Blackboard Upgrade: January 2, 2014

Information Technology will be upgrading Blackboard Learn to 9.1 SP13.  This will result in Blackboard being unavailable starting at 4pm CST on January 2nd, 2014.

We anticipate the major upgrades to be complete by January 3rd, but work may still be in progress during the day on January 4th. A final announcement will be posted when work is complete.

The resources on this website are being upgraded for the new version and features.

Blackboard and Tegrity deletions scheduled for January 10, 2014

To continue to be good stewards of university resources and preserve the performance of Blackboard and Tegrity, we will be performing our end of the semester Blackboard courses and Tegrity recordings purge process. Per our “Course Retention Policy”. The removal process will begin January 10, 2014.

What you can expect:

 
Blackboard courses that have a course ID starting with 2010M3, 2010W3, 2011M1 or 2011W1 will be be removed from the Blackboard system.

All Organizations and courses that do not match the criteria above will remain on Blackboard.

Tegrity recordings from the semesters of Spring 2013 (2012W2 or 2012M2)or prior will be deleted.

If courses or recordings need to be saved:
To keep content from Blackboard courses that meet the criteria mentioned above you can do one of the following:

1) Copy course content to a current semester course.

2) Send a request to the HelpDesk with the course id’s that you would like to keep     (helpdesk@smumn.edu, 507-457-7800, or Submit a HelpDesk Request Online)

3) Make an Archive of the course and save the resulting file.

To keep Tegrity recordings:

1) Move those recording(s) to a current semester offering.

2) Send a request to the HelpDesk with the course id’s that you would like to keep (helpdesk@smumn.edu, 507-457-7800, or Submit a HelpDesk Request Online)

Regarding smumn.edu website loading issues...

From Marketing Department:

Many users are reporting that pages on the site, smumn.edu, are appearing blank or jumbled. This problem is caused by web servers or local workstations 'caching' or storing locally a copy of all or parts of the website assets. This issue is not surprising, and not everyone is experiencing this problem.

Time will fix this issue, but users can possibly fix the problem quicker by emptying (refreshing) the cache on their browsers. This can be done in a couple ways depending on the platform/browser. Windows PC users can hit CTRL + F5, regardless of the browser. Mac users browsing with Chrome or Firefox can hit APPLE (Command) + R.

Again, for most (external) visitors this should not be an issue, and will fix itself in time. Thank you all for the feedback on the updated look. Many are also using this as an opportunity to send additional comments, changes or fixes to the site in general. I'd like to just remind you that you can submit a request at anytime via the Marketing and Communication online request form.

New Google Apps (email) Menu location and look....

 

SMU Community,

Google has elected to drop its black menu banner from the Gmail page, and has created a grid icon on the upper right of the page  which shortcuts to the Google Apps.  Please make note of this change.

 

Also note that they moved your username/sign out option to the very upper right corner and if you use Google + that is now where your username/sign out location used to be.

 

In this example the picture is where Michael would click to sign out or change to a delegated email.

Some users may still have their email address in this location.

 

 

 

 

Review Tegrity Classes on-the-go!

The Tegrity playback and recording app was updated in early August 2013, and is free! You can review your classes, place bookmarks and record new sessions on any smartphone or tablet running iOS or Android.

Please see this Tegrity page for more details.

Updated Blackboard Apps for iOS and Android

On August 26th, we released a significantly improved Blackboard Learn mobile app which is available for both iOS and Android devices for $1.99/year. Follow the links below to install on your smart phone or tablet device.

 

Please see this techfaq article for more details.

Tegrity Playback within Windows 8 and Internet Explorer

One thing to know about Windows 8- two versions of Internet Explorer exist.

One of these is "touch friendly" and is the metro app on the start page with the address bar at the bottom which does NOT support all add-ons, etc. This would affect Tegrity playing video portion of the recording. The lower right corner with the PowerPoint slides does seem to be visible. It is the main window (pane) that is affected.

 

The other Internet Explorer is the full version, "desktop friendly". Go to the desktop and select Internet Explorer and it should appear and function the same as IE10 does on other computers. Tegrity playback may function within this version provided the Windows Media player is up-to-date to WMP10, 11 or 12. 11 or 12 are preferred.

 

 

July 2013 HelpDesk Incident Response Feedback Survey Results

HelpDesk Results for Feedback Survey of Closed Tickets

 

HelpDesk Feedback Results for July

We had 10 responses to the HelpDesk Feedback Survey that is included with each closed ticket emailed to our customers.

