Looking for updates on the status of the Blackboard/WebCT upgrade process? Click on the comments button below to see all of the updates that have been sent to the DL Liaisons to date!
We have set up BB9 on our test server and it seems to be running properly after our first round of admin level testing. The next step for us is training for administrators and our lead web faculty, particularly those who will be part of evaluating the product. We are working with Blackboard to arrange for different formats of training and would like to get a sense of how many of you are interested in helping evaluate the product, and attending the training, which will be required prior to your participation in the evaluation.
As part of the evaluation, we are going to ask that you complete some checklists and provide us some information about the areas that you test. These checklists will not take long, we hope, and will allow us to capture the experiences, issues, etc. from a wider audience. Faculty who attend the training and submit the checklists will be eligible for a stipend at the end of the testing period (Aug 2009). We will set the amount of the stipend when we know what the FY-10 budget looks like. Sorry I can't give a definitive number at this point, but many things are still up in the air, budget-wise.
If you would like to attend the training and participate in the testing, please take a minute to answer the short survey at: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=1ytG8ZGpj15O3IhypF_2bI7A_3d_3d
If you know other faculty who would be interested in the training/testing, please feel free to forward this e-mail to them.
1. Thanks to all who volunteered to work on the testing with us. 2. We have installed BB9 on a test server and have been testing basic functionality to prepare for training and rollout to the testing group. We have discovered some major drawbacks: a. The product can be set up differently than our initial configuration attempt, mostly to allow for easier import of WebCT 8 courses to BB9. However, this requires us to install a patch to WebCT 8. We do not want to do this in the middle of a semester, so we will install the patch at the end of the spring semester. b. In courses that are rolled over from WebCT 8 to BB9 there is a HUGE problem with the way Learning Modules are converted. BB is well aware of the issue and promises a fix by fall. Given that nearly all of our courses make use of Learning Modules, the problem makes a test of the BB9 platform nearly impossible at this point. 3. So...we will begin the testing in the fall instead of the spring/summer time frame. When we are ready with the product we will extend a new invitation to you because the timeline has changed which may affect your ability to participate.
Sorry for the delay in the process. On the bright side, though, we had a very productive web conference with the BB people this week and many of our initial concerns were effectively addressed. The Learning Module issue is still a concern, but both DLF and ITS feels much more confident about the process and the product.
Please feel free to contact me or Joel with any questions
To view a web version of this message online, please visit: http://gw.vtrenz.net/?NFMF7I9XN8:NFMF7I9XN8=ssID:416696302,email:ssubocz@csmd.edu,mode:live
Some information about WebCT and current plans for BB Learn is attached below. In terms of our testing of the BB Learn 9.x product, we are currently at a standstill because we've had some issues with the test server. For the test server, we are probably going to do a completely fresh install of the latest version of WebCT8 and then re-install BB Learn. This is going to take a little time, something which doesn't really bother us too much because:
1. The latest version of BB Learn available for testing (9.0) does not really meet our requirements (for example: there is no Learning Module feature, which will be included in later releases of BB Learn). BB Learn 9.1 seems to be the best product for us to begin testing - it will be available later this year or early in 2010.
2. We still have ample time to decide with the new 3-year deal we put in place last year. BB will continue to support WebCT 8 also, so there are no concerns about a degradation of support.
3. Co-production is possible (and easy) - so even if we decide to upgrade to BB Learn next summer, we can still continue to develop and offer courses using the WebCT 8 interface as long as we choose to (see the co-production notes below). We saw a demo of this a while back, and it seemed to work very nicely. This will certainly be a feature we will test before any decisions.
I will keep you posted on any future updates from BB.
Dear Blackboard Clients using WebCT CE or Vista licenses,
Picking up on last week's communication, in this Part 2 of the discussion, I wanted to go into a little detail about how we've approached the upgrade process and what that means for you, which should be a much smoother and easier transition than you may currently be envisioning.
Along with this email, we've developed a presentation that illustrates the transition for users from WebCT CE and Vista to Blackboard Learn 9.x. Download a PDF copy of the presentation. You can also download a Powerpoint version.
