Basic OER Training

Additional information about the July 13 Basic OER Training and Discussion.

When viewing the presentations, remember that the videos are playbacks of recordings made last year. Do not try to use any interactive elements of the presentations. You may view the videos any time you like; you are not limited to the time for each that is shown in the schedule.

To participate in a discussion, you must connect to the discussion during its scheduled time. You will be able to use your speakers or earphones and the text chat to make comments or ask questions. If you have a microphone or headset, you will be able to participate by voice, but you'll have to use the chat to show that you want to speak. There is a "raise hand" icon at the left edge of the applet window, below the list of participants, that the facilitator probably will want you to use to indicate that you want to speak.

It takes some time to download and set up the Java applet used for accessing the discussion, so it would be best to do that before the first discussion session you want to attend. Some parts are a little confusing, so here are some instructions to help you out. Do this on the same computer that you will use to participate in the discussions. This setup is required only once.

1. Click one of the links to a discussion.
2. Fill out form with your first name, last name, email, and a screen name.
3. Click the Connect button.

If you do this earlier than 24 hours before the discussion is to start, you will get a "Meeting Details" page from which you can pre-configure. Closer than 24 hours to the start time, steps 4 through 7 seem to be skipped.

4. Click the link for support.blackboardcollaborate.com that is just above the button for the Time Zone Converter.
5. Under "First Time Users", click "Blackboard Collaborate web conferencing".
6. If your system passes the system requirements, you will see two big green check marks.
7. Scroll down to "Step 2: Configuring your system" and click on "Configuration Room".

You might get some security warnings from your browser or OS about downloading and running the Java applet from Elluminate or from Blackboard Collaborate. Please watch for them and allow the actions.

8. When the applet opens, if it does not show instructions about how to configure and test your speakers and microphone, and set your connection speed, go to the Tools menu, select Audio, then Audio Setup Wizard and follow the instructions.
9. If you are pre-configuring, close the Blackboard Collaborate window when you are finished with the set up. The settings will be saved and used when you connect to the actual discussion.