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Using the Discussion Board
Overview of the Discussion Board
The Discussion Board tool allows groups to communicate online without all the users having to be logged in at the same time. Discussion Board conversations are organized into "threads" and "messages." A thread is a series of messages on a particular topic; each thread contains a main posting and all the related replies. Each reply message is an individual contribution to the conversation.
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Accessing the Discussion Board
After logging into Blackboard, select the title of your course from the "My Courses" module.
Then click "Discussion Board" on the Course Menu or from the
Communication area.
A page will appear listing all the different Discussion Board threads.
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Posting to the Discussion Board
Users can reply to threads that have already been posted, or start new threads.
To reply to an existing thread: Click the thread topic link from the list. The thread will open, displaying the initial message and all replies. To add a reply to the thread, click the "Reply" button and the "Response" page will open. Type your reply to the thread in the "Message" field, and click the "Submit" button to submit your reply.
To start a new thread: Click the "Add New Thread" button; the "Create New Message" page will appear. Enter a subject for the new thread in the "Subject" field, and then type your message in the "Message" field. Click the "Submit" button to submit the new thread.
Fields appearing on the "Response" and "Create New Message" pages:
- Forum: The name of the Discussion Board Forum appears in this field.
- Date: The date appears in this field.
- Author: The name of the author appears here.
- Subject: Add a subject for the post.
- Message: Enter your message in this field.
- Attachment: Enter the file path or click "Browse" to locate a file.
- Preview: Preview the message as it will appear on the Discussion Board.
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Other Discussion Board Functions
To view all messages: Click the "View all Messages" up arrow. All messages appear. To view unread messages: Click the "View Unread Messages" down arrow. All unread messages will be shown. To see all the threads and responses: Click the "Expand All" plus icon. All threads and responses will appear. To see only the first message in each thread: Click the "Collapse All" minus icon. The topic threads will appear. To read a post: Click the link to a post. To view the Options tool bar: Click the "Show Options" tab. The Options tool bar will appear. (To hide the Options tool bar, click the "Hide Options" tab.) To view messages that have been archived by the Instructor: Click the "Click Here for Archives." A page will appear with the threads that have been archived from this forum. (Archived messages must be made available by the Instructor.) To sort the list of messages: Click the "Sort by" drop-down list and select one of the following options:
- Author: sort messages by the author.
- Date: sort messages by the earliest date. This is the default.
- Subject: sort messages by the subject.
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Visual Text Box Editor
Blackboard's Visual Text Box Editor is a feature available to those users using Microsoft's Internet Explorer. The Visual Text Box Editor provides users with advanced text formatting options, however, common right-click functionality such as Copy and Paste will not be available inside of the editor. Users may still use keyboard shortcuts such as CTRL + C to copy text, and CTRL + V to paste text.
The Visual Text Box Editor may be enabled or disabled by editing your personal information and selecting: Set Visual Text Box Editor Options
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