August 25
Contents:
01. DragonFly Upgrade for Stiles Residence Hall
02. Third Classroom to Be Equipped with VC Technology
03. "What's New in Office 2010" - Information Session on October 6
04. New Mac Workshops Added for the Fall!
05. Prepare Your Flip Videos for DragonDrop
06. 2010 Faculty Showcase
07. Symposium on Learning and Student Engagement at Drexel
08. Save the Date: 9th Annual e-Learning 2.0 Conference
Tips & Tricks
News & Notes from the Online Learning Team
12. Turnitin Maintenance on September 4, 2010
13. Develop Your Technical Ability by Attending OLT Workshops!
14. iWebfolio: What You Need to Know
15. Changing the Start or End Date of Your Bb Vista Section(s)
16. Wimba LiveX: The Newest Version of Wimba Classroom
17. Adobe Acrobat Connect Pro
18. Sign Up for OLT Workshops
1. DragonFly Upgrade for Stiles Residence Hall
Beginning this month, wireless users in Stiles Residence Hall will be able to take advantage of greater security and additional bandwidth by connecting to DragonFly3. For configuration instructions, refer to IRT's DragonFly Web site at
http://www.drexel.edu/irt/networks/wireless. The original DragonFly network will continue to be available, and existing DragonFly wireless users
are not required to take action as a result of this upgrade.
If you need assistance with the DragonFly network, please contact the IRT Help Desk at 215-895-2020 or
consult@drexel.edu.
2. Third Classroom to Be Equipped with VC Technology
A third classroom in the Korman Center (room 105) will soon be equipped with video-conferencing (VC) software and hardware, including three cameras, new projectors, and new LCD screens. The classroom will serve as a "mirror" classroom, allowing students from Philadelphia to "attend" a class in Sacramento (and vice versa) simultaneously. With VC technology, each class can interact with the other in a live environment.
Korman 105 will not only be used for classes; a conference table in the room will allow the room to be utilized for business and conference video-conferencing as well. This room will be the first multipurpose room in Korman with VC technology!
3. "What's New in Office 2010" - Information Session on October 6
Would you like to learn more about the newly-released Office 2010 suite? A Microsoft representative will be on campus this fall to present a workshop entitled "What's New in Office 2010." The workshop will be held on Wednesday, October 6 from 10:00 - 11:30 a.m. in Korman 116 and will cover enhanced functionality in Office 2010 applications, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote, and the new Office Web Apps.
To reserve a spot, please email
olt@drexel.edu with your name, phone number, and department affiliation.
4. New Mac Workshops Added for the Fall!
Calling all Mac users! Four new workshops, led by Apple Senior Systems Engineer Michael Wolk, have been added to our training schedule for the fall. They are:
- Scripting and Automation
- GarageBand '09: How to Rock 'n' Roll Like the Pros
- Introduction to Keynote '09
- Getting Started with iPhoto '09
For more details, including date, time, and location information, please visit http://www.drexel.edu/irt/help/workshops. To reserve a spot in any of these workshops, please email olt@drexel.edu with your name, phone number, and department affiliation.
5. Prepare Your Flip Videos for DragonDrop
Some compact video cameras (such as Flip video camcorders) produce files that require some tweaking before they can be uploaded to DragonDrop. If your video "hangs" in DragonDrop when you try to upload it, re-encode your video as an MP4 file using Handbrake, an open-source (free) encoding program.
HandBrake is available for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux. To download HandBrake:
Next, re-encode your video in HandBrake by following the instructions at http://www.drexel.edu/irt/coursetools/toolList/dragonDrop/handbrake. The duration of the re-encoding process will vary based on the length of your recording. If you have multiple videos to re-encode, you can save time by processing all of the files at once.
If you have any questions, please contact the Online Learning Team at olt@drexel.edu or 215-895-1224.
6. 2010 Faculty Showcase
IRT's annual Faculty Showcase represents an opportunity for faculty members to show their peers some of the unique ways they are using technology in their courses. This year's Showcase will be held on Friday, November 12, 2010.
The Showcase coincided with National Distance Learning Week (
http://www.ndlw.org), the purpose of which is to "generate greater awareness and appreciation for distance learning, including K-12, Higher Education, Corporate and Military, while recognizing leaders and best practices in the field."
A schedule will be available on the IRT Web site several weeks before the event. To view the schedule and slide presentations from last year's Showcase, visit
http://www.drexel.edu/irt/news/events/showcase. Last year's presentations included such topics as "Gaming Technology in the Classroom," "Google Earth and Google SketchUp: Tools for Viewing the Earth and Making Our Marks on It," and "Fostering Faculty Participation in Online Learning."
