Version 3.0 Building Block for Blackboard Collaborate Web Conferencing Users Guide For Blackboard Learn 9.1 August 4, 2011
Contents Contents i Chapter 1: Preface 1 Overview 1 Audience 1 Contacting Blackboard Collaborate Technical Support 2 Chapter 2: Locating Sessions or Recordings 3 Joining Session or Playing a Recording 3 Listing Sessions or Recordings 3 Using the Search Options 5 Edit a Session or Recording 6 Delete a Session or Recording 6 Chapter 3: Creating or Modifying a Blackboard Collaborate Session 7 Create a Session 7 Modifying a Session 8 Session Settings 8 Editing the Course Defaults 11 Chapter 4: Creating Links to Sessions and Recordings 13 Adding Sessions to the Course s Content or Information Page 13 Page i
Chapter 1: Preface Overview This document provides instructions for creating and managing Blackboard Collaborate Web Conferencing sessions using the Building Block for Blackboard Collaborate Web Conferencing version 3.0 for Blackboard Learn version 9.1. For information on running a Blackboard Collaborate session, refer to the Blackboard Collaborate Moderator's Guide. For information on being a participant in a Blackboard Collaborate session, refer to the Blackboard Collaborate Participant's Guide. For information on configuring the Building Block, refer to the Blackboard Collaborate Building Block for Web Conferencing Configuration Guide. All Blackboard documentation can be found at the Blackboard Collaborate On Demand Learning Center here: http://www.blackboard.com/platforms/collaborate/services/on-demand-learning- Center.aspx Audience It is assumed that the user has a basic working knowledge of the following: The operating system that will be used for Blackboard Collaborate Web Conferencing clients and servers: Page 1
Microsoft Windows Apple Macintosh Ubuntu The navigation of Blackboard Learn 9.1. Contacting Blackboard Collaborate Technical Support Blackboard Collaborate technical support is available through the Support Portal at: http://support.blackboardcollaborate.com/ 2 Preface
Chapter 2: Locating Sessions or Recordings Joining Session or Playing a Recording The easiest way to access a Blackboard Collaborate Web Conferencing session or recording depends on whether or not the creator of that session or maintainer of the course management system webpage for that course has created a link to that session in the course content or information area. One way that is always available is to locate the desired session in the List page from the Blackboard Collaborate link in the Control Panel and click the Available icon in the List. Refer to Listing Sessions or Recordings below for the Steps to access the List page. Listing Sessions or Recordings Blackboard Collaborate Web Conferencing sessions may be linked to from a course or organization's content folder or information area. Placing direct links in those locations will allow quick access to a recording or an ongoing sessions that will be accessed again and again. The List page contains a record of all rooms and recordings that are both accessible to the user and meet the set parameters. Page 3
Open the List Page 1. Log on to the CMS with a username that has permission to use Blackboard Collaborate. 2. Navigate to a Course that has Blackboard Collaborate enabled. 3. Click on the Control Panel to expand it if it is hidden. 4. Click on Course Tools to expand the list if it is hidden. 5. Click Blackboard Collaborate. The List page opens. 4 Locating Sessions or Recordings
Table 4, 1: Components of the List page 1 Create new session button 8 The last day of the search. 2 Change the course's default settings for new rooms. 9 The Go to list button 3 The Sessions tab 10 The Delete session or recording button 4 The Previously Recorded tab 11 The select all sessions in this list check box 5 Search-type selector 12 Indicates which column the list is sorted by, and in which order. 6 Title text to search for 13 Indicates if the session is available to join. 7 The earliest date of the search 14 Session options menu. The List page is the main page for managing Blackboard Collaborate sessions. Users with the proper permissions can: Click Create Session on page 7 for more information. to create a new session. Refer to Create a Session Click Course Defaults to edit the default settings for new sessions in this course. These settings can always be changed by the course creator or edited later by any user with permission to modify that course. Use the search parameters to get a list of matching courses that you have access to. Depending on your permissions you may be able to join, edit, or delete the session(s). Refer to Using the Search Options below or title of any available session to immediately launch that ses- Click the Available icon sion. Using the Search Options The Search tool on the List page 1. Open the List page. 2. Click either the Sessions or Previously Recorded tab to search either links to the Sessions themselves or links to their recordings. 3. Select Contains, Equal To, or Starts With in the drop-down field and type some text in the field to search for sessions whose titles shared that text string. Select Not blank to search for all sessions. 4. Type a Start date or click the calendar button to select a day from the calendar. This will be the earliest date of creations for sessions in the list. 5. Type an End date or click the calendar button to select a day from the calendar. This Locating Sessions or Recordings 5
