Digital and Information Fluency

Digital and Information Fluency, February 2025, Tips and Tricks

Tech Tips: Common Tech Vocab

Last month, we covered some common tech acronyms used both on campus and within the wider world of technology. This month we’re going over some more tech terms you might hear from members of ITS, in future editions of Bits & Bytes, or when contacting the Help Desk.

Asset tag

All Clark-managed devices–including chargers, desk phones, and more—have an asset tag on them which shows a barcode, a 6-digit number (the asset number), and the Clark logo. This tag helps ITS keep track of university assets so they can be used and serviced efficiently.

Banner

Banner is the name of a product from Ellucian that is our finance, HR, and student management application. This application has two different ways to interact with it. Administrative staff use Banner Admin which provides detailed access to information. Most members of the community use CUWeb to register for courses, enter your time off, and access budget information. Both Banner Admin and CUWeb are part of Banner.

Cache

Cache refers to temporary storage on your device where frequently accessed data, such as website images or recently opened files, are stored for quick retrieval.

By keeping this data readily available, a cache helps to speed up processes and improve performance. If the cache grows too large, it can slow down your computer—which is why it’s so important to restart your device on a regular basis.

External drive

An external drive is any storage solution you plug into a computer. They come in many forms, including USB or thumb drives, as well as larger towers or “bricks.” These are used to store and back-up files in a location separate from your computer for security and storage purposes.

File Explorer

File Explorer is the app used on Windows computers to navigate different storage locations on your computer. You often use File Explorer to organize, open, move, rename, and copy files from one location to another.

Finder

Finder is the app used on Mac devices to navigate different storage locations. You use this app to organize, open, move, rename, and copy files from one location to another. Finder also allows you to browse, open, or delete installed applications.

Kandji

Kandji is a management software used by Clark ITS to send out updates to Clark-managed Macs. It allows ITS to make sure Clark Macs are up-to-date and secure, as well as help you update apps on your Mac on your own schedule.

Shortcut

A shortcut is a link to a specific file, folder, or webpage, often hosted on the desktop of a computer to make it easier for you to access certain apps, sites, or files. It is not the file, folder, or webpage itself; it simply points you to the right place with one click.

Reset password

Resetting your password is different than changing your password. When you reset your password, you don’t know your previous password, so you need to use different authentication methods (such as a phone number or the Microsoft Authenticator app) to verify your access and create a new password. When you change your password, you know your previous password and use that as verification.

Digital and Information Fluency, January 2025, Tips and Tricks

Tech Tips: Common Tech Acronyms

Computer on a desk with a plant and coffee, screen showing tech acronyms

This image was generated using Adobe Firefly

Since the very beginning of the internet (the predecessor of which was called ARPANET, or Advanced Research Projects Agency Network), acronyms have abounded in our digital spaces and in the devices we use to get there. Below, ITS has included a list of some of the most used around campus. Some of these are specific to Clark, while others are universal within the world of technology.

AIS: Administrative Information Systems. This team at Clark University works with many departments across campus to manage Banner and its many uses, including course registration, budgets, and more.

ATS: Academic Technology Services. This team at Clark University assists faculty in utilizing educational technology, including Canvas, Panopto, Turnitin, and more.

GB: Gigabyte. This is a metric of data storage. Most computers on campus have either 256 or 512 GBs of storage. To put that amount into context, 100 GB is enough to hold “around 25,000 high-resolution photos, 30,000 songs, or 150 hours of HD video.”

HDMI: High-Definition Multimedia Interface. This is another type of port/cable commonly used at Clark to connect devices to larger displays. For example, most classroom podiums have an option for connecting a laptop to the projector via HDMI. This cable can be used to transmit both audio and video.

MFA: Multi-Factor Authentication. This process involves attaching multiple factors, such as phone numbers, email addresses, or apps, to an account to verify your identity to help protect your account it from unauthorized access.

OS: Operating System. An operating system is the way your computer interface appears to you and organizes data such as documents, user profiles, and more. Windows 11 and Sequoia are two examples of current operating systems for PC and Mac devices respectively.

RAM: Rapid Access Memory. This is fast, temporary storage used for applications to run and not to store your files. The amount of RAM a device has usually impacts how quickly applications can run, and a slowdown of a device may be due to not enough RAM for all the work we ask our devices to do.

