FWP Tech Tips

FWP Tech Tips

FWP Tech  //  

Jan 19 / 7:56pm

Tech Tips: "Syncing" your Mac Account

by FWP Tech
This is a Tech Tip for all the Mac users. 

As I am sure you have noticed throughout the year, a sync occurs each time you log in and out of your computer. During this process, all of your data is copied back and forth between our servers and the computer you are using. This process is in place to make a copy of all of your data in the case of a computer failure, and also to allow you to log into any Mac in the building and have your data follow you. We understand that this can be a bit time consuming but here are a few tips to help speed up the process:

  • Log into the same computer if possible - if you have multiple computers in your room or if you use the labs on a regular basis, try to log into the same computers.
  • Only log into one computer at a time - if you travel between multiple computers, please log out of one before logging into another. We realize that this can take some time, but it keeps the newest versions of your files accessible on whichever computer you are using.
  • Let the syncing process finish - it is tempting to simply stop the syncing process to speed things up, but if you do this there will be no backup of your files. Please be patient if at all possible. If you feel like it is taking an inordinate amount of time, please contact us and we cna take a look at your account. 
  • Reduce the amount of data in your account - the more data you have in your account, the longer it is going t take to log in and out of machines. We know that this can take time to go through and organize your files, but it will definitely help i the long run. We are more than willing to help you organize and archive any of your data. 
Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns. This system is in place to safeguard your data and we are continually working on finding the balance between data security and ease of use. Your feedback is greatly appreciated.

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Filed under  //  mac  

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Jan 5 / 7:15pm

Tech Tips: Fair Use and Copyright

by FWP Tech
Over the years I am have gotten may questions concerning fair use and copyright issues in the classrooms and each time i have been unable to provide an answer that I can fully comfortable with. Now with our ever increasing use of technology and internet-based content, this issue is more important than ever.

With that in mind I wanted to forward along a link to a great blog post concerning fair use:

http://www.freetech4teachers.com/2010/01/six-resources-for-learning-about-fair.html

If you have a few minutes, take look through some the videos on this site. I guarantee you will learn something.

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Filed under  //  internet  

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Dec 2 / 7:29pm

Tech Tips: Accessing the Blue Bulletin

by FWP Tech
The question of how to access the Blue Bulletin was posed again today so I figured this was something that the entire community may be interested in. With our new email system, the Blue Bulletin is available directly through your personal calendar. To access:

  • Once your calendar has opened, enter "blue@fwparker.org" to the "Add a coworkers calendar" section on the left side and hit return

  • the Blue Bulletin should now appear in your list of calendars

You may notice that the Blue Bulletin has a ton of information and you may not want it in the way every time you look at your calendar. To hide the Blue Bulletin from view simply click on the highlighted "Blue Bulletin" to unhighlight (not sure if that is a word), and the calendar will disappear from view. Now you toggle the Blue Bulletin off and on when needed.

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Filed under  //  calendar   google  

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Nov 23 / 8:06pm

Tech Tips: K12 Online Conference

by FWP Tech
I just wanted to let everyone know about the K12 Online Conference that begins next week. For those that are not familiar, the K12 Online Conference...

"...is a FREE conference open to ANYONE by educators for educators around the world interested in integrating emerging technologies into classroom practice. A goal of the conference is to help educators make sense of and meet the needs of a continually changing learning landscape."

When a moment free, click on the link up above and take a look around the site. This is a great resource to learn about new technologies or new uses for tools you are already familiar with. The site also contains links to presentations given over the past few years.

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Nov 12 / 8:34am

Tech Tips: Using the Library's ProQuest System

by FWP Tech
I just wanted to forward along a link to a video created by Marty Moran in the History Department on how to do some basic searches using ProQuest:

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Filed under  //  library  

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Nov 4 / 6:52pm

Tech Tips: Why do I not receive a copy of email I send to groups?

by FWP Tech
This question has been asked a number of times since the move to our new email system. With this system, you will not receive a message you send to a group that you are a part of.

For example, if you send a message to fwp-announcements@fwparker.org you will not receive a copy of the message in your Inbox even though you are a member of the group as well. If you want to continue to receive the message as a way to verify that it was sent, simply add your email address to the to:, cc: or bcc: fields. This will guarantee the message will be sent to you as well.

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Filed under  //  email  

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Nov 2 / 1:53pm

Tech Tips: Quickly add calendar appointments

by FWP Tech
Would you use you calendar more often if it was faster to add appointments? If so, this is for you.

Simply go to your calendar and click on "Quick Add" in the upper left. From here you can quick add the details and Google figures out the rest for you. For example, you could add the following:

11/3 3:30 meeting in Harris Center

Your calendar will then update with an appointment on 11/3 from 3:30 to 4:30 with the title of "meeting" and location of "Harris Center". No need to click on the details of the appoint and set this up for yourself.

Also you can follow the previous Tech Tip on Gmail Labs, add the Calendar Gadget and do this directly from your email. No need to go the calendar at all.

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Filed under  //  calendar   google  

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Oct 26 / 7:17pm

Tech Tips: Explore Gmail Labs

by FWP Tech
Interested in customizing the look and feel of your new email? Look no further than Gmail Labs. Labs are a set of experimental new features, and you can enable or disable each one. Some of the popular ones will become a part of the core email system, while the ones that do not get much use will simply fade away.

To access, click on "Settings" in the upper right, then select the "Labs" tab. You will be present with a long list that you can simply "enable" if you are interested. If at a later date you would like to turn them off, simply click "disable".

Some of the Labs that I have enabled:

  • Right-side chat
  • Nav bar drag and drop
  • Forgotten attachment detector
  • Custom Label colors
  • Inbox preview
  • Text Messaging (SMS) in chat
  • Undo send
  • Title tweaks
  • Don't forget Bob
  • Search autocomplete
  • Google calendar gadget
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Filed under  //  email   google  

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Oct 20 / 7:21pm

Tech Tips: Email Filters

by FWP Tech
As these tips begin to flood your mailbox I thought you may be interested in moving these message automatically to a folder (label in the Gmail world) for future reference. Of course this applies to not only Tech Tips email but also any email that you would like to remove from your inbox and categorize for future reference.

Click below for details instructions and a vidoe to go with it:

http://mail.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=6579

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Filed under  //  email   google  

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Oct 20 / 8:21am

Tech Tips: Email "Conversations"

by FWP Tech
With the switch to the new Gmail-based email system almost complete the most asked questions seem to deal with "conversations". In Gmail, replies to replies (and replies to those replies) are displayed in one place, in order, making it easier to understand the context of a message -- or to follow the conversation.

For those who were interested in learning more about how to handle "conversations", check out the following links:

http://www.g04.com/misc/GmailTipsComplete.html#Tip-10

http://www.g04.com/misc/GmailTipsComplete.html#Tip-13

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Filed under  //  email   google  

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