mgardzina September 24th, 2009
digitalMEDIAlab
Over the summer of 2009, we made some big changes to the College’s digital media lab located in Taylor 205. The old lab saw a lot of use and sparked a wonderful variety of media projects, but was looking a little tired and no longer meeting the demands of digital media use at The College of Wooster. So last Spring, The Office of Information Technology formed a project team to talk to academic departments about their needs for digital media in the curriculum and based on those needs, set out to rethink the space and find the right technologies. This project team’s plan was implemented over the summer with some work continuing through this academic year. See the information below to find out what we’ve done.
Technologies now available in the digitalMEDIAlab
- twelve new iMacs running Mac OSX Leopard and Windows XP
- a projector, screen and instructor station for workshops
- two group stations with flexible furniture, mobile whiteboards and mobile LCD screens to accommodate laptops (coming soon)
- a large format printer and color printer
- an audio recording booth
- multi-standard and region free video import and editing station
- three NTSC video import and editing stations
- two scanning stations with optical character recognition and the ability to scan film, slides, and high-quality images
dwaldron May 16th, 2009
The Office of Information Technology will sponsor training courses in Microsoft Word and Excel 2007 for those interested in upgrading from Office 2003 to Office 2007. While 2007 has functionality similar to that of the previous version, the look and feel of Office 2007 is very different. The training schedule is as follows:
| May 27th |
9:00-4:00 |
Microsoft Word Beginning |
| June 18th |
9:00-4:00 |
Microsoft Word Intermediate |
| June 12th |
9:00-4:00 |
Microsoft Excel Beginning |
| June 25th |
9:00-4:00 |
Microsoft Excel Intermediate |
To sign up for these courses, please email Mary Schantz, Director of User Services. Seats are limited and fill quickly!
dwaldron March 24th, 2009
The Office of Information Technology is conducting a survey of College faculty and staff to assess the usage and quality of our services. I very much hope that you will share your thoughts and experiences with us by completing this online survey. We estimate that it will take 10 minutes to complete. We will make the results of the survey available to members of the Wooster community and pledge to make every effort to enhance our services based upon the feedback that you provide.
Follow this link to complete the survey.
dwaldron March 23rd, 2009
OIT congratulates the class of 2009 on I.S. Monday!
> |
| An Absolutely Unique Academic Procession |
|
dwaldron March 17th, 2009
John O’Keefe, Director of Academic Technology and Network Services at Lafayette College, visited Wooster on March 16 and 17. John met with many members of the OIT staff including David Waldron (CITO), Tabby Conwell (Director of Applications Development), Vince Di Scipio (Director of Digital Infrastructure) and Mary Schantz (Director of User Services). The visit afforded John and Wooster’s OIT staff the opportunity to share information about various technologies, products and services, and to compare notes on the challenges, priorities, policies and strategies of the two institutions. OIT anticipates a visit to Lafayette in the not-too-distant future. Lafayette is located in Easton, PA and enrolls approximately 2,300 students. Like Wooster, Lafayette is a member of the Consortium of Liberal Arts Colleges and the National Institute for Technology in Liberal Education.
|
|
John O’Keefe
|
dwaldron March 5th, 2009
Chief Information Technology Officer David Waldron is the author of the latest edition of Twelve, the weekly bulletin of the Center for Academic Advising. The issue presents five things that students should know about the Office of Information Technology. Read it here.
dwaldron February 24th, 2009
Spring break—and IS Monday—are rapidly approaching. Each year, several students experience the loss of data or portions of their IS as the result of technical difficulties. The Office of Information Technology (OIT) strongly encourages students to make backup copies of their independent study documents. Here we offer a few suggestions as to how you can safeguard your IS and related documents.
- Network storage is provided to all students on campus. Because this network storage is backed up on a regular basis, this is an ideal place to put current copies of IS documents. Information on how to access this storage space from anywhere on campus is available on the IT documentation page. Network storage space can be accessed from off-campus using a Virtual Private Network (VPN) connection. Information on connecting to VPN can also be found on the IT website.
