• Feb. 26, 2008

K-State to test Emergency Text Messaging Service Feb. 27

by Aimee Hagedorn, Information Technology Assistance Center
published Feb. 26, 2008

This Wednesday morning, Feb. 27, K-State will send its first test message using the Emergency Text Messaging Service (ETMS). Feedback is needed from all K-Staters who have enabled this service, since K-State cannot guarantee text messages will be received, or how quickly they will be received. An e-mail will be sent immediately after the test to gather this information. People who are signed up for ETMS and do not receive the test message should contact the IT Help Desk at 1-800-865-6143 or 785-532-7722.

K-Staters can sign up for ETMS anytime. Go to eid.k-state.edu, sign in to the eProfile system, and click the "Manage your emergency contact settings" link. For more information about the test message, see Media Relations' Feb. 22 press release.

TechBytes Feb. 28: Google Tools

by Cathy Rodriguez, Information Technology Assistance Center
published Feb. 26, 2008

Josh McCune will present "Google Tools" at 1:15 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 28, in 501 Hale Library. Google is more than a search engine. It is loaded with web-based tools to improve productivity -- ranging from a full Microsoft Word-compatible document tool to calendars, presentations to maps, and even blogs. We will discuss how you can use those tools to better collaborate with your office mates. We will also take a look into a few of the many useful tools and layers available in Google Maps and Earth. Come and ask all the Google questions you had but didn't know who to ask, and Josh will either have an answer or find you one.

TechBytes seminars are free and open to the K-State community. The series is also video-streamed live for off-campus viewers and others who wish to view it from their desktop. Use the "View live video" link on the TechBytes homepage to watch the next live video as it's being recorded. The TechBytes archives contains a wealth of information on IT tools and topics. It includes programs, handouts, videos, and resources from seminars in 2003 to the present.

YouTube video presentation available in IDT archive

by Swasati Mukherjee, Office of Mediated Education
published Feb. 26, 2008

Michael Wesch presented "YouTube in/on/of/for the Classroom" at the first spring 2008 Instructional Design and Technology roundtable. More than 70 people attended the Jan. 24 presentation at the K-State Student Union. Wesch talked about using videos available online to teach. He showed several examples of websites available to instructors to use for teaching, and mentioned resources like Dogpile, StumbleVideo, and MetaTube. To watch the video and/or get the handout, go to the IDT roundtable archive.

Wesch teaches cultural anthropology at K-State and has a mediatedcultures.net website dedicated to the videos he has created. His first video, "The Machine is Us/ing Us," which is posted on YouTube, had more than a million views and has won several awards. Users can subscribe to his website using an RSS feed to view frequent updates on his work.

The next IDTR presentation will be Automated Learning and Gating on K-State Online at 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. March 27 in Union 212. IDT presentations are open to the K-State community. To learn more about upcoming presentations, visit the IDT Roundtable website.

eTips March 6: Use Diigo to collaborate, share online

by Cathy Rodriguez, Information Technology Assistance Center
published Feb. 26, 2008

Adam Bohannon will present an eTips session on "Diigo" at 11 a.m. Thursday, March 6, desktop webinar via Wimba. Diigo is a social-annotation tool that's billed as "the best way to collect, share and interact on online information from anywhere". The presentation will showcase how it can help transform your Web experience by allowing you to easily organize and share content by using highlighting, tags, sticky notes, and more.

Diigo was rated by Cnet.com in 2006 as one of the Top 10 research tools. According to its website, Diigo makes it easy to:

  • Collect and compile your research findings
  • Collaborate on research or web design
  • Make wishlists, do comparison shopping, or plan vacations

eTips registration is required at least 24 hours in advance to allow time to add you to the session and ensure your workstation is configured properly for accessing the session.

Union Computer Store has Office 2008 for Mac

by Chris Loehr, K-State Student Union Computer Store
published Feb. 26, 2008

The K-State Student Union Computer Store has received Office 2008 for Mac on the Student Select program. This is for personal purchase and for educational use. Pricing is $79.95 for K-State faculty, staff, and students. A valid K-State ID must be presented for purchase.

Student Select offerings are a joint effort between K-State and the K-State Student Union Computer Store to bring affordable pricing on select Microsoft products to university faculty, staff, and students for their own personal educational use. Departments cannot use the program and must purchase off of state contract through SHI.

A limited number of Office 2004 for Mac Student Select software is available to K-Staters for $49.95 while supplies last. A valid K-State ID is required for purchasing. Users who have already purchased Office 2004 for Mac under the Student Select plan cannot purchase another copy under the plan.

