Add Files and Links to Blackboard

Add Files and Links

Move your mouse cursor over the "Build Content" button and you'll see a variety of choices.

Adding a Folder

Choose "Content Folder" (1) to create a subfolder to organize your course content and activities.  The folder will have a name and description and its availability can be restricted.

Once you have created a folder click on its name to go inside.  There you'll see the buttons for "Build Content", "Assessments" etc. Each folder can be a new content area.

Adding an Item/File

A file may be uploaded and placed in a Content Area by adding either an "Item" or a "File" (2).  The advantage of using an "Item" is that a description can be added. In both cases you can restrict or time limit availability 

Adding media content

Choose "Audio", "Image", "Video", "Web Link" (3) to add a media file. This method of adding content will not allow you to add a description, only the file itself.  You can, however, restrict availability.

Create an Item

You can add items in any Content Area or Folder. Move your mouse cursor over "Build Content" and choose "Item".

Add a name and description

Give your Item a name (1) and enter a description or other text in the textbox (2). (Note that only the fields with orange asterisks are required.)

Add images, links, and inline attachments

Tools in the Rich Text Editor will let you:

1. Insert a hyperlink - select the text you want to be a link and then click the chain links
2. Add attached files and media within your text - after clicking the button that looks like a plus, you will be able to browse your computer and add a link to an attached file that will appear directly in the text of your description.

There are a number of other editing and formatting tools as well that will likely be familiar to you
from other rich text editors you may have worked with.

Unhide text editing tools

If you don’t see all the rows of text editing tools, you may need to click the dots on the upper right of the text editing box.

Attach Files

Scroll down and you can also attach one or more files to your Item.

• "Browse Local Files" lets you upload files from your computer
• "Browse Course Files" lets you attach previously uploaded files
• “Browse Cloud Service” lets you attach files from Dropbox, Google Drive, or OneDrive.

To attach additional files, simply repeat the process. The links to the attached files will appear
beneath the item name and above the description.

Restrict Availability

As with almost all Blackboard components you can restrict availability.

1. To make the item completely unavailable - change the choice "Permit User to View this
   Content" to "No". "No" means the item will NEVER be available to students.
2. To date-restrict the item, leave the choice as "Yes", but select times and dates you want the Item to be available.

Click Submit to finish.

Edit Existing Files and Links

Next to the name of each Blackboard component will be a drop-down menu.  The button for this menu is a circle with arrow. 

Use this menu to edit, delete, move, copy, etc.   When you Edit an element you can not only change it's name or description, you can change options such as availability.

Re-order Items

Items (and other things in the content area or folder) can be re-ordered in two ways:

1. Move your mouse over the item until a cross-hair appears in the left-hand side. Then drag the Item into place
2. Click on the tool in the upper right with up/down arrows. You'll see a list of all items.
   Click on any to select then use the arrows below the list to move up or down.