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Blackboard
Tutorials> Basic> External Linksl
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External Links
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Overview
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The External Links area connects course users to outside learning
materials. Instructors select outside materials and post a hyperlink
and brief description for each external source. The instructor
can add, modify, and remove external links using the External
Links page. Although external links can be placed anywhere in
Blackboard, this is the simplest way to do so.
Links can also be organized by folders.
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| External Links |
Click External Links from the Content Areas section of the Instructor
Control Panel to access the External Links page.
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Available functions
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The functions available on this window are described in the table
below.
| To . . . |
click . . . |
| add information relative to the course |
Add Link.
The Add Link page will appear. On the Add Link page
links may be added and other options may be selected.
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| add a new folder |
Add Folder.
The Add Folder page will appear. On the Add Folder page new
folders may be created to group similar information together. |
| modify an item |
Modify.
The Modify Item page will appear. |
| modify a folder |
Modify.
The Modify Folder page will appear. |
| remove an item or folder |
Remove.
A confirmation box will appear.
Warning:Removing an item or folder is irreversible.
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| order content items |
the drop-down arrow to select a number. The
items will appear on External Links page in the order selected.
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Add or Modify Link
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| Overview |
Links may be added or modified by accessing the Add Link page
or Modify Link page. The fields on the Add Link page and Modify
Link page are the same. The Add Link page and Modify Link page
function in a similar manner. The difference being, the Add Link
page opens with empty fields while the Modify Link page opens
with populated fields.
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| Add Link page |
Click Add Link from the External Links page. The Add Link page
will appear as shown. To modify a link, click Modify. The Modify
Link page will appear.
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| Entry fields |
The table below details the entry fields on the Add Link or Modify
Link page.
| Item Information |
| Name: |
Select a folder name from the drop-down
list. |
| URL: |
Enter the Web address to the link. |
| Description: |
Enter a description of the folder. Select a
text type for the description from the following options:·
Plain text: Displays text as written.· HTML: Displays
text as coded using HTML tags. |
| Options: |
| Launch item in external window: |
Select Yes to have the Web site open as a new separate
window.
Select No to have the Web site open on the same
window.
Note: Launching the site in a new window will display
the correct URL for the site in the address bar of the browser,
while launching it in the same window will not. In order
to avoid potential copyright issues, the site should be
launched in a new window so that the correct URL will be
displayed.
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| Do you want to make item visible: |
Click Yes to have the link appear on the External
Links page.
Click No so that the link will not appear on the
External Links page.
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| Frequently Asked Question: |
Although the External Links area is a nice way of
organizing links, can I put a link elsewhere in my course? |
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Since Blackboard uses the technology of the Web, links can be
placed anywhere in a Blackboard course.
- The first way is to use the "smart text" feature
in the text boxes for items, folders, profiles, and discussion
board postings.
For example, if you type the following link, http://www.shu.edu,
into the textbox and select "smart text", after
you click "Submit" at the bottom of the page, the
link will now be automatically converted to hypertext and
be active in the area you entered it.
- If this does not work there is an HTML option.
You can enter a hyperlink into the text box by using some
HTML tags. Typing the link as follows:<a ref="http://www.shu.edu">Click
Here!</a>where the carrots (<>) designate
HTML tags and the text Click Here! is the text the user will
click.
The above will display the text Click Here! as a
hyperlink that will access the Seton Hall Website (http://www.shu.edu)
the URL of which is between quotes. The text the user will
click and the site to which the link points can be, but do
not have to be the same. Make sure that "HTML" is
selected at the bottom of the text box. The link will then
display in the area to which it was submitted.
- The third method is through attached items such as Word documents,
other web pages, Excel documents, etc. If you have inserted
a hyperlink in an item attachment it will function normally
in Blackboard.
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