RDC: Remote Desktop Connection. This is an app within Windows devices that allows you to “remote into” a campus computer while working remotely.

SSO: Single Sign-On. This involves using your login information for one platform or account, such as Microsoft or Google, to log into a different platform, app, or account. For example, you can use your Clark account information to sign into LinkedIn Learning.

SSPR: Self-Service Password Reset. This process allows you to reset your password on your own without involving ITS. You can read more about SSPR at Clark HERE.

USB: Universal Serial Bus. This is a type of cable and port found on many different devices, including Clark-managed laptops, which helps you connect external drives or accessories such as mice and can also charge many devices. There are different types of USBs; the most common are USB-A and USB-C.

VPN: Virtual Private Network. This is a tool that allows you to connect to a specific network (in our case, Clark’s network) even if you’re not physically on campus, which provides extra security and stability no matter where you are working.

Have any questions about tech acronyms? Contact the ITS Help Desk!

Digital and Information Fluency, January 2025, Windows 11

Winter Wonderland: Embracing Windows 11

Once upon a frosty winter, in a small town blanketed with snow, there was a cozy little office full of hardworking, cheerful employees. The office hummed with the sounds of typing and the occasional clink of a coffee mug, but as the winter deepened, a sense of anticipation filled the air. The arrival of a new year brought with it new opportunities – including an exciting upgrade to Windows 11.

Holly, the office’s IT manager, had been eagerly preparing for this transition. Once the new year was underway, she decided that it was time to share her enthusiasm with the rest of the team.

Gathering everyone around the conference table, Holly began to explain the advantages Windows 11 would bring. “Imagine,” she said, “a winter wonderland where everything runs smoothly and efficiently. That’s what Windows 11 promises. Its sleek new design makes multitasking a breeze, with customizable desktops and Snap Layouts that allow you to organize your work just the way you like it.”

The team listened intently as Holly continued. “But it’s not just about aesthetics. Windows 11 is built with security at its core. Your data will be better protected against sophisticated cyber threats. So in that winter wonderland, you’ll have your own personal ice fortress, keeping intruders at bay and your information secure.”

Jack, the office’s graphic designer, asked, “Does this mean my design software will run faster?”

“Yep!” Holly replied. “Windows 11 leverages your device’s hardware to reduce load times and improve performance. Loading will be like gliding across a frozen lake – smooth and seamless.”

“What about the accessibility features?” Chelsea, the copywriter, asked. She often used voice typing and speech-to-text to do her work.

“Windows 11 is designed to make the digital world more inclusive for everyone,” Holly said. “Whether it’s voice typing, magnification, or closed captions, there’s something to help each of us work comfortably and efficiently.”

By the end of the meeting, the team was buzzing with excitement. They understood that updating to Windows 11 was not just a technical necessity but a step toward a more productive, secure, and harmonious work environment. It was like embarking on a winter adventure, where every update was a path to something better.

In the end, the upgrade to Windows 11 was not just an update – it was a transformation. And as the snow began to melt and spring approached, the team knew they were ready for whatever challenges and opportunities the future held, all thanks to the power of Windows 11.

Click here to update to Windows 11!

Click here to learn more about Windows 11 at Clark University

Announcement, Digital and Information Fluency, October 2024

Meet Windows 11

Beginning this fall, Clark ITS will begin transitioning campus devices to the Windows 11 operating system. Windows 11, the latest operating system for PCs, is similar to the university’s current operating system of Windows 10 but introduces a revamped interface, new productivity features, and enhanced gaming capabilities. With a focus on creativity and productivity, Windows 11 offers a centered Start menu, Snap layouts for multitasking, and seamless integration with Microsoft Teams. You can look forward to a more intuitive and productive experience with Windows 11.

What’s new?

Taskbar

The taskbar (the bar stretching across the bottom of the screen with app icons) will be centered rather than aligned to the left bottom corner. You may also see new icons, including task view, widgets, and chat (read more about task view below). You can turn these features on or off by right-clicking the taskbar and selecting Taskbar settings.

Task View

One of the new features within the Windows 11 taskbar is task view. Clicking this icon allows you to see all open windows at a glance, making it easier to navigate between different documents and apps. You can also create different desktops (for example, a different desktop for each different project you’re currently on) and easily switch between the two using this button.

