UNL Geeks

Make sure to finalize roster before using the peer review tool

2010-09-13T14:05:00.000-06:00

Today, when our first self & peer review assignment went into the review submissions phase we realized we had a problem when four students who were to have been dropped from the course, were still listed as reviewers. We then had to play detectives and figure out all the students affected and then reassign them partners manually. This was more than a bit tedious. Thus, before your peer review assignment goes live, make sure your roster is finalized and that you don't have any test student user accounts live in the course either.

Blackboard's Self & Peer Review Tool - An overview

2010-09-09T16:08:00.001-06:00

I'll be doing a series on this tool because I think it could be something along these lines...

As "Dropbox" was to "Assignment Manager," "Assignment Manager" will be to the "Self and Peer Review" tool.

One of the problems with our large classes is that assessments are typically done infrequently and in multiple choice format. This approach aids long-term recall much less than does repeated testing, which might be better described as repeated required opportunities for recall (fill-in-the-blank, short answer, essay) as opposed to recognition (multiple choice).

Instructors know this, but they also know they cannot grade 95 essays or short answer responses time and time again.

Enter Blackboard's Self & Peer Assessment tool.

Using this, students not only submit an assignment for review, but they are then required to assess the quality of a number of their peers' assignments and thereby multiply the opportunities to study and analyze the material -- all with assessment criteria provided by their instructor.

Here's a link to my tool overview: http://bit.ly/Bbpeerreview

Read more about improving recall:
"Recent Research on Human Learning Challenges Conventional Instructional Strategies"

Google Calendar for Course Schedules

2010-09-08T08:26:00.000-06:00

Awesome for overlapping activities

I've been recommending faculty make use of Google Calendar for course schedules. Not only does it make it easy to manage multiple sections, but the ease of date changes and students' ability to subscribe to the calendar make it quite convenient.

Make a new calendar just for that course, then using the sharing feature, set it to public and get the embed code from the Settings screen. Add an item to your Bb space and enter HTML mode. Then paste. Always up-to-date. I have one instructor who has several sections of the same course on the same schedule and this is a great solution for her.

If you support faculty, being able to subscribe to their schedules makes it super quick to get an overview of what's going on in the courses you support.

Mobile Learning 2.0 event

2010-03-01T12:30:00.000-06:00

Jim King and I are hosting an Educause Learning Initiative (ELI) online focus session entitled "Mobile Learning 2.0: The Next Phase of Innovation in Mobility" on March 3-4 from 11:00 am to 4:00 pm in TEAC 202. Please come to all or part of this event as you are able. This is an important conversation this campus needs to be having, and I welcome everyone's participation.

Visit http://go.unl.edu/9ft for details.

Bruce

20 Essential Things to Know About the HTML5 Web Language - Application Development from eWeek

2010-02-11T13:31:00.001-06:00

20 Essential Things to Know About the HTML5 Web Language - Application Development from eWeek

Posted using ShareThis

Perdue's attempt to identify at-risk students

2009-10-07T14:19:00.001-06:00

Helpful information about "Academic Analytics: A New Tool for a New Era (EDUCAUSE Review) | EDUCAUSE".

Few instructors I work with at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln make use of the analytic tools provided in our Blackboard system.

What do you think? Meddling too much? Students need to take their own initiative?

in reference to:

"Using Course Management System Data to Identify At-Risk Students at Purdue UniversityPurdue University is extracting data from the course management system (CMS) to build models that predict which students may be struggling academically and to provide proactive intervention. Purdue's premise is that student academic success is the result of the student's aptitude (as measured by standardized test scores and similar information) and the student's effort (as measured by participation within the CMS). The CMS was selected as the initial focus because of broad campus adoption and the automatic collection of more than twenty activity variables, ranging from the time spent within the CMS to the number of discussion postings. Since it can be difficult to understand how each faculty member utilizes the CMS, an individual's data is compared with that of his/her peers. The resulting comparison provides a standardized value of student effort (e.g., the number of discussion postings is shown as the standard deviation from the class mean). If the faculty member decides not to utilize a tool, everyone in the course is "average." Using factor analysis and logistic regression, a model was developed to predict student success within a course. Six variables were found to be significant: ACT or SAT score Overall grade-point average CMS usage composite CMS assessment composite CMS assignment composite CMS calendar compositeTwo models were developed and validated: for freshmen and for the overall campus population. Both models included the same significant variables, but the variables differed in importance. In each model, the CMS data significantly contributed to predicting academic success. However, the freshman-only model was able to correctly classify nearly 80 percent of the students, whereas the all-student model was able to correctly classify only 67 percent of the students. Purdue's next step is to connect the results of the predictive models to existing student-intervention programs including help desks, supplemental instruction, and similar programs."
- Academic Analytics: A New Tool for a New Era (EDUCAUSE Review) | EDUCAUSE (view on Google Sidewiki)

No Scrollbar in the Blackboard Grade Center?

2009-01-07T08:08:00.000-06:00

If you are using Firefox on a PC, you may notice that there are no scroll bars when you view the new Blackboard Grade Center. This problem is related to the scroll bar settings in Windows XP and Windows Vista. Below are instructions on how to change the scroll bar settings:

Windows XP:
-Go Control Panel
-Click on Display Properties
-Click on the Appearance tab
-Select the Advanced button
-Select the Scroll Bar from the Item drop down list
-Change the setting to 19
-Submit

Windows Vista:
-Go to the Control Panel
-Click on Personalize
-Select the Window Color and Appearance option.
-Click the Open Classic Appearance link
-Click on the Advanced button
-Select the Scroll Bar from the Item drop down list
-Change the setting to 19
-Submit

Blackboard Version 8 Upgrade

2009-01-06T08:50:00.001-06:00

Your My.UNL team upgraded the Blackboard software over the Holiday Closedown. Faculty may notice these changes:

The Gradebook is different. The new Grade Center allows faculty to enter scores more efficiently, freeze names for easier scrolling, and drop lowest/highest scores. Please go to http://training.unl.edu and look in the What's New area for more information and training opportunities.

