Janeway Posted October 7, 2015 Share Posted October 7, 2015 I am wondering if I should give up on all online classes because Landry seems to be incompatible? I am asking because I do not want to waste a bunch of hours trying to get other programs to work, if they are all pretty much the same. Essentually, do they use the same or similar software. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shellydon Posted October 7, 2015 Share Posted October 7, 2015 It depends on why Landry isn't working for you. All online courses I've used have a specific software you need to download and install (different for each school). What part of Landry isn't working? Here are the technical requirements for Landry-- each place will have a similar list http://www.landryacademy.com/live-classes/tech-requirements/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janeway Posted October 7, 2015 Author Share Posted October 7, 2015 It depends on why Landry isn't working for you. All online courses I've used have a specific software you need to download and install (different for each school). What part of Landry isn't working? Here are the technical requirements for Landry-- each place will have a similar list http://www.landryacademy.com/live-classes/tech-requirements/ The collaborate software is not compatible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shellydon Posted October 7, 2015 Share Posted October 7, 2015 The collaborate software is not compatible. You need to figure out WHY it isn't compatible. All software is compatible with the right updates and/or additional software correctly installed and running, and you have a fast enough processor, video card and enough memory. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janeway Posted October 7, 2015 Author Share Posted October 7, 2015 You need to figure out WHY it isn't compatible. All software is compatible with the right updates and/or additional software correctly installed and running, and you have a fast enough processor, video card and enough memory. I already spoke to their technical support, the one at Landry and the one at Collaborate. Neither could figure out why it would not run. My finances have limits so I cannot throw money at things that won't work. I am guessing now that I need to just forgo any online classes. Edited to add: my computer is a fairly new MacBook Pro. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luckymama Posted October 7, 2015 Share Posted October 7, 2015 Did didn't/doesn't have any problems w her macbook (lower-end model, a year or so old) w The Potter's School platform nor w the one Blue Tent Online uses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chiguirre Posted October 7, 2015 Share Posted October 7, 2015 Collaborate is part of Blackboard and it's what almost all providers use for their actual classes. If you can't get it to work, I think you're stuck. OTOH, it seems very odd that it won't work on a newish computer. Not being able to use Blackboard/Collaborate will be a serious handicap in the future so I'd try to work it out or buy a cheap Windows laptop when they go on sale for Black Friday. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janeway Posted October 7, 2015 Author Share Posted October 7, 2015 Collaborate is part of Blackboard and it's what almost all providers use for their actual classes. If you can't get it to work, I think you're stuck. OTOH, it seems very odd that it won't work on a newish computer. Not being able to use Blackboard/Collaborate will be a serious handicap in the future so I'd try to work it out or buy a cheap Windows laptop when they go on sale for Black Friday. I actually rebooted the computer now and tried again. It seems to be working. That is very odd because I did go over everything with both tech support lines. What gave me the idea to reboot it is I was trying to delete the program from the computer so I could re-install it for a third time but it kept saying it was running. But it wasn't. It was giving me an error message. So I decided to reboot is and voila! It worked! I am not going to commit and purchase the class unless I can get it to work again on another day. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melmichigan Posted October 13, 2015 Share Posted October 13, 2015 I just wasted two hours with Blackboard remote accessing two of my computers. The problem is that Landry classes aren't opening as a collab file. The only current fix is to use another browser (which I'm not willing to do). Landry is looking into it and my son was able to bypass this by getting the teacher to send a direct link. Blackboard gives the same error message for all files through Safari since they updated something last week, but with other providers, such as WTMA, it still downloads as a collab file and can be opened. I have the same problem on all our Apple products. I updated Blackboard, cleared the cache, and restarted the computers before I contacted Blackboard, and after two hours they still couldn't fix it. :banghead: Last week you could bypass it, this week you can't. Edited: Simple speak, there may be a current problem with Landry and Blackboard Collaborative on a Mac, depending on what user you are under. :) 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tess in the Burbs Posted October 13, 2015 Share Posted October 13, 2015 we have macs and it took me days to get blackboard to work for our Landry classes. I had to use Chrome. We usually use Safari, but now the macs have Chrome for our Landry class. I watched the video Landry offers for setting up everything. It was from 2014 and recorded, but it really helped me figure it all out. Emailing Landry was a waste of time. They basically referred me to the video. However, watching the video I was able to play around and get it sorted. We have now successfully gotten 3 macs to work. (2008 desktop, 2010 macbook pro, 2011 macbook pro) I agree that the way they do things is a PAIN. I have been hesitant to try any other options out there b/c I don't want to spend another few days of my life figuring it out on the mac. good luck. