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Welcome
Shawn
Beattie, ITS, editor
Welcome
to Augie Techknowledge from
ITS, an e-newsletter to share
"what's new" in ITS and provide useful tips and articles on
Information Technology and Educational Technology at Augustana
College.
We hope you like it and find it useful. The newsletter will
be archived
on the ITS web site at http://www.augustana.edu/itsfiles/techknowledge.
Enjoy!
In
this issue:
Google
Apps Transition update
Smart Phones and Google Apps
WiFi: Safe or Not?
Digital Video Resources in Equipment Checkout
Macs: Connecting from Off Campus with VPN
Battle of the e-readers
New Face in ITS
Tip: Making Sure your Email Stays Private
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Google
Apps Transition Update |
The
Google Apps E-Mail Conversion for faculty, staff, and student groups is almost complete. Though it hasn’t
always been painless, we have come a long way since Admissions was
converted in August. In 2011, concentration will begin on offering training for
more advanced applications within Google Apps such as Google Docs,
Google Groups, Google Sites, etc. So far we have only touched on a small
portion of what is available to us through Google Apps. Please, if you
are having problems or have questions don’t hesitate to contact the ITS
Helpdesk (helpdesk@augustana.edu, x7293). We may have already found the solution to your problem. Don’t suffer in silence! We are all
here to help.
Thanks for all your support and patience through this transition!
Smart Phones and Google Apps
Often we are
asked for advice as to model of smart phone to buy with a phone plan.
There are many devices offered (BlackBerry, iPhone, Android) by the
major carriers (Verizon, Sprint, AT&T) leaving many
overwhelmed. In the past, ITS has tried to support most major mobile
device models and vendors, developing alternatives to “synching” email,
contacts and calendars with campus applications.
Chris Vaughan, ITS
Recently, Augustana has partnered with Google to provide the Google
Apps communication tools such as email, calendaring and chat. Google
has also written a common operating system for smart phones called Android that has been adopted by most major cell phone manufacturers.
Not surprisingly, smart phones using an Android operating system
integrate well with Google Apps e-mail and all the other services
offered by Google.
What does this mean? Simply put, it means if you are going to invest in
a smart phone and you are concerned about compatibility with Augustana
provided services, ask to see devices which have the latest Android
operating system installed. There are still many phone model options,
but selecting an Android phone should reduce the choices to a managable
number. Be sure to view the screen quality, try the keyboard, and talk
about access plan costs (a data plan is usually required for internet
access.) However, as long as the device has the Android operating
system, you will be compatible with campus communication
tools and be assured of the knowledge base provided by one of
the largest and fastest growing smart phone operating systems.
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With
so many people using wireless networks to access the Internet, we
thought it would be a good time to remind you when you are secure, and
when you might be giving away your personal data to those nearby.
When you use unencrypted wireless networks, the data you send over the air can possibly be
received by anyone nearby. Websites you visit, most instant
messenger applications, Facebook, and e-mail are often sent
in-the-clear or unencrypted, meaning that someone with a laptop and the
right software can see what websites you are on, your chats, and your
e-mail. In many of these situations, your data could possibly be
used by another person's computer to impersonate you, stealing access
to your accounts.
Fortunately, many websites with important private data utilize HTTPS,
which is a method of encrypting your data from your web browser to the
server. Regardless of wireless network encryption, your data is
kept secure. You can determine when you are on a secure website
by looking for the lock icon on your browser and checking the address
to make sure it begins with https://.
If
you are using a wireless network that is secure, your data is encrypted
when it leaves your computer until it is received by the wireless
access point. However, in most configurations, anyone else on
that wireless network can intercept your data. It is also
possible to crack wireless encryption schemes without much effort.
In
conclusion, you should be generally cautious about sending important
data over wireless networks. When you do use a wireless network,
make sure the sites you use connect via HTTPS. (See the tip at
the end of this issue on how to do this in Google Apps email)
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ITS keeps a variety of equipment for students, faculty, and staff to borrow free of charge. New this fall are more flash-memory camcorders that record to SD memory cards. The advantage of these are that the videos may be transferred to your computer immediately by copying the files from an SD card, much like you would with a standard digital camera, and a postage stamp-sized card can hold a couple hours of video.
Have a short presentation you want to practice? Want to upload your best rendition of "Jingle Bells" to YouTube? Need to analyze your badminton backhand? Flips to the rescue! The compact Flip camcorders are great for recording 30 minute or less and plug directly to your USB port -- no cables to worry about.
Both of these new items in checkout will help you do your best without having to be delayed by the ins-and-outs that often come with digital video. As always, we're here to help and to recommend the best solution or help you get the files in the place that you want -- whether that be uploading to Moodle or a DVD to send in the mail.
E-mail Laura
Meyers in ITS
or call her at x8948 to reserve any of this new
equipment, as well as laptops, projectors, cameras, tripods,
and more.
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Macs:
Connecting from Off Campus with VPN |
Mac
users - have you ever wanted to access your work computer from
home? Whether you use a PC or Mac, this is now possible.
Leopard and Snow Leopard comes out of the box with the
ability to enable password-encrypted screen sharing. VPN, or
Virtual Private Networks, allows your home Mac to
authenticate to our network. Once you have done that, by you
can remotely control your office computer. By following a few steps to
set up your computer, you can set this up. If you would like additional
information or instructions on
how to setup your office and remote PC, send an e-mail to the Helpdesk
(helpdesk@augustana.edu) and request step-by-step instructions.
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New Face in ITS |
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Battle
of the e-readers |
Tip: Making Sure Your Email Stays Private Shawn Beattie, ITS |
When you are browsing your Google Apps e-mail from your laptop at Brew By the Slough or Starbucks, it is possible, although not likely, that your e-mail session could be captured. HTTPS helps prevent this (See Brad Isbell's article above). To make sure your e-mail is encrypted with HTTPS, check these settings in Google Apps e-mail:
1. Once logged in to Google Apps Mail, click on Settings in the upper right corner.
2. On the General Tab, under browser connection, click "Always use https."
3. Click Save changes at the bottom of the settings screen.
Have a great New Year!
-Your friends in ITS
Most images from this issue of TechKnowledge are from Wikimedia Commons. Wikimedia Commons is a media file repository making available public domain and freely-licensed educational media content.