The Digital Drop Box is gone. The Blackboard Assignment Manager tool is an improvement on the Drop Box. Faculty post assignments, and students upload their completed assignment directly back into Blackboard. Faculty can download student work, provide feedback, and enter their grade in the Grade Center.

To learn more about the Assignment Manager, go to http://itg.unl.edu/myunl/index.shtml, click on the Faculty/TA tab, and look for the Using Assignments tutorial under Blackboard Assessments.

If you have any questions,please contact the Help Desk at 472-3970 (outside of Lincoln, toll free at 866-472-3970), or via email at helpdesk@unl.edu

So you want to drop the lowest grade out of a bunch of quizzes

2008-10-28T11:40:00.000-06:00

Tested method for dropping the lowest grade:

Create all of the individual grade columns, e.g. news quizzes. Do not include those scores in the grade summary.
Create a column/item called something like "Quiz Average" (included so students can see what their grade would be without dropping the lowest item). Do not include in grade summary.
Create a column/item called "Quiz Average sans Lowest Grade." Include for grade summary.
Download gradebook from Bb and open in Excel
Use a formula to get the average quiz grade. =AVERAGE(cell_ref:cell_ref)
Use a forumula to get the average quiz grade sans lowest grade. =(SUM(cell_ref:cell_ref)-MIN(cell_ref:cell_ref))/(COUNT(cell_ref:cell_ref)-1)
Upload newly calculated fields to Bb gradebook.

ATTENTION ALL SafeAssign USERS!

2008-10-20T06:52:00.000-06:00

Your My.UNL team updated our SafeAssign software over Fall Break. The new version of SafeAssign will now accept .docx files. With the progress comes two issues that are important:

#1. All faculty who are using SafeAssign, in their classes must use the SafeAssign tool to resynchronize their class. To do this, you will need to go to each course, then click on the Control Panel, then Click on SafeAssign, and then click on the link that says "Synchronize this Course". The synchronization process may take a while.

#2. All SafeAssign users (faculty and students) must set their browsers to accept cookies from the SafeAssign website. If you do not, you will receive an error when trying to use SafeAssign. Instructions for doing this can be found here: SafeAssign Cookies.

If you have any questions, please contact the Computer Help Center at 472-3970 (or, if you're outside of Lincoln, toll free at 866-472-3970) or via email at helpdesk@unl.edu.

Safe Assign Unavailable

2008-09-24T13:18:00.000-06:00

Please note that Blackboard SafeAssignTM will be unavailable while undergoing maintenance on Saturday, September 27. This maintenance window is part of an update which will include the following improvements:

* Support for Microsoft Office 2007 (.docx) and OpenOffice (.odt) word processing documents
* Support for use of SafeAssign in Blackboard Community SystemTM Organizations
* Stability enhancements
* Bug fixes

The system is expected to be intermittently unavailable from the morning through evening (EDT) on September 27

Work Around for Firefox 3 and Blackboard Issues

2008-08-25T09:06:00.003-06:00

Thanks for finding and testing this Sydney!

5 Sources for Free Computer Technology Education Online

2008-05-06T13:12:00.002-06:00

Lacking in computer knowledge? Here are 40 computer technology courses that can be taken for free online.

Coming Soon, to Any Flat Surface Near You

2008-04-01T11:20:00.001-06:00

By ANNE EISENBERG
Published: March 30, 2008
Tired of hearing other people’s cellphone conversations? Soon you may have to watch their favorite television shows and YouTube videos, too.

Bringing Outlook and Gmail Closer Together

2008-03-26T12:51:00.000-06:00

Technology
Bits: Bringing Outlook and Gmail Closer Together
By Miguel Helft
Published: March 25, 2008
A new service allows people to use Microsoft's Outlook and Gmail interchangeably.

Blackboard Downtime!

2007-12-10T13:53:00.001-06:00

Blackboard will be unavailable starting at 4 p.m. December 28, 2007 and will remain unavailable until Midnight, January 4, 2008. Your My.UNL team will use this time for server maintenance.

Spring 2008 Blackboard Courses Available

2007-11-27T14:44:00.000-06:00

Spring 2008 courses have been loaded and are now available. If you are teaching a class and do not see it on your My.UNL page, check with your department and make sure they have listed you as the instructor of record with Records and Registration. All access to Blackboard courses is controlled by Records and Registration data.

Geek To Live: Rock Your Presentation with the Right Tools and Apps

2007-11-16T11:41:00.000-06:00

Geek To Live: Rock Your Presentation with the Right Tools and Apps: "Rock Your Presentation with the Right Tools and Apps"

Great list of stuff for helping make your presentations or lectures waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay more better.

:)

Google Enters the Wireless World

2007-11-06T11:26:00.000-06:00

Technology
Google Enters the Wireless World
By MIGUEL HELFT and JOHN MARKOFF
Published: November 6, 2007
Google said Monday that it is leading a broad industry effort to develop new software technologies aimed at turning cellphones into powerful mobile computers.

Classroom of the Future Is Virtually Anywhere

2007-11-01T08:26:00.000-06:00

On Education
Classroom of the Future Is Virtually Anywhere
By JOSEPH BERGER
Published: October 31, 2007
There is no blackboard and no lectern, and, most glaringly, no students in the university classroom of the future.

KPBS Radio Covers Wildfires Using Many Sources

2007-10-26T08:56:00.000-06:00

KPBS Radio Covers Wildfires Using Many Sources
by David Folkenflik

Morning Edition, October 26, 2007 · San Diego public radio station KPBS informs listeners about the wildfires ravaging southern California through many sources. Though briefly knocked off the air it still became an resource, including Internet maps of the fire, evacuation and shelter information.

