With the upgrade to Blackboard version 9.1 SP 5 in December 2011, we will begin using the blog and wiki tools provided natively in Blackboard. The blog and wiki tools we used in Blackboard 9.0 are not Blackboard native tools, but are licensed separately from Learning Objects, Inc. and installed as Bb "building blocks." These tools will no longer be supported by Learning Objects after June 2012. While Learning Objects does have an upgrade path, the new tools are very different from the ones we now use.
While the Blackboard tools will look and work a little differently from the Learning Objects tools, there are also advantages. The Blackboard tools are integrated with the notifications system and the blog tool is supported by the new Mobile Learn product. Also, since the new version of Learning Objects requires that wiki and blog content be hosted on their servers rather than locally, the Blackboard native tools load and respond faster than Learning Objects tools.
By default, the winter and spring 2012 courses will only have the native Blackboard tools enabled. However, we will also have access to the Learning Objects tools through June 2012. If you have Learning Objects blog and wiki content in previous semester courses, you will be able to export that content from the course and retain it for future reference. Links to documentation for the Blackboard blog and wiki tools, as well as documentation for exporting Learning Objects blogs and wikis are posted below.
Using Blogs and Wikis in Blackboard 9.1
Exporting Blog and Wiki content from Learning Objects Tools.