In order to share an application or your desktop in Blackboard Collaborate, you must have moderator privileges. Thus, if students need the ability to share their desktop, be sure to setup the room to allow users to enter as moderators when creating the room.
When sharing an application, it is important to note that you may not receive a visual notice that a student has a question. Thus, it is important to emphasize to students to use the Raise Hand feature in Blackboard Collaborate Ultra so that you have an audible indicator letting you know someone has a question. Once the student raises their hand, they can type the question in the chat window and you can address it when appropriate.
If you have moderator access and want to share your screen or an application, use the following instructions:
Step 1: Login to the Blackboard Collaborate Ultra room in which you have moderator privileges. Click the purple arrow icon at the bottom of the screen. (see image below)
Step 2: Select the Share Application / Screen option. (see image below)
Step 3: If you just want to share a specific application (ex: web browser, Microsoft Excel, etc.), select “Just an Application”. If you want to share your entire screen, select “Entire Screen”. (see image below)
NOTE: For the remainder of this article, screenshots will show the user selecting the “Just an Application” option.
Step 4: Select the application you would like to share. If you chose “Entire Screen”, this step may be skipped or it may ask you to select which monitor if you have multiple monitors. For our example, we will share the Chrome Internet Browser. (see image below)
Step 5: Blackboard Collaborate Ultra runs in a web browser rather than a stand-alone program. Thus, if you share your Internet Browser in which you are running Collaborate Ultra, you will get a mirrored effect as seen below. This is normal and you can ignore it. However, it is important to open a new tab if you want to guide students through a website. If you just change the URL, you will bump yourself out of Collaborate Ultra. Be sure to open a new tab before continuing with your demonstration. (see image below)
NOTE: When sharing an application other than a web browser, the effect and note above do not apply. In those cases, you can begin navigating the shared application normally.
Step 6: Upon opening a new tab, navigate to the website you wish and proceed with your demonstration. You will notice that your Blackboard Collaborate Ultra room is still running on a separate tab. When you are done with your website sharing, you can return to the Blackboard Collaborate Ultra room by clicking on the tab. (see image below)
Step 7: When you return to the Blackboard Ultra Collaborate room, you will notice the mirror effect from Step 5 again. This is normal as you are still sharing the application and can be ignored. At this point, you can click “Stop Sharing” at the bottom of the screen to return to the normal Blackboard Collaborate Ultra room. (see image below)
Step 8: With the sharing application mode now turned off, you can continue with your presentation as normal.