- Easy access to helpful resources, tech reviews & how to's.
- News and updates related to the STC news, workshops and events.
Welcome to the Cardinal Tech Weblog!
The purpose of this site is to provide students with:
Getting Started with VSpace
It's that time of year! We will be in full swing with the Fall 2010 Semester in less than 2 short weeks. Fall will bring us many new faces and questions. Many of those questions are always centered around accessing courses in VSpace, SVSU's learning management system, and its features.
With that in mind I would like to highlight some of the resources available to help you get started using VSpace.
A great place to start learning something new is with a quick video overview of the task. Below, Robert Long has created an easy to follow, "Introduction to VSpace" video, which is also available on the VSpace home page before you log in to the system for the first time.
A variety of VSpace tutorials are available in the VSpace Student-Zone.
For example, in the VSpace Student Zone, you will find video and pdf tutorials on My Workspace, VSpace Tests and Quizzes and Assignment Submission. Also available is a Quick Tip Cheat Sheet which overviews all of the common tools available in VSpace.
Finally, the Student Technology Center also has an Introduction to VSpace Tutorial on the Cardinal Tech Weblog.
Hopefully these resources will help you get off to a great start accessing your courses and uploading assignments in VSpace! But, if you do need extra help please feel free to stop in and see us in the Student Technology Center! We are located on the second floor of the Zahnow J. Melvin Library, and would love to have you stop by!
With that in mind I would like to highlight some of the resources available to help you get started using VSpace.
A great place to start learning something new is with a quick video overview of the task. Below, Robert Long has created an easy to follow, "Introduction to VSpace" video, which is also available on the VSpace home page before you log in to the system for the first time.
A variety of VSpace tutorials are available in the VSpace Student-Zone.
For example, in the VSpace Student Zone, you will find video and pdf tutorials on My Workspace, VSpace Tests and Quizzes and Assignment Submission. Also available is a Quick Tip Cheat Sheet which overviews all of the common tools available in VSpace.
Finally, the Student Technology Center also has an Introduction to VSpace Tutorial on the Cardinal Tech Weblog.
Hopefully these resources will help you get off to a great start accessing your courses and uploading assignments in VSpace! But, if you do need extra help please feel free to stop in and see us in the Student Technology Center! We are located on the second floor of the Zahnow J. Melvin Library, and would love to have you stop by!
Pac Man 30th Anniversary
Meet the Gurus Behind Insert Coin in this interview with creators, Marcin Wichary, Senior User Experience Designer, and Ryan Germick, Google Doodler, of the Pacman Google Doodle featured on the Google home page last Friday and Saturday (May 21-22,2010).
I STILL want an iPad
Yes, I'll admit it. The iPad may not have Flash, it doesn't have an SD card slot, but it is still amazing! You could focus on what you think it is missing, or you could embrace it for all that it does well! : )
Check out this review by Crunch Gear..
The Year of the Tablet?
The buzz as of late that 2009 was that 2010 would be the year of the tablet.
According to reports from Wired, PC World and others, a number of companies (Apple [Obviously], Dell, Lenovo, HP, Microsoft) are working on tablet computers to be released in 2010. But, this is not a new concept. Check out this article from Wired about a shy tablet aptly named, "Bashful".
For a full spec comparison of some of the up and coming tablets check out Gizmodo's Slate Showdown: iPad vs. HP Slate vs. JooJoo vs. Android Tablets & More.
Student Technology Center Services
Welcome to
the Cardinal
Tech Weblog!
I would like to take this opportunity to introduce you to the services offered by The Student Technology Center (STC), located on the 2nd Floor of the Melvin J. Zahnow Library.
This site, the Cardinal Tech Weblog, serves as an online, repository for step-by-step tutorials created by the Student Technology Center tutors, and links to other helpful resources. If you look to your right -->, you will see a list labeled, STC Tutorials, on everything from iMovie to VSpace.
The Student Technology Center (STC) employs student tutors who are specially trained to provide technology tutoring and software assistance to SVSU students. STC tutors are able to provide help and guidance with course projects and assignments, or projects related to SVSU student organizations, initiatives, and sponsored events.
The STC can provide assistance with formatting research papers and writing assignments for online and print formats which comply with APA and MLA guidelines. Black and white and color printers, and scanners, are also available within the STC, as is common office productivity software.
