Date Last Reviewed:
11/05/2007
Blackboard is course management software. Blackboard courses are accessed using a web browser.
The web address for Blackboard at NIU is http://webcourses.niu.edu . You need your student Z-ID and password to log into Blackboard.
Your Blackboard ID is the same as your student Z-ID. Your Z-ID is permanent. If you forget your Z-ID, go to www.logonid.niu.edu . Click on "Look up Your Z-ID/AccountID" and then scroll down to the Last Name Field. Enter your last name and click Next. You'll see your Z-ID under User Object.
Your Novell network password is also your Blackboard password. Your initial password is your birthdate in the form of YYYYMMDD. This initial password is temporary and must be reset at password.niu.edu .
You can change your password online at password.niu.edu or by calling 815-753-8100.
Set up your verification questions at password.niu.edu so you can reset your password yourself if you forget it or when it expires. Passwords must be eight characters long and contain a mixture of lowercase letters and numbers.
Blackboard recommends Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher web browser. Netscape 7.0 (Netscape 6.0 is not recommended), Firefox 1.5x or higher, and Mozilla 1.0.1 or higher browsers may work with Blackboard 7.1.
Internet Service Provider (ISP) browsers do not work with Blackboard. Access the Internet through your ISP, e.g. AOL, MSN, AT&T, etc. Minimize the ISP browser after you reach the Internet, open Internet Explorer (IE), and use IE to access Blackboard.
Required browser settings for logging into Blackboard include the following:
In Internet Explorer, reset these settings by clicking on Tools in the menu bar at the top of your browser. Click on Internet Options and find and reset these features under the Security tab, Custom Level button.
If your instructor is using the Blackboard Virtual Classroom, your browser needs to have Java enabled. The plug-in can be downloaded from the page that appears when a user joins a Collaboration Session, or at http://java.sun.com/products/plugin/index.html. Blackboard recommends using version 1.5 of the Java 2 Runtime Environment. The Collaboration Tools will also work with version 1.4, but not with the newer version 1.6. Uninstall any existing Java plug-ins before installing a new version.
Only your First Name can be changed. To edit or add your First Name, click on Personal Information in the Tools box. Click on Edit Personal Information. Click Submit, then click OK twice to complete the edit of your personal information.
Your e-mail address can not be altered. Blackboard uses your NIU e-mail address, which starts with your Z-ID; for example, z999999@students.niu.edu. This helps insure secure and proper delivery of e-mail communications among Blackboard instructors and students.
Student addresses and phone numbers do not appear in Blackboard's User Directory.
Blackboard developers recommend the following hardware specifications:
Minimum Hardware Requirements
For software: Blackboard recommends Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher for a web browser. Firefox 2.x or higher is recommended for Macintosh users. Microsoft Word is recommended as NIU faculty members frequently use Word for their course documents. Microsoft PowerPoint or a free download of the PowerPoint viewer are suggested to provide easy access to instructor presentations. Another free download, Adobe Acrobat Reader, will be needed if the instructor uses files in PDF format. Certain other software may be requested by individual instructors to access their course files.
Antivirus software such as McAfee Virus Scan, McAfee Virex, TrendMicro Housecall, or Norton AntiVirus is recommended. Go to its.niu.edu and select Software > Virus Protection.
From a content area in Blackboard, right-click on the file name to be downloaded and select Save Target As. In the Save As window that pops up browse for the folder where the file is to be stored. Once this drive or folder is present in the Save in: box, click Save. Click Open or Close to proceed.
From a content area in Blackboard, right-click on the file name to be downloaded and select either Open or Open in New Window. Open should open the file for viewing in the Blackboard desktop unless the Instructor has determined that the file should be opened in a new window. Click either Open or Save when prompted. Click back on a course content button or on the browser back button to return to the Blackboard course.
Clicking on Open in New Window will cause a new browser window to open with the file present. Click either Open or Save when prompted. Click the close button of the newly opened browser window to return to the Blackboard course. If you have difficulties opening a file from within Blackboard, try saving it to your computer (with Save Target As or Save) and then opening the file and printing it from the application it was developed in, e.g. PowerPoint, Excel, Word, etc.)
From a content area in Blackboard, right-click on the file name to be printed and select Print Target. Select desired printer and printing options in the popup Print window. To print PowerPoint slides as handouts with note areas: click in the Print what: box and select handouts, then under Handouts, select 3 Slides per page . Finally click either Print Preview and Print, Print, or OK to print the file or selected portions of the file.
After logging into Blackboard you will be positioned under the NIU tab. All your courses that are available on Blackboard will be listed by name. Clicking on any course name will take you directly into the selected course. You can also find your course(s) by clicking on the Course tab, then clicking on the course name from the My Courses box on the right side of the Courses page.