(Very thought-provoking story highlighting the use of mymaps, twitter, etc. as communication tools in a disaster situation)

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=15655316

is your work machine ready for the new OS X?

2007-10-17T16:11:00.000-06:00

I'm actually not talking about making sure that your computer meets the minimum requirements... and the decision as to whether the new feature set is something that you want is totally up to you. A comprehensive list of what's new is available here to help you make that decision (Apple marketing being helpful). :)

Yesterday I realized that all of the Mac OS X "up to date" licenses in my area had expired, so I needed to square us away before the end of next week. Apple sells a maintenance license for OS X (AMP) to educational institutions for $79 per machine that covers all OS X upgrades for a period of 3 years. As far as I know, the license is only available for departmental computers. The catch is that you need to be legally up to date with the most recent version of OS X, and you need to have purchased the AMP license before the new OS X is released. At the time I'm writing this, that gives you almost exactly 9 days.

Here at UNL, our internal part number for the $79 license is 114234. If you go to the IS Computer Sales website and do a catalog search for that part number, it should give you the specifics.

Blackboard information

2007-09-11T16:05:00.000-06:00

I have added a few items to the Blackboard info list I am keeping on Google Docs. This document contains information on updates, known issues, fixes, work-arounds, etc. I hope this information helps. Here is the link: http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dfcvktxv_10c6cgnh

Please let me know if you have any questions, and have a great day!

Heath Tuttle
Online Learning Project Lead
Rm 118D, 501 Building
501 Stadium Drive
PO Box 880203
Lincoln, NE 68588-0203

402-472-4267
htuttle2@unl.edu

Be Your Own Search Engine

2007-09-01T19:48:00.000-06:00

Commentary
This Holiday Weekend, Be Your Own Search Engine

All Things Considered, August 31, 2007 · Commentator Bob Greene laments how so many people seem wedded to some kind of screen — be it computer, TV or iPhone. He urges everyone on this Labor Day weekend to turn them off and tune out.

iPod Course Design

2007-08-03T10:41:00.000-06:00

Interesting article from Campus Technology that tries to get at how to build the use of an iPod into the design of a course.

iPod Course Design:

"For insights into where teaching and learning is headed, it is worth watching the evolution of iPod use at Duke University (NC), well known for its 2004 iPod initiative. The initiative is now in its third year, the fall 2006 'standard iPod package' consisting not only of the newest 30GB fifth-generation video iPod, but also including a stereo voice recorder attachment.

Why the recorder?"

85 Free Killer Resources Every Designer Should Know

2007-07-27T09:03:00.000-06:00

85 Free Killer Resources Every Designer Should Know: "85 Free Killer Resources Every Designer Should Know"

45 Best Freeware Design Programs

2007-07-26T20:53:00.000-06:00

45 Best Freeware Design Programs: "45 Best Freeware Design Programs"

ONLINE PRODUCTIVITY GOD: 400 Resources To Make You Smarter, Faster & a Demon in the Sack

2007-07-26T20:49:00.000-06:00

ONLINE PRODUCTIVITY GOD: 400 Resources To Make You Smarter, Faster & a Demon in the Sack: "Getting things done isn’t easy. In fact, it’s incredibly tough. In this article, we look at four ways to get through your work faster: running your life online, mastering RSS news feeds, aggregating your social networks and using keyboard shortcuts to save precious seconds."

I Want an iPhone, The Musical

2007-07-06T07:15:00.000-06:00

Pretty funny:

http://video.on.nytimes.com/?fr_story=f390265dcbb9e1f1da97a69637e921d39b6c99aa

Graphics training on iTunes

2007-06-26T11:18:00.000-06:00

I hadn't noticed this before, but there are quite a few graphics training podcasts on iTunes--that are free. Resources from Lynda.com, Creative Cow, InDesign Secrets, Adobe Creative Suite, O'Reilly Media, and more...

Prepare for the SAT Test, or Play With Your iPod? Have It Both Ways

2007-06-25T09:59:00.000-06:00

Technology
Prepare for the SAT Test, or Play With Your iPod? Have It Both Ways
By MARIA ASPAN
Published: June 25, 2007
Kaplan Test Prep and Admissions, a traditional test preparation company, is offering interactive programs for downloading to iPods with video screens.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/25/technology/25kaplan.html?ex=1340510400&en=d9ce494f8a4c73d0&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

Text Complete :: Firefox Add-ons

2007-06-07T08:57:00.000-06:00

I spend a lot of time in my web browser and find that a text completion program/functionality really saves me a lot of time.
---------------------------
Text Complete :: Firefox Add-ons: "Text complete was built to ease the typing required by support staff entering standard responses into a web based support system.

It is also useful for any information that is often entered into form fields such as email addresses, phone numbers, or too just quickly add a signature to the end of a forum post."

Pen-based computing

2007-05-30T10:16:00.000-06:00

Take Note: Computing Takes Up Pen, Again
By MIGUEL HELFT
Published: May 30, 2007
An ambitious new type of pen-based computer system could bridge the gap between paper and the digital world.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/30/technology/30pen.html?ex=1338264000&en=3de8c469dc01fd42&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

Updated Journal and Team Sites in Blackboard

2007-05-17T10:18:00.000-06:00

The new versions of Journal and Team sites on Blackboard have brought name changes. What was previously known as Journals are now called Blogs, and what were previously known as Team Sites are now called Wikis. These tools work in a similar fashion as the previous version, with updates and a new layout.

The Podcasting module has been upgraded to the Oscelot Podcasting module. You will now access this module from the Tools section of your course or organization rather than from the Communication section.