will be the latest date of session creation for sessions in the list. 6. Click Go. The list will include all sessions or recordings that are either public or are associated with courses in which you are enrolled. When the desired course(s) appear(s) in the list, select them by placing a check mark in the box in the far left of its row. Sort the list by clicking Title, Start Date, or End Date to select the sorting criteria. Click the column header again to toggle the sorting order. Edit a Session or Recording To edit a session, click the down arrow to the right of its title. The options menu appears. In the menu, select Edit to open the Update Session page and change all editable properties of the session, or click Edit Session Title to change only the title. Delete a Session or Recording To delete a session or sessions, place a check in the box in the leftmost column of those sessions in the list to be deleted and click Delete. The Review Deletion page opens. Click Confirm to delete the session permanently and return to the List page. Click Cancel to return to the List page without deleting the session. Deleting sessions requires different permission levels than editing or creating sessions. 6 Locating Sessions or Recordings
Chapter 3: Creating or Modifying a Blackboard Collaborate Session Create a Session A system administrator should have preset certain defaults for Blackboard Collaborate Web Conferencing sessions so that starting a new one is as easy as opening the List page and clicking Create Session. Create a New Session 1. Log in to Blackboard Learn with a user ID that has permission to create new sessions in the desired course or organization. 2. Navigate to the homepage of the desired course. 3. Click any Blackboard Collaborate link within that course. The List page opens. 4. Click Create Session. 5. (Optional) Edit any of the desired settings for this session. Refer to Session Settings on next page for more information. 6. Click Submit to create the session and return to the List page.click Cancel to return to the list page without creating the session. Page 7
If the session's settings place it within the default search parameters, it appears on the List. Otherwise, edit the parameters to show it (seelisting Sessions or Recordings on page 3).Click the name of the of the session to join it immediately. Modifying a Session Each session has settings that can be modified at the time of creation or at any time before the session closes. Editing and creating sessions are two different levels of permission, so users who have the ability to create sessions may not have the ability to edit the same sessions later. Some users may have permission to edit all sessions, while others may have permission to edit only those rooms that they have created or only those rooms associated with courses they are enrolled in. To modify a session, 1. Log on to Blackboard Learn with a username that has permission to edit the desired session. 2. Navigate to the List page. Refer to Open the List Page on page 4. 3. Locate a session you have permission to edit and open the Building Block menu by clicking the down arrows to the right of its title. 4. Select Edit in the menu. Select Edit Session Title to change only the title. The Update Session page opens. Refer to Session Settings below for more details on each available option. Session Settings Information Session Title: The name of the session as it will appear on the List page. It is recommended that any session that will need to be relocated later have a unique title, but not necessary. Session Type: Users with the proper permissions can create sessions that are shared amongst several courses for which they also have permission to create sessions. To do so, select Shared to activate the Courses area below, then select any courses in the Desired Courses list on the left and click the right arrow to move them to the Selected Courses list on the right. Select courses in the Selected Courses list and click the left arrow to deselect them. Date: Type a start and end date in the text box. Use two digits for the month, two digits for the day, and four digits for the year, in that order, separated by a forward slash. Or 8 Creating or Modifying a Blackboard Collaborate Session
click the calendar icon to the right of each field to select a date from the calendar. Type a start time and end time in the text fields or select the clock time from a list. Times must fall on the quarter hour. icon to select a Early Session Entry: Select an amount of time from the list. The session will be open for this duration before its scheduled start time so that participants can adjust their audio and presenters can prepare their materials. Repeat Session: Place a check in the box to open the Repeat Session options. Choose from the available options to make the session recur at the same time on that increment (Daily, monthly, weekly, weekdays, etc.). Type an end date or select one from the calendar to set a final day for the recurrence. Recording Mode: Set to Manual to opt to start recording each time a moderator enters an empty session. Select Automatic to start recording immediately whenever a participant enters an empty session. Select Disabled to prevent recording of a session. Max Simultaneous Talkers: This is the maximum number of microphones that can be simultaneously active when the session begins. This value can also be changed from within the session. Max Cameras: This is the maximum number of web cameras that can be simultaneously broadcasting when the session begins. This value can also be changed from within the session. Supervised: Place a check in the box to allow moderators to view messages sent between participants, even if the moderator is not an intended recipient. All Permissions Place a check in the box to allow all participants to use all Blackboard Collaborate features regardless of their course role. Raise Hand on Entry: Place a check in the box to have participants automatically trigger all visual and audio alerts associated with raising their hand to speak when they first join a session. Allow In-Session Invitations: Place a check in the box to allow Moderators to use the In-Session invitations feature of Blackboard Collaborate. Refer to the Blackboard Collaborate Web Conferencing Moderator's Guide for more information. Hide Names in Recordings: Place a check in the box to protect the privacy of the original participants of a session from viewers of the recording. Participation Restrict Participants: Place a check in the box to allow the session creator to determine the roles and access of course participants. If this box is left unchecked, access to the course and roles within it are determined by the course defaults. All Moderators: Place a check in the box to make all participants join the session with Moderator privileges. Creating or Modifying a Blackboard Collaborate Session 9
