Will it work?

I have a student who is living in Europe and wants to take one of my classes via distance... Can we use skype and e-live at the same time successfully?

Check with Christine, who does this regularly. My understanding is that you can use Skype for voice but that precludes being able to use Elluminate for voice. Once Skype takes the mic, it won't allow another application to use it. If everyone is using Skype for voice, then you should be able to use Elluminate for everything else.

You should be able to use Elluminate for voice, though, even though your student is in Europe. Is there some reason that you want to use Skype?

When I use the Skype and Elluminate, the skype folks can hear the Elluminate conversations through my computer. For the Elluminate folks to hear the Skype folks, I have to be sure my Elluminate mic is on - then the Elluminate folks can hear both me and the comments by audio-conference (Skype) students. I sometimes have to have the Skype students repeat their comments because I don't open the Elluminate mic fast enough for them to be heard by the Elluminate folks.

Why are some students coming in on Skype instead of on Elluminate? Is it a bandwidth issue?

Hmmm....I don't really know...they just tell me that it won't upload but that they can access Blackboard...

I have a few students that cannot seem to upload Elluminate as well - not sure why. One of them even talked with Tech services a few times and still couldn't get it to work. I can have students on Elluminate and Skype at the same time, but can only use the video component on one at a time. The students like Skype or iChat for visual because it is two-way - I see them and they see me. It is a problem when students have different types of computers though (Mac vs PC). Of course, if Video conferencing is available then it is the best option and I can still use the other options as well.
One big issue is that I seldom use the audio component on any of them. The students have found that the delay in talk time and any kind of echo is lessened if they can get on the computer system and an audio call-in at the same time. Also, they could only hear me and any student really close to me when they used the audio from Elluminate or Skype, of course the majority of my students are local so it is really only an issue for combined courses like all of mine are. I only had one student totally use Skype and only for a few classes.
On a different topic, I tried using blogs last year instead of blackboard and either the students loved it or hated it. Also, our TAs spent a lot of time trying to help students who forgot their passwords and then could no longer get back into the blog. Most of the students were frustrated with it even though it was accessed straight through our course blackboard site. This would only be an issue for closed blogs which mine was due to the sensitive nature of counseling topics. This fall I ended up going back to Discussion Board.

Blogs aren't very good tools for threaded discussions--the Discussion tool in Blackboard is probably more suited to this. I like to use blogs for general reflections on the work that students are doing in class, to get them used to writing for an audience, to get used to writing regularly, and in general to become fluent with blogs so that they can decide whether or not blogs might be useful instructional tools for them when they get their own classrooms.