Note: not all instructors use Blackboard and some may not yet have made their courses available for access on Blackboard. If you cannot find a course you are enrolled in on Blackboard and your instructor said that Blackboard will be used, verify that they have made the course available to students. If the instructor has made the course available but you are still unable to see it in your course list, contact the ITS Helpdesk .
Blackboard’s Digital Drop Box can be used to store your work-in-progress files for access from anywhere via the Internet, send homework and other files to instructors, and receive private feedback from instructors. It is under the Tools button in the course content area.
The Digital Drop Box will eventually be phased out and will be replaced by the Assignments function.
To access the Digital Drop Box, click on Tools. Click on Digital Drop Box. Do not use any special characters in the file name (such as #) since it will cause the file to be unreadable in Blackboard. To add a document, click on Add File, type in a Title and Comments, then browse for file to be added and double-click on the file name. Click on Submit when finished, then click OK twice. Important : This only stores the file in the Digital Drop Box. To send the file to the instructor, click Send. Select the file to send by clicking on the down arrow at the right of the Select file box. Add comments. Click Submit, then click OK twice.
To send an e-mail from Blackboard start by clicking on Send E-mail in the Tools box under the NIU tab or by clicking on the Communication, Groups, or Tools buttons in the course content area. Click on Send Email. Select to send your e-mail to the entire class (All Users), All Groups, Teaching Assistant(s), Instructors(s), or to Select Users or Select Groups, by clicking the appropriate link. Type in Subject and Message. To add attachment(s) click on Attach a file, browse for the file, double-click on it, click Submit, and repeat as needed. Click Submit, then click OK twice after seeing Receipt: Success notice.
New in Blackboard 7.1: A copy is automatically sent to the sender’s e-mail address, but (as before) Blackboard does not retain a record of Sent e-mail messages.
The spam filter on your e-mail client (Yahoo, Hotmail, AOL, Earth-link, etc.) is set too high or rules have not been set to recognize e-mail from Blackboard as being valid e-mail. Look for an e-mail message from Blackboard in your Bulk, Junk, or Spam mailboxes and set rules to accept mail from that Blackboard source. Spam filters commonly regard any mail sent to a multiple recipient list as spam.
If you continue to have difficulty receiving e-mail sent to you from Blackboard and your instructor or classmates have confirmed that Blackboard e-mail has been sent to you, contact the ITS Helpdesk .
The Discussion Board is a way to conduct asynchronous (not at the same time) discussions and share information and files with classmates and your instructor. Discussion Boards or Forums are set up by the instructor and may involve the whole class or be organized as group activities.
The Discussion Board in version 7.1 looks dramatically different from version 6.3. Instructors can now grade forums and threads. If the course uses the Discussion Board, check with the instructor to determine if discussions will be graded.
To enter a class or group discussion forum:
To respond to a message, click on message, click on Reply and follow steps 4-6 above.
Some instructors require and/or monitor Discussion Board participation and may include your contributions in their grading system.
A document placed in the Digital Drop Box can be edited, removed, or replaced only if it has not been sent. Once the document has been sent to the instructor it cannot be unsent or replaced. Contact the instructor by e-mail or phone and ask permission to replace the sent document with a new document. Add comments to the new document before clicking Send to explain the circumstances of the replacement.
Internet Explorer 7.0:
Internet Explorer 6.5:
Firefox 1.5x or 2.0x:
Safari 2.0x
To do this (in Windows):
If your instructor has enabled the Discussion Board, documents may be shared in a discussion forum by attaching them to New Threads or to replies.
If your instructor has enabled Groups and you want to share a file with group members only:
Instructors sometimes forget to make courses unavailable to students at the end of a semester. Either contact the instructor to remind them that the course is still available or contact the ITS Helpdesk .
You may have JavaScript disabled in your browser.
Blackboard requires JavaScript to be enabled to function correctly. If you still get the same error, try this:
If you sometimes seem to be locked out of Blackboard, the problem is likely a failure to log out of Blackboard with the logout button. Logging out incorrectly can interfere with subsequent log in attempts. Wait 30 minutes and try logging in again. Always log out of Blackboard with the logout button, never by just closing the browser. If you can never log into Blackboard, your password may have been incorrectly entered, be expired, or be disabled. Go to password.niu.edu to check the status of your password.
Not all instructors elect to use Blackboard in their courses. Ask your instructor if the class is on Blackboard. Your instructor may have forgotten to make the course available to students or may be delaying making the course available until components are ready for access. Check with your instructor or contact the ITS Helpdesk .
Need help? Contact the ITS Helpdesk.