Check out the My.UNL Tutorials site for more information.

NWS Hastings, NE image photo gallery

2007-05-10T09:25:00.000-06:00

NWS Hastings, NE image photo gallery: "
Do you have pictures of interesting weather across the Central Plains?
The National Weather Service in Hastings is looking for pictures that display the highly variable weather that can only be found in the Plains. If you have available pictures, we would love to have them to incorporate into our online photo gallery. Email your digital file to Webmaster and include when and where the picture was taken, along with a brief description of the phenomena. All pictures must be in a digital format (jpeg, gif, or png image), and we would prefer that any images be kept to a maximum size of 1280 x 960. If we use your picture for our gallery or for any web content on our site, you will be given full credit for your imagery. "

3D Printing

2007-05-07T08:30:00.000-06:00

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/07/technology/07copy.html?ex=1336276800&en=ce40cb968d7d88fd&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

Technology
Beam It Down From the Web, Scotty
By SAUL HANSELL
Published: May 7, 2007
New 3-D printers that transform three-dimensional plans online into solid objects could be in homes soon.

Google buys conferencing software

2007-04-24T10:10:00.001-06:00

Google bought the Marratech online conferencing software. I wonder what it will do with that??? Something cool, I bet.

NASA puts on 3-D glasses to view sun

2007-04-24T08:42:00.000-06:00

NASA puts on 3-D glasses to view sun
(uses the old red/blue method, but interesting anyway)
http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/space/04/23/solar.eruptions.ap/index.html

They're not just play things

2007-04-17T08:58:00.000-06:00

They're not just play things
TECHNOLOGY ON THE GO Businesses are tapping into the conveniences, revenue streams iPods can bring

http://www.suntimes.com/business/344265,cst-fin-pod17a.article

Beaming Up 3-D Objects on a Budget

2007-04-05T12:59:00.000-06:00

Business
Beaming Up 3-D Objects on a Budget
By PETER WAYNER
Published: April 5, 2007
Laser scanners with arrays of cameras can create digital models of objects that encode all the significant bumps, cracks, corners and facets of real things.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/05/business/05scan.html?ex=1333512000&en=8a16b48b9e126eaa&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

Connectivity

2007-04-03T13:12:00.000-06:00

The Information Services newsletter Connectivity is out this week. In addition to the paper edition the website features video segments and now has an rss feed you can subscribe to: http://is.unl.edu/connectivity

As always, we welcome any suggestions!
Jon

GrandCentral

2007-03-15T08:26:00.000-06:00

State of the Art
One Number That Will Ring All Your Phones
By DAVID POGUE
Published: March 15, 2007
A new service called GrandCentral can unify your cellphone with phones at work and home and perform many other tricks.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/15/technology/15pogue.html?ex=1331697600&en=23ffbea2ccdf7f8c&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

OpenID

2007-03-05T10:57:00.000-06:00

Thought this was interesting
From CNN Money:
JanRain has developed a single sign-on service for multiple passwords that lets people hop freely from site to site. Business demand for JanRain's services is expected to grow as Web 2.0 entertainment and social-networking sites proliferate.

http://janrain.com/

Introducing the book - Gutenberg offers 'In your home' support - on Bore Me

2007-03-02T10:25:00.000-06:00

Introducing the book - Gutenberg offers 'In your home' support - on Bore Me: "Introducing the book"

A little Friday fun for anyone who's done some tech support.

Vista Progress Chart

2007-03-01T16:33:00.000-06:00

If you're looking for how MS Vista interacts with common UNL applications go to http://www.unl.edu/is/vista.shtml. This page is updated daily. If you are interested in testing an application, there is an internal developer site in Blackboard that is feeding this public page. Contact the Help Desk for info.

CoffeeCup Flash Form Builder

2007-02-28T15:32:00.000-06:00

I've used a couple different form builders (including Forms To Go) while making HTML forms for clients. CoffeeCup's Flash Form Builder is the best I've used by far. In less than five minutes I had a form on the web asking for First and Last Name, Email, Phone, and Comments...all with touching zero code...that's right ZERO CODE!

http://www.coffeecup.com/form-builder/

Filename with special characters giving you grief?

2007-02-27T11:31:00.001-06:00

Today, I had a professor who needed to download a PDF syllabus from a course but kept getting errors because the upgraded Blackboard installation doesn't tolerate spaces or special characters in the filename. In this particular prof's case, spaces in the filename made the system generate "file not found" errors.

I was able to get the file for her by copying the file (Control Panel Copy Files to Collection) to my content collection. During the process, the file was renamed (eliminating spaces in the name) and moved where it was easily downloaded.

adding value through podcasting

2007-02-22T10:27:00.001-06:00

Just stumbled onto one of Andy Ramsden's posts from nearly a year ago. Andy supports the University of Bristol and has done some cool things there including a fireside chat podcast about Blackboard, and a Blackboard support blog. The post that I'm linking to below provides a nice, approachable, introduction to a potential use of podcasting in a course.

Handheld Learning - Handheld and Mobile Technology for Schools and Universities - Adding value through podcasting:

"What is podcasting?

Podcasting is the delivery of an audio file through a subscription based model where the student makes a conscious decision to install the appropriate software on their internet connected device, and then subscribe to the podcast feed. Once subscribed when a new audio file is added to the podcast feed then the individual will automatically receive the file.

This differs from the traditional approach of delivering audio files which involves the student locating the audio file on the course webspace and then clicking on the link to receive the file.

An important difference between the two models is that a podcast approach requires the student to own an internet connected device, while the browse and download model can be undertaken on any internet connected machine. In other words the student can use a computer on campus"

Google Send to Phone for Firefox

2007-02-16T09:34:00.000-06:00

Google Send to Phone for Firefox: "Google Send to Phone for Firefox is an extension that enables you to send short text messages of web page content to your mobile phone. For example, you might text message yourself a phone number, an address, or directions that you find on the Web."