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lanny Posted October 13, 2015 Share Posted October 13, 2015 If the Software involved is problematic on a MAC, but is stable on a Windows box, if you really want those courses, then consider biting the bullet and purchasing an inexpensive Windows Laptop or Desktop running Windows 7, for those courses. Our family purchased 3 Refurbished Dell Latitude E6400 laptops from Blair Technology Group during the past 18 months, 2 with Windows 7 and one with Windows 8.1. All were less than $200, with shipping in the USA and with a one year warranty in the USA. If you could run that Software and participate in the classes, without issues, buying something like that might be the way to go. It could be that every time there is an update to the MAC OS, or to the Software required for the course, there is going to be an issue like you are experiencing now. That not only will be unpleasant, it might blow up the course for your student and the $ you paid for the course will be down the drain. However, if the Software involved is also problematic on a Windows PC, then I would forget the course. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melmichigan Posted October 13, 2015 Share Posted October 13, 2015 The solution is to use Firefox or Chrome or create an entirely new user. Blackboard Collaborative will only reliably work on the administrator account in my determination. After wasting an entire day dealing with the customer service at Blackboard the representative finally checked and said "it's a known problem", but there are no plans to fix it unless a large number of people report it as a problem. They told me this at 5:30pm. :cursing: They could have said that at 11am! So instead they had me reset Safari, download Firefox, and generally waste an entire day while they "collected" more information about the problem on multiple computers. No they cannot explain why certain Blackboard classrooms will open and some will not (while using the same user and applications). I swear someone needs to start charging these companies for my wasted time! :rant: 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lanny Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 Fixing Software issues is not usually a trivial task and it is very expensive. The companies that wrote the Software involved here will look at the percentage of their users who are using the Software on MACs, and the percentage of those users who are complaining about the Software. They will prioritize which issues they assign people to work on, within the budget they have available for Software Maintenance. Translated: If a minority of the users are using MACs this will be a very low priority for the company involved and it may be a long time, if ever, before they get around to trying to fix it. If this issue also exists for users who are using Windows 7 boxes, then I would avoid that Software. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melmichigan Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 Fixing Software issues is not usually a trivial task and it is very expensive. The companies that wrote the Software involved here will look at the percentage of their users who are using the Software on MACs, and the percentage of those users who are complaining about the Software. They will prioritize which issues they assign people to work on, within the budget they have available for Software Maintenance. Translated: If a minority of the users are using MACs this will be a very low priority for the company involved and it may be a long time, if ever, before they get around to trying to fix it. If this issue also exists for users who are using Windows 7 boxes, then I would avoid that Software. I have no qualms about that, but just say so already and don't waste my time! ETA: As of this morning this also impacts WTMA classes, which worked fine yesterday. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lanny Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 I googled for "Collaborate+MAC+known issues" (without the quote marks) and this is the URL for the Google SERPS: https://www.google.com.co/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=Collaborate%2BMAC%2Bknown+issues This page may have some issues of interest to the OP and others: http://support.blackboardcollaborate.com/ics/support/default.asp?deptID=8336&task=knowledge&questionID=2210 Other pages in the Google SERPS may have helpful information too 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melmichigan Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 I googled for "Collaborate+MAC+known issues" (without the quote marks) and this is the URL for the Google SERPS: https://www.google.com.co/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=Collaborate%2BMAC%2Bknown+issues This page may have some issues of interest to the OP and others: http://support.blackboardcollaborate.com/ics/support/default.asp?deptID=8336&task=knowledge&questionID=2210 Other pages in the Google SERPS may have helpful information too I run OS X 10.9.5, so Blackboard Collaborative Launcher should work according to their information, but it no longer does in anything but the administrative account on Safari (which they won't tell you but I was able to figure out in all the time I wasted fiddling with it yesterday). It had worked, since school started weeks ago, and we used it last year no matter what user, but suddenly it no longer does so. I wouldn't have even suspected that it would work with one system user, but not the other. I'm waiting for it to quit working all together since classes we could access yesterday are no longer accessible today. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lanny Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 My BIG question is whether this Software Application works properly on a Windows PC? If so, the easiest and quickest way to be able to use those Online courses is to get a very inexpensive Windows 7 laptop or desktop and bite the bullet and use a Windows box and not a MAC. The issue involved may not be solved soon, if ever, for MAC users. