Do not rely on Blackboard to work early in the semester. It takes at least 2-3 weeks for this to be reasonably reliable. EMail is a better means of communication than using announcements which require students to log on and then access the particular module before they get the information. Take advantage of the flexibility of Blackboard. New modes of teaching can be introduced by using UCS supported applications, such as Excel, Minitab, AutoCad etc.
Students prefer notes to be provided in advance.
There is then a subsequent problem with understanding as they have missed the explainations provided in the lectures. My personal approach to this situation is to make it clear that Blackboard provides only complementary materials. This is not a problem at stage 3 and 4. For these students I routinely provide all my lecture notes in advance, which the students then annotate. This makes the lectures more interactive which has a positive effect on the learning experience.