Of these 10, 9 were very positive and the 10th apparently was a communication error where the email was sent to someone that had not contacted the HelpDesk. Our apologies to him or her.

 

We ask 4 questions:

Was your issue accurately documented in the initial call logging process?

Do you feel that you were treated with respect during your contact with HelpDesk staff?

Was your issue resolved on first contact?

If your issue was not resolved on first contact, do you feel you receive a timely response?

 

Of the 9 responses from customers that contacts us the results were as follows:

Correctly documented: 9 for 9

Treated with respect:9 for 9

Resolved (Closed) on First Contact : 7 for 9 the one "no" response indicated staff was very helpful.

Timely Response if not CoFC: 9 for 9

 

We also solicit additional feedback/comments along with Technician that closed the call (ticket).

A few comments from these respondents these are shorted versions:

Technician was helpful and personable.... resolve quickly with clear instructions.
Technician:Doug Waller MPLS campus

A huge thanks to Heidi (Johnson) for walking through the process and following up later.

Excellent Service, Thank you, Worked out great! Technician: Brian Behling

I would give them an A+ (Smile) I thought issue was resolved previously but had issues later... "way to go..."  Technician: Amanda Frost

"Thanks for resolving the issue." technician Camden Webster, TA

Sampson Davis also got a positive response even though the ticket was not resolved at first contact.

 

If you have ever wanted to be a statistic, please fill out the HelpDesk Feedback Survey when your HelpDesk ticket is closed. Unless you choose to identify yourself in the comments section, responses are completely anonymous. Please be kind, honest, and civil in your responses.

Thanks, iT and HelpDesk Staff

HelpDesk Results for July 2013

HelpDesk Results for July

 

Documented tickets: 240

Closed on First Contact (CoFC): 181

CoFC percentage: 75%

 

Staff that achieved respective CoFC goals: Brian Behling 80%, David Corpstein, TA 69%, Doug Waller MPLS 97%, Lincoln Scully MPLS 91%, Camden Webster 59%, Owen Kuemerle 92%, Amanda Frost 60%, Ryan Ballanger and Heidi Johnson 100%

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Recycle Day 2013 set for Tuesday, August 13th

Saint Mary’s University and Apple Computers will once again offer a one day electronic recycling program to its employees on Tuesday, August 13th. The program is free of charge.

Bring your equipment to the drop off point located behind the gates of the Kulas-Connaughty Power Plant between the hours of 8:30AM and 4:00PM on Tuesday, August 13th.

We will accept:
Cpu, monitor, printer, fax machine, television, scanner, cd drive, hard drive, laptop, vcr,desk-top size copy machine, projector, overhead projector, networking equipment, cables, keyboards, mice.

We will not accept:
Monitors with broken glass. CRT’s missing their enclosures. UPS battery backup system. Batteries of any type.

HelpDesk Results for 2012/2013 Year

HelpDesk Results for 2012-2013 Fiscal Year

June 2012 - May 2013

 

Documented tickets to HelpDesk: 5779

Documented tickets Closed on First Contact: 3827

Documented tickets CoFC %:  66.2%

 

 

Winona Campus Results:

• Tickets:     4542
• CoFC:       2701
• CoFC %:  59.5%
• Winona CoFC Goal: 58%
• Staff that achieved this goal listed by quantity of documented tickets
• Brian Behling 69%, Tom Plante76%, John Uhal 64%, Owen Kuemerle 75%, Doug Leonard 65%, John Youngkrantz 63%, Amanda Frost 72%, David Corpstein 58%, Bridget Ryan 63%, Paul Thompson 70%, Jocelyn Thompson 69%, Lisa D'Aquisto 59%, Ryan Ballanger 63%, Heidi Johnson 61%, Stephanie Delveaux 60%, Lauren Peters 58%, Taylor Irish 62%, Cody Sprague 65%, Jeff Wieczorek 60%
• 19 out of 39 or just under 50% of iT staff and TA's achieve the CoFC goal of 58% 

MPLS Campus Results:

• Tickets: 1237
• CoFC: 1126
• CoFC%: 91%
• Staff results: Mike Montgomery 82%, Doug Waller 99%, Alex Ajaluwa 91%, Lincoln Scully 93%
   

February 2013 HelpDesk Stats...

