Step-By-Step
Group Collaboration Lightweight Chat
(Text version)

1. Instructors and TAs have the option to allow groups to access to a Collaboration function. If your instructor has created group pages and allowed the Collaboration function for your group you can access that function by:

• Log into Blackboard as usual.
• Click on Communications / Group Pages and click on the name of the group of which you are a member. Your instructor or TA should let you know which group they have given you access. This displays your group's Group page.
• Click on the "Collaboration" link. This displays the Collaboration Sessions page for your group.

2. The Collaboration Sessions contains two types of synchronous communication tools.

• First, is a simple chat room, called by default, "Lightweight Chat". This chat room operates similar to a common AOL Instant messenger chat function.
• Second, is a multi-featured chat room, called by default, "Virtual Classroom". This chat room allows users to present ideas on a virtual white board, display web pages or display the Blackboard course content written to a text box.

3. One example of each type of the chat room is available to join by default. These two chat rooms are named, by default, "Office Hours", which is a Lightweight chat and "Lecture Hall", which is a Virtual Classroom chat. These two chat rooms are always available to all members of the group.

4. Group Collaboration sessions are different that the class-wide collaboration session in that all members of the group are given administrative access to the collaboration sessions. Any member of the group may create and schedule new collaboration sessions. To create and schedule a new collaboration session:

• Click on the "Create Collaboration Session" button located on the top of the page. This will display the "create collaboration session" form.
• Type in a new name for the session in the box marked "Session Name" under section #1.
• Set the Start, and if you want, end, dates and times for the new session under section #2. If yo choose an end time make sure to checkmark the "end after" box.
• Use the dropdown list under section #3 to choose either Lightweight Chat or Virtual Classroom for the type of collaboration tool.
• Click on the "Submit" button on the bottom of the page. A receipt will be displayed telling you that the collaboration setting has been created. Click on "ok" to return to the Collaboration page.
• The session name is now listed on the Collaboration Sessions page. If the start time you set for the session is sometime in the future the "Join" button will not appear on this page until that date and time has arrived.

5. When many sessions are added to the site you may want to use the search options to locate a collaboration session.

6. To join a collaboration session just click on the "Join" button next to the name of the session. The first time you do this, you may have to download some software and install it on your local computer. This usually happens automatically. Answer any questions that may be asked of you during the download and install process. Once the software is installed on your local computer, the chat room should open in a new window. Note that Macintosh users running OS X and Netscape should run Netscape 7. On Macintosh computers, Netscape may put the Collaboration window in the background. If this happens, check under the Window menu for the chat room window. Blackboard does not support the Safari browserfor collaboration sessions.

7. Each collaboration session listed on the Collaboration page has a "Manage" button, located to the right of the session name, which any group member can use to change the sessions name, date,time and type. Each session also has a "Remove" button, also located to the right of the session name, which any group member can use to remove the session from the list.

8. To participate in a group's Lightweight Chat:

• Log into the Blackboard course site as usual.
• Click on Communications / Group Pages and click on the name of the group of which you are a member. This displays your group's Group page.
• Click on the Collaboration link. This displays the collaboration page.
• Click on the "Join" button, located to the right of the Lightweight Chat session. Note that since there may be any number of chat sessions available you may have to inform other members of the group by e-mail which chat session to use and what date and time to "join" the session. After a few seconds the Lightweight Chat room will open in a new window.
  
• The Lightweight chat room is divided into 3 sections. On the top of the window is a menu bar with a number of icons that control various aspects of the chat room. On the left is a user panel that will list the name of each person that has joined the chat room. This list will automatically update as new users join the chat. On the right is the message window and composition area.
  
• To participate in the chat session simply type in your comments in the composition area on the bottom right of the chat room window and click on the "Enter" key on your keyboard (or click on the "send" button). This will display your comment in the message window and the message window of all those that have joined the session. There is a limit to 1000 characters per "send". As more comments are added to the message window the messages will begin to automatically scroll so that the latest message is always on the bottom.
  
• Unlike the class-wide Lightweight chat, all participants in the the group Lightweight chat are listed as active members. This means that there are no controls to limit any group members participation in the chat.
  
• To send a Private Message to someone participating in the chat, select the person's name from the list on the left then click on the "Private Message" button on the bottom left. This will display a private message box. Type in your private message and click on the "Send" button in the bottom right-hand corner of the private message box. Your message will be displayed on your chat message display and on the display of the person you sent the message. It will not be displayed on any other participant's message display.
• It is possible to split your message display so that all private messages are displayed on one side of the message display and all other comments are displayed on the other side of the message display. To do this, click on the "View" button at the top of the chat window. Under Private Messaging, select "Show in separate frame" and click "OK". Your message display is now split into two sections. One side will display all of the general comments and the other will display any private messages sent to you or those you send.
  
• To clear your message display or the message display of all of the participants, click on the "Clear" button located at the top of the chat window. This will display a "Clear Display" dialogue box. select either "Clear local display" or "Clear all user's display" and then click on "OK".
  
• Lightweight chat sessions are, by default, not recorded or archived. Any participant in a Group Lightweight chat can initiate a recording of the chat session. To begin recording a chat session click on the "Record" button located in the upper right of the chat window. A dialogue box will appear requesting a name for the archived recording. Type in a new name or accept the default and click on "OK". All messages (except private messages) will now be recorded. Any participant in a Group Lightweight chat can pause the recording by clicking on the "Pause" button. Any participant in a Group Lightweight chat can stop the recording by clicking on the "Stop" button. Any participant in a Group Lightweight chat can insert a bookmark into the recording by clicking on the "Insert Bookmark" button. When the "Insert Bookmark" button is pressed a bookmark dialogue box appears. Type in a name for the bookmark and click on "OK".
  
• Any participant in a Group Lightweight chat can end the chat session by clicking on the red "End" button located at the top of the chat window. Clicking on the "End" button displays an End Session dialogue box warning that this action will end the entire chat session for all of the participants. Clicking "OK" will display an information box on all participants displays telling them that the chat session has been closed.
• If you wish to leave a chat session without ending it for all of the other participants, simply close the window by clicking on the "X" in the upper right hand corner of the chat window.
  
• To view the archives of the chat session go to the group's collaboration page. Any session that has been recorded will have a "Archives" button to the right of the session name. Click on the "Archives" button. This will display the Sessions Archive page. Click on the name assigned to the archive. This will display the archive for that session.
  
• Any member of the group can access and manage all collaboration session archives, manage all collaboration settings and remove any collaboration setting by clicking on the appropriate button located to the right of the collaboration listing.

If you have any questions or comments regarding this Step-By-Step procedure contact the Tufts Blackboard Administrator at: nhirsig@tufts.edu