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Preparing for Course Deletion (scheduled purge)

The university will be purging all Shippensburg University "Blackboard Course Sites" from 2007-2004. The permanent deletion will take place in January 2010.

To begin preparing for this process it is important that you collect the content from all your Bb course sites before they are "permanently" deleted. It is important that the process below is followed for all your Bb course sites as you build and use them as you teach. Much of the information your saving is for your personal records and you decide what you want to keep and what you want to have deleted.

 Using this Quick Start Guide you will be able to:

1. create a folder on your computer to place downloaded materials
2. download individual files
3. copy/paste desired info from text fields into a master course reference document.
4. download the Gradebook
5. copy and paste Announcments
6. download Discussion Board threads
7. export wikis and blogs
8. Export assessments
9. Download assessments into Respondus

If you have any questions, IDDS staff is available to help! Please email us or call us at x1816 (Shelley) or x3439 (Donna)

The Process

Blackboard as a Learning Management System should be considered a container for posting your documents rather than a program that allows you to create documents. What that means is that all materials uploaded or copied  into Blackboard should be housed in a folder on your computer.

One of the most misunderstood aspects of Blackboard is the text box. Unlike a computer, there is no recycle bin in Blackboard and any material deleted is deleted permanently. Further, although materials placed in the text box in various places in Blackboard are saved to a database, if deleted or somehow corrupted the text is irretrievable. It is important for you to create text for your announcements, assignments, and items etc. in a word processing program first (i.e. Microsoft Word, Notepad, SimpleText) then cut and paste that text into Blackboard text box. 

You might ask, "Can assessments be created directly in Blackboard?" Yes, if you make sure that you export the assessment after it's created. Better yet, create the assessment using Respondus then if there is ever a change in Learning Management Systems you'll have the option of uploading the assessment into the new learning management system or printing out the file for an in-class assessment.

Whether you're working with a course you're ready to delete or using a course during the semester, it's important to have a backup of your files. You will want to create a master folder for each course to store your files. 

 Creating a Folder

Creating a folder on your hard or flash drive is the easiest way to keep all your course Blackboard materials organized in one central location. 

PC	In My Documents or a location of your choose File > New > Folder.
MAC	In the Finder Bar choose File > New Folder.

The Master Folder 2009FALLyourcourseid can contain other folders that mimic the Blackboard navigation.

 Dowloading Individual Files

You DO NOT want to rely on a download of all your files from Blackboard from using the Archive/Export feature in Blackboard. The Archive/Export feature creates a .ZIP file that contains your Bb course files but you are not guaranteed that it will be able to be "Unzipped" into a newer version of the current LMS or a different LMS. Protect your content by "downloading individual files" of the content you do not already have stored on your own computer. The critical content you will most likely want to download will be the course: Gradebook, Assessments, Discussion Board Forums/Threads, Wikis, Blogs, Announcements, Assignments,... In addition consider taking screen captures of the course structure this should help you recreate the structure in the future. Screen capture software is available in the IDDS lab.

Download individual files by following these steps:

1. Log in and navigate to the Control Panel in the desired course.
2. Navigate to the area where the material is located.
3. Right-click on the material link and choose Save Target As.  
   
   
   
4. Choose a location and click on the Save button.

 Copy and Paste Text from Text Boxes

You may want to save all the text you've typed in individual boxes into a Word document.

 Copy Text into a Word, SimpleText or Notepad document by following these steps:

1. Open Word and enter the Course ID in the first line of the document.
2. Open Blackboard and navigate to the desired course.
3. Navigate to the text are you would like to copy.
   
   
    
4. Highlight the text as shown above. Right-click on the highlighted text and choose Copy from the menu.
5. Navigate to the open Word document and Edit > Paste
6. Continue this process until all text is copied.

Word of Warning - If you have navigated to the Course Documents area and try to take a short-cut by highlighting all the text on the page, the formatting on the page will also save in Word. Only the format of the text will be scrambled and difficult to use. To eliminate this issue, copy your text in SimpleText or Notepad. These simple word processing programs delete all formatting leaving you with clean text.

 Download the Gradebook

 Download the Gradebook by following these steps:

1. Sign into Blackboard and navigate to the Control Panel
2. In the Assessment box, click on the Gradebook link
3. Click on the Download Grades button
   
   
   
4. Choose the Tab delineated radial button
   
   
   
5. Click on the Submit button
6. Click on the Download button
7. Save to the desired location on your computer

 Copy and Paste Announcements

1. Open Notepad (Programs > Accessories > Notepad)
   Notepad is a basic word processing program which will not copy all the coding behind the text and therefore the text can be easily manipulated.
2. Sign into Blackboad and navigate to the Control Panel
3. Under Course Tools, choose the Announcments link
4. Click on the View All Tab
5. Highlight the announcements and copy them (Right-click on the blue highlighted area and choose Copy from the menu or from the Menu Bar in the browser choose Edit > Copy)
6. Paste the copied items into Notepad (Right-click on the page and choose Paste from the menu or from the Menu Bar choose Edit > Paste)
7. Save to the desired location on your computer

 Download Discussion Board Threads

1. Open Notepad (Programs > Accessories > Notepad)
   Notepad is a basic word processing program which will not copy all the coding behind the text and therefore the text can be easily manipulated.
2. Sign into Blackboad and navigate to the Control Panel
3. Under Course Tools, choose the Discussion Board link
4. Choose the desired Forum link
5. Click on the Go button next to the Select All drop-down menu
   
   
    
6. Click on the Collect button
   
   
   
7. Save as a PDF file if you have the ability and skip to step 9 OR Highlight the Discussion Board threads and copy them (Right-click on the blue highlighted area and choose Copy from the menu or from the Menu Bar in the browser choose Edit > Copy)
8. Paste the copied items into Notepad (Right-click on the page and choose Paste from the menu or from the Menu Bar choose Edit > Paste)
9. Save to the desired location on your computer

 Export Wikis and Blogs

Export Wikis

1. Sign into Blackboad and navigate to the Control Panel
2. Under Content Areas, choose the area where you made the Wiki available.
3. Click on the Wiki link.
4. In the right-hand column of the wiki window, choose Export (The wiki will be saved in a Zip or packaged file.)
   