Related details:

  • Office 2008 for Mac Home and Student is another version available for educational purchasers. This is a shrink-wrapped boxed product that includes license keys for three installs. Price is $149.95.
  • Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Entourage are included in both Office 2004 for Mac and Office 2008 for Mac.
  • Office 2008 for Mac has the ability to read the new file formats released in Office 2007 for Windows.

For more information, contact the Union Computer Store, 785-532-7319, .

Security tip of the week

Using Google to identify hacked websites

by Harvard Townsend, IT security
published Feb. 26, 2008

Advertising via spam can be lucrative, so it is no surprise that spammers use more than just e-mail to hawk their dubious wares. A common practice is to find publicly writable websites or online bulletin boards to post their ads for pharmaceuticals or pornography. You can imagine the embarrassment when you discover that your website is advertising "male enhancement" drugs to the world, so webmasters need to diligently monitor their sites for inappropriate content.

Prevention is, of course, the best medicine, so as a general rule you should never allow content to be added without a validated username and password. You should always require people to register and get an account before they can post a message or other content online, but even that will not prevent a spammer from registering for an account using bogus information and then using that account to post ads. Thus, webmasters and site moderators should regularly check posted content and remove inappropriate material and illegitimate accounts.

The "site:" directive in Google (see the Query modifiers section) can also be used to monitor websites for inappropriate content. This directive limits the search to pages within that website. For example, the following search will return all webpages that mention Viagra on any website with "ksu.edu" in the address:

viagra  site:ksu.edu

A search this simple will return many legitimate pages that mention the word "viagra", so you should use other advanced search features like the OR operator (note that OR has to be in all caps) and a phrase search (enclose the phrase in quotes) to refine your search. Here are some examples of Google searches useful for identifying common spam ads:

  • "online pharmacy" OR "pharmacy online" site:ksu.edu OR site:k-state.edu
  • "buy viagra" OR "buy cialis" site:ksu.edu OR site:k-state.edu
  • "teen sex" site:ksu.edu OR site:k-state.edu
  • "online gambling" OR "online casino" site:ksu.edu OR site:k-state.edu

You can also automate the search for inappropriate advertisements by using Google Alerts, which will e-mail the results to you.

K-State Online

Get where you're going -- quick!

by Sarah Silva, Information Technology Assistance Center
published Feb. 26, 2008

Need a faster way to reach pages you use over and over in K-State Online? My Quick Links and My Links are two often overlooked, welcome additions to K-State Online that can help you get around in your courses.

My Quick Links is found on most course pages at the bottom of the left menu area. It allows you to save links to all the pages you access frequently in K-State Online.

  • To add a link: Go to the course page you want to add and click the Add button.
  • To remove a link: Click the trash can next to a link.

My Links is on the right side of the My Organizer page. You can add a link to any webpage, including any K-State Online page. For example, perhaps you often use a course's Assignment Listing page or the Manage Files tool.

  • To add a link:
    1. Go to the page you want to add and copy the page's URL.
    2. Under My Links, paste the URL into the New Link URL box.
    3. Type a label for the link in the New Link Label box, and click the plus button.
  • To remove a link: Click the trash can next to a link.

Note that links clicked in My Links open in a new tab or new window. Remember to close all of those when you're finished.

Any iSIS training sessions in March?

by Betsy Edwards, Information Technology Assistance Center
published Feb. 26, 2008

I know Feb. 29 is the last day for iSIS advisor training. Are any training sessions scheduled in March?

Sessions are expected to be available after spring break. If you're interested in attending an iSIS advisor training session, contact Brian Arthaud-Day, 785-532-7657, bcad@k-state.edu.

Spotlight

Nikon D80 high-end camera available for checkout by faculty

by Phyllis Epps, Information Technology Assistance Center
published Feb. 26, 2008

composite photo of Nikon D80 camera showing front and top

The Nikon Digital SLR D80 camera is a high-end, high-speed camera with 3 frames-per-second continuous shooting capability to capture precise motion. It was acquired in September 2007 and is available for faculty to check out from the Information Technology Assistance Center in 214 Hale Library.

Brad Logan, research associate professor in Sociology, Anthropology and Social Work, uses the D80 to photograph artifacts from archeological digs and research projects. His work often requires close-ups of pottery sherds, arrow points, and small detailed work. The D80’s 10.2-megapixel resolution captures the clarity and definition needed for his archival work. He will take his latest work to the Flint Hills Archaeological Conference in Lawrence March 2008.

One of Logan’s students used the images he took with the camera for her research of the pottery from a Late Prehistoric site in Leavenworth County. She presented her research (conducted through the McNair Scholars Program) at the Plains Anthropological Conference in October 2007, where she received the award for best undergraduate paper.

Reserve the camera by calling 532-4901.