.docx converters

2007-02-15T10:35:00.000-06:00

If someone sends you a .docx file and you can't open it here are a few options:

Explain to them how to use "Save As" to create a file you can open
Simply convert it and get on with your life

If you choose option 2, here are some tools you might be interested in:

DOCX CONVERTER: an online conversion tool. "It will convert a Microsoft Office .docx file into a simple html file. It strips out some of the formatting, but now supports bold, italic, and underlined text. Left, right, center, and justified alignment. Unicode characters. Tables. And more!" This solution works for ever platform cuz it's online!
For Windows users, the OpenXML Translator add-in for MS Word might be most convenient and likely to retain more complex formatting. I installed and tried to test this, but haven't yet got it working, so can't verify that this will work for you.
For Macs, try the DOCX Converter widget
Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint 2007 File Formats this appears to the the official thingmabob.
Finally, refuse to be bound to a proprietary word processing format and make the change to OpenOffice which supports the ODF (Open Document Format) and runs on multiple platforms. It was mentioned as being able to convert the .docx files, but again I've haven't tested this.

good luck!

Important info for Office 2007 users!

2007-02-15T10:00:00.001-06:00

The latest version of Microsoft Office "Office 2007" introduces a new
file format (using XML) that may not work with older versions of
Office. example, older versions of Microsoft Office save Word
documents as .doc files. Office 2007 saves Word documents
as .docx files. versions of Microsoft Office -- Office 2000,
Office XP, and Office 2003 and Office 2004 (Mac) -- cannot open .docx
files. has made a converter tool available for Windows
versions of Office (they haven't released anything for Mac users yet).

Until more people upgrade to Office 2007 or download the converter
tool, you should probably avoid saving your Word 2007 documents in
Microsoft's new .docx file format. you should click the
Office Button, choose "Save As", and choose Word 97-2003 format.
This saves your Word 2007 document as a .doc file that can be opened
and read in older versions of Microsoft Word.

Excel and PowerPoint 2007 also use new file formats -- .xlsx
and .pptx that also cannot be opened in older versions of Office.
When saving an Excel 2007 spreadsheet or PowerPoint 2007
presentation, click the Office Button, choose "Save As", and save
your spreadsheet or presentation in the old file format.

To force Office 2007 to always save your new files in the
old .doc, .ppt, or .xls file formats, click the Office Button, choose
Options, click Save, and in the "Save files in this format" pull-down
list, choose the old file format. will need to do this in each
Office 2007 program.

For anyone who hasn't yet seen Office 2007 and/or Vista, Information
Services is hosting free previews of Office 2007 and Vista on
Thursday, February 22 in the City Union Auditorium. Please join us at
1:00p.m.-2:30p.m. to see the redesigned interfaces of Microsoft 2007
Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

Tracking blog conversations

2007-02-14T07:24:00.000-06:00

A service I'm beginning to find indispensable is co.mments.com. After registering, you put a little link in your browser toolbar and any blog comments page you're on can then be tracked and you can see when someone responds to your post. This speeds the conversation turn-taking.

Outline of Google presentation for Distance Ed Luncheon

2007-02-13T13:22:00.000-06:00

Collaboration using Google - Google Docs & Spreadsheets

Recasting the Word Processor for a Connected World

2007-02-12T13:53:00.000-06:00

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/11/business/yourmoney/11proto.html?ex=1328850000&en=93dd36273d0f5979&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

Recasting the Word Processor for a Connected World
By MICHAEL FITZGERALD
Published: February 11, 2007
Timing is the bane of those who would be innovators. Get it right and you’ll be toasted. Get it wrong and you’re just plain toast.

"ThinkFree, which offers Web-based word processor, spreadsheet and presentation software that replicates much of what Microsoft’s comparable applications do, and can easily exchange files and other data with Microsoft applications..."

Check out Yahoo's Pipes

2007-02-09T12:49:00.001-06:00

Anyone playing with yet? This looks super cool and I'm going to have to carve out some time to play with it. Basically, it seems to be a wysiwyg RSS aggregator on 'roids.

Technorati Tags: pipes, rss, blog, feed

Tracking changes to web pages & discussion boards

2007-02-08T11:37:00.000-06:00

This morning on the BB-user listserv a poster wanted to know if he could somehow track when an update was made to a forum in Blackboard. Currently, you can subscribe to a particular thread, but the creation of new threads requires a visit to find out about them, which can delay feedback and interaction from and with an instructor or fellow student.

But, there is a solution that one can implement with a little know how.

There is a "page change alert" service called "TrackEngine" located at
http://www.trackengine.com that will check web pages for changes and notify you of same based on
parameters you set. It works with password protected pages as well.
(I just tested it on my own Bb course)

The trick is that your message board forums are displayed in a frame.
Consequently, you must get the URL for the forum page. You do this by
right-clicking (or control-clicking if you have a one-button mac
mouse) in the frame and "opening the frame in a new window." In
Firefox, this options appears under options accessed through the "This
Frame" on the menu.

Once it opens in a new window, you can copy and paste the URL into a
TrackEngine bookmark. Let me know if you would like any more info.

For other tools that do the same job, either web based or desktop installable, please visit Steven Bell's "Keeping Up" Web Site."

