I’m pleased to announce that the Vista 4 Implementation is still on schedule. The move from Vista 3 to Vista 4 is necessary because Vista 3 is no longer being supporting by Blackboard. We began migration last week in a phased rollout and are now ready for everyone to begin migrating their courses. However, we are still in pre-production, and so Vista 4.0 may be up and down during this period. Please pay attention to the pop-up and campus announcements in Vista 4 for information regarding down time.

At this time we will be migrating sections for the Spring 2008 semester (you name must be attached to the course in Banner or it will not be available in Vista 4). I would highly recommended that you migrate as soon as possible. Please do not wait until the week before classes start as there may not be able to get your classes migrated in time for the start of the semester.

At this time we are only migrating courses. I will be back in touch with everyone about the process for forums once we get most of the courses moved.

Below are the steps you should follow to assure as smooth a migration as possible:

Step 1: Make Sure you Have Access to Vista 4.0.
  1. Login to Vista 4 – http://online.fairmontstate.edu.
  2. Select the Fairmont State institution and login with you UCA and password. If you should experience any problems, contact the Learning Technologies Center immediately (x4067) so that the tech folks can look into the problem. Do NOT go into your courses at this time.
Step 2: Make Sure Sections Listed on MyBlackboard Match what is in the Online Schedule
  1. Verify that every section listed in the Spring 2008 schedule of courses that has your name attached appears on your MyBlackBoard.
  2. Again, do NOT go into your sections at this time. If you notice any discrepancies contact the LTC (4067) immediately so that the tech folks can look into the problem.
Step 3: Check Your Vista 3.0 Section's) for Compatibility

Information on how you should prepare your Vista 3.0 section(s) to assure the smoothest transition possible can be found online at: http://www2.fairmontstate.edu/fs_users_only/vistadocs/course%20migration%20form.html

PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU COMPLETE STEP 3 BEFORE GOING TO STEP 4! If you have any questions about Step 3 contact Chris Lambert in the Learning Technology Center at x4771.

Step 4: Request Your Sections to be Migrated from Vista 3 to Vista 4
  1. Once you have checked your Vista 3.0 class, go back to: http://www2.fairmontstate.edu/fs_users_only/vistadocs/course%20migration%20form.html
  2. Complete the request form for each section you wish to migrate. If you are teaching multiple sections of the same course I would suggest that you move one section make the necessary modification and then use that section as the template for the other courses in Vista 4.
Step 5: Verify and Check your Vista 4.0 Classes

You will receive an email from the tech folks when they have completed the migration process. Please take a look at your classes and note any problems. While we hope that migration requests do not take any longer then 24-48 hours, they may take as long as 3-5 days.

Step 6: Verify Steps for Moving to a New Semester

(You will receive this information when you submit your migration form. I have also included it below)

Preparing the Section for the new Semester

Once your course has been moved you will need to update it for the new semester.

Step 1: Modify and Update Course Syllabus

All custom sections in syllabi of courses migrated from Vista 3 to Vista 4 are blank. All other section types (lesson, goals, etc.) migrate fine. Custom section titles migrate but the actual content does not. Therefore, you will need to copy the content from any custom section in Vista 3 and paste it into that section of your Vista 4 syllabus.

To access your syllabus in Vista 4:
  1. Go to the Build tab.
  2. Select Syllabus from the Course Tools.
  3. Locate and select the title for a blank section.
  4. Paste the contents from Vista 3.
Step 2: Check Individual Learning Modules

By default, the first page of every learning module in a migrated course is the table of contents. If you want to have the first content page as the first page of the learning module instead of the table of contents, you will need to:

  1. Go to the Build tab.
  2. Select Learning Modules from the Course Tools.
  3. Select Edit Properties from the drop list of the first learning module.
  4. Under “First page of the learning module should be:” select The first page in the Table of Contents.
  5. Select Save.
  6. Perform steps 4 and 5 on the remaining modules.
Step 3: Change Assignment and Assessment Dates

Vista now includes a Date Rollover feature to make it easier to change dates from one semester to the next. To rollover your dates:

  1. Go to the Build Tab.
  2. Select Manage Course from the list of Designer Tools at the bottom of the left hand side of the window.
  3. Select the Date Rollover hyperlink.
  4. Select either Adjust All Dates to adjust all the dates for all course assessments and assignments in your course or Adjust Individual Dates to get a list of all assessments and assignments so that you can adjust each one individually.
  5. To Adjust All Dates:
    1. Select Adjust All Dates.
    2. The earliest course item with a date is displayed.
    3. Enter a new start date for this item. For example, if the earliest item starts September 6, 2007 and you change it to January 16, 2008, the dates for all course items are set forward 132 days.
    4. Select Adjust All Dates.
Step 4: Modify Selective Release Criteria
  1. Go to the Build Tab.
  2. Select Selective Release from the list of Designer Tools at the bottom of the left hand side of the window.
  3. Modify any selective release criteria you have set.
Step 5: Update the Course Calendar

Update your course calendar to reflect the necessary changes.

Additional Information:
  • If you wish to add a grading form as the grading criteria for a discussion, you will need to delete the original discussion topic and create a new one to which you link the grading form.
  • If you wish to change a discussion type to a blog or journal, you will need to delete the original discussion topic and create a new one with the correct type.
Questions?

If you have any quetions or need any help contact the LTC at x4067 or x4771.