Academic Tech Fair 2010 Re-Cap

Thanks to everyone who participated in the 2010 Academic Technology Fair.  For those of you who are looking for more information on some of the great topics presented this year, or for those who were unable to attend, all of our materials are now available for download: DimDim is a web-based, real-time, collaboration solution that allows for easy, cross-platform (Windows, Mac and Linux, equally) conferencing.  Only presenters who want to share their screens—not attendees—need to install anything.  If you need to present somewhere when it would be inconvenient to go in person, DimDim can help you get there “virtually.” DimDim … Continue reading Academic Tech Fair 2010 Re-Cap

Give Your Computer a Fighting Chance

Regardless of the type of computer you use, someone somewhere is always trying to infect it or break in.  One of the best defenses you have is keeping your operating system and applications up to date.  Today, like it or not, patching is a necessity although many treat it as optional. When software vendors announce patches, miscreants immediately begin reverse engineering (if they weren’t already) the changes to determine where the security holes exist in the software.  They then write code designed to exploit these holes and gain access to your computer.  The number one way to deliver this malicious … Continue reading Give Your Computer a Fighting Chance

SwatFiles Drive

Have you tried SwatFiles – the system that lets you store and share your files online?  You can upload your files and access them from any computer with an Internet connection – no VPN needed.  In addition, you can share your files with selected colleagues whether at Swarthmore or not.  You can also use SwatFiles as a drop box, simple wiki system, and a web server .  All faculty, staff, and students have space on the system.  You can access SwatFiles at swatfiles.swarthmore.edu. For the folks that are already using SwatFiles, one common question is how to easily edit files. … Continue reading SwatFiles Drive

SwatFiles Upgrade on July 31, 2010

ITS completed an upgrade to the web version of Swatfiles on Saturday, July 31st. The new version is available at http://swatfiles.swarthmore.edu and the dashboard. Existing browser bookmarks to Swatfiles continue to work without change, as does Swatfiles Drive software for those people who use that software. The new version offers several improvements, including: a better bookmarking tool on the Swatfiles menu bar thumbnail views of image files and quick previews of other documents A new “More Actions” button with convenient features like the ability to download whole folders as zip files. improved document searching easier file/folder locking and unlocking. Bookmarks … Continue reading SwatFiles Upgrade on July 31, 2010

Swarthmore’s Software Revision Control System available to Faculty, Staff, and Students

Are you working on a project that involves software development?  You may be interested in Swarthmore’s software revision control system.  Called gForge, this service is now available to the Swarthmore community. The biggest reason to use gForge is its revision control features.  It provides a Subversion (SVN) repository for each project that you can use to control the revision levels of your software.  Instead of relying on renaming files to indicate versions, you and any collaborators can always have the latest version of your software handy while also keeping every revision from the very beginning of your project. gForge also … Continue reading Swarthmore’s Software Revision Control System available to Faculty, Staff, and Students

Tips for Avoiding Malware Infections

Below are some recommendations for reducing the risk of malware infections to your PC or Mac.  Many of these were discussed in the recent Staff Development Week presentation on “Immunizing Your Computer in Today’s Online World“. General Keep Patches Up to Date Operating system –AND- applications e.g., Adobe Reader & Flash, QuickTime, Java, etc. Use latest browsers with patches up to date – Currently (1/12/11):  Internet Explorer 9, Firefox 9.0.1, Safari 5.1.2 – Don’t run Safari on Windows Use Anti-virus  -AND-  Anti-spyware Keep signatures up to date Run scans regularly Macs Too!!  (Sophos.com has free A/V for Macs under “Free … Continue reading Tips for Avoiding Malware Infections