Blackboard Vista Troubleshooting Page

Logging In

1. Make sure you're in the right place
   
   

   • The proper URL is http://www.calumet.purdue.edu/ecourses/. If that is not what is in your address bar, you're in the wrong place.
     If you get to this page, click on the circled link to get to the right place.

   
   
   
2. Username/Password
   
   

   • A student’s username is their last name, first initial and then a number. This can be found by logging into PCStar or by looking on their schedule.

   • The password is their birthday in the format mmddyy.

Supported Browsers

1. Internet Explorer - Internet Explorer 6 is the browser officially supported by Purdue Calumet.

2. Mozilla FireFox - The Mozilla family of browsers will work well with Blackboard Vista, but are not supported by CTIS.

3. Netscape - Like the Mozilla browsers, Netscape will work well with Blackboard Vista, but are not supported by CTIS.

Note: AOL is not a supported browser, if students are using that browser things in Vista will not work correctly. They need to connect to their internet using AOL and then minimize is and use IE or Firefox.

Java

1. Getting the correct version of Java - The correct version of Java is necessary for many features on Blackboard Vista, including but not limited to attaching and opening documents (which is how you submit and get assignments).
   
   

   • Currently, the correct version of Java is 1.5.0_05. You can find it at http://java.sun.com/products/archive/j2se/5.0_05/ if you do not have it installed.

   • If you have another version of Java, you will need to uninstall it before you install the correct version. Click here to learn how to uninstall Java.

Popup Blockers - It is important to disable popup blockers, or allow Blackboard Vista as an allowed site in them, as they will prevent some of the features of Blackboard Vista from performing properly.

1. Allowing Blackboard Vista in browsers
   
   

   • This is the preferred way to enable popups for Blackboard Vista in your web browser. Note that any popup blocking programs will have to be configured separately.
     Note: Mozilla and Netscape are mentioned here due only to their popularity. They are not supported by this university!
     

     1. Click here to learn how to add exceptions to the popup blocker in Internet Explorer

     2. Click here to learn how to add exceptions to the popup blocker in Mozilla FireFox

     3. Click here to learn how to add exceptions to the popup blocker in Netscape

   
   
   
2. Disabling popup blockers
   
   

   • It is not recommended that you disable or turn off your popup blockers unless there is no other way to get popups to function for Blackboard Vista. Certain toolbars have popup blocking functions built into them (Yahoo and Google, for example), and will interfere with Blackboards ability to work properly. It is recommended that you uninstall them if you have them.