February 28, 2009
ReplyDeleteLiaisons:
We have set up BB9 on our test server and it seems to be running properly after our first round of admin level testing. The next step for us is training for administrators and our lead web faculty, particularly those who will be part of evaluating the product. We are working with Blackboard to arrange for different formats of training and would like to get a sense of how many of you are interested in helping evaluate the product, and attending the training, which will be required prior to your participation in the evaluation.
As part of the evaluation, we are going to ask that you complete some checklists and provide us some information about the areas that you test. These checklists will not take long, we hope, and will allow us to capture the experiences, issues, etc. from a wider audience. Faculty who attend the training and submit the checklists will be eligible for a stipend at the end of the testing period (Aug 2009). We will set the amount of the stipend when we know what the FY-10 budget looks like. Sorry I can't give a definitive number at this point, but many things are still up in the air, budget-wise.
If you would like to attend the training and participate in the testing, please take a minute to answer the short survey at:
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=1ytG8ZGpj15O3IhypF_2bI7A_3d_3d
If you know other faculty who would be interested in the training/testing, please feel free to forward this e-mail to them.
April 29, 2009:
ReplyDeleteTo keep you posted on the BB9 testing process:
1. Thanks to all who volunteered to work on the testing with us.
2. We have installed BB9 on a test server and have been testing basic functionality to prepare for training and rollout to the testing group. We have discovered some major drawbacks:
a. The product can be set up differently than our initial configuration attempt, mostly to allow for easier import of WebCT 8 courses to BB9. However, this requires us to install a patch to WebCT 8. We do not want to do this in the middle of a semester, so we will install the patch at the end of the spring semester.
b. In courses that are rolled over from WebCT 8 to BB9 there is a HUGE problem with the way Learning Modules are converted. BB is well aware of the issue and promises a fix by fall. Given that nearly all of our courses make use of Learning Modules, the problem makes a test of the BB9 platform nearly impossible at this point.
3. So...we will begin the testing in the fall instead of the spring/summer time frame. When we are ready with the product we will extend a new invitation to you because the timeline has changed which may affect your ability to participate.
Sorry for the delay in the process. On the bright side, though, we had a very productive web conference with the BB people this week and many of our initial concerns were effectively addressed. The Learning Module issue is still a concern, but both DLF and ITS feels much more confident about the process and the product.
Please feel free to contact me or Joel with any questions
May 6, 2009:
ReplyDeleteTo view a web version of this message online, please visit:
http://gw.vtrenz.net/?NFMF7I9XN8:NFMF7I9XN8=ssID:416696302,email:ssubocz@csmd.edu,mode:live
July 8, 2009:
ReplyDeleteSome information about WebCT and current plans for BB Learn is attached below. In terms of our testing of the BB Learn 9.x product, we are currently at a standstill because we've had some issues with the test server. For the test server, we are probably going to do a completely fresh install of the latest version of WebCT8 and then re-install BB Learn. This is going to take a little time, something which doesn't really bother us too much because:
1. The latest version of BB Learn available for testing (9.0) does not really meet our requirements (for example: there is no Learning Module feature, which will be included in later releases of BB Learn). BB Learn 9.1 seems to be the best product for us to begin testing - it will be available later this year or early in 2010.
2. We still have ample time to decide with the new 3-year deal we put in place last year. BB will continue to support WebCT 8 also, so there are no concerns about a degradation of support.
3. Co-production is possible (and easy) - so even if we decide to upgrade to BB Learn next summer, we can still continue to develop and offer courses using the WebCT 8 interface as long as we choose to (see the co-production notes below). We saw a demo of this a while back, and it seemed to work very nicely. This will certainly be a feature we will test before any decisions.
I will keep you posted on any future updates from BB.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dear Blackboard Clients using WebCT CE or Vista licenses,
Picking up on last week's communication, in this Part 2 of the discussion, I wanted to go into a little detail about how we've approached the upgrade process and what that means for you, which should be a much smoother and easier transition than you may currently be envisioning.
Along with this email, we've developed a presentation that illustrates the transition for users from WebCT CE and Vista to Blackboard Learn 9.x. Download a PDF copy of the presentation. You can also download a Powerpoint version.