Blackboard Log-In Trouble-shooter

Learning and Teaching Enhancement Unit: Updated Jan 2007

Blackboard Log-In Trouble-shooter Contents ¾

Overview

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Browser Checks

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Correct URL and use of Bookmarks

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Username and Password (& Domain) Issues

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Firewalls

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Cookie Settings

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Trusted Site Settings

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Pop-up Blockers

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Help Desk Contact Information

Overview Please follow this guide from start to finish, checking to see whether you can access Blackboard after each section. Where appropriate the sections are split into the appropriate browsers. If you do not know which browser you use, you can normally find the name at the top of the browser window. In most cases on a PC it will be Microsoft’s Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox. On an Apple Mac it is usually Safari or Mozilla Firefox. Screen shots may very look slightly different in this guide than on your machine. Please read through and follow the instructions carefully before you contact our help teams. Windows Vista Support: Blackboard has not yet been certified that it will run under Windows Vista, so no support can be given.

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Learning and Teaching Enhancement Unit: Updated Jan 2007

Browser Checks When using Blackboard you must have the latest version of the browser that is available. Please see below for details of different Browsers and how to check you current browser version and update it if necessary.

Microsoft Internet Explorer To check the current version number of your Internet Explorer browser please do the following:Open up Internet Explorer Go to the Help Menu Click About Internet Explorer. You will now see a box appear on your screen like either the pictures below. The number you need is in the red box.

Version 6 Version 7

If you are using either of these versions or later then Blackboard should function correctly. NOTE: If you are using Internet Explorer 7 to enable some features to work correctly then you must add it to the trusted sites list. Details of this can be found later in this guide.

Updating Internet Explorer In order to update your version of Internet Explorer on a Windows PC then go to the following address in Internet Explorer and follow the onscreen prompts. http://update.microsoft.com/

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Learning and Teaching Enhancement Unit: Updated Jan 2007 Alternatively you can go to the Internet Explorer website for more information. This is available at the following address. http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/default.mspx

Mozilla Firefox To check the current version number of your Internet Explorer browser please do the following:Open up Mozilla Firefox Go to the Help Menu Click About Mozilla Firefox. You will now see a box appear on your screen like the one picture below.

Version Number

If you are using this version then Blackboard will run properly.

Updating Mozilla Firefox To update Firefox follow these instructions:Launch Mozilla Firefox Go to the Help Menu Click ‘Check for updates…’ Firefox will then check your current version and if there is a new one present, will ask you to install it.

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Learning and Teaching Enhancement Unit: Updated Jan 2007

Safari To update Safari you can either go to: http://www.apple.com/support/downloads/safari.html Or use the Apple OS X Software Update facility. NOTE: Please be aware that you require Safari version 1.2 or higher on Mac OS X 10.3 or higher to use Blackboard

Other Browsers At this time Blackboard only supports Internet Explorer, Firefox and Safari browsers. Use of other browsers has not been tested and therefore is not supported. If you use another browser, you will have to download one of the supported browsers in order to access Blackboard.

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Learning and Teaching Enhancement Unit: Updated Jan 2007

Correct URL and use of Bookmarks The correct address for Blackboard is http://blackboard.canterbury.ac.uk . Only this link should be bookmarked. If you bookmark any other link, Blackboard may produce an error message or you may get a ‘page cannot be displayed’ message.

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Learning and Teaching Enhancement Unit: Updated Jan 2007

Username and Password (& Domain) Issues Internet Explorer When you log into Blackboard from off campus you will be prompted to enter a username and password. These boxes may be slightly different. Please use the instructions under the box you see. 2 field dialog box

3 field dialog box

If you get this box please enter your username in the following format, cc\abc12 (substitute abc12 for your own username) and enter your password in the password box.

If you get this box then please enter your username and password in the appropriate boxes and enter cc as the domain.

Mozilla Firefox & Safari Users Logging in to Blackboard using either Firefox or Safari will pop up a dialog box which looks like this. Please enter cc\abc12 (substitute abc12 for your own username) and enter your password in the password box. If you enter this information incorrectly three times then you may lock your computing account, so please input the information carefully. If you are unsure of your password then please contact the help desk. Their contact details are on the help tab of Blackboard.

AOL Browser The current AOL Browser is a variant of the Internet Explorer browser but is not compatible with the current Blackboard system. In order to use Blackboard if you are an AOL subscriber you must minimise your browser and open an alternate browser (for example Internet Explorer) and log into Blackboard.