--------- From Bell's site -----------
What is a Web Page Change Detection Service

A Web page detection service allows an individual to track changes made on a specific web page. This process begins by choosing and subscribing to a change detection service. Then the URLs to monitor are identified. Whenever there is a change to one of these URLs, the detection service will send you an e-mail to notify you of a change. The e-mail will contain a link to the page to facilitate access. Depending on the service you choose there may be a fee or it may be free. If free, the number of URLs you can monitor may be limited or the options for tracking the page may be limited. As with all things, the more you pay (and none of these services is particularly costly) the more you get.
-----------

iPod will be the new CD

2007-02-06T16:04:00.000-06:00

While this article is about the music business, it has an application for information "handouts" as the cost of flash drives decreases. Maybe a prospective student gets handed an N-branded ipod with everything they want to know or see about UNL...

http://www.wired.com/news/columns/0,72656-0.html?tw=wn_index_7

Tool for getting better grades

2007-02-05T14:25:00.000-06:00

GradeFix.com is a cool site I found that helps students manage their time and improve their grades through time management. The online program uses algorithms to divide tasks over the amount of time students are willing to dedicate each day to getting their work done. It's pretty cool.

Daily Nebraskan

2007-02-02T23:40:00.000-06:00

This would be great! (I know, I know, it opens the door to marketing on the phone, but I love txt'ing and the convenience. Daily Nebraskan: "
The Association of Students of the University of Nebraska has been talking to Mobile Campus, which provides text messaging services to universities across the country."

For those other types of files...

2007-01-31T10:11:00.000-06:00

For those other types of files needed for sharing in Breeze Meeting, here is one solution.

I have an instructor who is teaching a Braille class. She has assignments where students need to use a program called Perky Duck to type Braille. She wanted to show some of those files within Breeze Meeting. However they would not convert to any of the Breeze-compatible formats.

My solution was to take a screen shot of the Perky Duck pages and insert the images into PowerPoint. I then published the PowerPoint to Breeze Presenter which allowed her to post it in either Blackboard (with narration) or share it during a Breeze meeting with her students. The images were clear enough for her to give them an idea of what she is looking for and allowed them to “be on the same page” while talking about a program new to them.

Flash Video Tutorial

2007-01-30T12:15:00.000-06:00

This is my first attempt at using Breeze Meeting to record my screen actions and my voice. I'm fairly satisfied with the recorded meeting. However, it seems the screen and mouse movements are a little ahead of the voice. However, for the extremely short wait time to view the tutorial, that might be worth it.

The tutorial is on Flash Video. What is Flash Video? What are the advantages of Flash Video? How do I make Flash Video? How do I upload Flash Video to a server?

Several websites (YouTube.com to name one) use Flash Video technology to progressively download their videos. Short wait times with optimum viewing size are a couple of advantages to using this technology.

Once the tutorial is showing my screen, an option box will appear on the lower-left of the share window. This box has two choices "Scale to Fit" and "Scroll". If you are having trouble reading what is being shown on my screen, click the "Scroll" option. This will make my screen 100% and the window will scroll automatically to my mouse location.

View the Tutorial

TextExpander: Customizable Typing Utility Saves Time!

2007-01-29T10:04:00.000-06:00

This is one of my favorite tools ..... if you find yourself typing the same sorts of things time after time, something like this is a godsend. Heck, I even use it so I don't have to type my whole email address out for logins and whatnot. I'm sure there's something similar for Windows, but don't know what that is. For macs, TextExpander rox.

TextExpander: Customizable Typing Utility Saves Time!: "TextExpander saves you countless keystrokes with customized abbreviations for your frequently-used text strings and images."

Conducting graduate seminars in Adobe...

2007-01-25T16:16:00.000-06:00

Conducting graduate seminars in Adobe...: "This article aims to help instructors make more use of an online conferencing application widely available at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln by placing its use in a particular context - that of a graduate seminar - but which could be any discussion-based session."

Original Signal

2007-01-24T09:55:00.000-06:00

A nice aggregated tech news site can be found at: http://web20.originalsignal.com/

Great Tech Blog

2007-01-22T22:30:00.000-06:00

"Creating Passionate Users" is a great tech blog and if you don't read it, you ought to give it a view.

David Pogue reviews the iPhone

2007-01-22T16:05:00.000-06:00

A quick and funny review of the iPhone launch by the NY Times columnist:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QjAUro09Fyo

Adobe Labs | Kuler

2007-01-19T23:39:00.000-06:00

Ever struggled to find that perfect color combination for your next web or print design? No more. Adobe Labs has released a free tool online for designers, developers, and all artists to use. Kuler is a color-theory type tool made to assist in color combinations.

Users can create color combinations using a color wheel and post them to Kuler. The combinations are then rated and made available for use. Kuler displays RGB, CMYK, LAB, HSV, and HEX values for the color combinations.

Kuler features Adobe Flash technology.

Check out the website for more info.

UNL Surplus Ebay Sales - Get revenue for unused technology surplus!

2007-01-19T15:19:00.000-06:00

Do you have unused equipment destined for a dusty warehouse? We take equipment no longer used by departments and turn them into revenue. It's that simple—at least, for the departments supplying the equipment. We take care of every step, from picking up the item to shipping it following a sale. All you have to do is point us to the item and tell us where to put the funds we recover for it.

UNL Surplus, over the past several years, has recovered hundreds of thousands of dollars for unused equipment, with the revenue (minus only our operating expenses) returning right back to each department. We would love to discuss your surplus and its possible value on Ebay—you might be very surprised at the return seemingly worthless pieces of legacy equipment! Please visit our website at http://surplus.unl.edu or contact us at unlsurplus@unlnotes.unl.edu. Thanks!

Cam Guenzel, Project Manager
UNL Surplus Online Auctions
unlsurplus@unlnotes.unl.edu
http://surplus.unl.edu
402-730-5868

Want to embed video but don't know how? Generate code here.

2007-01-18T16:57:00.000-06:00

Free Video Codes - Video Code Maker - Free Html Codes: "How do you embed videos? Get free video codes from FreeVideoCoding.com. Just answer simple questions and we create custom html video codes based on your answers. Our free video codes are guaranteed to work with all your video clips and audio clips. Works with all media: wmv, mov, swf, flv, rm, even mpeg and avi. Easily post videos on web pages, blogs, videoblogs, MySpace, Craigslist, E-Bay, LiveJournal, Friendster and more."

