Category Announcements


UA System Hosts Virtual Scholars Institute

This month The University of Alabama System will be hosting its 13th Annual Scholars Institute. For the first time, this year’s Scholars Institute will take place as a series of online events. The institute kicks off Friday, May 15 at 10am with a virtual presentation offering an overview of how the UA System community is responding…


Multiple Page PDFs do not Display Properly in Some Browsers

When using Chrome, sometimes large, multi-page PDFs do not display past first or second page. This may also occur with certain PDF viewer browser extensions (plug-in), such as the Adobe Reader plugin. Workaround: Disable problematic plug-in or use Firefox. More on supported browsers.


Respondus Lockdown Browser Information

Respondus Lockdown Browser is a browser that locks down a testing environment within Blackboard. Students taking exams which require Lockdown Browser will not be able to access any other browser functions or applications on the computer being used until the exam is complete. Instructors may require their students to use Respondus Lockdown Browser to lock down the testing…


Update Zoom Software

Updated software is secure software. OIT Security recommends that all Zoom software be updated as soon as updated software is released. By updating to the latest version, you will receive security patches and upgrades to ensure the security of your computer and also your meetings. You may have a message when opening Zoom that you…


Collaborate Ultra Maintenance Friday March 27 AM

Blackboard Collaborate Ultra will be undergoing maintenance Friday, March 27, 2020 1:00 AM EDT (GMT -4) until Friday, March 27, 2020 5:00 AM EDT (GMT -4). Collaborate Ultra customers will experience intermittent availability during these maintenance windows.  


Blackboard Learn Course Messages Module Discontinued

The Blackboard Learn course messages module formerly on the My Courses and My Institutions tabs is no longer available. This tool was independently developed and is no longer functional. Course messages still work within Blackboard courses and can be accessed in the course tools menu.


Blackboard Ally now enabled in all courses

In order to help instructors and students transition to online learning, Blackboard Ally for LMS has been enabled in all Blackboard courses. Ally helps make digital course content more accessible by automatically providing alternative formats (such as semantic HTML, audio, ePub, and electronic Braille) and providing instructor feedback and guidance on fixing accessibility issues in a course.…


Blackboard Collaborate Ultra – March 26 Maintenance

Blackboard will be performing scheduled infrastructure maintenance for Collaborate Ultra on Thursday, March 26, 2020 between 1 a.m. – 5 a.m. CDT. Collaborate Ultra users will experience intermittent availability during this maintenance window.