Available Participants: Select participant names and use the left and right arrow buttons to move them back and forth amongst the lists. Move invitees into the Moderator list to have them join the session as a moderator. Move invitees into the Participant list to have them join without moderator privileges. Participants in the Available Invitees list have their role determined by the course defaults. External Invitees: Type a name for the participant list and an email address the appropriate fields and click Add to send a pregenerated message to recipients who are not enrolled in this course. Sharing Preload files: Click Browse My Computer or Browse Course to search that area for files with the following formats: *.wbd, *.wbp, *.elp, *.elpx, *.swf, *.m4v, *.mp4, *.mpg, *.mpeg, *.mpe, *.mp3, *.qt, *.mov or *.wmv. The files will be uploaded to the session when it is created. Telephony: Use these fields to enable participants and moderators to call into the session through a telephone system. Moderator Notes: These notes will appear in the Session Details on the Sharing tab for CMS users with moderator privileges. Participant Notes: These notes will appear in the Session Details on the Sharing tab for CMS users without moderator privileges. If Same as Moderator Notes is selected, the Moderator Notes are shown for all participants. Content Area Add a link this session to in selected content areas.: Place a check in the box to create a link to this session in the Course content areas. The Content Area details options appear. Content Item Name: This is the link that will appear in the selected content areas. Content Area List: Select available content areas and click the arrow buttons to move them into the Selected Content Areas list. Content areas in this list will have a link to the session added to them. Description: A detailed description of the session to appear under the link. Comment: A comment to appear under the link. Required:Place a check in the box to mark this content as required. If left unchecked, content links are labeled "Suggested." Date Restrictions: Type or select from the calendar and clock menus a date and time of day for this session to be available in the content area. If the session is still open, it will be accessible through the List page even after the content link has been removed. 10 Creating or Modifying a Blackboard Collaborate Session
Editing the Course Defaults Each time a new session is created through this course, the settings will be at certain defaults. If this course will use several sessions with similar settings, it might be best to set the defaults as close as possible to those settings. Any default settings which is not edited through this menu uses the institution defaults. Set the Course Defaults 1. Log in to Blackboard Learn as a user with permission to edit the desired course. 2. Navigate to the desired Course in the CMS. 3. Navigate to the List page. Refer to Listing Sessions or Recordings on page 3 for more details. 4. Click the Course Defaults button to open the Course Defaults page. The first time this page is opened for a class, the settings reflect the institution defaults. The first tab, Search Defaults, affects the List page. Changing any of the settings on other tabs will affect newly created sessions only. Sessions already created with the old defaults will retain their settings unless edited individually. Creating or Modifying a Blackboard Collaborate Session 11
Chapter 4: Creating Links to Sessions and Recordings Adding Sessions to the Course s Content or Information Page Creating links in a course's content or information area draws attention to important sessions and provides faster access to them than going through the List page every time. Sessions and recordings can also be sequenced or grouped with other content that they pertain to. To create a link in the content or information area, start in the List page. Refer to Listing Sessions or Recordings on page 3 for the Steps to open the List page. Add a Link to a New Session 1. Log in to Blackboard Learn as a user with permission to edit the desired course and create new Blackboard Collaborate sessions. 2. Navigate to the desired Course in the CMS. 3. Navigate to the List page. Refer to Listing Sessions or Recordings on page 3 for more details. 4. Click Create Session. 5. On the Create Session page, be sure to edit the Content Area tab. Refer to the Content Page 13
Area on page 10 for more information on those options. 6. Click Submit to create the link and the session and return to the List page. Click Cancel to return to the List page without creating the link or the session. Add a Link to an Existing Session or Recording 1. Log in to Blackboard Learn as a user with permission to edit the desired course. 2. Navigate to the desired Course in the CMS. 3. Navigate to the List page. Refer to Listing Sessions or Recordings on page 3 for more details. 4. Optionally, click the Previously Recorded tab to create a link to a recording instead of an available session. 5. Use the Search parameters to locate the desired session. Refer to Using the Search Options on page 5. 6. Click the down arrows to open the Options menu. 7. In the Options menu, select Add Content Item. The Add Content Item page opens. 8. In the Content Area List, select the desired content or information folders to which to add link(s) to this session. Links are added to any folder in the Selected Content Areas list. 9. Optionally edit any of the other fields on this page. Refer to the Content Area on page 10 for more information on each of them. 10. Click Submit to create the link and return to the List page. Click Cancel to return to the List page without creating the link. 14 Creating Links to Sessions and Recordings