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Orange Online: March 2024 Student Newsletter

This message was originally shared to all students via email on Mar. 6, 2024.

New Service Makes Electronic Documents More Accessible for All

ITS is pleased to announce the rollout of SensusAccess, a new and fully automated document remediation and file conversion service. Consistent with a campus that is welcoming to all, SensusAccess makes electronic documents such as PDF files or Microsoft PowerPoint presentations more accessible to audiences of all abilities through remediation or conversion to more usable formats, including audio, e-books, digital Braille, digital large-print and BeeLine Reader. SensusAccess also can translate documents from one language into another. The service is available for use by students, faculty and staff at no cost.

Spring Break Travel Tip

If you will travel for Spring Break, it’s a good idea to configure your multifactor authentication (MFA) methods to ensure you retain access to your University accounts wherever you go. ITS recommends you download and configure the Microsoft Authenticator app on the mobile device you will take with you. You can learn more about MFA on Answers.

Phishing Alerts on the ITS Instagram Account

Criminals use malicious email to try to trick you into revealing your password or other sensitive information or to infect your computer with malware. These phishers sometimes try to make their emails look real by using companies’ or institutions’ logos, fonts and colors. Urgent demands also are common (for example, “Reply with your password within 24 hours or your account will be closed!”). In addition to the ITS Phish Bowl, ITS shares examples of phishing emails on Instagram to increase awareness of common scams.

Orange Alert Information in MySlice

All students are strongly encouraged to ensure their contact information for Orange Alert is up to date in MySlice to receive emergency communications from the Department of Public Safety.

To do so:

  • Go to MySlice
  • Log in using your NetID and Password
  • Select Student Home or Employee Home depending on your primary affiliation
  • Select the Personal Profile tile
  • Choose “Orange Alert Contacts” from the navigation menu
  • Review your information

If you need to add, update or delete contact information, select “Contact Details” from the navigation menu. Utilize the “Orange Alert Private Phone” feature to add a secondary/emergency contact (for example, spouse, sibling, etc.) to receive alerts.

Annual Spring Lecture to Examine the Effects of Artificial Intelligence

Data scientist and artificial intelligence (AI) expert Rumman Chowdhury will visit campus on Wednesday, March 6, as the featured speaker for the University’s annual Spring Lecture. Her talk, “Generative AI and the Future of Humanity,” will begin at 7 p.m. in the Schine Student Center’s Goldstein Auditorium. The event is free and open to the public, but a ticket will be required for entry. More Info

Microsoft 365: Your Documents, Anywhere on Any Device

Microsoft 365 is a suite of productivity tools that enables you to access your files and applications from anywhere on any device. Microsoft 365 includes classic Microsoft Office applications like Word, Excel and PowerPoint, as well as secure storing and sharing via OneDrive and real-time collaboration through Teams.

Tech To-Dos Before Graduation

Are you graduating in May? On Answers, you can find a list of information technology resources (e.g., email, Google Workspace, Adobe Creative Cloud and more) and how long you will retain access to them following graduation. It also is important to migrate your University Google Drive data, as well as transfer ownership of any surveys you created in Qualtrics for faculty or staff who will need to use them in the future. To transfer ownership of a Qualtrics survey, send an email from your @syr.edu address to qualtrics@ot.syr.edu and name the specific survey(s) to be transferred and the new owner(s).

System Alerts

If you have trouble connecting to a campus website or system, the System Status page on the ITS website can help you determine whether there is an issue with your computer or something else. The System Status page includes notifications for scheduled downtimes and alerts for unscheduled downtimes or outages. You also can sign up to receive notifications and alerts by email.

Helpful Resources

ITS and the campuswide information technology community are available year-round to help with your tech questions. Resources include:

Thank you for reading. Go Orange!

Tech Tips: February 2024 Faculty and Staff Newsletter

This message was originally shared with all faculty and staff via email on Feb. 7, 2024.

Store and Share With Microsoft OneDrive

Part of the Microsoft 365 suite of productivity tools, OneDrive lets you store and protect 500GB of files, share them with others and access them from anywhere on all of your devices. Options for migrating content from Google Drive to OneDrive are available on Answers.

