Initiating Non-Native English Speakers

I am new here and indeed to Blackboard Collaborate so please forgive me if I commit a forum faux pas.

My query is this.....

I would like to start hosting my English lessons to Japanese students through Blackboard but I am unsure if the initiating process would be to difficult for them to understand.

Once we were all on the same screen it would be great but to get them to that point would be a problem.

Is there a compatible Japanese version to help us all arrive at the same place successfully ?

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Permalink Reply by Steve Hargadon on March 24, 2012 at 8:18pm

I don't know if there is a Japanese version, but my understanding is that Collaborate starts in whatever e default language is of the version the operating system of the user's computer.  Have you got a computer you could test on, or could you ask a student to start a session and to tell you if the menu structure is in Japanese?

Permalink Reply by Paul Beaufait on April 3, 2012 at 7:37pm

Hi Brian,

The following Support Portal entry suggested that Elluminate Live! versions 9.5 through 9.7 were translated, and explained how to activate regional language options on a Windows XP system.

What operating system are you and your students going to be using?
Permalink Reply by Brian on April 3, 2012 at 7:53pm

Hi Paul,

 

I have no idea what the students will be using. It may vary from student to student. I will be using Windows Vista.

 

 

Permalink Reply by Paul Beaufait on April 3, 2012 at 9:22pm

Hello again, Brian.

Perhaps one of the first things you'll want to learn about your students is what tools they'll have to use to connect online. For instance, using a Japanese version of Vista, with regional preferences configured for Japan, in Japanese, and a Japanese version of Internet Explorer:

  • The vRoom portal page for participants that I've just visited was in English:
    • The side menu of Blackboard Collaborate Resources was in English;
    • Instructions to enter a name for use in the room were in English; and
    • The label on the rather obvious "Meet Now..." button was, too;
  • The save (and open) this file confirmation dialog was in Japanese;
  • The Java Web Start dialog was in Japanese;
  • The security certificate approval (launch) dialog was in Japanese;
  • The Session Participant Agreement dialog was in English; as were:
    • the connection speed setting dialog, and
    • the connection monitoring splash.
  • Once the vRoom window opened, the entire display was in English:
    • Welcome screen, 
    • Toolbar menus, 
    • Mouse-overs, ....

For one, I'm most grateful that those displays, menus, and the like don't default automatically, in the absence of any language choices or controlling mechanisms – as Steve suggested they might. Many software developers, if they take multiple languages into consideration at all, seem almost too happy to force languages down users throats according to Internet access points or general operating system constraints.

A few screenshots taken from participants' rather than moderators' perspectives, with highlights showing where to click, or explaining what to enter or select, each step of the way would probably help students initially unfamiliar with such a multi-step entry procedure find their way to gatherings in Blackboard Collaborate. 

If you do put together that sort of startup manual, I sincerely hope you'll share it with us here.

Cheers, Paul

Permalink Reply by Steve Hargadon on April 6, 2012 at 8:28am

Thanks, Paul, for doing the legwork on this one.  Great information.

Permalink Reply by Paul Beaufait on April 9, 2012 at 6:13pm

No worries, Steve. I needed to scout out the current entry path for students I teach anyway.

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