Using Blackboard

• I’m trying to submit an assignment to Blackboard that is not using TurnItIn. When I click Submit nothing happens, regardless of the web browser I use.

  Try clicking first on “Save as Draft” on the assignment upload screen.  This will save your assignment as a draft.

  Then click on “Continue Current Submission” and then click on Submit. This will submit your saved draft.

  Make sure that you never double click on any of the buttons, only single clicks are needed.

• When I open PDF files only the first page is shown, what should I do?

  An occasional issue with the Chrome browser can result in only the first page of a PDF displayed.  This is not specific to Blackboard but we have produced this workaround to assist anyone who experiences this issue.

• I set Blackboard into another language, but now I’m not sure how to set it back to English.
  1. Click on the Logout button – it remains at the same place at the top right of the page. The icon looks like a power button.

  • You will be taken back to Blackboard’s front page.
  • Below the login box is a link “Show available languages”, click on this and a globe appears on the left of the browser window, click on it and then – click on English.
  • Click on Login, enter your username and password, Blackboard will now appear in English.
• I tried to enter some text in a textbox, but when I submit the text it dissappears! What’s going on?

  The easiest way to resolve this problem is to turn off the Visual Text Box Editor:

  1. Log into Blackboard.

  • At the My University of Southampton screen look to the top left for the Tools box
  • Click on Edit Personal Information.
  • Click on Set Visual Text Box Editor Options.
  • Select Unavailable.
  • Click on Submit.

  This will turn off the Visual Text Box Editor and should completely resolve the issue.

  This issue particularly occurs if you are using an Apple Mac with the Safari Web Browser. Blackboard recommend using the Firefox or Chrome web browsers if you use a Mac and have difficulties with the text box.

• How can I tidy the My University of Southampton screen so that I only see the announcements and courses I want to see?”

  When you have been using Blackboard for a year or more you may find that you want to tidy the My University of Southampton screen. To find out more please read our guide.

• When I try to access a Discussion Board I receive an error message stating that my web browser does not support I-FRAMES. How do I fix this so that I can use a Blackboard Discussion Board?

  Using Microsoft Internet Explorer, follow these instructions:

  1. Click on the Tools menu.
  2. Click on Internet Options.
  3. Click on the Security tab.
  4. Click on Custom Level.
  5. Scroll down to the Miscellaneous section and find “Launching programs and files in an IFRAME”, set this to Enable.
  6. Click on OK.
  7. Click on OK once more.

  If have concerns about the security of this option you may set it back to Disable when you have finished using Blackboard. Please also check that any third party firewall software you are using is not interfering with Blackboard, several firewall applications have been known to affect the Discussion Board.

  If you are using McAfee Security Suite the Advert Blocker can also cause the issue. Disable the Ad Blocker if you experience this issue. Open the privacy services window and under “Block Ads” uncheck the option to block ads.

  If you are using any pop-up blocking software, add Blackboard to its whitelist.

• I’m having problems printing and saving files from Blackboard. What can I do?

  We have a web page with guidance on printing and saving files from Blackboard.

• When trying to read documents on Blackboard I get a message saying Server error message 403: forbidden, having clicked on OK I receive another error An API exited abnormally. I have OpenOffice installed on my computer and do not use Microsoft Office.

  If you use OpenOffice to view / edit documents instead of Microsoft Office then documents will not appear within the Microsoft Internet Explorer web browser when you click on them. Instead you should save them to your computer and then open them in OpenOffice. Information on how to save (download) files from Blackboard is available on our web pages.

• The text is too small on Blackboard how can I make it larger?

  You can change the text size within Blackboard in the same way as you would with any other web page. In Internet Explorer click on the View menu then move your mouse down to Text Size and finally select Large or Largest from the list. You can set the size back by going through the same process and choosing the normal setting.

  You may also wish to check the following in Internet Expolorer : go to Tools, Internet Options, click on the Accessibility button in the General tab and check the box Ignore font sizes specified on web pages. That may fix the issue on an ongoing basis, rather than changing the text size every time you use Blackboard.

• The Blackboard course I use has a lot of Word, PowerPoint and / or Adobe Acrobat files. I would like to view these at home but do not have software that can view them. What can I do?

  You can install Office for free whilst you are a member of the University.

  Adobe provide a free reader for PDF files called Adobe Acrobat, you can download it from Adobe’s website

• I need to access a group page in Blackboard, how do I do this?

  Refer to the online guide for information about Groups.

• I need to use a blog that is in my Blackboard course. What should I do?

  Refer to the student guides to using blogs in Blackboard.

• I need to use a wiki that is in my Blackboard course. What should I do?

  Refer to the student guides to using wikis in Blackboard.

• I’m meant to be marking certain documents as “reviewed”. How do I do this?

  Refer to the online guide for information about the “Review Status” feature.

• I have been asked to take a test in Blackboard. I’m not familiar with the this, is there a guide?

  There is a guide to taking Blackboard tests on our website.

• I have been asked to post a message to a Blackboard discussion board, but I don’t know how. How does it work?

  There is a guide to posting messages on a Blackboard discussion board on our web site.

• I have been asked to submit an assessment (such as an essay) through Blackboard. How do I do this?

  There are two different methods available for submitting assignments online through Blackboard. Your instructor will be able to tell you which one it is necessary to use.

  • If the assignment uses the TurnItIn Plagiarism Detection Service, refer to our online guide.

  • If the assignment uses the Blackboard Assignments feature, refer to our online guide.

  Note that you may be expected to use the e-assignment system instead.  This can be found at https://www.assignments.soton.ac.uk/

• Does Blackboard have a manual I can read?

  Yes, you can read it online on Blackboard’s web site.

• I have another question about Blackboard not answered here, who can I ask?

  Send your question to serviceline@soton.ac.uk making your question as clear as possible. Remember to include useful information such as which course is affected (provide the full course title and unit code if possible), what your iSolutions username is, and whether you are experiencing the problem on a home computer or on an iSolutions Public Workstation. It would also be helpful if you could let us know what Operating System and Internet Web Browser you are using.

• I can get into a course, but I can only see the announcements

  Maybe the course menu is collapsed?  Watch the animation on this page to resolve this.