Annual Spring Lecture to Examine the Effects of Artificial Intelligence

Data scientist and artificial intelligence (AI) expert Rumman Chowdhury will visit campus on Wed., March 6, as the featured speaker for the University’s annual Spring Lecture. Her talk, “Generative AI and the Future of Humanity,” will begin at 7 p.m. in the Schine Student Center’s Goldstein Auditorium. The event is free and open to the public, but a ticket will be required for entry.

Securing Zoom Meetings

To help ensure the security of Zoom meetings, ITS recommends the following steps when hosting a meeting:

• Automatically generate a Meeting ID
• Require a meeting password
• Enable the waiting room feature
• Disable “Join Before Host”
• Limit screen sharing to the host
• Lock the meeting

You can learn more about these and other recommendations on Answers.

Blackboard Ultra Course View Transition

Instructors can begin preparing to use Blackboard Ultra Course view by signing up for how-to videos and a sandbox course to try it out. The ITS Online Learning Services team will announce Spring and Summer training opportunities soon. Details, including topics, dates and registration links, will be available on Answers.

System Alerts

If you have trouble connecting to a campus website or system, the System Status page on the ITS website can help you determine whether there is an issue with your computer or something else. The System Status page includes notifications for scheduled downtimes and alerts for unscheduled downtimes or outages. You also can sign up to receive notifications and alerts by email.

ITS Phish Bowl

Criminals use malicious email to try to trick you into revealing your password or other sensitive information or to infect your computer with malware. These phishers sometimes try to make their emails look real by using companies’ or institutions’ logos, fonts and colors. Urgent demands also are common (for example, “Reply with your password within 24 hours or your account will be closed!”). To help you identify phishing emails, ITS has collected recent examples at the Phish Bowl.

New eResources From Syracuse University Libraries

The Libraries collects a wide array of online resources licensed from hundreds of publishers, from books and journals to streaming media, images, indexes and databases. For this semester, the Libraries have begun the first year of Gale’s Accelerate model, which allows the Libraries to experiment more with different types of archival collections at one time to determine the ones that best meet the University’s research and teaching needs. The new collections from Gale represent a wide range of periodical, manuscript, news and other types of archives.

You Are Here: Digital Maps and Other Campus Resources

If you haven’t already done so, check out our digital maps on maps.syracuse.edu, where you can sort by a range of location types (buildings, computer labs, parking, dining options, etc.). You also can find wheelchair wayfinding routes by clicking on the “Wayfinding” button and selecting “Show Only Wheelchair Accessible Routes.” In addition, bus schedule information is available at subus.syr.edu.

Choosing Color Combinations With Contrast

When designing your web page, electronic signage, presentations or emails, choose color combinations that ensure text and meaningful graphics are easy to see. Low contrast between the text color and the background color can be an access barrier for people with low vision. Free tools such as the TPGi Analyzer and the WAVE Evaluation Tool can test color contrast and let you know if your digital product meets accessibility standards. To learn more about use of color and color contrast, visit our Digital Accessibility Office Hours.

Helpful Resources

ITS and the campuswide information technology community are available year-round to help with your tech questions. Resources include:

Thank you for reading. Go Orange!

Orange Online: February 2024 Student Newsletter

This message was originally shared to all students via email on Feb. 7, 2024.

Watch the Big Game on SpectrumU

Do you need a way to watch the game this Sunday? Do you just need a break from studying? When you connect to a campus network, you can watch your favorite shows and movies by downloading the SpectrumU app or by visiting watch.spectrum.net through your browser.

Store and Share With Microsoft OneDrive

Part of the Microsoft 365 suite of productivity tools, OneDrive lets you store and protect 500GB of files, share them with others and access them from anywhere on all of your devices. Options for migrating content from Google Drive to OneDrive are available on Answers.

Annual Spring Lecture to Examine the Effects of Artificial Intelligence

Data scientist and artificial intelligence (AI) expert Rumman Chowdhury will visit campus on Wed., March 6, as the featured speaker for the University’s annual Spring Lecture. Her talk, “Generative AI and the Future of Humanity,” will begin at 7 p.m. in the Schine Student Center’s Goldstein Auditorium. The event is free and open to the public, but a ticket will be required for entry.

Securing Zoom Meetings

To help ensure the security of Zoom meetings, ITS recommends the following steps when hosting a meeting:

• Automatically generate a Meeting ID
• Require a meeting password
• Enable the waiting room feature
• Disable “Join Before Host”
• Limit screen sharing to the host
• Lock the meeting

You can learn more about these and other recommendations on Answers.

