Blackboard doesn't seem to be working correctly. What can I do?
Blackboard is a web based application that is viewed through some type of Internet browser. Many problems relating to Blackboard not displaying the correct page, or not working correctly are usually a result of a problem with your Internet browser and how it accesses and stores web pages. You should use the following steps to troubleshoot your problem. The majority of the problems you may have with Blackboard will be solved by one of these steps.
Browser Refresh - To refresh the web page that you are viewing, click the "Refresh" button on your browser.
Use this method if a Blackboard page comes up blank, or the page does not completely load. Clicking on the refresh button may take you back to the "My Institution" page. If this happens, click on your course under the My Courses box to get back to the course information.
Delete Temporary Internet Files - To delete your Temporary Internet Files follow the following steps depending on your browser.
Internet Explorer: Tools -> Internet Options -> General Tab: Click "Delete Files..." under Temporary Internet Files
Netscape: Edit -> Preferences -> Advanced -> Cache: Click buttons for "Clear Memory Cache" and "Clear Disk Cache"
Deleting your Temporary Internet Files will force your browser to download new copies of web pages the next time you visit them, instead of displaying the old pages that it downloaded previously. This is also a good habit to get into to keep your computer operating efficiently.
Change Cache Settings - Changing your cache settings will adjust how often your browser downloads a new copy of a web page, instead of displaying a copy that it has already downloaded. This is very important for Blackboard, because information is always changing in Blackboard and if your browser is set to never download new copies of web pages, you will not see any of the new information added to Blackboard. Your browser's cache settings can be set to refresh its cache (verbiage may vary depending on browser):
1. Every time you visit a web page - refresh every time you view a page.
2. Once per browser session - only refresh when browser is closed and re-opened.
3. Automatically - refreshes after a certain period of time.
4. Never - never refresh pages that you have previously visited.
The optimal setting for browser caching is "Every visit to the page", because you will always see the latest changes to the page. However, this setting is the most resource intensive. Please see the help section of your browser for more detailed information about browser caching and settings. If you decide to use one of the other cache settings, you can still manually refresh your cache by clicking the "Refresh" button in your browser.
Location for changing cache settings in various web browsers:
Windows Internet Explorer:
Tools -> Internet Options -> Temporary Internet files -> Settings
