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FAQ's (Logging on)

I keep getting a weird error message when I try to log in. It says something about an "Empty Result Set."
What is that and how can I get rid of it?
No Cookie Error Message
This error is caused when Blackboard cannot set a cookie on your computer. Some people do not permit cookies on their computer, but Blackboard needs to set what's called a "Session" cookie in order to work. You will not be able to log onto the system until you permit Blackboard to set that cookie. The good news is that this is not a permanent cookie on your computer's hard drive and it will not hurt anything on your system. A Session cookie is only stored in memory and as soon as you close your browser it will go away.

To permit cookies in Internet Explorer, look in Tools Internet Options Privacy Tab. The privacy must be set to "Medium" or lower in order for Blackboard to work.

I use Netscape and I'm trying to get to my Blackboard classes. I keep getting a blank screen instead of the login screen.
What's going on here?
This is a known issue with Netscape.

The problem is related to the way Netscape stores "cache" copies of Web pages. You probably knew that all browsers keep a copy of visited Web pages on the local hard drive. That is to speed up the browsing experience for home modem users (if the requested Web page hasn't changed since the last visit then it's loaded from the local cache instead of downloaded from the Web). With Blackboard and Netscape, there seems to be a problem with the cache copy interfering with the Web version of the page.

You may try the following steps to correct the problem. When the blank page is displayed, press and hold the Shift Key and click the "reload" button at the top of the screen (that is the button with the bent arrow). If that doesn't work, press and hold the Control Key and tap "R" (that's CTRL+R), which will force a page reload.

Next, you should check your cache preferences. On the menu bar, click Edit -> Preferences. On the preferences screen, click "Advanced" and then "Cache." You should set the cache to "Every time I view the page" rather than the default "When the page is out of date." While you are on that screen, click the button to Clear Cache in order to clear out any old copies of the page.

Then try re-loading the page again. It should work this time.

I cannot get logged into Blackboard. When I try I get an error message that states I don't have the right credentials.
How do I fix that?
No Credentials Error Message. This error is caused by an incorrect security setting on your computer. In order to function, Blackboard needs to be able to execute scripts on your computer.

To activate scripts in Internet Explorer, look in Tools -> Internet Options -> Security Tab.

Now, click on the "Internet" zone icon (the globe) at the top of the screen. Next, click on the "Custom Level" button at the bottom of the screen. Scroll down the page until you find the "Scripting" section and be sure "Active Scripting" is enabled.

Some users are concerned about running scripts on their Web pages. While some scripts are harmful, in order to use Blackboard you must have scripting enabled. There are no scripts within the Blackboard system that will harm your computer in any way. If you want, you can turn off scripting again when you finish your session.

It seems like I have to log onto Blackboard two times. The first time I get an error message and the second time it seems to work.
Why is this happening?
This probably has to do with a default security setting in Internet Explorer (since it's a default you would likely see this problem on several different computers). To fix it, click on Tools -> Internet Options -> Security Tab -> Custom Level Button. Near the bottom of the list of customization options, you'll find those for "User Authentication." Select "Anonymous Logon" for your authentication method and click "OK."

What is happening is that Internet Explorer is attempting to log into the site automatically using Windows logon information (even if you enter your userID and Password) and that is fouling up the works.

If you've only seen this problem from one computer but not others, then there is a second possible cause: bookmarking the logon page instead of the Blackboard entry page. You need to start your blackboard session at http://bb.ulv.edu/ and click the "Login" button on that page. When you do that, Blackboard then opens the logon screen and begins what is called a "session" that will permit you to log in without an error. Otherwise, Blackboard treats your logon as an error and forces you to do it a second time.

When I log on I get some strange message about "challenge token null" and then I have to log on a second time.
What's going on?
Null Token Error Message
This is usually caused by bookmarking the logon page instead of the Blackboard entry page. You need to start your blackboard session at http://bb.ulv.edu/ and click the "Login" button on that page. When you do that, Blackboard then opens the logon screen and begins what is called a "session" that will permit you to log in without the "Challenge Token Null" error.

This is a weird error message that doesn't mean anything to most human beings, but it's caused by not getting a "session" properly started. If you will begin your work on the Blackboard entry page you should not have any problems getting to your courses.

When I log on I get a message about an error in the authentication module. How can I fix this?*
Authentication Module Error: Error looking up current session.
This error comes from blocking cookies on your computer. Some folks do not permit Internet Explorer to set cookies and Blackboard cannot function without cookies.

In order to use Blackboard you will need to enable cookies on your computer. To do that, start Internet Explorer and click on Tools -> Internet Options -> Privacy and move the slider to "Medium" (or lower). After you do that, you should be able to log in.

If you are concerned about privacy and do not want cookies enabled on your computer, you can reset that slider to a higher level when you have finished with your Blackboard session. However, you'll have to remember to set it to "Medium" every time you want to work with your online class.

These FAQ's were compiled by George Self of Cochise College