SafeAssignment 2.0 - Batch Submit

2007-01-18T14:11:00.000-06:00

SafeAssignment 2.0 Instructor Manual: "6.2. Submitting Papers

To submit either individual paper or a .ZIP archive with multiple papers, please do the following:

1. Go to the course Control Panel.
# 2. Click on the MyDropBox Suite (Safe Assignments) link in the Course Tools section.
# 3. You will see the list of your Safe Assignments and a few navigation tabs above. Click on the Quick Submit tab. The Quick Submit default folder will open, listing all papers you have submitted there.
# 4. Select the folder you want to submit a paper or a batch of papers to by clicking on the corresponding folder name (this step is optional).
# 5. Click on the “Submit papers” link.
# 6. Fill in the paper submission form. Either click on the Browse button to select the file for upload or copy and paste the text of the paper into the text area of the form (use the copy-paste method only if you cannot upload a file of a supported format).
# 7. Click on the Submit button to finish."

Breeze - Intel Mac Issue

2007-01-17T16:20:00.000-06:00

Just thought I'd note this since it seems like I get a lot of questions on it.
--------------
Adobe - Breeze TechNote : Intel Macs experience problems with the Share Pod in Breeze: "Macintosh computers with Intel-based CPUs will experience problems while trying to share a document or their screen via the Breeze Meeting Add-In under Mac OSX (native or Rosetta mode)."

ThinkFree Viewer | Firefox Add-ons | Mozilla Corporation

2007-01-17T07:43:00.001-06:00

Want to view that doc or powerpoint w/o waiting for MS Word or PowerPoint to launch? Use this quick view available from ThinkFree. I haven't tried it out yet, but as a relatively long time user of ThinkFree I'm betting it's a nice little tool.
----------------------------
ThinkFree Viewer | Firefox Add-ons | Mozilla Corporation: "View ThinkFree or Microsoft Office word processing, spreadsheet, and presentation files without having any other office applications installed. After installing the appropriate Widget simply drag and drop files from your desktop, or copy and paste the Web URL into the ThinkFree Widget.

ThinkFree Widgets allows users to open email attachments with ease, and supports the following file formats: .doc, .rtf, .txt, .xls, .csv, .ppt, and .pps."

ThinkFree Viewer | Firefox Add-ons | Mozilla Corporation

2007-01-17T07:43:00.000-06:00

SlimTimer: Find out where your time goes

2007-01-16T11:28:00.000-06:00

I often hear people complain about not having enough time to get the things done that they want to accomplish and have made the same lament myself, but the truth of the matter is, at least for me, is that sometimes I fritter away time even worse than money. I learned this by using a nifty free web-based time tracking program called SlimTimer. For a week, I tracked my time, recording everything from munching a snack to doing tech support, to whatever, and yikes, I tell you it's mighty enlightening, rather like the first time one tracks everything one eats and discovers the source of those extra pounds. Anyway, SlimTimer is helping me reach some goals simply by improving my time-on-task. For example, I reviewed by work goals and decided how much time per day I wanted to spend on reaching them and SlimTimer is helping me make that progress. Check it out.

Bb 7.1 Discussion Board frustrating users

2007-01-15T22:25:00.000-06:00

I posted previously about how much I appreciated the revised Discussion Board because of the grading and especially the subscription features. However, my enthusiasm is not shared by many. Some problems cited:

When I "collect" entries to read, they do not get counted as "read"
Perhaps the designers thought users would read posts using the thread layout now that the thread and posts appear on the same page and are easily and quickly clicked through.

"Once in Collect view you can not reply to any entry."
This would be a pain. Anywhere you can read a post, you should be able to reply to it. That's just a good way to facilitate conversation.

"The screen text in Discussion Board extends to the right beyond the
view of the box."
This doesn't happen in my browsers: Firefox and Flock for Mac OSX. Does this happen for a lot of folks I wonder?

"There is no longer a color change in read/unread entries."
Color change is nice, but I notice in my browsers that unread entries are boldface while read ones are plain. Does your browser do this?

"Can't mark posts unread"
Do folks mark things unread in order to rember to come back to them the next time or something? If so, why not use the flagging feature?

Yahoo Using Dirty Tactics to Switch Google & Firefox Users? | Marketing Pilgrim

2007-01-12T14:58:00.000-06:00

Exclusive - Yahoo Using Dirty Tactics to Switch Google & Firefox Users? | Marketing Pilgrim: "The power struggle between Yahoo and Google for your desktop just took an evil turn, with evidence that suggests Yahoo is covertly trying to switch Google search users without their explicit permission."

Gen Next TV Documentary

2007-01-12T14:38:00.000-06:00

This might have some insight for users here:

Generation Next: Speak Up, Be Heard
Saturday, January 13, 2:00am
CHANNEL 12 (NET1)
Get an E-mail reminder
Journalist Judy Woodruff travels across the U.S. to interview young adults about their views on technology, social concerns and the future of the U.S.
CC, Stereo, Letterboxed TVPG
Close

Convert Files With Zamzar

2007-01-12T09:41:00.000-06:00

You can convert files to pdf, jpg, gif, doc, xml, mp3, avi, ipod, m4v, etc. (almost any file type you can think of) by using a free service located at www.zamzar.com.

Good luck and have fun!
Heath

Avoid Special Characters in Blackboard

2007-01-12T09:28:00.000-06:00

We have recently found that some special characters will cause problems in your Blackboard course if used in the TITLE of items, discussion boards, announcements, etc. Special characters include % & # <> + =. These characters are fine to use text boxes, just don't use them in the titles of any items, folders, announcements, discussion board forums or threads, etc.

