Category Archives: Blackboard Learn
The Blackboard Learn Opportunity
April 30, 2012
The move to Blackboard Learn 9.1 from the current version of BlackboardVista 8 is not an update. It is instead a transition from one course management system (CMS) to another. Despite the sharing of the Blackboard name, the systems are very different. The current Blackboard Vista 8 represents the end of the WebCT era: the [...]
What’s New in Blackboard Learn
March 30, 2012
With Purdue’s change from Blackboard Vista to Blackboard Learn underway, I thought it would be helpful to highlight some of most noticable changes between the two systems, and point out some things the new system lets users do that the old system could not. No Build, Teach, or Student Tabs There are no Build, Teach, [...]
Blackboard Learn Provides Enhanced Group Functions
March 15, 2012
Group functions within Blackboard Learn now allow for collaboration between students using blogs, file exchange, discussion board, journals, tasks, and Wikis. Students within a group can participate in real-time lessons and problem solving exercises. Groups may be set up manually, randomly automatic and by self-enrollment. Any number of groups or students to a group may [...]
Can Purdue Have a Better Course Management System?
November 20, 2011
Purdue University has hosted and supported the current central course management system (CMS, sometimes known as a learning management system or LMS), Blackboard (formerly WebCT) Vista since 2004. Fall 2011 begins a welcome change to the new version of Blackboard’s CMS, Blackboard Learn (version 9.1). Although Blackboard Learn 9 was released in April 2010, Purdue [...]
March 1st Firefox release gives errors using older versions of Java
March 2, 2011
Mozilla released Firefox version 3.6.14 on Tuesday, March 1st. We discovered that out-of-date versions of Java (1.6.0_23 and 1.6.0_20, that we know of) throw these errors when you log out of Blackboard, then log back in, using Firefox 3.6.14. Upgrading to the latest version of Java (1.6.0_24) resolves this problem.
ITaP begins archiving oldest Blackboard courses on Jan. 31
January 26, 2011
ITaP has established a set of guidelines for archiving older courses in its course management system, Blackboard Vista. The new retention guidelines will free up storage space and improve the current system’s performance. ITaP will begin archiving the oldest Blackboard course sections from online access during the week of January 31.
Blackboard Patent War Officially Over
December 2, 2010
Blackboard had received a lot of bad press from educators and IT staff after its patent application (Patent No. 6,988,138) and especially after they sued one of their rivals, Desire2Learn, for the infringement of a patent no one in the education community thought they deserved. The Vikipedia site called “History of Virtual Learning Environments“ was a [...]