Text Box Editors

About the Text Box Editor

Smart text, Plain text, or HTML may be used in the Text Box Editor. Options at the bottom of the box allow the user to switch format at anytime.

Smart text should be used if the intent is to display the text in the exact way that it is typed in. Line breaks, tabbing, and other keyboard formatting will be retained with Smart text.

Plain text strips any formatting from the text, except for line breaks. The result is completely unformatted text. This may be useful if the user needs to do a lot of copy and pasting of the content, or if the intent is to display code information. For example, if the user wants to show how to write something in HTML, Plain text should be used to retain the HTML tags in the content. Plain text does not work with MathML or the equation editor. Changing a text box that includes a mathematical formula to Plain text will make the formula unreadable.

The HTML option should be used if the user knows HTML and opts to type HTML tags into the Text Box Editor. The result will be content formatted by the HTML tags used.

Preview shows the user how the formatted text will appear when rendered in the browser. Features that appear in the Text Box Editor may include WebEQ, MathML, and SpellCheck.

About the Visual Text Box Editor

The Visual Text Box Editor has three rows of buttons. The first row is required and may not be collapsed. The second and third rows may be collapsed with the arrows to the left of the row.

When using the Blackboard Content System, the third row options of the Visual Text Box Editor provide a Browse to Content Collection field. The Visual Text Box Editor allows the user to create content that includes links to items in their Content Collection.

First row basic actions
Font Style	Select a style for the text. The options correspond to standard HTML Style types.
Font size	Select the size of the text.
Font	Select the font.
Bold	Make selected text bold.
Italics	Make selected text italics.
Underline	Underline the selected text.
Align left	Align text to the left.
Align Center	Align text in the center.
Align Right	Align text to the right.
Ordered list	Create a numbered list or add a numbered list item.
Unordered list	Create a bulleted list or add a bullet list item.
Decrease Indent	Move text left.
Increase Indent	Move text right.

Second Row Additional Basic Actions
Find	Search for a word or phrase in the text area.
Spell Check	Select the ABC checkmark to open Spell Check.
Cut	Cut the selected items.
Copy	Copy the selected items.
Paste	Paste copied or cut content.
Undo	Select the circular arrow pointing to the left to undo the previous action.
Redo	Select the circular arrow pointing to the right to redo the previous action.
Hyperlink	Add a hyperlink. Types include: file, ftp, gopher, http, https, mailto, news, telnet, and wais.
Create Table	Add a table.
Horizontal Line	Add a line.
Background Color	Add a highlight color to the selected text.
Text Color	Specify the color of the text.
WebEQ Editor	Open the WebEQ Equation Editor icon (x2) to add an equation. Equations cannot be added to a cell in a table. Instead, create the equation outside the table and then cut and paste the equation into the cell.
MathML Editor	Open the MathML Equation Editor icon (x ) to add an equation.
HTML View	View the HTML code that is generated by the Visual Text Box Editor. Users may also edit the HTML in this view. If HTML is added or changed in this view, click Submit to view the change in the Visual Text Box Editor.
Preview	Preview the content as it will be seen by end users.
Help	Select the question mark to launch the Help page.

The following table includes a description of some options specific to each type of file attachment.

Third row file attachment actions and special options
Attach file	Add a file to the text area. The Insert Link to File page will appear. Browse: select a file from the local machine Link to Content Collection: select an item or folder from the Content Collection Specify Source URL: provide a URL where the item is located. Name of link to file: providing a descriptive name of the content is helpful for the user. This allows the user to read the link in context, rather than simply read the name of the file being linked to.
Attach image	Add an image to the text area. The Insert Image page appears. Set Width and Height: leaving these fields blank renders the image in its original size. Image Target URL: the URL entered here will make the image a link. When the user clicks the image, they will go to this URL. Alt text: Alternate text is important for visually impaired users. Alternate text tells users what should appear if the image does not display
Attach MPEG/AVI	Add MPEG/AVI media content to the text area. The Insert MPEG file page appears. Set Width and Height: the default width and height provided are standard sizes for MPEG/AVI content, but may be altered.
Add Quick Time	Add Apple QuickTime media to the text area. The Insert QuickTime File page appears. Loop: QuickTime media allows the option to loop the movie. If this is set to Yes, the media will replay as long as the page is loaded.
Add audio	Add an audio file, such as .mp3, .midi or .wav to the text area. The Insert Audio File page appears.
Add Flash/Shockwave	Add Macromedia Flash or Shockwave media to the text area. The Insert SWF File page appears. Set Quality: quality options are provided to allow the user to choose between highest quality vs. highest performance. The highest quality media will take the longest time to load in a browser.

Differences between Text Box Editor and Visual Text Box Editor

The Text Box Editor and Visual Text Box Editor allow the entry of formatted text in the Blackboard Academic Suite.

