University of Minnesota
College of Pharmacy

Tech Self-Help for Online Courses

Common Issues:
When I click on a link in my module nothing appears.
When I click on a presentation link within my course my presentation won't show up.
The assignment dropbox won't open for me.
I can't hear my presentation.
I can't see any learning materials in my module. There is a heading, but nothing shows up.
Still having trouble or cannot find the answer to your question? Select the page below of the course you're taking.

When I click on a link in my module nothing appears.

While you are in your course, and you are clicking on a link in the table of contents and nothing is happening there are a few things you can easily check that will help you resolve the issue quickly. First, click here. If you can see the file, skip to step 3. If you cannot see the file, start with step 1 below.

Step 1: Be sure that pop-up blockers are disabled. There are several different pop-up blockers softwares that maybe located on your computer. The most common is in Internet Explorer (IE). If you are using IE disable by going to Tools located on the IE toolbar and choosing Pop-up Blocker > Turn OFF Pop-up Blocker. If this says Turn ON Pop-up Blockers, then they are disable though IE. There are other pop-up blockers that are located on the Google Toolbar or AOL toolbar. Click here for ways to disable.

Step 2: Is the Adobe Reader plug in is installed on your computer. Click here to test. If you cannot see the link you'll need to install the Adobe Reader plug-in.

Step 3: Make sure the computer you are using has the correct version of Java.

Windows Users: The compatible version is Java 1.5.0.

• Download the Java 1.5.0_11 installer. The file is 15 MB and it may take some time depending on the speed of your connection.
• Choose Save File and save the file to your desktop.
• Close this Web browser.
• Double-click the file you downloaded in step 2 above and run the installation program, choosing all the defaults.
• Restart the browser.

If your browser and Java are properly configured, and you continue to have problems with the following, a Java conflict might exist on your computer:

• attaching documents to assignments or discussions,
• viewing the grade book,
• grading assignments, or
• uploading or downloading files.

You may be able to resolve these problems by following the steps below:

1. Go to Start > Control Panel > Add or Remove Programs (this may take a minute to load).
2. Scroll down to the "J" listings and remove all instances of Java Runtime Environment, JRE, or Java.
3. Shut down and then start up the computer.
4. Download the Java 1.5.0_11 installer.
5. Save the file to the desktop, then double-click on it to install it. Keep all the default settings.

Mac Users: The compatible versions of Java are 1.3.1 and 1.4.1 Release 2. Mac OS X now ships with the Java 1.3.1 and 1.4.1 Release 2. This is available through the Software Update feature.

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When I click on a presentation link within my course my presentation
won't show up.

This could be because pop-up blockers are enabled or the Flash Plug-in is not installed on the computer you are using. Follow the steps below to troubleshoot the issue.

Step 1: Be sure that pop-up blockers are disabled. There are several different pop-up blockers softwares that maybe located on your computer. The most common is in Internet Explorer (IE). If you are using IE disable by going to Tools located on the IE toolbar and choosing Pop-up Blocker > Turn OFF Pop-up Blocker. If this says Turn ON Pop-up Blockers, then they are disable though IE. There are other pop-up blockers that are located on the Google Toolbar or AOL toolbar. Click here for ways to disable.

Step 2: Is the Flash plug in installed on your computer? Click here to test. If you cannot see the blinking star, please download the free Flash player by clicking here.

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The assignment dropbox won't open for me.

There might be a couple reasons for this.

Step 1: Be sure that pop-up blockers are disabled. There are several different pop-up blockers softwares that maybe located on your computer. The most common is in Internet Explorer (IE). If you are using IE disable by going to Tools located on the IE toolbar and choosing Pop-up Blocker > Turn OFF Pop-up Blocker. If this says Turn ON Pop-up Blockers, then they are disable though IE. There are other pop-up blockers that are located on the Google Toolbar or AOL toolbar. Click here for ways to disable.

Step 2: Make sure the computer you are using has the correct version of Java.

Windows Users: The compatible version is Java 1.5.0.

• Download the Java 1.5.0_11 installer. The file is 15 MB and it may take some time depending on the speed of your connection.
• Choose Save File and save the file to your desktop.
• Close this Web browser.
• Double-click the file you downloaded in step 2 above and run the installation program, choosing all the defaults.
• Restart the browser.

If your browser and Java are properly configured, and you continue to have problems with the following, a Java conflict might exist on your computer:

• attaching documents to assignments or discussions,
• viewing the grade book,
• grading assignments, or
• uploading or downloading files.

You may be able to resolve these problems by following the steps below:

1. Go to Start > Control Panel > Add or Remove Programs (this may take a minute to load).
2. Scroll down to the "J" listings and remove all instances of Java Runtime Environment, JRE, or Java.
3. Shut down and then start up the computer.
4. Download the Java 1.5.0_11 installer.
5. Save the file to the desktop, then double-click on it to install it. Keep all the default settings.

Mac Users: The compatible versions of Java are 1.3.1 and 1.4.1 Release 2. Mac OS X now ships with the Java 1.3.1 and 1.4.1 Release 2. This is available through the Software Update feature.

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I can't hear my presentation.

Step 1: Be sure your speakers and/or headphones are properly plugged into the computer. You'll also want to make sure that the speakers and/or headphones are turned on and the volume is up.

Step 2: Check that the volume on your computer is turned up by going to the Start Menu on your computer, then Settings > Control Panel > Sound and Audio Devices. Also, make sure the speakers are not set to 'mute.'

Step 3: You'll also want to check to make sure the volume within the presentation itself is turned up.

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I can't see any learning materials in my module.
There is a heading, but nothing shows up.

A new feature in Vista B is dropdown menus. Click on the "+" sign on the left of the topic to expand it.

Note that the "+" sign on "Module 8 Assignments" is now a "-" sign. You should now be able to see your assignments.

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Still having trouble or cannot find the answer to your question?
Select the page below of the course you're taking.

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