Moderator: Full control over all content being shared; can make any participant a presenter or
moderator; see notifications and lower hands; alter participant permissions
Presenter: Allows participants to present without giving them full moderator privileges;
can upload, share, edit, and stop sharing content; see notifications and lower hands
Participant: Enable and disable notifications; participate in a session using permissions
that moderator allows (e.g., chat, microphone, drawing on whiteboard)
Captioner: Provided with an area to type what is being said so that other participants
can view captions in real time
Only those with moderator privileges can turn on recording in sessions. Everyone in
the course can view the recordings from any device with no view limits.
Setting Up Collaborate Ultra in Your Blackboard Course
Although Collaborate Ultra is available in all Blackboard courses, a link to the tool
must be made available for students to access it.
There are two ways to create a link to Collaborate Ultra: you can either place the
link directly in your Blackboard course menu, or you can create a link in any content
area (for example, a module or lesson).
Go to Option A to create a Collaborate Ultra link in the Course Menu, or go to Option B to learn how to create a Collaborate Ultra link in a Content Area.
If you want to add a link to Collaborate Ultra directly to your course menu as shown
above, please follow the directions below.
To add create a Collaborate Ultra Tool Link:
- Hover your computer's cursor over the "+" icon located in the upper-left corner of your Course Menu: a drop-down menu of options should appear.
- From the drop-down menu of options, click on Tool Link: you should now see the Add Tool Link pop-up window shown below.
To create the Collaborate Ultra Took Link:
- Type in a name for the Link, for example "Collaborate Ultra."
- Click on the drop-down menu and select Blackboard Collaborate Ultra from the list of options.
- Click the checkbox next to Available to Users to make the link immediately available to your students. If you don't check this,
the link will not be visible to your students, but you can always edit the Show/Hide option for the link later.
- Click the Submit button to create the link or Cancel if you wish to start over.
- The Collaborate Ultra link you just created should be at the bottom of your Course
Menu, but you can now drag-and-drop the tool link wherever you would like it to appear
in the Course Menu.
Option B: Creating a Collaborate Ultra Link in a Content Area
If you want to add a link to Collaborate Ultra in a content area as shown above, please
follow the directions below.
To add the link in a Content Area:
1. Hover over the Tools menu at the top of the window.
2. When the Tools menu expands, click More Tools.
3. Select Blackboard Collaborate Ultra from the list of tools that appears.
Setting the Collaborate Ultra Link Options
On the Create Link: Blackboard Ultra screen, you can set a number of options as described
below:
- Rename the link if desired (by default, the link is named Blackboard Collaborate Ultra).
- Choose a color (black by default) for the link name by clicking the drop down menu
just to the left of the word Black.
- Type an optional description for the link using the text box provided.
- Choose whether to make the link you are creating immediately available (the default
is Yes).
- Choose whether to have Blackboard Track Number of Views for this link.
- Enter a set of Date Restrictions for this link. If the checkboxes next to Display After and Display Until are not checked and date/times entered, then the link will be available for the entire
duration of the course (assuming that the Available option has been set to Yes to display the link.
- Click the Submit button to complete creating the link. You should then see the link and the Blackboard
Collaborate Ultra icon in your Content Area.
Creating a Collaborate Ultra Session
In this module you will learn how to create, edit, and delete a Collaborate Ultra
session.
Note: Since sessions are hosted in your browser, it is suggested that you use Google Chrome
for the best experience.
Entering the Collaborate Ultra Portal
Entering the Collaborate Ultra Portal within your course site depends on where you
created a link to it - either in 1) the Course Menu or 2) a Content Area.
1) If you have created a Collaborate Ultra tool link in your Course Menu, you can
click on this directly to launch the application.
2) If you have created a Collaborate Ultra link within a Content Area, first click
the name of the Content Area in the Course Menu, and then click the Collaborate Ultra
link in the Content Area.
If you have not yet created a Collaborate Ultra link in either the Course Menu or
a Content Area, then please refer to the Enabling Collaborate Ultra in Your Blackboard Course guide.
Once you have clicked on the Collaborate Ultra link in either the Course Menu or in
a Content Area, you should see the Blackboard Collaborate Ultra screen shown below.
Creating a New Session
To create a session, click the Create Session button on the left.
A new panel will open along the right side of your screen, where you can edit three
settings: Title, Event Details, and Session Settings.
Title
Enter the title that you would like for the session.
Guest Access
After entering the session title, you can set up Guest Access for the session:
- Check the checkbox to enable guest access.
- Use the dropdown menu to select the default role for guests (the role that individuals
would have when they enter the session). The available roles are Participant, Moderator and Presenter. For more information about these various roles, please see the Session Roles guide.
- Click the Copy button to the right of the Guest Link URL to copy the URL to the clipboard.
Event Details
- Select a start/end date/time for the session.