Best campus use of chat

2007-01-12T07:07:00.000-06:00

If you've never tried the "Ask a Question" feature provided by our library system, you're missing out. Imagine, you're sitting at your computer working through the electronic indexes, wondering if you can get a copy of a an online webinar. You want to ask someone this question RIGHT NOW. You don't want to send an email and wait till tomorrow or whenever the recipient gets to it. You want immediacy ... like you were standing there. Well, the "Ask a Question" feature gets u that. A real live person typing back at you answering your question the best they can just like you were standing on the marble floor in front of them. I love it.

Creating ZIP files in Windows XP

2007-01-11T10:53:00.000-06:00

I have had a couple people ask me how they can create ZIP files on their PC's if they do not have WinZip or any other third-party ZIP file creation software.

Windows XP (which stands for the "xp" in "experience") ships with a ZIP file creator. If you right-click on your desktop, scroll down to "New", then scroll-down to "Compressed (zipped) Folder", that is what you want.

Chris Dede on Emerging Technologies and Neomillennial Learning Styles | EDUCAUSE CONNECT

2007-01-10T13:12:00.000-06:00

Chris Dede on Emerging Technologies and Neomillennial Learning Styles | EDUCAUSE CONNECT: "Chris Dede on Emerging Technologies and Neomillennial Learning Styles"

Learning styles here refers not to a sensory approach, but rather on what is used. This is an interesting podcast and really pushes the idea of innovation AND pedagogy. Recommend you give it a listen.

Cool tool for today

2007-01-10T12:43:00.000-06:00

I feel like I found a 20 dollar bill on the sidewalk. Let me explain... I am developing a new distance course in the journalism department and wanted to integrate some news feeds so students didn't have to visit a bajillion websites to be aware of what was happening in their industry/domain. I also wanted the splash page for the Bb course to change often without me having to do anything.

Grazr took care of this in a real sweet way. I entered the RSS feed url into an online form, tweeked some settings, and Grazr generated the code for me to paste into my HTML page. Morever, it even is allowed in the Bb items! You just have to paste it in while in HTML mode. How cool is that!!! Check out the live sample in the navigation bar to the left.

The link rot problem

2007-01-09T08:00:00.000-06:00

Link rot is a big issue for those of us who build copious collections of online resources and for those folks who collect a resource list for their students and put it in their Bb course. Well, at least one online bookmarking management tool called "Simpy" is addressing the problem with automatically monitored and updated links.

Bb 7.1 Discussion Board a BIG improvement

2007-01-05T10:45:00.000-06:00

I am so pleased to see the changes to the new discussion board. Three of the most important features which have been common in better boards across the web that are now included in Bb are the ability for students and teachers to (1) subscribe to threads, (2) rate threads, (3) check the number of views, and of course, a framed layout making it easy to view both the thread and the message being read.

Avoid "course copy"

2007-01-03T12:04:00.000-06:00

"There is a known issue with the course copy function in Blackboard Version 7.1. If you would like to copy the content of one course to another please do not use the Course Copy function. Instead, use the Export Course link in the control panel, then download the zip file, and use the Import Package link to upload the zip file to the new course.

We recommend using this process in place of the Course Copy function. Blackboard is working to correct the course copy issue in future updates."

This came out on a BB Administrator's list.

Check out this list of upgraded and new items.

Oh Yeah!!!!

2007-01-02T22:16:00.000-06:00

Finally. I thought this day would never come -- A full featured WYSIWYG editor for the mac in Bb. I just tested it out with an embedded quicktime movie in my sandbox shell and believe it or not, it worked! WOOOO HOOOO!!!!!

A BIG THANK YOU to all of you who worked so hard over break to bring us this upgrade.

Check out this list of upgraded and new items.

Easy-to-use HTML editor

2006-12-20T13:35:00.000-06:00

The one I'm recommending to my folks is Nvu, a standards-compliant cross-platform free-of-charge editor. Works great and includes FTP for uploading pages to servers.

Favorite Bb 7.1 features

2006-12-19T07:58:00.000-06:00

Ok. Those of you who've been playing with the Bb upgrade .... what are your favorite new features? As a mac and Firefox user, I'm really looking forward to having a WYSIWYG editor.

Skype is so cool

2006-12-15T10:16:00.000-06:00

Well, they finally got video for Skype on the mac and it works! Suzie and I tested it over the UNL network and I think after a little more testing, I'm going to recommend it to my faculty if they just need to talk to students and not share the same document or record it. I think it's a much better tool for online office visits in many cases. My skype ID is "sydney_b." Give me a ring if u want to try it out.

Google's Reader rox

2006-12-14T13:42:00.000-06:00

For keeping up with blogs and such, I am really digging Google's Reader product. So easy to use, so conveniently tied in with my other google services. You oughta check it out.

Getting personal

2006-12-14T13:10:00.000-06:00

The book I'm reading now is called "Naked Conversations" and I highly recommend it.

Steve Sloan on audio capture for podcasting

2006-08-15T14:52:00.000-06:00

(moving this post over from another blog... makes sense to maybe ditch the old one and consolidate here. postdating to match original date)

Advice from a veteran podcaster on audio capture for podcasting.

Edupodder Weblog: Computers make lousy recorders for podcasting:

"Here is my field kit list of equipment for doing good quality audio podcasting. Some of this I have, some I am saving up to buy:

Shure PG14/PG185 Wireless Lavalier System on instructor
Marantz PMD 660 Recorder, run automatic level control on the recorder
Floor Stand
Wired Floor Mike (optional wireless mike) like a Shure SM58 Dynamic Handheld Microphone
Both audio channels going into the two channels on the recorder or into a mixer
Mix both tracks to mono in post production on the computer using Audacity"