Snap Layout

If you’d prefer to view two or more windows at the same time, rather than switching back and forth between them, use Snap Layout. Simply hover over the minimize/maximize button in your current window to view and select different snap layouts, which automatically resize different windows and open apps to share screen space. This way, you can easily view and switch between two different apps, files, or windows.

To exit Snap Layout, simply click the maximize/minimize button again to make one of the open windows full screen.

File Explorer

On Windows computers, File Explorer is the tool used to locate and organize files and folders in different locations, such as Desktop or Documents. In Windows 11, common file management actions, such as copy, cut, paste, and rename, are now represented by icons conveniently located in the top of the window.

Focus Mode

Need to get stuff done without being distracted by notifications? Windows 11 offers focus mode, which sets your computer to Do Not Disturb and removes notification icons for a set period of time. For longer working sessions, Windows 11 also adds short 5-minute breaks for increased productivity. Click on the bell icon located next to the date and time to find this feature.

Where can I learn more?

Click here to read more about what you can look forward to with Windows 11 or check out this course on LinkedIn Learning.

If you have questions about Windows 11 on a Clark device, contact the ITS Help Desk at helpdesk@clarku.edu or 508-793-7745.

Digital and Information Fluency, November 2020, Resources, Teaching with Technology, Tool Spotlight

Who Loves LinkedIn Learning? We Do!

Since LinkedIn Learning, the online learning platform formerly known as Lynda.com, was launched on campus in August it has found many fans. This month we talk to three of our most active users.

Affoue Koffi – Graduate Student, School of Management

Affoue, a student in her first semester of a Masters in Finance graduate degree, was thrilled when she heard that Clark was providing access to LinkedIn Learning. Initially she was just hoping to get a refresher on finance basics prior to taking her Financial Accounting class this semester (click here for Financial Accounting videos), but then became hooked. She has since progressed to more in-depth financial videos, giving her a head-start on important skills and concepts for her dream of becoming a Corporate Financial Analyst (click here videos from the Becoming a Financial Analyst course).

To make time for extra-curricular learning in addition to her regular course work, Affoue sets herself a weekly goal that equates to about 20 minutes a day. When watching the videos she takes notes in a notebook, and takes advantage of the replay option for more complex topics that may require a second watching. By sticking to this reasonable goal, she’s made impressive progress in her learning paths, and is one of our most active LinkedIn Learning users.

John Freyermuth – Faculty, V&PA

This semester saw a new way of teaching and learning for many faculty and students. John Freyermuth, a faculty member in V&PA, turned to LinkedIn Learning to keep his teaching engaging and authentic. For his Computers and Music course, John wanted his students to see and hear complicated concepts covered in class demonstrated in professional environments. A series of curated LinkedIn Learning videos offered this opportunity to students, with John stating “the ability to visualize an auditory phenomenon has been beneficial for a lot of students.” They were particularly excited to watch animations of Microphone Polar Patterns, and on and off-axis microphone frequency responses (Click here to watch videos from the Digital Audio Foundations course.)

For John, the videos offered by LinkedIn Learning don’t offer an alternative to opportunities in the classroom, but actually enrich the learning from a different perspective. He’s excited for other faculty to consider using LinkedIn Learning but warns that with so many wonderful videos it can be easy to post too many!

Michelle Johnson-Sargent – Assistant to the Director, IDCE

Michelle Johnson-Sargent, Assistant to the Director in IDCE is one of Clark’s most active LinkedIn Learning users, and a true life-long learner. “I’m always looking for ways to be more efficient and work smarter not harder…LinkedIn Learning has definitely helped with that.” Michelle has spent lots of time learning more about Excel (click here for the Master Microsoft Excel videos), particularly how to format and present data better and be more effective at using formulas.

While working in a very busy role in IDCE, Michelle makes time for extra learning by multi-tasking. “It’s easy to have a topic of interest playing in the background or with the screen minimized. When I really want to focus on a topic, I log in and learn on the weekend.” Next on Michelle’s agenda? Project Management – a skill she knows will align well with her work in the department (click here for Project Management Foundations.)

Interested in LinkedIn Learning

If Affoue’s, John’s and Michelle’s stories have inspired you to check out LinkedIn Learning, click here for more information, and get learning!