The iT HelpDesk February Results

 

Tickets created: 447

Closed on First Contact: 257

CoFC percentage:  57.5%

HelpDesk Goal: 58%

 

Winona HelpDesk Results:

Tickets: 389

CoFC: 202

CoFC %: 52%

 

Winona HelpDesk Staff that achieved 58% goal:

Brian Behling(iT), Prescilla Ramirez (TA), Owen Kuemerle (TA), Tom Plante (TA),

Heather Ludwig(TA), Stephanie Delveaux(TA), Camden Webster(TA)

 

Minneapolis HelpDesk Staff Results:

Tickets: 58

CoFC: 55

CoFC %: 95%

All staff made CoFC goal.

Thanks Mike Montgomery, Doug Waller, Alex Ajaluwa, and Lincoln Scully.



 

Classrooms and Tegrity

Tegrity is set up in classrooms for desktop and laptop users.

Laptop users, be sure to plug the cords back into the desktop machine after use.  

We have had several Helpdesk calls regarding Tegrity not working due to the cords not returned to the desktop.

Desktop users, be sure to check that the cords are plugged into the desktop when starting up Tegrity.  

If you don't see the camera, elmo or no sound, its probably due to the cords not plugged in.




Here is a picture of what cables and where they should be plugged in to.  The USB cable can be in any of the 4 USB ports on the front of the classroom PC and the cord for audio has to be in the one shown.

Compressing Photos in Powerpoint

You often need to compress PowerPoint presentations when sharing it via emai or saving space on your personal network drive, U Drive.

 If your presentation is full of images, you can try compressing these images to reduce the overall size of the presentation.

Once the picture is inserted in the Presentation then click the Compress Pictures option under Format > Picture Tools.

Now be sure to check the Delete cropped areas of pictures option to reduce the overall size of the presentation. Also select the appropriate target output.

Click OK to complete the configuration.

What’s new in PowerPoint for Mac 2011

There are several new tools in Powerpoint for Mac 2011
Learn more about the Ribbon, make professional looking presentations, new animations, and more.

See more by Clicking here 

Cool Information Found by SMU Director of Instructional Technology Jason Spartz.

 

Students this is directed specfically to you to assist you with various research searches using Google specifically but the basics can be use with other search engines as well.

 

This is a fairly quick read that can save you a huge amount of time to gather information for papers, assignments, and other academic endeavors.

 

http://www.edtechmagazine.com/higher/article/2012/07/how-college-students-can-get-most-out-google-infographic

 

Author Jimmy Daly posted to EdTech Magazine in July 2012



A Visual Guide To Twitter For Beginners
By Jeff Dunn Posted 2/12/13

http://edudemic.com/2013/02/a-visual-guide-to-twitter-for-beginners/

These are in a format called infographics.

 

VLC Media Player

You may notice a new icon on SMU computers.  This is the icon for the VLC media player.  It is a program much like Windows Media Player or Quicktime, but in testing it has performed very well with video formats that the aforementioned programs couldn't handle.  It will be rolled out to all SMU computers as time goes on.  Try it today!

Be Aware of SPAM and Phishing emails

Please be very observant and diligent with regards to reading and acting on emails. In early January 2013, the following email may have gotten through to some of the SMU Community.
This is the actual text of the email, DO NOT click the link:



"Subject: Dear Account User

To:

Congratulation You can now log in to Saint Mary's University of
Minnesota news forum and get the latest information and news/update.
Please use the database link:
http://www.empin.org/phpFormGen/forms/form1.html you are required to
log in for automatic update of your account to log in for more
information about this service.

Sign, ©smumn.edu
All rights reserved."

This is the from information:
From: Email Account User <eosigney@ucdavis.edu>
Date: Sun, Jan 6, 2013 at 4:46 PM

Again as we have pointed out numerous times in the past these types of email NEVER come from SMU iT staff or the HelpDesk. We are very cognizant of how we word email and how it is addressed and signed. Note important key observations to indicate phishing emails:
1) the to: field is generic or blank
2) the subject field is generically addressed to "dear account user" iT would not have this be a subject, EVER
3) the from is not an SMU email address and if you reply it would be telling it is not an smu email
4) it is generically signed at the bottom or not signed at all
5) we would not give you a link to login with we would ask you to login to a specific system on your own.
6) Spelling and grammar may or may not be good. granted people typo but SMU IT tries very hard to have accurate and correct spelling, grammar, and content in messages that go out to our customers.

These are dangerous emails to respond to as your are giving third parties access to your username and password. We have observed in the past these being taken advantage of within an one or two of being supplied the information by a user.