- In addition to storing a copy of your IS in your network storage space, OIT recommends that you also create copies on CD’s or USB flash drives. Having multiple copies on multiple devices in multiple locations enhances your protection.
- Students and others sometimes email documents to themselves as a way of creating backup copies. OIT strongly suggests that you not rely upon the email system in this fashion.
- Do not rely on copies of your IS documents or data stored on lab computers.
- Make sure to associate version dates with each copy of your valuable documents so that you know when each was last updated.
- If your IS involves large multimedia files, invest in an external storage device. Inexpensive external hard drives can be purchased at any electronics store like Best Buy. Please keep in mind that such devices can and do fail. Make sure that you have multiple copies of all critical documents on multiple devices.
More useful information can be found at http://www.wooster.edu/technology/is.php. This includes instructions for submitting the electronic copy of your IS and a MicroSoft Word survival guide.
Feel free to stop by the student help desk in Andrews Library for assistance with backing up copies of your independent study. You can also reach the student help desk by phone at extension 4357 (HELP!).
dwaldron November 11th, 2008
At 4:30 p.m. on Monday, November 10, the College conducted its first full test of the ConnectED emergency notification system. The Office of Information Technology is now working to assess the results of the test by reviewing the information made available to us by the vendor.
If you did not receive our test notification via all of the expected telephone numbers, email addresses and text message addresses, I urge to validate the numbers and addresses you specified via ScotWeb. If this does not resolve the discrepancy, or you have questions or comments about the system or this particular test, please contact the IT Help Desk at 330-287-3000 extension 1111.
If you did not visit ScotWeb prior to our test to specify the numbers and addresses at which you would like to be contacted in the event of an emergency, notifications may have been sent to numbers and addresses selected for you by default. I urge you to visit ScotWeb to make appropriate selections. The Help Desk is available to assist you.
I anticipate that a full test of the system will be conducted each semester. Aside from these important tests, the ConnectED system will only be used to contact members of the College community during emergencies.
David Waldron
Chief Information Technology Officer
dwaldron May 15th, 2008
The College of Wooster recommends the Apple Macintosh and Dell lines of laptop and desktop computers for incoming students. Most retail chains like Best Buy or Circuit City offer back to school deals on computers. While these deals offer a lower sticker price, they don’t always include useful products like extended warranties, accidental damage protection, and productivity software. Extended warranties are a good idea. A logic board replacement can cost upwards of $900. A four year warranty will ensure that the computer will last throughout the student’s four years at Wooster. Both Apple and Dell offer extended warranty options. Apple provides Applecare protection on the Macbook, Macbook Pro, and iMac lines. Dell offers a four year warranty with onsite service. Should a hardware issue occur the student can call Dell and a technician will be dispatched to repair the system. Accidental damage protection through Dell also covers a laptop should liquid be spilled on the system, which happens often in dorm rooms. A normal warranty does not cover this damage.
Microsoft Office works on both Windows and Macintosh systems and is recommended by the Office of Information Technology. Dell bundles on the University page include a copy of Microsoft Office 2007 student edition. While the Apple bundle does not include a copy of Microsoft Office, it can be purchased at most retail stores, including the College’s Wilson Bookstore.
To simplify the computer purchase process, we have partnered with Dell and Apple to create recommended configurations for laptops and desktops. These recommendations can be reviewed on are partner websites which can be accessed via the computer sales page. This site also features information on Windows Vista and Office 2007. Questions about computer purchases can be directed to Mary Schantz, Manager of User Services, at mschantz@wooster.edu.
dwaldron April 23rd, 2008
The position of Director of Web Services is currently vacant and a search to fill this position is currently underway. In the interim, the Office of Information Technology will provide assistance with essential web content updates. Update requests should be submitted to web-updates@wooster.edu. Requested changes will be processed as quickly as possible. Questions should be directed to Mary Schantz, Manager of User Services.