The Technical Tips Board
If you wish to connect with a technician about a technical issue with any of the SMART products, we recommend you visit their technical support page. From there you can either contact them by phone or email them.
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Top 10 Tech Tips:
The cursor doesn’t go where I touch the SMART Board. It seems to be off a bit.
Possible Cause:
Your Board is not in alignment
Solution:
Hold down the two buttons by the eraser simultaneously until the orientation screen appears. Go through the orientation point process. Your board then should be properly aligned.
My green light is flashing, and it won’t stop! (Please note, this is normal during the start up process.)
Possible Cause:
The SMARTboard is having trouble communicating with your computer, and/or vice versa.
Solution:
Quit out of Notebook and SMARTboard Tools. Unplug from your computer’s USB SMART Board connection and try again. If this doesn’t
work, restart your computer. The light may flash for a while so patience is sometimes also required.
Pen tray lights continue to flash in a row from left to right and they won’t quit.
Possible Cause:
Bad telephone wire connection between the board and the tray port.
Solution:
Unplug the telephone cable from the port under the tray, and plug it into the second port under the tray.
If this doesn’t work, try a different telephone wire from another SMARTboard to see if it’s a bad cable.
My SMART Board freezes. (This is different than your Notebook software freezing. See next post for that issue.)
Possible Cause:
Low computer battery
Solution:
Is your computer hooked up to a power source? If your computer is getting low (battery is below 50 %) the SMARTboard will behave erratically. If this doesn’t work, push the reset button on the lower right hand side of the board with the tip of one of the pens.
My Notebook Software is freezing.
Potential Cause:
Too many flashes files or too many extraneous applications are open
Solution:
Look for number of items that have the red circled f in the page view. You may have too many flash objects open. Recommended maximum number of flash objects open at a time is 2-4.
And, If you know that you’re going to use the SMARTboard extensively for two or more periods, restart your computer before use and between classes, if time allows. If your use is high stakes (like an observation or parent presentation, always restart your computer before you begin.) This will clear the computer.
Unplug the board from your computer before restarting and let the computer complete its normal start up cycle before plugging the board back in to the computer.
The Yellow Notepad shows up when I try to write on my SMART Board.
Possible Cause:
Your Ink is set to be used in any application. Ink is found in the System Preferences in the Hardware row.
Solution:
Go to your System Preferences under the Blue Apple. Go to Ink and uncheck the box that reads Allow me to ink in any application. Also turn on the Handwriting Recognition in the same window while you’re there so you handwriting can be turned to “font” text.
Floating Tools and Pen Tools don’t seem to work outside of Notebook.
Potential Cause:
Too many extraneous applications are open.
Solution:
Quit any other applications that are not needed as well as any Notebook files that are open that are not needed. Often teachers have more than one Notebook file open. (Or your notebook file is quite large due to the number of flash files you have in it.)
The SMART Board won’t respond in other applications i.e. website.
Potential Cause:
Your Ink layer is operating, it’s a small box that frames the page, it looks like an overhead laid over your computer screen, it has a red X in upper right corner.
Solution:
SMART Board operates in two distinct environments:
1. With Notebook Software
2. With Ink Layer on other applications
Look for the frame on the perimeter, this is your indicator that you are in the ink layer and puts the transparency type window on top of your open pages.
In order to interact with the other application again you can save the ink layer-which makes a snapshot of that page in Notebook software, or close ink layer, which takes away any digital ink and allows you to interact again.
I get a message that tells me I need to reinstall software, but I’ve already done that.
Possible Cause:
Your current software has not been fully uninstalled. There may be hiding files that haven’t been uninstalled.
Solution:
You haven’t uninstalled the software before reinstalling. You must uninstall both SMART Board drivers and Notebook drivers. See directions in the next post.
If you wish to connect with a technician about a technical issue with any of the SMART products, we recommend you visit their technical support page. From there you can either contact them by phone or email them.
_________________________________________________________________________________________
Top 10 Tech Tips:
The cursor doesn’t go where I touch the SMART Board. It seems to be off a bit.
Possible Cause:
Your Board is not in alignment
Solution:
Hold down the two buttons by the eraser simultaneously until the orientation screen appears. Go through the orientation point process. Your board then should be properly aligned.
My green light is flashing, and it won’t stop! (Please note, this is normal during the start up process.)
Possible Cause:
The SMARTboard is having trouble communicating with your computer, and/or vice versa.
Solution:
Quit out of Notebook and SMARTboard Tools. Unplug from your computer’s USB SMART Board connection and try again. If this doesn’t
work, restart your computer. The light may flash for a while so patience is sometimes also required.
Pen tray lights continue to flash in a row from left to right and they won’t quit.
Possible Cause:
Bad telephone wire connection between the board and the tray port.
Solution:
Unplug the telephone cable from the port under the tray, and plug it into the second port under the tray.
If this doesn’t work, try a different telephone wire from another SMARTboard to see if it’s a bad cable.
My SMART Board freezes. (This is different than your Notebook software freezing. See next post for that issue.)
Possible Cause:
Low computer battery
Solution:
Is your computer hooked up to a power source? If your computer is getting low (battery is below 50 %) the SMARTboard will behave erratically. If this doesn’t work, push the reset button on the lower right hand side of the board with the tip of one of the pens.
My Notebook Software is freezing.
Potential Cause:
Too many flashes files or too many extraneous applications are open
Solution:
Look for number of items that have the red circled f in the page view. You may have too many flash objects open. Recommended maximum number of flash objects open at a time is 2-4.
And, If you know that you’re going to use the SMARTboard extensively for two or more periods, restart your computer before use and between classes, if time allows. If your use is high stakes (like an observation or parent presentation, always restart your computer before you begin.) This will clear the computer.
Unplug the board from your computer before restarting and let the computer complete its normal start up cycle before plugging the board back in to the computer.
The Yellow Notepad shows up when I try to write on my SMART Board.
Possible Cause:
Your Ink is set to be used in any application. Ink is found in the System Preferences in the Hardware row.
Solution:
Go to your System Preferences under the Blue Apple. Go to Ink and uncheck the box that reads Allow me to ink in any application. Also turn on the Handwriting Recognition in the same window while you’re there so you handwriting can be turned to “font” text.
Floating Tools and Pen Tools don’t seem to work outside of Notebook.
Potential Cause:
Too many extraneous applications are open.
Solution:
Quit any other applications that are not needed as well as any Notebook files that are open that are not needed. Often teachers have more than one Notebook file open. (Or your notebook file is quite large due to the number of flash files you have in it.)
The SMART Board won’t respond in other applications i.e. website.
Potential Cause:
Your Ink layer is operating, it’s a small box that frames the page, it looks like an overhead laid over your computer screen, it has a red X in upper right corner.
Solution:
SMART Board operates in two distinct environments:
1. With Notebook Software
2. With Ink Layer on other applications
Look for the frame on the perimeter, this is your indicator that you are in the ink layer and puts the transparency type window on top of your open pages.
In order to interact with the other application again you can save the ink layer-which makes a snapshot of that page in Notebook software, or close ink layer, which takes away any digital ink and allows you to interact again.
I get a message that tells me I need to reinstall software, but I’ve already done that.
Possible Cause:
Your current software has not been fully uninstalled. There may be hiding files that haven’t been uninstalled.
Solution:
You haven’t uninstalled the software before reinstalling. You must uninstall both SMART Board drivers and Notebook drivers. See directions in the next post.
