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Student
Quick Facts |
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The following is a list of quick questions and answers to help students
in using Blackboard Vista.
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Before
using Vista -
What should I do before I begin using Vista?
You must check your browser settings to make sure
that the Vista pages can be viewed properly. This is very important.
The Vista web pages will not display properly or you may encounter
other problems if your browser settings are not correct.
1. Go to http://www.uhd.edu/vista
 2.
Check
Your Browser Settings. Click on the “check your browser
settings” link that is shown in the Browser Check paragraph
near the top of the page.
3. Once the browser check process is complete,
you will see a window that provides the results of the browser check.
- If you see green checkmarks next to each of the five categories,
close the window and log in to Vista.
- If you see a red X next to any category, follow the instructions
to change your browser settings or to download the correct version
of Java.
Click here to download
the most current version of Java (free).
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Logging
into Vista - How
do I log in to Vista?
1. Go to http://www.uhd.edu/vista
2. Click on “continue to login” near
the bottom of the window.
3. You may see a security warning window, asking
if you want to allow the use of the vista.uhd.edu
website. Click “OK” if this window is displayed.
4. The Vista login page will be displayed. Check
this page for important system announcements. Then enter your user
name and password in those fields at the bottom of the page, and
click OK.
5. A security alert window will notify you that
you are being directed to another site. Click “Yes”
to continue logging in.
6. “My Vista” page will be displayed,
and you are ready to work in your Vista course(s).
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Unable
to Login to Vista - Why
doesn't my Vista login work?
1. Students unable to log in to Vista most likely
need to reset their password/PIN (for example, if you see the error message “You have entered an incorrect user name or password.”). You can reset your PIN online
in student e-services at "My Personal Data." Remember
to reset you PIN to six alphanumeric characters. Do not use special
characters. Be sure to select a PIN that you’ve never used
before.
2. If you are unable to reset the PIN online or
the PIN reset challenge question has been forgotten, contact the
Registrar’s Office in One Main on the 3rd floor, call 713-221-8999,
or email uhdrecords@uhd.edu
to have the PIN reset manually to your date of birth (mmddyy). You
must then log into e-services using your birth date PIN and reset
your PIN (see #1 above for PIN character restrictions.
3. The PIN/password reset online by the student
or by the Registrar’s Office is the new Vista password. The
Vista username can be found in student e-services in “My Personal
Data” under “Computer Accounts.”
4. After resetting your PIN, please wait 10 minutes
before attempting to log in to Vista.
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Firewall
and computer security settings - I'm
using the correct information, and I still can't log in. What else
could be preventing me from logging into Vista?
If you have trouble accessing Vista at http://vista.uhd.edu/, it
may be that the computer you are using is behind a firewall that
is restricting access to certain ports.
Personal firewall - Check the instructions for
your personal firewall for details about how to configure it to
grant access to the Vista server, http://vista.uhd.edu/. In addition
to granting access to the Vista server, you should make sure that
ports 8080 and 8443 are open to allow communication with the Vista
server. Vista uses ports 8080 and 8443; therefore, both ports
must be opened for communication in your firewall. Check the documentation
for your personal firewall for instructions on how to open access
to ports 8080 and 8443.
Worksite firewall - If you cannot access Vista
from a computer where you work, you should contact your company's
network administrator to determine what firewall restrictions
are set and whether they can be modified to enable access to Vista
at http://vista.uhd.edu/ and to port 8080 and 8443.
Other remote location firewall - If you access
Vista from any other remote location, any firewall that is installed
at that location will need to be set to have access to Vista at
http://vista.uhd.edu/ and to ports 8080 and 8443.
Be sure to check your security settings in any security software
that may be installed on your computers (such as Norton’s
or McAfee). Also, special toolbars, such as Yahoo or Google toolbars,
may interfere with accessing/viewing Vista. You may want to remove
these toolbars to see if they could be interfering with your Vista
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Course
not listed in My Vista - Why
can't I see my Vista course when I log into Vista?
1. For all courses that are not fully online,
the instructor must activate the Vista course before the student
can access it.
2. A student with a hold on his/her account will
be able to login but will not be able to access his/her courses.
3. Please verify with your instructor that he/she
is using Vista for the course.
If you have a problem viewing your courses, contact the instructor
or Student Technology Services support staff at 713-221-8540, option
4.
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Students
new to Vista - Since
I’ve never taken a Vista class before, what can I do to learn
about Vista’s features?
1. You will see a Student Orientation course on your Vista page.
Open the course by clicking on its link.
2. A table of contents as well as the “Getting Started with
Vista” page will be displayed. Read through the information
in this course to learn about Vista features.
3. You may refer back to this course at any time during the semester.
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Internet
connection problem when taking a quiz - What
should I do if I have a problem with the Internet while I am taking
a Vista quiz?
Contact the instructor immediately if there are Internet connection
problems while taking a quiz.
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| Links
don't work - Why
do some of the links not work in my Vista course?
There may be a broken or incomplete link. Contact the instructor
to report broken links.
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Quiz
not available - Why
can't I access a quiz in Vista?
1. Check the browser settings.
See the instructions under the first question on this sheet.
2. Once you verify that your browser settings are
correct and you have logged into Vista, check to see if the links
to the quiz you are trying to access are active. If they are not,
you will need to contact your instructor and have your instructor
verify the release date for the quiz.
3.
If your settings are correct and the links are active, but you still
cannot access the quiz, check that your computer is free of any spyware.
4. Contact your instructor.
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Downloading
files - Everytime
I try to download a file in Vista, I get the yellow bar saying IE
blocked the download, and when I try to allow it, I get kicked out
of my course. How can I fix this?
Internet Explorer's normal security settings aren’t “trusting”
Vista's file downloads. To fix it, you must add the UHD Web site
domain as a trusted site.
1. Go to the "Tools" menu in your browser
and select "Internet Options."
2. Choose the "Security" tab and click
the "Trusted Sites" zone icon, and click the "sites"
button.
3. Uncheck the box in the middle of the window
that says "Require server verification."
4. Once you have done this, you can type "uhd.edu"
where it says "Add this site", and click the "add"
button.
5. Click OK twice and restart your browser.
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Office
2007 compatibility issues - I’m
using Office 2007 (Word 2007, PowerPoint 2007, Excel 2007) to create
my class assignments. When I upload my work to Vista, my professor
can only see a “zip” file and can’t read my work.
Convert your Office 2007 documents into 2003:
1. Open your 2007 document.
2. Click the Office Button at
the top left corner of the interface. A menu will appear below it.
3. Hover your mouse over the
Save As button. Options will appear on the right.
4. What these options look like will depend on
what program you are using—Word, PowerPoint, Excel, etc. In
all cases, select the option that contains the words: “97-2003
Document”
5. Name your document and click Save.
6. Now a Microsoft Office 2003
version of your document will be saved in the location you chose.
(Your 2007 document will not be affected by this
process.)
Additional help:
Office 2007
Use Warning.pdf
- Save file as 2003, or Convert file to 2003.
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Additional
help - How can
I get help using Vista?
1. Vista help is available online by visiting
www.uhd.edu/vista
. Click on the Vista
Help Page link.
2. For additional help, students should call 713-221-8540
and select option 4 or submit a Vista
Technical Help Form .
3. The faculty support telephone number is 713-221-2786.
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