System Alerts

If you have trouble connecting to a campus website or system, the System Status page on the ITS website can help you determine whether there is an issue with your computer or something else. The System Status page includes notifications for scheduled downtimes and alerts for unscheduled downtimes or outages. You also can sign up to receive notifications and alerts by email.

ITS Phish Bowl

Criminals use malicious email to try to trick you into revealing your password or other sensitive information or to infect your computer with malware. These phishers sometimes try to make their emails look real by using companies’ or institutions’ logos, fonts and colors. Urgent demands also are common (for example, “Reply with your password within 24 hours or your account will be closed!”). To help you identify phishing emails, ITS has collected recent examples at the Phish Bowl.

New eResources From Syracuse University Libraries

The Libraries collects a wide array of online resources licensed from hundreds of publishers, from books and journals to streaming media, images, indexes and databases. For this semester, the Libraries have begun the first year of Gale’s Accelerate model, which allows the Libraries to experiment more with different types of archival collections at one time to determine the ones that best meet the University’s research and teaching needs. The new collections from Gale represent a wide range of periodical, manuscript, news and other types of archives.

You Are Here: Digital Maps and Other Campus Resources

If you haven’t already done so, check out our digital maps on maps.syracuse.edu, where you can sort by a range of location types (buildings, computer labs, parking, dining options, etc.). You also can find wheelchair wayfinding routes by clicking on the “Wayfinding” button and selecting “Show Only Wheelchair Accessible Routes.” In addition, bus schedule information is available at subus.syr.edu.

Helpful Resources

ITS and the campuswide information technology community are available year-round to help with your tech questions. Resources include:

Thank you for reading. Go Orange!

Tech Tips: January 2024 Faculty and Staff Newsletter

This message was originally shared to all faculty and staff via email on Jan. 17, 2024.

Classroom Resources and Technology Sessions Available 

Would you like to learn more about the technology available in your classrooms? Review the Classroom Resource Guide and Hybrid Classroom Technology Guide or request a training provided by ITS Learning Environments and Media Production. To request a classroom technology overview session, please complete the Classroom Training Request Form.

Upcoming Faculty Workshops: Blackboard Ultra Course View Transition

The ITS Online Learning Services team will offer a set of workshops in January to help instructors prepare for teaching with Blackboard Ultra Course View. Each event is scheduled as an hour-long workshop on a specific aspect of Ultra courses. Details, including topics, dates and registration links, are available on Answers. Instructors also can sign up for access to tutorial videos and a sandbox course in which they can test and build in the new view at any time. Instructors who wish to begin teaching in the new view can request to have their original courses replaced with Ultra courses.

Upcoming Answers Cloud Migration: What You Need to Know

As part of our ongoing commitment to continuous improvement and innovation, ITS is re-envisioning Answers in the cloud. ITS will migrate existing public Answers spaces to the new cloud platform over the next eight months. Within the next month, owners of these spaces will receive communications with timelines and next steps for this migration. As we shift our focus to a unified, publicly accessible self-service resource, Intranet and personal Answers Spaces will be discontinued at a later date. Answers administrators will contact owners of these spaces within the next month. If you own one of these private spaces, you can take action today by inventorying your space(s) and reviewing the alternatives found at Alternatives to Answers Private Spaces.

Bring Your Ideas to Life at the ITS MakerSpace

Open to University students, faculty and staff, the ITS MakerSpace provides a collaborative space to bring your ideas to life! The ITS MakerSpace is home to more than 20 3D printers, laser engravers, embroidery and sewing machines, a music studio and more! Equipment usage is free of charge. Learn more on the ITS MakerSpace website. Makers of all experience levels from all schools, colleges and units are welcome!

Watch Out for Phishing Scams

ITS has seen high volumes of phishing activity in recent weeks. Watch out for suspicious links, urgent demands and job offers that seem too good to be true. REMEMBER: Your password and MFA codes are just for you! There is never a reason to share them with anyone else. If you need more information or assistance with verifying any email messages, please contact the ITS Service Center at 315.443.2677 or help@syr.edu.