- If you would like to create a session that is open 24/7 the entire semester, check
the box for No End (Open Session).
- You may select Repeat Session if you would like to create multiple weekly sessions at once, rather than create them
individually.
- Select how many minutes prior to the start of session that participants are allowed
to enter.
- Optional: You may enter a description of the session that will appear in Blackboard
for students.
Session Settings
- Expand the Session Settings by clicking the drop down arrow.
- Default Attendee Role: The system preloads the Participant role by default, but you may select a different default role for all student users
in the session. See the article on Session Roles.
- Recordings: Check the Allow Recording Downloads box if you want students to be able to download recordings from Blackboard to their
devices. If this box is not checked, students will only be able to stream any recordings
that are available. Note: This box also must be checked if faculty want to be able to download recordings. To anonymize student names in the chat, check the box labeled Anonymize Chat Recordings. This option is recommended for FERPA compliance, especially if you are sharing the
recordings outside of the classroom or reusing recordings from previous semesters.
- Moderator Permissions: Checking this box prevents participants from seeing each other's profile pictures.
- The Participants Can category is where you can enable/disable permissions that participants have. These
can also be altered within the session itself. The options include share their audio,
share their video, post chat messages, and draw on whiteboard and files.
- Enable Session Telephony: By default, this box is checked, allowing participants to use their telephones to
connect to the session's audio. Because using the telephone is an alternative for
participants whose computer speakers and microphone are not working, we recommend
keeping this option selected.
- Private Chat: This section contains options related to the use of private chats in a session (chats
sent to individual users in the session). If you do not want students to chat with
each other privately, and only be able to chat with session moderators, check the
option labeled Participants can only chat privately with moderators. If you want to monitor private chats, check the option labeled Moderators supervise all private chats.
- Large Scale Session (250+): If your course has 250 or more participants, check this box to allow a large scale
session in webinar mode. Large scale sessions allow up to 500 participants. Please only check this box if this situation applies.
For large sessions, you may want to disable participant audio and video sharing permissions
to avoid bandwidth and audio feedback issues. If you want to allow an individual participant
to talk, you can temporarily promote them to presenters while in session.
Save the Session
Once all options have been set, click the Save button at the bottom of the panel.
*Note*
If you are receiving errors about not being able to connect to Collaborate, please
go to http://status.blackboard.com and check on the status for Collaborate - Web Conferencing (US Hosted). This will let you know if Blackboard is having issues with Collaborate Ultra.
Editing & Deleting Collaborate Ultra Sessions
This guide will demonstrate how to edit or delete Collaborate Ultra sessions.
Entering the Collaborate Ultra Portal
Entering the Collaborate Ultra Portal within your course site depends on where you
created a link to it - either in 1) the Course Menu or 2) a Content Area.
1) If you have created a Collaborate Ultra tool link in your Course Menu, you can
click on this directly to launch the application.
2) If you have created a Collaborate Ultra link within a Content Area, first click
the name of the Content Area in the Course Menu, and then click the Collaborate Ultra
link in the Content Area.
If you have not yet created a Collaborate Ultra link in either the Course Menu or
a Content Area, then please refer to the Enabling Collaborate Ultra in Your Blackboard Course guide.
Once you have clicked on the Collaborate Ultra link in either the Course Menu or in
a Content Area, you should see the Blackboard Collaborate Ultra screen shown below.
Selecting a Session to Edit or Delete
You will now see a list of available Collaborate Ultra sessions. To edit or delete
a session:
- Locate the session you wish to to edit or delete and click the menu button to the
right of the session.
- Select Edit Settings to edit the session information.
- Select Delete Session to delete the session. A dialog box will then pop up asking you if you want to confirm
deleting the session.
Title
Enter the title that you would like for the session.
Guest Access
After entering the session title, you can set up Guest Access for the session:
- Check the checkbox to enable guest access.
- Use the dropdown menu to select the default role for guests (the role that individuals
would have when they enter the session). The available roles are Participant, Moderator and Presenter. For more information about these various roles, please see the Session Roles guide.
- Click the Copy button to the right of the Guest Link URL to copy the URL to the clipboard.
Event Details
- Select a start/end date/time for the session.
- If you would like to create a session that is open 24/7 the entire semester, check
the box for No End (Open Session).
- You may select Repeat Session if you would like to create multiple weekly sessions at once, rather than create them
individually.
- Select how many minutes prior to the start of session that participants are allowed
to enter.
- Optional: You may enter a description of the session that will appear in Blackboard
for students.
Session Settings
- Default Participant Role: Select the default role you want participants to have upon entering the session.
- Recordings: Check the Allow Recording Downloads box if you want students to be able to download recordings from Blackboard to their
devices. If this box is not checked, students will be able to stream any recordings
that are available. To anonymize student names in the chat, check the box labeled
Anonymize Chat Recordings. This option is recommended for FERPA compliance, especially if you are sharing the
recordings outside of the classroom or reusing recordings from previous semesters.