   
   
5. Save the file on your computer. (When you open the zipped file, your wiki pages are saved as .html files viewable in a web browser.)
   (Note: To properly view files, open the zip file and extract (move) them to a folder. Open the index page in the web browser of your choice.) 

Export Blogs

1. Sign into Blackboad and navigate to the Control Panel
2. Under Content Areas, choose the area where you made the Blog available.
3. Click on the Blog link.
4. In the right-hand column of the blog window, choose Export (The blog will be saved in a Zip or packaged file.)
   
   
   
5. Save the file on your computer. (When you open the zipped file, your blog page is saved as .html files viewable in a web browser.)
   (Note: To properly view files, open the zip file and extract (move) them to a folder. Open the index page in the web browser of your choice.) 

 Export Assessments for the Test/Pool/Survey Manager

There are a variety of ways to save your assessments.

Click on each link to view the instructions.
 

Good	Use the Export/Archive feature of Blackboard OR Export an individual assessment
Best	Download assessments using Respondus

  

 Export Individual Assessments

1. Sign into Blackboad and navigate to the Control Panel
2. Under Assessment, choose the Test, Pool or Survey Manager link
3. Click on the Export button on the right-hand side of an assessment
   
   
   
4. Save the assessment to your computer
5. Continue follow these steps until all assessments are saved

 Download the assessment using Respondus

Respondus is a program that allows faculty to easily work with exams in Course Management Systems. A campus-wide license has been purchased. Check your computer to see of the software was installed, if not, please contact the Computer Center at x3499. If you've never used Respondus, please contact us to help expediate the initial set-up process.

To download assessments from Blackboard into Respondus, follow these steps:

1. Under the Retrieval & Reports tab, select Retrieve Questions on the left side of the screen.
2. Select your server name from the list.
3. When prompted to edit your server settings, select Use current settings and click Next.
   If you elected not to store your login information, type your SU email username and password into the prompt and click OK.
4. Select your course from the list provided.
5. Select either an Exam, Survey, or Pool from your course to import into Respondus.
6. Enter a name for your imported file.
7. Click Retrieve. When the Status box says "Completed successfully," a "File Saved" prompt will appear. Click
   OK.
8. Select the Edit tab at the top of the screen. Your imported questions will appear in a list at the bottom of the
   screen.
9. Select any question Title, then click the Modify button to edit it.
10. To add new questions, select any question type from the left side of the screen.
    To save your updated assessment, select File, then Save.

To publish your updated assessment to Blackboard,

1. Go to the Control Panel in your course.
2. Select Test Manager from the Assessment box.
3. Click the Remove button next to the assessment you wish to delete

Archiving and Exporting a Course

The best solution as we've indicated above is housing your individual documents in folders on your computer. However, you can also archive and export your course. As noted above you may or may not be able to unpackage these saved files in newer versions of Blackboard.

Archiving Courses

The Export / Archive Manager page organizes all export and archive packages that are created from the course. When the course is exported or archived, a link to the package appears on this page. The Export/Archive Manager creates a .zip file that contains all course material AND all student interactions. The Instructor may download the package to a local computer, and then use it in the future for import or restore operations. However, it is important to note that the packaged zip file should NOT be modified in any way or it "will result in unstable and unpredictable behavior when the course is imported." Archiving a course does not remove it from the Blackboard Learning System. This process is not a guarantee that all the content of the course will available. Wikis and Blogs are not part of the Bb system and will not be archived/exported during this process. The course structure and linking of content may not be entirely the same as before it was archived/exported.

When a package is exported or archived, it does not appear on this page immediately. An email is sent to the user once the system has created the package; the user may then open this page to find the package and download it.

What's the difference between an Archived and an Exported course?

Archive Course - archives all CONTENT and STUDENT INTERACTION.
Export Course - exports all CONTENT only.

What do I do when I need to view the course files or student interactions?

The Import Package feature is used to upload a packaged file (created through Blackboard Archive or Export process). The instructor can choose to import the entire course or selected parts of the course. It is important to note that the packaged zip file should NOT be modified in any way and, "will result in unstable and unpredictable behavior when the course is imported."

Import feature should only be used in a clean/empty course site. Please contact the IDDS Staff if you have any questions prior to initiating this process.

To Archive/Export your course, follow these steps.

1. Log into Blackboard > Choose a Course Link > Navigate to the Control Panel.
2. In Course Options choose either the Export or Archive link.
   
   
   
3. In the Export/Archive choose the Export or Archive icon and click ont he OK button.
   
   
   
4. From the Export Course page, place a check mark next to the materials you would like to include in the export (or archive). Click on the Submit button.  
   
   
   
   
5. A Recipt Success page will appear. Click on the OK button. Note: Depending on the size of the archived file, this process may take some time to complete. You will received an email when the process is complete. 
   
   
   
   
6. Download your zipped or packaged file by navigating to the Control Panel > Course Options > Export or Archive link. Single-Click on the zipped file link to download  the file to your computer.  
   
   

If you have any questions, IDDS staff is available to help! Please email us or call us at x1816 (Shelley) or x3439 (Donna).