Massac Tech Ed

If you are an iPhone/iPod Touch user, you can download the free SmartFindExpress application from the App Store to use the substitute call system. Please note that the mobile app has limited features. You can learn more about the app by visiting,  http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/sfemobile1/id388482560?mt=8 . If you decide to download and try it out, make sure you follow the directions in the image below to access your account. Feel free to comment on this post about your experience with the mobile app.

The Massac Tech Ed blog has been given a face lift.  You will now see clickable links (Classic, Flipcard, etc.) at the top of the blog that allows you to view the blog however you would like.  It is what Blogger is calling, "a dynamic interface." If you blog or were thinking about starting one for your class, this certainly makes it a bit more exciting. I have turned on the feature for this blog to be viewed easier on a mobile device (iPhone, Android, etc.).  The district website ( http://massac.org ) and the high school website ( http://mchs.massac.org ) will also automatically adjust to your mobile device. Enjoy!

...a Happy 30th to Aaron Clark tomorrow!

I hope everyone had a nice summer. As we are now getting back into the swing of things, please remember to submit your tech issues to our trouble ticket system at http://sl.massac.org/ticket . If you are a new staff member or need a refresher about the Substitute Call system, please email Aaron Clark at aclark@massac.org . Also remember to visit our technology website at http://tech.massac.org for helpful resources, documents, and other useful information. Have a great year!

Opening a ZIP or RAR (compressed/archived file types) can be a bit worrisome especially if you are unsure of the sender. Every once in a while, people try to send viruses through these file types. However, you can now preview ZIP and RAR files directly through Massac Mail (GMail) via Google Docs. You will also be able to download selected items within the files themselves. This can be quite a time saver, especially if you only need a couple of files from the main ZIP or RAR. This feature also works on Google Docs Mobile as well.

This is an interesting read if you use Google Docs and/or our Massac Docs (from Google). http://googledocs.blogspot.com/2011/06/few-improvements-to-discussions-in.html To access your Massac Docs, visit http://docs.massac.org .

Here are a few of the newest updates for our Massac Apps: Please note that these features may not immediately be available, but are intended for release in April 2011. Sites - Recovery of deleted sites. If an owner of a site accidentally deletes a site, it will be immediately removed from view but they may recover it by visiting its URL within 30 days. Contacts - Add new contact information that will default to “Work” instead of “Home” field types. - Manage groups more easily by quickly adding email addresses to groups, and picking from a contact’s multiple email addresses to use on a group-by-group basis. - Revert changes to your Contacts for up to 30 days in case you need to restore deleted or merged contacts, or undo an import. Spreadsheets - Ability to hide individual sheets in your spreadsheet. - Filtering is now available in Google Spreadsheets. Adding a filter onto a set of data can help you quickly narrow down the data set to find the data you need. By selecting a data set, you

Google Cloud Connect is a plug-in to Microsoft Office that allows you to synchronize documents, spreadsheets, and presentations with your Massac Apps and/or other Google Account. Other features include collaboration, document sharing, and offline editing. After installing the Cloud Connect toolbar to Microsoft Office, you will be prompted to enter your account credentials. You will also have the option to synchronize your files automatically or manually. This is a handy tool for backing up those important files! Requirements: Windows XP/Vista/7 ; Microsoft Office 2003/2007/2010 Check it out: http://tools.google.com/dlpage/cloudconnect

Google Docs has now added support for the following file formats: Microsoft Excel (.XLS and .XLSX) Microsoft PowerPoint 2007 / 2010 (.PPTX) Apple Pages (.PAGES) Adobe Illustrator (.AI) Adobe Photoshop (.PSD) Autodesk AutoCad (.DXF) Scalable Vector Graphics (.SVG) PostScript (.EPS, .PS) TrueType (.TTF) XML Paper Specification (.XPS) To use your Massac Docs account, visit http://docs.massac.org

For those of you who are using Google Docs (Our address is http://docs.massac.org ), you might have noticed a few changes. New filters in ‘More options’ making it easier to narrow your search by type, visibility state and other criteria. A new preview panel on the right side of the document list showing a preview thumbnail, sharing settings and more. If the file is a video, you can start playing it directly from the preview panel or from the recently announced video player. To make it easier to view photos, you can now click on the magnifying glass on a photo to open a full screen slide-show viewer. A new view called ‘Home’. The contents of the ‘Home’ view are controlled by you so that the content you access the most often is easier to get to. You can remove files from the ‘Home’ view by right clicking the file and selecting ‘Don’t show in home’ to hide them. And when you need them, these files can always be found later by selecting ‘All items’ or using search. ‘Folders’ have been rep

Ever find yourself in need of a graphing calculator? Don't want to pay 100 dollars for a new calculator? Then Microsoft may have a solution for you. This product used to be $20 but now is free. Visit this site for more information: http://blogs.msdn.com/b/alfredth/archive/2011/01/20/microsoft-math-4-0-and-more.aspx Visit this site to download the software: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/en/details.aspx?FamilyID=9caca722-5235-401c-8d3f-9e242b794c3a Enjoy!

For intermediate to advanced users (Windows based PCs). Almost monthly I come across a computer with a fake antivirus program on it. These programs claim that your PC will remain infected until you buy their product. If this ever happens, your computer has most likely been compromised by malware. Some of the common fake antivirus programs are: -Rogue Antivirus -Antimalware Doctor -Super Antispyware Other than making your computer nearly unusable, these programs often try to obtain your personal information, such as credit card numbers. Below I will offer a solution to rid your computer of this unwanted malware. (Please note that this method does not always work.) 1. If you are able to navigate using your web browser, download this file. Rkill and Malwarebytes (ZIP) Alternatively, you may download these files using another computer. I would recommend burning these files to a CD and then placing the CD in the infected computer. 2. Extract these files onto the in

You can access all of these services by using your Massac E-Mail Account 1. Google Chat Just a reminder that there are a couple of ways to chat via your Massac Account. Check out the following link for more information http://www.google.com/talk/ 2. Picasa (Photo Editing/Storage) Check out the following link for more information http://picasa.google.com/ 3. Google Calendar Use the calendar to keep track of important dates, appointments, or meetings. Create more calendars to post on your webpage/website to keep your students and parents informed about upcoming assignments, class projects, or tests. Check out the following link to get started on your calendar http://calendar.massac.org If you have any questions on these services, please contact: Tom - twalker@massac.org Joel - jthoman@massac.org