- Moderator Permissions: Checking this box prevents participants from seeing each other's profile pictures.
- The Participants Can category is where you can enable/disable permissions that participants have. These
can also be altered within the session itself. The options include share their audio,
share their video, post chat messages, and draw on whiteboard and files.
- Enable Session Telephony: By default, this box is checked, allowing participants to use their telephones to
connect to the session's audio. Because using the telephone is an alternative for
participants whose computer speakers and microphone are not working, we recommend
keeping this option selected.
- Private Chat: This section contains options related to the use of private chats in a session (chats
sent to individual users in the session). If you do not want students to chat with
each other, and only be able to chat with session moderators, check the option labeled Participants can only chat privately with moderators. If you want to monitor private chats, check the option labeled Moderators supervise all private chats.
Save the Session
Once all options have been set, click the Save button at the bottom of the panel.
*Note*
If you are receiving errors about not being able to connect to Collaborate, please
go to http://status.blackboard.com and check on the status for Collaborate - Web Conferencing (US Hosted). This will let you know if Blackboard is having issues with Collaborate Ultra.
Locking the Course Room
By default, a premade Course Room that is always available resides in each course
in which Blackboard Collaborate Ultra has been made available to. If you are not using
the Course Room, you can lock it to prevent students from accessing the wrong session
and reduce confusion. The instructions below will explain how to lock the Course Room.
Entering the Collaborate Ultra Portal
Entering the Collaborate Ultra Portal within your course site depends on where you
created a link to it - either in 1) the Course Menu or 2) a Content Area.
1) If you have created a Collaborate Ultra tool link in your Course Menu, you can
click on this directly to launch the application.
2) If you have created a Collaborate Ultra link within a Content Area, first click
the name of the Content Area in the Course Menu, and then click the Collaborate Ultra
link in the Content Area.
If you have not yet created a Collaborate Ultra link in either the Course Menu or
a Content Area, then please refer to the Enabling Collaborate Ultra in Your Blackboard Course guide.
Once you have clicked on the Collaborate Ultra link in either the Course Menu or in
a Content Area, you should see the Blackboard Collaborate Ultra screen shown below.
Joining the Course Room
By default, every Blackboard course has a Course Room that is enabled. This room is
open 24/7, and to enter it, just click the Join room link that is available. However, if you do not want students to have access to a room
that is open 24/7 or you would prefer to use scheduled sessions, you may lock this
room by following the steps below:
1. Click the Course Room Options button on the right side of you screen.
2. Select Disable course room.
Entering a Collaborate Session
This guide will demonstrate how to enter a Blackboard Collaborate Ultra section from
your Blackboard Learn course.
Entering the Course Room from Blackboard
To join the Course Room:
- Locate the link for Blackboard Collaborate Ultra in the course menu.
- Click on the Course Room link in the Blackboard Collaborate Ultra portal
- The session information panel will appear on the right side. Click the Join Course Room button to log into the session.
- Optional: If you wish to use your phone to dial into the session audio, dial the phone
number and enter the PIN when prompted.
Entering a Scheduled Session from Blackboard
To join the Course Room:
- Locate the link for Blackboard Collaborate Ultra in the course menu.
- Click on the link for the session in the Blackboard Collaborate Ultra portal
- The session information panel will appear on the right side. Click the Join Session button to log into the session.
- Optional: If you wish to use your phone to dial into the session audio, dial the phone
number and enter the PIN when prompted.
Creating a Guest Link
This guide will demonstrate how to obtain a guest link to grant access to a collaborate
session outside of your Blackboard class enrollments.
Entering the Collaborate Ultra Portal
Entering the Collaborate Ultra Portal within your course site depends on where you
created a link to it - either in 1) the Course Menu or 2) a Content Area.
1) If you have created a Collaborate Ultra tool link in your Course Menu, you can
click on this directly to launch the application.
2) If you have created a Collaborate Ultra link within a Content Area, first click
the name of the Content Area in the Course Menu, and then click the Collaborate Ultra
link in the Content Area.
If you have not yet created a Collaborate Ultra link in either the Course Menu or
a Content Area, then please refer to the Enabling Collaborate Ultra in Your Blackboard Course guide.
Once you have clicked on the Collaborate Ultra link in either the Course Menu or in
a Content Area, you should see the Blackboard Collaborate Ultra screen shown below.
Obtaining the Guest Link
To obtain a guest link for a session:
- Click on the button with the three dots to the right of the course room or the session
link.
- Click on the Copy Guest Link option in the menu.
- The Guest Link URL will appear on screen. You can click on the link or use [control]+{C]
(Windows) or {command]+[C} (Mac) to copy the link to your clipboard.
You can then send the link to your guest participants via email.
