May 2012 UserNews

Ask Dr. Jim is a Q&A feature that allows users to anonymously ask any tech related questions. Questions will be answered in each issue of the UserNews. Ask away!

    

Pigs are flying and the moon is a lovely shade of blue.  These abnormal weather conditions can mean only one thing here at SAIT: Dr. Jim has questions for you.

That’s right; our famous wizard of wisdom needs your help!  Our friendly RTAs want to continue the spread of knowledge, and one vehicle proposed is a series of one-hour training sessions on things like the efficient use of Outlook or connecting laptops and tablets to campus’ wireless internet.  These sessions would be held sometime during normal work hours at a time most beneficial for anyone wishing to attend.

What kind of topics would you find interesting and useful?  Let us know by calling us at x 2002, flagging down an RTA, or just submitting your answer straight to the good doctor in the submission box above.

We look forward to your answers!

From the Emperor of Ethernet,

Dr. Jim.

As summer rapidly approaches, life on campus will be slowing down, including Student Affairs IT.  That does not mean, however,  that SAIT will be gone.  While we will not have the staff to continue weekly rounds, there will be a small RTA staff to provide tech support 8am-5pm Monday-Friday.  If you need support, feel free to call us at x2002, or enter tickets as usual.

The summer months bring with them warm weather, a reduced number of students wandering around campus and a great time to start projects. These projects may include upgrading computers to Windows 7, replacing old and outdated hardware and computers, or many other various tasks that may not be possible during the busy school year. Student Affairs IT is happy to help you with any of your summer technology projects. Although we will not be fully staffed, we are available to help.  For any projects you want help with, just submit a ticket with the details of the project or call us at x2002.

It’s that time of the year again! As the weather continues to become more beautiful and serene, the temperature enjoys taking a steep curve into the highs associated with summer. Offices can often become unbearably hot, so this is just a couple of simple tips to help minimize the amount of heat generated from your office workspace.

First, when you leave the office for the day, be sure to shut down your computer. Almost all the energy consumed by computers is ultimately converted into heat. The average office desktop using anywhere between 100-400 watts, so you can see why leaving them on all day is such a big deal: consider that most common electric heaters run at about 1,500 watts; it only takes 4 computers on all day to have the same heat output as leaving an electric heater on during the same duration. Just think of how much heat you can prevent by shutting them down at night!

Second, be sure to shut off monitors when you clock out for the day. Most monitors nowadays only use about 35-45 watts, but a lot of users use two monitors per one computer. A small office of 4-5 people could have 8-10 monitors, which would be equivalent to having an additional computer on.

In closing, just remember that taking an extra minute or two to shut down your computers and monitors. It will not only keep your office cooler, it will also save energy and increase the life expectancy of your computer.

Are you interested in learning more about the workings of the web and technology? There are opportunities on campus for University staff for free every month. The Student Affairs IT Web Programmer Dan Bowling holds a monthly class that is open to staff. In the past, he has held classes on website usability, writing for the web, and a refresher course for Cascade. Central IT also holds a handful of classes each month. In the past, they have presented information on MS Access, UMDW finance and payroll database usage, and given a general orientation on how to use technology.

This month, Dan will be covering how to make your web site accessible. He will cover why web accessibility is important, and techniques that content authors can use to make their content fully accessible. The session will be held on May 18 in the UC Alumni Boardroom at 2:15 p.m. If you wish to attend, just show up! For future dates and topics, click here. 

Central IT will be giving classes on Banner Basics, which is designed for new Banner users, and Banner Grants Query, which will cover how to access grant accounts and use them properly. Banner Basics will be on May 1 at 10:10 a.m. Banner Grants Query will be held on May 8 at 10:10 a.m. To register for classes or view future classes, click here. 

Happy Learning!

Recently, a draft for a University of Montana IT Strategic Plan was created in order to take on-campus information technology to the next level. This plan not only examines the strengths and weaknesses of our system, but also the opportunities that we offer and the threats to campus technology. The draft explores ideas of improving the overall infrastructure (such as the network and data centers), as well as improving the communication between the various branches of IT dispersed over campus.  There are many goals included in the draft plan, such as updating the infrastructure to reach the University’s goal, encouraging innovation, and making the overall campus computing experience more efficient, as well as to enhancing student life.  Please check out the Draft IT Strategic Plan and leave some feedback by visiting umt.edu/it/strategicplan.

If you are one of the  users experiencing issues with copying and pasting text between your desktop and Citrix applications, fret no further! Student Affairs IT has a patch for this. If you’re experiencing difficulties, please feel free to contact our office at x2002 and we can set up a time that best suits you to take care of it; this fix generally takes 5 minutes. You can also speak to the RTAs during their departmental rounds if it is more convenient.

This month is another topic for those of you who are editors on your department website.

Did you know that SAIT provides training on how to be a better web editor? We host an hour long training session every month and it is hands down the quickest, easiest, and most personalized opportunity you are going to get to expand your skillset to be a better web author.

The classes are more than just how to use software. Those who attend get the know-how on meeting federal accessibility laws, doing search engine optimization (SEO), and how to make the hard choices on content and navigation.

No background knowledge is required to attend these sessions.

Take a look at the [LINK: /web/training/training_classes] web training schedule [/LINK] and block it off in your calendar.

Ctrl+Shift+N: creates a new folder

Alt+Tab: Switch between open programs

Alt+F4: Quit Program

For Dual Monitors:

Windows Key+Shift+Left Arrow Key: Moves active window to left monitor.

 As the year winds to a close, Student Affairs IT will be bidding a fond farewell to Crystal Hinderliter, the Pantzer Hall RTA and a  member of the Enrollment Services and University Villages rounds.  Crystal began working at SAIT in the fall of 2009 as the Aber Hall RTA before coming to her current post.  Affectionately referred to as the “iGel Guru” within the office, her dedication and enthusiasm  on a huge variety of projects over the years will be greatly missed.  After graduating with a degree in Chemistry and a secondary  education teaching certificate, she will be moving back to Great Falls and pursuing a career as a high school chemistry teacher.