Campus Group Instructions Group Members Becoming a Group Member on the Portal 1. Log into the Portal 2. Click the Campus Groups tab 3. Click the Browse Groups Link 4. The Browse Groups link allows you to view a listing of public groups that have been created on the portal, as well as, the groups in which you are already a member. Groups that are accepting new members will have a link labeled Join adjacent to their name. Groups that are accepting members by invitation only; or have reached an established maximum number of members will have a link labeled Closed adjacent to their name. 5. Click the Join link to enroll in the group. IT Help Desk/ updated 11/04/2011 Page 1
6. Groups that are accepting new members will send a welcome message to your email account once you have joined. If the group requires an application you will be asked for some general information about yourself. 7. Fill out the form if required and click the Submit Application button. Note: When first joining a group the group may not be assessable for up to an hour. If the group is accepting members by invitation only, you will receive an email message with join information. Finding My Groups 1. Log into the Portal. 2. Click the Campus Groups tab. 3. Groups you have enrolled in will be listed in the Campus Groups box on this page. IT Help Desk/ updated 11/04/2011 Page 2
Note: You have the option to drop any group you are no longer participating in by clicking Drop Group in the Campus Groups box Reading Announcements 1. Log Into the portal. 2. Choose the Campus Group tab. 3. Choose the group you would like to participate in. 4. Find the Announcements box on the groups home page. 5. Click on the link to announcement you would like to read. Find scheduled events on the Group Calendar 1. Locate the group calendar on the Groups page. IT Help Desk/ updated 11/04/2011 Page 3
2. Use the left and right arrows on either side of the month/year label to choose the appropriate month. 3. Dates that contain events will have a yellow fill click the date to view the event Or Click the Calendar link located at the top left of the calendar to display larger weekly look at the scheduled events. Once in the calendar choose one of the option tabs at the top to change to the desired view: Day, Week, Month, Year views are available, as well as, a list of events for the year. Note: You may also choose to export the event list to Excel for your use by clicking the Export Events for this view link located on the lower left of the calendar area. Participating in the Discussion Board The discussion board is found in the forum area of Campus Groups. Leaders create categories and sub-categories or topics. Members post to the topics and to each other s post. For example: a category found on the discussion forum on the help desk group might be mobile device support; and a topic inside of that category might be I- Pads. IT Help Desk/ updated 11/04/2011 Page 4
Use the following steps to participate in a discussion: 1. Choose the Forums link from the Group Collaboration panel on the left. 2. Within each category are forums. Forums contain a more detailed description of the topic. In the General category there are two forums: Microsoft Office Assistance and Open Discussion. Two forums within the General category 3. Choose the Forum you would like to participate in. In the example below, the Open Discussion forum has been chosen from the General category. Within the Open Discussion forum we see a group member has submitted an initial post or topic the topic is Blackboard Mobile Apps. 4. Click the link to view what has been posted regarding this topic IT Help Desk/ updated 11/04/2011 Page 5
Three replies have been made to the initial post. Notice the curved arrows on the left; they are there to focus your attention on how far the reply has been indented. One indent indicates a response has been made directly to the initial post. Notice the second response in the example has been indented twice. This indicates a response has been made to somebody s response to the initial post not the post itself. IT Help Desk/ updated 11/04/2011 Page 6
5. To add a comment to a post; click the Reply button adjacent to that post. 6. A text screen will be displayed to allow you to enter a response. 7. Choose the Submit button to send your reply to the discussion board. Submitting Email to Other Group Members 1. Choose the Group Collaboration button located under the group name in the panel on the left. 2. Choose Group Directory IT Help Desk/ updated 11/04/2011 Page 7
3. Use the check boxes to select individual members of the group; or click the select All box to have all members of the group receive the email message. 4. Choose the E-Mail Selected Members link below the Select All option. 5. Choose to keep the group member s e-mail addresses private or allow the addresses to show. Note: you may also choose to send a copy of the e-mail message to yourself in this screen IT Help Desk/ updated 11/04/2011 Page 8
6. You are provided with a Subject box and an area to enter the body of your message. 7. Click the Send button to send the file Note: You may also attach a file to the email message by using the Browse button, followed by the clicking the Add button. IT Help Desk/ updated 11/04/2011 Page 9