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Learning and Teaching Enhancement Unit: Updated Jan 2007

Firewalls If your computer uses a Firewall then you must make sure that you put it into its Exemption/Accepted/Allowed list. This will allow you to navigate to Blackboard un-hindered. For instructions on how to do this please consult your firewall program’s user instructions. One test to see if your firewall is blocking access to secure websites, is to go to the following website. https://login.live.com/ NB: This website, as of the date of publishing, is run by the Microsoft Corporation and is known to be a trusted site. If you get a page cannot be displayed error it usually means that your Firewall(s) may be blocking your access to secure websites.

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Learning and Teaching Enhancement Unit: Updated Jan 2007

Cookie Settings In order to function, Blackboard must be able to put a small amount of information on your machine in the form of a cookie. Therefore for Blackboard to work you must instruct your browser to accept cookies. Please see the instructions below for your browser

Internet Explorer Open up Internet Explorer. Go to the Tools Menu Click Internet Options At the top of the dialog box that pops up click on the privacy tab Click ‘Sites…’. Type ‘https://blackboard.canterbury.ac.uk/’ in the top box. Click the ‘Allow’ button. The site will appear in the managed web sites box with always allow displayed next to it. Now click OK and OK again Restart Internet Explorer

Mozilla Firefox Open Firefox Go to the Tools Menu Click ‘Options…’. Click the privacy icon. You will see some tabs appear. Choose the cookies tab. Make sure the Allow sites to set Cookies tick box is ticked. Click Exceptions. In the following window enter ‘https://blackboard.canterbury.ac.uk’ Now click the ‘Allow’ button and the site should then appear in the box below with the status Allow displayed next to it. Now click the close button and ok in the following box. Restart Mozilla Firefox.

Safari From the Safari menu, click Preferences. From the security tab, under Accept Cookies, click Always. Close this box. Restart Safari.

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Learning and Teaching Enhancement Unit: Updated Jan 2007

Trusted Site Settings (Applies to Internet Explorer Only) For Blackboard to function correctly on your machine you may need to put it in the trusted site list. In order to do this, please follow these instructions: Open Internet Explorer Go to Tools menu Click on the Security Tab Click Trusted Sites icon. Click the ‘Sites…’ button Enter https://blackboard.canterbury.ac.uk/ into the text box at the top of the box. Now click ‘Add’. The site will appear in the list of web sites below. Click OK and then OK again. Now restart Internet Explorer and navigate back to Blackboard.

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Learning and Teaching Enhancement Unit: Updated Jan 2007

Pop-Up Blockers Blackboard requires that pop-up blockers are disabled in order to function correctly. This requires you to put Blackboard into the exceptions list. There are many varieties of pop up blocker which can be contained within your internet browser or in a toolbar or even in a security program such as McAfee or Symantec security products. There are too many to list here so I have listed the top four owned pop up blockers.

Windows XP (Internet Explorer 6) Note: This does not apply to Windows 98, ME, 2000 or XP Service Pack 1 . Open Internet Explorer Click the Tools menu. Hover over the Pop-up blocker item and when the menu next to it appears click pop up blocker settings… Enter https://blackboard.canterbury.ac.uk/ and click the add button. Now click the close button.

Yahoo! Toolbar (courtesy of Yahoo! Help) Click the Pop-Up Blocker menu. Select "Always Allow Pop-Ups From". Select the site from the "Sources of Recently Blocked Pop-Ups" list. Click "Allow". This allows all pop-ups from this web site to appear without further action.

Google Toolbar When you visit https://blackboard.canterbury.ac.uk click the add it to an Allowed list.

(pop-up blocker button) which will

Firefox Pop up blocker Open up Mozilla Firefox Go to the Tools menu Click Options Click the content icon in the box that comes up on screen Click Allowed Sites button. Type https://blackboard.canterbury.ac.uk into the first box. Click the Allow button and the name should appear in the box below. Now click Close. Click Ok. Restart Firefox.

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Learning and Teaching Enhancement Unit: Updated Jan 2007

Help Desk Contact Information Telephone: 01227 782436 Email: [email protected] Opening Hours :

Mon to Fri – 08:30 – 21:00 Sat and Sun – 09:00 – 17:00

Any Comments If you have any comments or suggestions about this guide please send an email to [email protected].

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