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RootAnn Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 We no longer have anyone enrolled in a WTMA course & we aren't doing Landry this year, but DD does use Blackboard Collaborate for her Spanish with Sr Gamache. It worked yesterday in Windows (7). I'm assuming it is a mac-only issue for right now or you would see more threads. Great PSA on the front page, Melissa. Hope it helps at least a few people (those with Macs who use Safari) figure out how to get things working for now. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melmichigan Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 We no longer have anyone enrolled in a WTMA course & we aren't doing Landry this year, but DD does use Blackboard Collaborate for her Spanish with Sr Gamache. It worked yesterday in Windows (7). I'm assuming it is a mac-only issue for right now or you would see more threads. Great PSA on the front page, Melissa. Hope it helps at least a few people (those with Macs who use Safari) figure out how to get things working for now. It is a mac-only issue. Blackboard has struggled to keep up with Safari for a while now. Apple products don't play well with Java because of the security issues, so the Collaborator is a way to avoid Java. I'm debating if I want to download Firefox on the MacBooks, or just enable the administrator account for my kids. Tess said up thread that she is using Chrome, so that is also something I will look into, but there are some known problems with Chrome and the Collaborator, where Blackboard actually recommends Safari or Firefox as the fix. :smash: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie of KY Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 I've only done classes through AoPS and PA homeschoolers. Neither has software I have to download - both are web-based. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FairProspects Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 I don't know - I've been having Blackboard issues on my PC this week with our WTMA class too. It may just be my computer, but now I'm wondering. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tess in the Burbs Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 Actually it was Landry that said I should use Chrome on the macs to get collaborate to work. Otherwise we never would have downloaded Chrome. I will say that only one account works per computer. Windows or Mac. If I want to see something in my kid's account I just log in on their own computer. I can't see but one account on my computer without restarting or being in another browser. I don't love online classes after this experience. Unless someone else comes to set it all up, we won't be trying another company. DD wants to continue her ASL with Landry. Ok fine. But I am done. It's just a mess. DS has a windows box....but he has had some issues as well. Not always collaborate's issues. The other day his box restarted after an update during his class. Didn't ask if he wanted to restart...it just did. Seriously, these online classes have given me a lot more grey hair. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melmichigan Posted October 15, 2015 Share Posted October 15, 2015 Actually it was Landry that said I should use Chrome on the macs to get collaborate to work. Otherwise we never would have downloaded Chrome. I will say that only one account works per computer. Windows or Mac. If I want to see something in my kid's account I just log in on their own computer. I can't see but one account on my computer without restarting or being in another browser. I don't love online classes after this experience. Unless someone else comes to set it all up, we won't be trying another company. DD wants to continue her ASL with Landry. Ok fine. But I am done. It's just a mess. DS has a windows box....but he has had some issues as well. Not always collaborate's issues. The other day his box restarted after an update during his class. Didn't ask if he wanted to restart...it just did. Seriously, these online classes have given me a lot more grey hair. We have this problem if the kids don't religiously log out of each screen. If not, then you need to quit and go back into the browser before you can change students. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melmichigan Posted October 15, 2015 Share Posted October 15, 2015 :party: All is well. I spent a while with the senior tech support at Apple yesterday and we were able to isolate that this is a permissions issue. It may be the result of the last security update, it may be from something Blackboard did. I don't know and don't care at this point. If you update any computers that you aren't accessing through the administrator's account to El Capitan, then you will solve the problem. Blackboard Collaborative is working smoothly today with all the online providers we have using Blackboard. Better yet, I still get to run Safari. This is the first ever problem I've had with Blackboard Collaborative and Safari, and hopefully the last! 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janeway Posted October 31, 2015 Author Share Posted October 31, 2015 Update: by the second day, it was not running anymore. It kept saying the security certificates were not good. Their technical support could not help. I am going to look at other online programs, but I am honestly concerned I will pay for a class only for it to not work and thenI lose a bunch of money. I was looking at the sample classes, so perhaps it is just some of the sample classes that are expired, but I don't want to throw away money on something that does not work. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melmichigan Posted November 11, 2015 Share Posted November 11, 2015 I spent all of October, it seems, playing around with this. In the end I moved all our computers back to Maverick, before the September update. That solves all the problems without creating new ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.