The Text Box Editor allows Plain Text, Smart Text and HTML formatting. The Visual Text Box Editor allows users to modify content in an interface resembling a word processor, and perform basic HTML functions without knowledge of any HTML. These features include creating tables, bulleted lists, hyperlinks, horizontal lines, and more. Users may also format text and paragraphs, and upload multimedia files in the Visual Text Box Editor. Both editors may include WebEQ, MathML and SpellCheck features.

Note: The Visual Text Box editor is only available to Windows Operating System users with Internet Explorer Version 5.x or a later.

System Administrators may turn off the Visual Text Box editor, Spell Check, Web EQ and MathML for all users. Users may turn off the Visual Text Box Editor in Personal Information settings.

If the Visual Text Box Editor is off, or if users are not using Windows Internet Explorer, the Text Box Editor will be on.

Attaching files in the Visual Text Box Editor

Users have the option of attaching different types of files to the Visual Text Box Editor. Do not copy and paste a file from one text box to another; this will cause errors.

The table below explains which button in the Third Row of the Visual Text Box Editor is used to add different file types.

File attachment types
Attach file	.doc, .exe, .html, .htm, .pdf, .ppt, .pps, .txt, .wpd, .xls, .zip
Attach image	.gif, .jif, .jpg, .jpeg, .tiff, .wmf
Attach MPEG/AVI	.avi, .mpg, .mpeg
Add Quick Time	.qt
Add audio	.aiff, .asf, .moov, .mov, .mp, .wav, .wma, .wmv
Add Flash/Shockwave	.swa, .swf

Missing image detection in the Text Box Editors

Missing Image Detection functionality is available on the Add Item page under the following scenarios when a user:

pastes HTML with a broken image into the HTML view of the Visual Text Box Editor
pastes HTML with a broken image into the Text Box Editor and selects the HTML option
pastes HTML with a broken image into the Text Box Editor selects the Smart Text option

Missing image detection functionality does not apply when a user:

pastes HTML with a broken image into the Text Box Editor and selects the Plain text option
pastes HTML with a broken image into the Visual Text Box Editor
uploads an HTML file with a broken image from the third row of the Visual Text Box Editor
links to an HTML file in the Content Collection with a broken image (either via the third row of the Visual Text Box Editor or as a URL in the Text Box Editor).

Note: Images are stored in HTML using the following syntax: <img scr="http://image_path">. The source location should be inside double of single quotations.

Keyboard shortcuts for the Visual Text Box Editor

The Visual Text Box Editor supports the following keyboard shortcuts:

Note: If the shortcut keys that move selected items one character left, right, up, or down are used, the object being moved will be absolutely positioned. An absolutely positioned element is determined by pixels, so moving it up once will move it up one pixel.

Keyboard Shortcuts
Movement
RIGHT ARROW	Move one character to the right.
LEFT ARROW	Move one character to the left.
DOWN ARROW	Move down one line.
UP ARROW	Move up one line.
CTRL+RIGHT ARROW	Move right one word.
CTRL+LEFT ARROW	Move left one word.
END	Move to the end of the line.
HOME	Move to the start of the line.
CTRL+DOWN ARROW	Move down one paragraph.
CTRL+UP ARROW	Move up one paragraph.
PAGE DOWN	Move down one page.
PAGE UP	Move up one page.
CTRL+HOME	Move to the beginning of the text.
CTRL+END	Move to the end of the text.
Selection
SHIFT+RIGHT ARROW	Extend the selection one character to the right.
SHIFT+LEFT ARROW	Extend the selection one character to the left.
CTRL+SHIFT+RIGHT ARROW	Extend the selection right one word.
CTRL+SHIFT+LEFT ARROW	Extend the selection left one word.
SHIFT+UP ARROW	Extend the selection up one line.
SHIFT+DOWN ARROW	Extend the selection down one line.
SHIFT+END	Extend the selection to the end of the current line.
SHIFT+HOME	Extend the selection to the start of the current line.
SHIFT+PAGE DOWN	Extend the selection down one page.
SHIFT+PAGE UP	Extend the selection up one page.
CTRL+SHIFT+END	Extend the selection to the end of the document.
CTRL+SHIFT+HOME	Extend the selection to the beginning of the document.
CTRL+A	Select all elements in the document.
Editing
BACKSPACE	Delete the selection. Or, if there is no selection, delete the character to the left of the cursor.
CTRL+BACKSPACE	Delete all of a word to the left of the cursor.
CTRL+C	Copy the selection.
CTRL+V	Paste cut contents or copied contents.
CTRL+X	Cut the selection.
DELETE	Delete the selection.
INSERT	Toggle between inserting and overwriting text.
CTRL+Z	Undo the most recent formatting command.
CTRL+Y	Re-do the most recent undone command.
CTRL+F	Find text.
SHIFT+F10	Display the context menu. This is the same as a right-click.
Formatting
CTRL+B	Toggle bold formatting.
CTRL+I	Toggle italic formatting.
CTRL+U	Toggle underlining.