7. Symposium on Learning and Student Engagement at Drexel
On Wednesday, September 15 and Thursday, September 16, 2010, the Office of the Provost will host the "Symposium on Learning and Student Engagement at Drexel." At the Symposium, members of IRT's Online Learning Team will be presenting about academic portfolios, polling technology, and other online learning tools for increasing student engagement. IRT's goal is to promote the use of these technologies among faculty who want to create richer and more meaningful learning experiences for their students.
To register, visit
http://deptapp.drexel.edu/learningsymposium.
If you have any questions, contact Drexel's Center for Academic Excellence (DCAE) at
dcae@drexel.edu or 215-895-4973. For more information, visit
http://www.drexel.edu/provost/dcae/symposium.html.
8. Save the Date: 9th Annual e-Learning 2.0 Conference
With more than 200 attendees and 38 presenters from over 35 institutions all around the region, the 2010 e-Learning 2.0 Conference was a tremendous success! To access the PowerPoint presentations from the conference, as well as a recording of the keynote address by Dr. Kristen Betts, please see
Conference Events.
Next year's conference will be held on Thursday, March 24, 2011 in Behrakis Grand Hall beginning at 8 a.m. Don't miss this opportunity to learn about Web 2.0 technologies and network with your colleagues from Drexel and institutions all around the region! For more information about the e-Learning Conference, contact
el2n@drexel.edu or 215-895-1224.
Tips & Tricks
Tips & Tricks are helpful articles that address a variety of Windows and Mac applications. Click on one of the links below to view the full article:
Convert Student Papers with Markup from Word to PDF
Perform a "Search and Replace" for Non-Text Elements in Word 2007
Set Up a Looping Slide Show in PowerPoint 2007
News & Notes from the Online Learning Team
12. Turnitin Maintenance on September 4, 2010
A special maintenance window for Turnitin will occur on Saturday, September 4th from 1:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. EDT. All Turnitin services might be unavailable to users during this time. For assignments due during this window, instructors should change the due date and alert their students.
The maintenance window coincides with the launch of Turnitin2, which will integrate Turnitin's three instructional support tools: OriginalityCheck plagiarism prevention, GradeMark paperless grading, and PeerMark peer reviewing. Turnitin2 will allow instructors and students to work with a single, "all-in-one" view of a paper in its original format, including styled text, graphics, and photos. For more information about Turnitin2, including a short (8-minute) walk-through video, visit
http://www.turnitin.com/static/what_is_new.html.
If you have any questions regarding the maintenance window or Turnitin2, please contact the Online Learning Team at
olt@drexel.edu or 215-895-1224.
13. Develop Your Technical Ability by Attending OLT Workshops!
Using a Learning Management system such as Blackboard Vista can be challenging to someone who is trying it out for the first time. As with any new endeavor, you should start slow, perhaps by posting a syllabus and a few documents, and then gradually incorporating a few tools, such as Assignments, Discussions, or Wimba Classroom sessions.
To help you get started, you can meet with a consultant in the Online Learning Team (OLT) in Korman 109. You can also attend workshops delivered by members of the OLT to facilitate your progress in Bb Vista and with related technologies. The chart below outlines a "growth curve" from basic to advanced tasks in Bb Vista, and the corresponding workshop(s) which will allow you to perform these tasks successfully. This chart is just one path, but you might find it useful to place yourself along this progression and develop a personalized training plan that will help you become increasingly proficient in the use of Bb Vista.
| Bb Vista Skill/Task |
Related Workshop(s) |
Post course syllabus and documents |
Bb Vista Full Day Workshop |
Communicate with course Mail and Announcements |
Bb Vista Full Day Workshop
Bb Vista: Using the Teach Tab and More |
Collect written work via the Assignment Dropbox |
Bb Vista: Using the Teach Tab and More |
Use Turnitin to collect assignments and check for originality
Use Turnitin's GradeMark feature for grading and markup |
Bb Vista: Using the Teach Tab and More
Turnitin Workshop |
Extend classroom discussion outside of class with threaded Discussion |
Bb Vista Full Day Workshop
Bb Vista: Using the Teach Tab and More |
Post multimedia presentations, including Web-friendly narrated slideshows, podcasts and screencasts |
Putting PowerPoint Online
Creating Audio Podcasts with Audacity and DragonDrop
Desktop and Presentation Recording: Camtasia Relay
Recording and Editing with Camtasia Studio for Windows
Recording and Editing with Camtasia for Mac
DragonDrop Basic Training |
Create webcam/flip-cam videos or capture illustrative clips from existing sources |
DragonDrop Basic Training
Desktop and Presentation Recording: Camtasia Relay
Recording and Editing with Camtasia Studio for Windows
Recording and Editing with Camtasia for Mac |
Provide self-assessments, surveys, and quizzes using the Assessment tool and the Respondus program |
Respondus and StudyMate Training
Bb Vista: Using the Teach Tab and More |
Replace classroom sessions with online activities that meet DOE equivalencies |
Web Enhancements for Traditional Classroom Courses |
Build community through group projects, Wimba Classroom, and Pronto instant messenger
Provide online content and assessment for fully online courses |
Web Enhancements for Traditional Classroom Courses
Bb Vista: Using the Teach Tab and More
Wimba Classroom Training |
Many upcoming OLT Workshops are listed in this Tech Update's last article, below. For a full schedule of upcoming sessions, please visit
http://www.drexel.edu/irt/help/workshops. To sign up, email
olt@drexel.edu.
