Most schools use Blackboard as means for the professors to communicate information to their students. Professors will post announcements on Blackboard and it's your responsibility to constantly check the site. They will also post homework assignments there as well. Most of the thing you will need for a class will be on Blackboard. Some classes will use additional sites to supplement their workload, so be aware of that. You might also use Blackboard to take tests. Most professors use Blackboard as a means for students to submit their work and view their grades. Become familiar with it!!

Outlook is a emailing Company that is most likely used by Colleges. Outlook also provides access contact, email calendar and task management features. This does not necessarily mean outlook will be your colleges method of connecting emails, as their could be other email companies used as well.