Blackboard Support
Hardware
What are the minimum hardware requirements for my computer in order to access Blackboard?
| Hardware \ Platform |
Apple Macintosh |
Microsoft Windows |
Recommended |
Recommended |
Operating System |
MacOS X 10.3 higher |
XP |
Vista |
Browser |
Safari 2 or Later |
Internet Explorer7 |
Internet Explorer 7 |
Firefox 1.5 or Later |
Firefox 2.0 or Later |
Firefox 2.0 |
Netscape 7.1 or Later |
Netscape 7.1 or Later |
Netscape 9 |
CPU Memory |
512 MB of RAM |
1GB of RAM |
2GB of RAM |
Java Runtime |
http://developer.apple.com/java/ |
http://www.java.com/ |
Processor Speed/Type |
800 MHz PowerPC G4 processor, or better |
1 GHz Intel Pentium III/AMD Athlon processor, or equivalent/better |
Monitor Resolution |
1024 x 768 |
1024 x 768 |
Internet Connection |
Any high-speed connection (e.g. Cable Broadband or DSL) |
Any high-speed connection (e.g. Cable Broadband or DSL) |
Hard Disk Space |
9GB |
20GB |
Free Hard Disk Space |
3GB |
15GB |
Audio (Sound) Card |
24-bit sound card |
24-bit sound card |
Video Card |
Virtual memory turned on and allocated to at least 128 MB |
64 MB VRAM with True Color (24-bit or 32-bit) |
Browsers needed for Blackboard 8.0
| Term |
Definition |
Certified |
fully tested and supported |
Compatible |
key application areas tested |
Not tested |
specified Browser is not supported for the Operating System
|
Microsoft® Internet Explorer® Web Browsers
| |
Windows XP |
Windows Vista Desktop |
Mac OS 10.3 |
Mac OS 10.4 |
Mac OS 10.5 |
| Internet Explorer 7 |
Certified |
Certified |
Not Tested |
Not Tested |
Not Tested |
| Internet Explorer 8* |
Compatible |
Compatible |
Not Tested |
Not Tested |
Not Tested |
Attention : FireFox 3.0 is now certified for Blackboard. Internet Explorer (IE) 8.0 is now listed as compatible with Blackboard, but this does not mean that users will not experience problems when using this browser since it has not been certified by Blackboard. Internet Explorer 8.0 has not been certified by Blackboard and is known to cause timer issues and problems when attempting to submit an exam.
Mozilla® Firefox and Netscape® Navigator Web Browsers
| |
Windows XP |
Windows Vista Desktop |
Mac OS 10.3 |
Mac OS 10.4 |
Mac OS 10.5 |
| Firefox 2.0 |
Certified |
Certified |
Not Tested |
Certified |
Compatible |
| Firefox 3.0 |
Certified |
Certified |
Not Tested |
Certified |
Certified |
Apple® Safari® Web Browsers
| |
Windows XP |
Windows Vista Desktop |
Mac OS 10.3 |
Mac OS 10.4 |
Mac OS 10.5 |
| Safari 2 |
Not Tested |
Not Tested |
Not Tested |
Certified |
Certified
|
| Safari 3 |
Not Tested |
Not Tested |
Not Tested |
Compatible |
Compatible |
Browser Plug-Ins
There will be some required plug-ins for your courses. Generally, they will be on your computer preinstalled especially newer computers. However, we recommend that you verify that:
- You do have these plug-ins installed and configured with your web browser
- You have at least the minimum required version for each plug-in
| Vendor |
Plug-In Name |
Required Version |
| Adobe | Adobe Reader | 5.1+ |
| Adobe (Macromedia) | Adobe Flash Player | 5.0+ |
| Apple | QuickTime | 6.3+ |
| Microsoft | Windows Media Player | 6.4+ |
| RealNetworks |
RealOne Player | Version 2 |
| Sun | Java VM | 1.4.1+ |