Digital and Information Fluency, October 2020

Microsoft Outage: More Information

For a period of over 3 hours on the evening of September 28th, Microsoft services including Outlook, Skype, Teams, OneDrive and Office 365 experienced an outage across the US. This outage impacted millions of users’, including Clarkies’, ability to check email, voicemail and stored files.

Microsoft resolved the issues and announced that the outage was not as a result of a malicious attack, but of a series of code problems. Details can be found at Microsoft’s Azure AD authentication outage: What went wrong | ZDNet.

ITS is keenly aware that incidents like this, and the Zoom outage earlier in the semester, impact your ability to teach, learn and work. ITS staff members monitor the health of all of these systems around the clock. Whenever we identify an outage that will impact our users, we will do our best to communicate the issue and possible work-arounds quickly and regularly.

For your technology use outside Clark, you can visit DownDetector, a website that tracks and reports outages being experienced by 100’s of popular services.

April 2019, Digital and Information Fluency

Showcasing Your Data with Animations in Microsoft PowerPoint

When it is time to present your data, sometimes printed files such as spreadsheets and documents are not as impactful as we would like them to be. This often means that we use programs such as PowerPoint to create digital presentations of our data. Yet, much like with printed handouts, it is easy for PowerPoint presentations to become flat and a little boring

PowerPoint has a set of tools that can help us highlight the data that is important, and that can add additional visual appeal to the slides that we create. These tools are called animations.

Often when people think about an animation in PowerPoint, they think about the fun special effects that can play in between slides or as a bulleted list appears on the screen. However the animation tools in PowerPoint also allow us to do much more such as highlighting a certain part of spreadsheet, fading a part of a document away to highlight another, adding motion to graphs, and adding effects to SmartArt so that the important parts of our data and processes stand out.

To learn more about how to use animations in PowerPoint, click here.

Digital and Information Fluency, March 2019

Microsoft OneDrive

Microsoft OneDrive is a file storage solution that is available to all Clark students, faculty, and staff. Microsoft OneDrive allows you to store documents, photos, and other files in the cloud for easy access. It also allows you to share those files with peers and colleagues both inside and outside of the Clark community. With 1TB of storage available for each community member in OneDrive, you can use this service for many different projects.

Remember though, while OneDrive is great for most of your files, not all information should be stored in the cloud. Click here to read about what information is protected by Clark’s Information Security Policy and shouldn’t be uploaded to OneDrive.

If you would like to learn more about how to use Microsoft OneDrive, here are some video tutorials from Microsoft about how to upload, organize, and share files with your OneDrive.

If you have any additional questions about your OneDrive, please contact the ITS Help Desk.

Digital and Information Fluency, March 2019

Using SmartArt to Share Your Ideas

Finding impactful ways to present our ideas is an important part of the storytelling process. This is especially important when we introduce new ideas, analyze challenges, and discuss the projects and processes that we are working on with our audience. Sometimes spreadsheets, PowerPoint slides, and pages of written text are not the right visual solution for our audience, the story we are telling, or the ideas we want to share.

However, there are additional features in Microsoft Office that can help us to present our ideas through customizable graphics. One such feature that is available in Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, is SmartArt.

SmartArt allows you to use a variety of templates to present and visualize your data and ideas in more dynamic ways. Some of the templates that are available can help you visualize processes, hierarchies, relationships, matrixes, cycles, and lists. Each template, once inserted into your Microsoft file, can be customized. For instance, the color, size, font, and levels of a template can be changed. You can even switch layouts after you have entered your data, and SmartArt can be copied and pasted from one Microsoft file to another, such as from Microsoft Word to PowerPoint.

To learn more about what SmartArt can do, and how to use it, click here.

Digital and Information Fluency, January 2019

Picking the Right Chart For Your Data

The data we collect and use every day is a valuable asset, but it is when we present our data so that it tells a story that the real value of our data stands out.

Choosing the right chart to represent your data can often be challenging. Presenting your data in ways that are appropriate and beneficial for the data type, and in ways that make your data easier to understand, takes knowledge and a little savvy. Spend a few minutes with this article to familiarize yourself with some of the different chart types, and to learn which type of data they are best suited for. Read more by clicking here…