Poll Everywhere Campus Site License Now Available

ITS has licensed Poll Everywhere for use by all faculty, staff and students at no additional charge. Poll Everywhere is an audience response system that can be used for in-person events and classes as well as for online sessions. Questions can be integrated into a wide variety of applications including PowerPoint, Keynote, Google Slides, Teams and Zoom. For more information, please contact the Online Learning Services team at help@syr.edu.

Recent Changes to Google Workspace

Effective Jan. 3, 2024, faculty members and instructors are limited to 60 GB of storage within Google Drive (or “My Drive”). These users still have the ability to create and manage Shared Drives, which do not count against individual storage quotas. Any faculty member or instructor currently over this quota will receive an extended storage quota until the beginning of the Fall 2024 semester. Please consult your local academic IT support for more information and assistance in identifying available storage solutions. You also can visit Answers to learn more about this change.

Turnitin AI Detection No Longer Available

The free preview of the Turnitin AI Detection Tool has expired as of Jan. 1, 2024. Due to concerns about the reliability of this tool and the significant cost, ITS has decided not to license this tool at this time. The standard plagiarism detections tools will continue to be available via Turnitin. For more information, please contact the Online Learning Services team at help@syr.edu.

New Year’s Tech Resolutions

A new year and a new semester offer opportunities to build new habits and skills. ITS surveyed members of the University information technology community for their recommendations on how technology can help you be more creative, more productive, more secure and more efficient in 2024.

Orange Online: January 2024 ITS Student Newsletter

This message was originally shared to all students via email on Jan. 17, 2024.

Campus Resources: Digital Maps and Bus Schedules

If you haven’t already done so, check out our digital maps on maps.syracuse.edu, where you can sort by a range of location types (buildings, computer labs, parking, dining options, etc.). You also can find wheelchair wayfinding routes by clicking on the “Wayfinding” button and selecting “Show Only Wheelchair Accessible Routes.” In addition, bus schedule information is available at subus.syr.edu.

New Year’s Tech Resolutions

A new year and a new semester offer opportunities to build new habits and skills. ITS surveyed members of the University information technology community for their recommendations on how technology can help you be more creative, more productive, more secure and more efficient in 2024.

Bring Your Ideas to Life at the ITS MakerSpace

Open to University students, faculty and staff, the ITS MakerSpace provides a collaborative space to bring your ideas to life! The ITS MakerSpace is home to more than 20 3D printers, laser engravers, embroidery and sewing machines, a music studio and more! Equipment usage is free of charge. Learn more on the ITS MakerSpace website. Makers of all experience levels from all schools, colleges and units are welcome!

Watch Out for Phishing Scams

ITS has seen high volumes of phishing activity in recent weeks. Watch out for suspicious links, urgent demands and job offers that seem too good to be true. REMEMBER: Your password and MFA codes are just for you! There is never a reason to share them with anyone else. If you need more information or assistance with verifying any email messages, please contact the ITS Service Center at 315.443.2677 or help@syr.edu.

Recent Changes to Google Workspace

Effective Jan. 3, 2024, students using Google Drive (“My Drive”) with their g.syr.edu account have a 10 GB per user storage quota and are not able to create Shared Drives within the University’s Google Workspace. Users over the quota are presented with a warning and are able to view, export and remove files to bring their My Drive storage consumption under the quota. Users who exceed the storage quota are not able to create, upload or modify files within their My Drive. For more information, please review our Answers resource on this topic.

AirOrangeX Wireless Network

If you have recently returned to campus, you might need to disconnect your personal cellular hotspot. When someone uses a hotspot on campus, the signal competes with the AirOrangeX wireless network. Wherever you study on campus, AirOrangeX provides fast, secure connection for computers, smartphones and tablets. You can find configuration instructions at its.syr.edu/connected. Connecting to a campus network such as AirOrangeX instead of a cellular hotspot is a great way to improve the campus computing experience for everyone.

Upcoming Answers Cloud Migration: What You Need to Know

ITS will migrate existing public Answers spaces to the new cloud platform over the next eight months. Within the next month, owners of these spaces will receive communications with timelines and next steps for this migration. Intranet and personal Answers Spaces will be discontinued at a later date. Answers administrators will contact owners of these spaces within the next month. If you own one of these private spaces, you can take action today by inventorying your space(s) and reviewing the alternatives found at Alternatives to Answers Private Spaces.