Summer Software Developers: Don’t forget version control

If you are planning on doing software development this summer, consider using some form of version control software.  This will let you backup your work, allow you to roll back to a previous version, and make it easy for multiple users to work on the same code.  If you are still appending suffixes on to different versions of your program (e.g. myapp, myapp_1, myapp_2, myapp_old, etc.) version control will be a big help. There are a number of free or paid options available online, but ITS offers a free software development system including version control.  If you are interested, get … Continue reading Summer Software Developers: Don’t forget version control

Print Release Station Saves Trees, CO2, Real $$

The Print Release Stations, which we’ve tested a bit in McCabe, and have been testing in the Beardsley Media Center continuously since Spring Break, have led to real savings in resources not used…  that is, jobs that people send to the printer, but choose not to actually print (or just forget to pick up). In the past one month (April 5, 2011 to May 5, 2011) we have saved a total of 8,159 pages, of which, 5,847 were color pages and 2,312 were grayscale.  They would have been printed on 5,807 sheets of paper (some people choose duplex).  To put … Continue reading Print Release Station Saves Trees, CO2, Real $$

Do you crave more power?

ITS probably can’t help you with your plans for world domination, but we do have lots of computing power that we can share with you this summer. Virtual Desktops – If you are running projects that can use extra Windows-based systems, we have a pool of “virtual” computers that run on ITS servers and can be accessed from anywhere.  You can run a processor-intensive job on the virtual computer and leave your desktop computer free to perform other operations.  This is also useful if your program needs to run under Windows but you have a Mac or Linux system.  If … Continue reading Do you crave more power?

Make sure you back up all your important files and email before graduation!

Congratulations Swarthmore class of 2011! It is time to prepare for your upcoming account expiration on June 15th. We know this is a busy time in your life, but that makes it all the more important that you read the attached web page carefully. Now is the time to be saving all the work you have completed while at Swarthmore and transitioning to a new email address. What will happen to my accounts? The following Swarthmore accounts will be disabled on June 15th: * Voice Mail * Email (ability to check, receive, or forward your Swarthmore email) * Network (userfolders, … Continue reading Make sure you back up all your important files and email before graduation!

Ideas for Summer Projects and Research

We are only a few weeks away from the start of the summer research season.  Are you trying to accomplish more with your projects this summer?  Do you find that documenting summer projects has been difficult, time consuming, or ineffective?  If you are looking for ways to improve how you document, publicize, or carry out your research projects, ITS is here to help. Wikis – Wikis are ideal for documenting group projects because they make it easy to create and update web pages that link to one another and keep a history of all the contributions of each member.  Instead … Continue reading Ideas for Summer Projects and Research

Work for ITS this Summer or next Fall!

Work for ITS this Summer or next Fall! Information Technology Services is now hiring student employees for Summer and/or Fall 2011 positions. All academic majors and experience levels are encouraged to apply. If you enjoy working with technology and helping others solve problems, please consider working with us. Please visit the online job descriptions and applications: http://www.swarthmore.edu/itsjobs.xml Continue reading Work for ITS this Summer or next Fall!