of the command. The arrows to the left side of each row of the toolbar can be used to minimize and maximize rows. Each command in the Text Editor inserts the HTML code necessary to create the desired effect when the page is displayed in a web browser (Firefox, Internet Explorer, Safari ).The display you see is how the page will look once submitted. The HTML code used is hidden from view. However, you can review the HTML code and enter additional HTML tags by selecting the HTML icon in the second row of the tool bar. How do I use the Text Editor? Place the cursor in the text entry box and begin typing. Use the icons in the toolbar to add formatting and effects to the text as you enter it or highlight existing text and use the toolbar to add formatting and effects. Once you have selected a command by clicking an icon, that formatting or effect will remain active until you deselect the command by clicking the icon again. Formatting functions can be used in conjunction with one another (i.e. bold and italicized text). HTML contains some pre-defined text types that you can apply using the dropdown menu that displays Normal by default. The formats available are Heading 1 to Heading 5 (with 1 being the largest and 5 being the smallest), Address, and Formatted. You can also change the font size and type using the provided dropdown lists. The uppermost toolbar also contains commands, such as bold, italics, underline, strikethrough, subscript, superscript, text alignment, numbered and bulleted lists, and indention. You are probably familiar with these commands since they are common to most word processing software, such as Microsoft Word. The middle toolbar contains more commands frequently found in word processing programs. These commands are used to manipulate and format text that has already been entered, such as cut and paste, add a hyperlink, color, highlight, and preview. NOTE: Copying and pasting from a Word document into the Text Editor is not recommended. The formatting from Word to Blackboard does not always translate correctly and can result in an HTML coding error. The final toolbar contains tools which allow you to upload files, images, and audio/visual elements into Blackboard. University of Saint Francis Page 1

2 List of functions and commands The table below contains a full list of the functions and commands available in the Text Editor. Icon/Image Command/Function Example Notes Normal Browser default Heading 1 Heading 1 Heading 5 Address Formatted Heading 5 Address text Formatted text Formatted text allows you to preserve tab stops. Font size 1 Font Size 5 Font Size 1 Font size 5 The default font size is set to 3. It is recommended that you use size 3 or above for your text in order to maintain end viewer readability. Arial Verdana Bold Italics Underline Strikethrough Subscript Arial Book Antiqua Century Gothic Comic Sans Courier New Garamond Georgia Σψµβολ Tahoma Times New Roman Verdana Bold Italics Underline Strikethrough H 2 O This feature can be useful when editing yours or another student s work. This feature is useful for scientific formulas, such as chemistry equations. University of Saint Francis Page 2

3 Superscript X scientific formulas and This feature is useful for mathematical equations. Left align Left aligned text This is the default setting in the Text Editor. Centered Centered text Right align Text direction of left to right or Text direction of right to left Numbered list Bulleted List Right aligned text webreh dna cibara.tfel ot thgir daer era 1. Item one 2. Item two 3. Etc. Bullet one Bullet two Etc. This feature is used with different language orientation. Decrease Indentation Not indented Decrease indentation will only work if the indentation had been previously increased. Increase Indentation Indented text Don t use the Tab key to indent. Spell Check Cut Copy Paste Clear Formatting Undo Redo Hyperlink Create Table University of Saint Francis The spell checker will open in a new window and suggestions will be provided for misspelled words. The cut icon will not work in the Firefox browser. You will need to use CTRL+X. The copy icon will not work in the Firefox browser. You will need to use CTRL+ C. The paste icon will not work in the Firefox browser. You will need to use CTRL+V. This icon will remove all formatting, such as bolding, numbering, etc. from your text. A new window will open for you to paste in your link address (URL). You may elect to have the page open in a new window. In the new window indicate how many rows and columns you want, as well as borders and spacing. University of Saint Francis Page 3

4 Horizontal Link Symbol picker Text color Highlight text WebEQ Equation Editor MathML Equation Editor View HTML code Preview display Markup Validation Attach file Attach image Attach MPEG/AVI (movie) content Attach QuickTime (animation/movie) content Colored text Highlighted text x = b ± b2 4ac 2a <h1><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 255);">This is what HTML code looks like.</span></h1> Horizontal lines will span the entire width of the page. Opens a pop-up box from which you can select a symbol to insert. A pop-up box will open for you to select a color. A pop-up box will open for you to select a color. Opens the WebEQ Equation Editor, which allows for entry of scientific notation via GUI. Opens the MathML Equation Editor, which allows entry of scientific notation using HTML coding. Converts the WYSIWYG editor into HTML code. Produces the view of the item as it will appear once submitted. Click this icon to determine if the HTML coding behind your text is correct. provide a URL for a file. You may elect to have the attachment open in a new a window. provide a URL for an image. You can set the width and height, the border, and Alternate text. provide a URL for a video file. You can also specify the height and width, autostart, and movie controls. provide a URL for a QuickTime file. You can also specify the height and width, autostart, and movie controls. University of Saint Francis Page 4

5 Attach sound clip Attach Flash (audio/animation) content Add Mashup provide a URL for an audio file. You can also specify autostart and available controls. provide a URL for a Flash file. You can also specify autostart and available controls. Allows you to search YouTube (videos), Flickr (photos), and SlideShare (presentations) to add these visual files to your item. University of Saint Francis Page 5