Author: Andrew Ruether

Academic Technology, Faculty/Staff, Moodle

Moodle Updates for Fall 2016

Andrew Ruether

We just updated our Moodle site to version 3.1. There are a variety of new features and improvements to make using Moodle easier. On August 23-24, 2016, the Academic Technologists are holding Moodle Help Desk Hours to meet with individual faculty to provide assistance with getting courses set up in Moodle.  We also have a workshop scheduled for Collecting and Grading Assignments Electronically in Moodle. For more details, times, and to sign up for individual help visit our workshop pages on the campus calendar. Among the improvements for this Fall: Better online grading: faculty can now mark up and grade a variety of document types, including MS Word, … Continue reading Moodle Updates for Fall 2016

Academic Technology, Faculty/Staff, Software, Students

MATLAB Licensing

Andrew Ruether

Last year we enhanced our MATLAB licensing to allow any Swarthmore community member to install MATLAB and all available toolboxes without requiring a connection to a license manager every session. This makes it easier for faculty and students to do their work from off campus as well as eliminates any problems with running out of licenses. MATLAB users do need to check in with MathWorks every so often to make sure their licenses are still valid. If you receive a message that your license will expire soon, see the instructions on our MATLAB page to update your license. Continue reading MATLAB Licensing

Faculty/Staff, Students, Workshops and Training

Social Media for Departments, Groups, and Clubs: Lunchtime Workshop on 2/5/2016

Andrew Ruether

Do you work on social media for a department, group, or club at Swarthmore? Are you interested in learning more about how to effectively use social media? Join ITS for lunch and a workshop on Friday, 2/5/2016 at the Beardsley Media Center to discuss and develop a strategy for your social media presence. Let’s chat about how to improve communication on social media channels. We’ll discuss posting strategies, multiple platforms, and leave time for specific questions as well. Pre-registration is required and lunch is provided. Visit the ITS Events page to sign up: http://www.swarthmore.edu/its/events. This session will be led by … Continue reading Social Media for Departments, Groups, and Clubs: Lunchtime Workshop on 2/5/2016

Academic Technology, Faculty/Staff, Software, Students, Workshops and Training

Spring 2016 Academic Technology Workshop Schedule Published

Andrew Ruether

Swarthmore ITS is hosting a series of lunchtime workshops on Fridays from 12:30-1:30PM during the Spring 2016 semester. The workshops are open to all members of the Swarthmore community and will be focused on introducing new technologies in an approachable, hands-on way.  Events include: Introduction to Cloud Computing with Amazon Web Services Social Media for Departments, Groups, and Clubs Command Line Basics Help! My Files Have Been Encrypted and Are Being Held for Ransom! Academic Poster Design and Printing For the full schedule, see www.swarthmore.edu/its/its-events. Continue reading Spring 2016 Academic Technology Workshop Schedule Published

Workshops and Training

Spring 2016 Academic Technology Workshop Series Begins with Introduction to GitHub

Andrew Ruether

Swarthmore College ITS is hosting a series of Lunchtime Academic Technology Workshops this spring for students, staff, and faculty. Topics include software version control with GitHub, Social Media for Departments, Groups, and Clubs, Ransomware, Cloud Computing with Amazon Web Services, and academic poster design. All the workshops are held on Fridays from 12:30PM to 1:30PM. A full schedule will be published later this week. The series starts with an “Introduction to GitHub” workshop on Friday January 22, 2016 from 12:30PM to 1:30PM in the McCabe Computer Classroom (room 306). In this workshop, participants will learn how to create their own … Continue reading Spring 2016 Academic Technology Workshop Series Begins with Introduction to GitHub

Software, Web Projects

New version of Chrome is causing some issues

Andrew Ruether

The latest release of the Google Chrome browser (version 45+) has implemented some changes that can affect the appearance and performance of web pages.  The updates are designed to make Chrome use less memory and run faster, but have had some side effects that may cause problems. The latest version of Chrome has disabled support for many plug-ins including Java and Silverlight.  Content that worked in the past may not display any longer. Chrome will now “auto-pause Flash content that’s not central to a website.”  If you have a site with a video or other multimedia content that is not functioning, … Continue reading New version of Chrome is causing some issues