Link to An Academic Technologist’s Toolbox
Tis the Season to… PATCH!
There have been a lot of patches/fixes released recently for various applications and operating systems. It’s ALWAYS important to apply these patches as soon as they become available. Why? Because someone somewhere will be trying to compromise your computer via these unpatched weaknesses. Most often, simply browsing a web site can be enough to infect your machine. Some operating systems and applications are pretty good at automatically upgrading when patches become available. Others, not so much. One recently released, important patch is the fix for Internet Explorer’s latest security hole. If configured correctly, your Windows PC should’ve already downloaded and … Continue reading Tis the Season to… PATCH!
Faculty & Staff: Want to use MS Office on your home computer?
As part of our Campus Agreement with Microsoft, faculty and staff are now permitted to install Microsoft Office applications on personally owned computers. There will be a charge to you for the use of the software but it will be much less than what you would pay for the Academic boxed version. To order your copy of the software, you will need a special link and program code. This information and complete instructions will be distributed to all faculty and staff in the Faculty-Staff Digest on Thursday, December 18th. Please watch for this email and contact the help desk if … Continue reading Faculty & Staff: Want to use MS Office on your home computer?
Important Security Warning for Internet Explorer Users
UPDATE: Microsoft has released a patch for this important security hole. Your Windows PC should’ve installed the patch already (indicated by a pesky need to reboot). If not or if you’re unsure, you can run Microsoft Update (or Windows Update) or go to the Microsoft Download Center. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A security exposure was recently discovered within Internet Explorer (IE) that could allow malicious software to be installed on your computer without your knowledge. There is virtually no limit to what this malicious software could do once installed but might include logging user keystrokes, stealing passwords, etc. Simply browsing an infected or … Continue reading Important Security Warning for Internet Explorer Users
ITS welcomes Dan Berlin to the Media Center
Please join ITS in welcoming Daniel Berlin to our staff. Dan is our new media center associate. Dan is tasked with keeping the Beardsley Media Center in good working order and supporting the faculty, staff, and students who are working on video, audio, imaging, and printing projects in the Center. Dan graduated from University of The Arts, College of Media and Communication in Philadelphia with a BFA in Writing for Film and Television. In addition to his work in the Beardsley Media Center, Dan freelances as a videographer, editor, stagehand, boom operator, and all-round A/V specialist. Stop by the Beardsley … Continue reading ITS welcomes Dan Berlin to the Media Center
New Guide to Using Copyrighted Material in the Classroom
American University’s Center for Social Media has issued a new guide to using copyrighted materials in the classroom. The authoring of the guide involved over 150 educators and a review by experts in copyright law. Overall, the publication stresses the flexibility of the “fair use” provisions of copyright law which may allow for more legal use of copyrighted materials in teaching than many educators believe. Read the Chronicle of Higher Education’s brief coverage. Read the guide: The Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Media Literacy Education Continue reading New Guide to Using Copyrighted Material in the Classroom
Open an Unanticipated PDF File, Infect Your PC!
Most everyone knows not to open executables (e.g., .exe, .bat, etc.) and documents (e.g., .doc, .xls, .ppt, .html, etc.) received via email when they’re not expected. However, did you know that Adobe Acrobat documents (.pdf) fall into the same category?? It’s quite straightforward for an attacker to invisibly modify a pdf document in such a way that it takes control of your PC when you open it. Unfortunately, anti-virus programs won’t always detect these malicious pdf documents accurately. There are two ways to protect yourself: 1. Make sure you have the latest version of Adobe software (go to Help and … Continue reading Open an Unanticipated PDF File, Infect Your PC!