14. iWebfolio: What You Need to Know
iWebfolio is an advanced electronic portfolio management system that helps individuals and institutions to archive, organize, and showcase information contained in documents, graphics, presentations, Web projects, audio and video, or any other digital media. All incoming Drexel freshmen will receive iWebfolio accounts, which can be accessed through the DrexelOne portal. Many sophomore, writing-intensive, and upper-level classes will be using iWebfolio as well in the coming academic year.
For access to iWebfolio tutorials, visit
http://www.drexel.edu/irt/coursetools/toolList/eportfolios/iWebfolioTutorials.
15. Changing the Start or End Date of Your Bb Vista Section(s)
By default, courses in Blackboard Vista open on the first day of the term at midnight and close on the last day of the term at midnight. Courses for the 2009 summer quarter (200945) will close to students on Saturday, September 4 at 11:59 p.m., while courses for the 2010 fall quarter (201015) will become available to students on Monday, September 20 at 12:01 a.m. For instructors who would like to change the start or end dates of their summer or fall term course(s), instructions can be found at
To Change Dates. If you have any questions, please contact the Online Learning Team at
olt@drexel.edu or 215-895-1224.
16. Wimba LiveX: The Newest Version of Wimba Classroom
Wimba will soon release the latest version of Classroom, called Wimba LiveX. In this new version, more Web 2.0 capabilities will make the end-user experience more flexible and meaningful.
As a member of Wimba's Advisory Board, Drexel can influence design enhancements and feature expansions for potential inclusion in new versions of Wimba Classroom/LiveX.
Recently, Blackboard, Inc. announced that it acquired both Wimba and Elluminate. Stay tuned to find out how these acquisitions will affect the development and eventual release of Wimba LiveX.
17. Adobe Acrobat Connect Pro
Adobe Acrobat Connect Pro is a Flash-based product for online collaboration, webinar hosting, and desktop sharing that is now fully supported by IRT. With Adobe Connect, users can host live, online webinars that can be archived and linked from a Web site for later viewing. Currently, Drexel Business Services uses the Web conferencing and archiving capability in Connect for its online webinar series.
IRT has purchased and distributed a limited number of administrative accounts for Adobe Connect to key contacts around the university. If you are interested in obtaining an online collaboration space in Connect, please contact the Online Learning Team at
olt@drexel.edu or 215-895-1224.
18. Sign Up for OLT Workshops
The Online Learning Team conducts training sessions on Blackboard (Bb) Vista, Camtasia, DragonDrop, Dreamweaver, Mac OS X, Respondus, SharePoint, Snap, and Wimba Classroom. In addition, several brown bag lunches and workshops on technology products of interest (Microsoft Windows 7, Office 2010, PowerPoint, GIMP, Audacity, etc.) are held each month. These training sessions are open to members of Drexel's community as well as the general public.
To reserve a spot at any of these workshops, email us at
olt@drexel.edu with your name, institution (if other than Drexel), contact information, and the name of the workshop(s) you would like to attend.
Below is a sampling of workshops taking place in September/October:
Bb Vista Full Day Workshop
Friday, September 10, 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Bb Vista: Using the Teach Tab and More
Wednesday, October 6, 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Web Enhancements for Traditional Classroom Courses
Wednesday, September 8, noon – 1:00 p.m.
Desktop and Presentation Recording: Camtasia Relay
Wednesday, September 8, 10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
DragonDrop Basic Training
Friday, September 17, 10:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
GarageBand '09: How to Rock 'n' Roll Like the Pros
Wednesday, September 8, 2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
SharePoint Basic
Thursday, September 2, 9:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.
Wednesday, September 22, 2:30 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Visit our Web site at
http://www.drexel.edu/IRT/help/workshops for our complete training schedule and workshop descriptions. Unless otherwise noted, all training sessions will be held in room 116 of the Korman Center (off the Quad on Drexel's Main Campus, 33rd Street between Market and Chestnut Streets).