Specifically, the STC provides students with access to and assistance with the Microsoft Office suite, which includes Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Publisher, Excel, and Access. STC tutors can also provide tutoring and training related to design and illustration software, web development and publishing, and video production and editing.
The STC and its corresponding labs provide students with access to and tutoring with professional editing programs that are not available in other open labs, such as Adobe Acrobat Professional, Dreamweaver, PhotoShop, Fireworks, Flash, InDesign, Illustrator, and Apple’s FinalCut Pro.
The STC also provides tutoring support for special course-specific software on a case-by-case basis. Please contact the STC Coordinator prior to the semester when you will be using the software to discuss purchase, installation and training. The STC cannot guarantee support of special software without prior notification.
In addition, faculty members who require students to use technology to complete assignments may request in-class workshops for their students. The STC staff is available by reservation to deliver software training customized to support learning objectives, assignments and projects in virtually any discipline.
To schedule a workshop, contact us at 989.964.2299 or by email at techtutor(at)svsu.edu.
The Apple iPad
Apple has released their newest creation, the iPad. While opinions vary and many speculate whether or not it will hit or miss in its target market, the proof could be in the apps.
Some reports seem to focus on its limitations, yet with an ever growing trend of building stable, user friendly platforms on which developers can create their own master pieces, the applications yet to come will likely be the proving pieces that make or break new technologies such as the iPad.
If the iPhone is a comparable predecessor then it would seem the iPad would have a promising future in the realm of apps. While it is early in game for iPad, it will be interesting to see how it and it's 140,000+ apps are received by anxious Apple enthusiasts. Apple has already made the call to developers, offering everything necessary to get started creating your own iPad apps.
This tablet is designed to be used in conjunction with the Internet, games, Apple TV, the App Store, iTunes, and iWork '09. Using Wi-Fi and/or 3G Networks, the iPad functions similarly to the iPhone and iPod Touch. The iPad features a 9.7 inch screen, additional connectivity options and enhanced efficiency and performance to provide for an extreme battery life of up to 10 hours on a single charge.
See Steve Jobs' demo yourself on the video below from the ABC Nightline Coverage of the iPad unveiling hosted on Hulu:
For more information and full specs visit apple.com/ipad.
China, Google, Internet Explorer and Cyber Attacks
These are few of the hot topics in the news in the past week. A number of articles have been released alerting users to a vulnerability in Microsoft's Internet Explorer that played a role in the recent cyber attack on Google, as well as in attacks on a list of at least 20 other well known organizations.
The attacks originated from China. Understandably Google is now carefully considering how to proceed with regard to continuing to offer service in China. Google is currently investigating a number of cyber attacks which have been dubbed 'Operation Aurora' by experts at McAffee.
According to research summarized by Robert Lemos, a freelance journalist for MIT's MIT’s Technology Review, CIO.com and SecurityFocus, the recent attack on Google seemed to be used for surveillance and originated from 6 IP addresses in Taiwan.
Yet another article released on Info Security's website today discusses the type of code used in the attack on Google, which appeared to be in development as far back as 2006.
To get additional news and updates related to the attacks, you can visit the Technology section of the BBC News, the Unsafe Bits weblog or the Official Google Blog.
The attacks originated from China. Understandably Google is now carefully considering how to proceed with regard to continuing to offer service in China. Google is currently investigating a number of cyber attacks which have been dubbed 'Operation Aurora' by experts at McAffee.
According to research summarized by Robert Lemos, a freelance journalist for MIT's MIT’s Technology Review, CIO.com and SecurityFocus, the recent attack on Google seemed to be used for surveillance and originated from 6 IP addresses in Taiwan.
Yet another article released on Info Security's website today discusses the type of code used in the attack on Google, which appeared to be in development as far back as 2006.
To get additional news and updates related to the attacks, you can visit the Technology section of the BBC News, the Unsafe Bits weblog or the Official Google Blog.
Need to create a survey?
If you are considering or need to create an online or email survey this semester, consider using Survey Monkey.
Survey Monkey offers both a Free and a Professional version that allows users to create web based surveys employing 15 different types of questions and offering multiple data collection and analysis methods.
To learn more about it or give Survey Monkey a try visit surveymonkey.com.
