Using Digital Drop Box

If your instructor wishes for you to submit an assignment through the Digital Drop Box, use the following steps once you have saved your assignment on your computer :

1. Within your course, go to Tools

2. Click the Digital Drop Box button.

3. Click the Send File button.
4. In the Title: field, type in the name of your assignment
5. Next to the File: field, click the Browse… button.  A Choose File window will open.
6. Navigate to location where you have saved the document, and select the file. Click Open.
7. Click the Submit button. Your file has been submitted to your instructor.

Why can't my Instructor read the assignment I submitted in the Digital DropBox?

The most common reason for this problem is the use of "special characters" in your document's filename. Blackboard cannot have special characters in a filename; if there are, the file cannot be read by your instructor.. A special character is any character that is not a letter or a number. In other words, do not use characters such as ? ! @ # $ % & * [ ] ( ) < > / \ - + = . , : ; ' " in a filename. Two exceptions are a space or an underscore - these are allowed in file names.

Another problem could be a conflict between Microsoft Word 2003 and 2007. If you are typing your assignments using Microsoft Word 2007, you are able to save your file with two different extensions. ".docx" is the default Word 2007 format. But you may also use the Save As function and save backwards to Word 2003's ".doc" format. Word 2003 users cannot read a Word 2007 ".docx" format, and your instructor may be using Word 2003.

If you are typing your assignments using Microsoft Works, WordPerfect, Clarisworks, Pagemaker, or any word processing program other than Microsoft Word, your instructor may be unable to view your Digital DropBox submissions.

You have three options:

• Type your assignments using Microsoft Word in any of the Campus's Computing Labs.
• Save your documents on your own computer using Rich Text Format. By saving your documents in Rich Text Format (RTF), your instructor is able to view your documents in Microsoft Word with all spacing, bolding, italics, etc. intact. If you have any questions on saving a document in Rich Text Format, please contact Support Services at 508.531.2555.
• You can purchase a discounted copy of the Microsoft Office suite (which contains Microsoft Word) at the Campus Bookstore.

My Instructor never received my Digital DropBox submission. What happened?

Within the Digital DropBox area, you may have clicked the Add File button rather than the Send File button. By using the Add File button, you are simply adding a file to your DropBox without sending it to your Instructor. Use the Send File button to send Digital DropBox submissions to your Instructor.