Blackboard Signup Sheets

Blackboard became offline as of July 01, 2010.

Signup Sheet Overview

Signup Sheets are tools that Williams built within the Blackboard system to reproduce and enhance the functionality of a basic paper sheet posted on a door or passed around in class. The sheet owner has better control over who can sign up when and for what, and also gets email reminders and notices (if desired) and can easily contact allt he people signed up for a given block of time. The people who use the sheet can easily see what time blocks are available, can sign up for them, or cancel a sign up if they have to change their plans, and get email reminders of upcoming meetings.

Signup sheets are created in the administration module or tool, and used in the user tool.

When a sheet is created you can specify a description, a time frame, given blocks of time for which people may sign up, users who may sign up (by course(s) or specific user), limits on how often someone can sign up, and other such things.

When someone signs up on a sheet they see a calendar-like diplay of the available time blocks and they simply click on the one(s) they want.

Signup Sheet Administration

This is a module and course tool that allows you to create and manage your signup sheets (i.e. ones you own and ones you've been granted administrative priveleges for). You'll use this if you create or manage any signup sheets.

Signup Sheets for Users

This is a module and course tool that allows you to sign up on sheets to which you have access.

Signup Sheet Modules for your BB home page

When you log in to Blackboard you are taken to a main Blackboard home page (the 'Blackboard @ Williams' tab). You can add the Administrator or User Signup Sheet module to this (or any other) tab so it's always displayed when you log in.

1. go to the tab on which you want the modules displayed
2. In the upper right of the content part of the page (that part that has a white background) there are two buttons: Modify Content and Modify Layout. Click the Modify Content one.
3. You're taken to a page where you can select which modules show up for you on the main page. The list is alphabetical, and when you scroll down to the S's you'll see two signup sheet related modules, the administration one and the users one. There's no harm in having both on the page, but if you know you're never going to be creating or administering a sheet then don't both with the Administrative module, and if you'll never be signing up on a sheet you can skip the User module. Check/select whichever ones you want, then scroll to the bottom of the page and click the Submit button.
4. You're directed to a page that tells you it did something and which has an OK button. Click the OK button and it takes you back to the main page.
5. You should now see the module(s) on that page. You can change where on the page they're displayed by clicking the Modify Layout button that's just to the right of the Modify Content button.

Signup Sheets for a Course

To access the signup sheets in a course site you generally have to be enrolled in that course. If you are, then go to the Course Tools part of the site (click on the Tools or Course Tools button if it's there, or the Course Tools link - all are in the menu on the left part of the page). NOTE FOR INSTRUCTORS: The signup sheet tools do NOT appear in the Control Panel, you have to get to them from the Course Tools on the main course page.

You will then be shown a list of all the tools available for that course, in alphabetical order. When you scroll down to the S's you'll see the Signup Sheets Administration and Signup Sheets User links. Unlike the modules, which handle all the sheets to which you have access, the tools deal with only the sheets relevant to this course. Click the Administration tool to create or manage signup sheets for this course, or the User tool to sign up for any sheet associated with this course.

Adding a Signup Sheet Menu Button (for Instructors)

Rather than having people go through the full list of course tools to sign up for a sheet for a course you can add a button to the menu that will take them directly to a list of the sheets on which they can sign up.

1. Go to the control panel
2. In the Course Options area (lowest left box) click the Manage Course Menu link (first link in the box)
3. You're now on the Manage Course Menu page. It shows where all the current course menu buttons go to, and has a section at the top where you can add more. Click on Tool Link in the Add area.
4. You're now on a page where you specify the button details. There are two parts
   1. The Type - click the drop-down button to get a list of all the options, and scroll down to the S's and select 'Signup Sheets User (sign up)'. That determins what the button does.
   2. The Name - type in the name/label you want the button to have. This might simply be Signup Sheets, or maybe something more specific like Office Hours, or Lab Signups, or something like that.
5. Click the Submit button at the bottom of the page and it gives you a results page telling you it did what you asked. Click OK to get back to the Manage Course Menu page. Click OK at the bottom of that page to get back to the Control Panel.

Also, on the Manage Course Menu page you can change the order of the menu buttons.