Category Archives: News

Media Commons: are you taking advantage of it?

Posted on December 11, 2012 | Leave a comment

We’re a small campus, but we have great services available to us through University Park by virtue of the fact that we are part of the Penn State system.  Some examples of these resources  are computing resources, library resources, and instructional design resources.

One service that combines all three of those categories is the Media Commons, located in the campus Library.  Have you heard of Media Commons?  Have you used the studios?  When Media Commons first came to Mont Alto years ago, it was called Digital Commons.

Media Commons on our campus is comprised of a recording studio and three editing studios, outfitted with great equipment like professional-grade video camera and lights, a green screen, broadcast-quality microphones, and Apple iMac computers with numerous media-editing applications installed.  There are telephones installed in the editing studios that dial directly to the Media Commons Help Desk, where a Media Commons professional can connect remotely to the computer and help troubleshoot issues that arise.

What uses does Media Commons have?  Students are encouraged to use this equipment for audio and video projects.  Faculty and staff, likewise, have opportunity to generate media as creative as they can imagine.  Our campus has a number of different classes in different disciplines that rely heavily on the Media Commons technologies for semester projects.  Our PT384 class has been requiring a semester video project for many years – when Digital Commons arrived here, it was a great fit for what the students need to do.  Click here to see the case study for this class use of Media Commons, complete with a sample student video and an interview of Renee Borromeo:  http://mediacommons.psu.edu/pt384.

What if you don’t know how to use the equipment or even how the studios might benefit you in your efforts?  You’re in a good place to ask.  Nick Smerker, a Traveling Media Consultant from the University Park Media Commons team, visits the Mont Alto campus regularly to assist faculty, staff, and students with current projects and to plan future ones.  He’ll be here on January 7, and he has availability to meet with you!

If you’re interested in meeting with Nick on January 7, or another date, please email mediacommons@psu.edu.  It’s not too late to consider incorporating these technologies into your Spring semester.

In other Media Commons news, we’re bringing a Penn State specific technology to campus soon…  It’s called a One Button Studio, and we’ll be posting more information as we have it.  Here’s a link, in case you’re curious:

http://mediacommons.psu.edu/onebutton

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Lab News

Posted on November 13, 2012 | Leave a comment

Many thanks to the helpful staff of the Academic Support Center: they’re partnering with ITS to extend the hours of availability for the General Studies 101A Computer Lab and Collaboration Space! New hours for  standard academic weeks are as follows:
8:30 am – 7:00 pm, Monday through Thursday
8:30 am – 4:00 pm, Friday

Students who need to use public computers during hours not listed here can use the Library, which has also partnered with ITS to extend hours of availability for students.  Regular hours for the Library are as follows:
8:00 am – 10:00 pm, Monday through Friday
4:00 pm – 10:00 pm, Saturday
Noon – 10:00 pm, Sunday

We will be extending lab hours at the end of the semester to accommodate student computing needs for finishing projects and papers.

Other lab news is VERY exciting!  We are piloting a new program introduced by CLM (Cooperative Lab Management at University Park – the group that manages lab computers here).  This program is called LabChat and is currently available on all lab and public computers supported by Mont Alto campus ITS.  Users who are logged into lab and public computers can now click on a shortcut on the desktop that will open a chat window.  Lab consultants are available through LabChat to answer basic questions about computer and software use.  In the case that a question is asked that requires help from our local department, the consultants will immediately contact us for support.  LabChat adds one more resource for assistance for our campus computing community.  Try it and let us know what you think!

 

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Hello, IDS(es)!

Posted on October 12, 2012 | 2 comments

We’ve set up a special email address so that you can contact our traveling IDSes! Just send an email to ids@ma.psu.edu and they’ll all receive a copy of your request.

Brian, Heather, and Jeff will be visiting again on Wednesday, October 17, from 9 am to 2 pm. They’ll be available for a meet and greet in the upstairs Library conference room for a good portion of the day. This team hopes to meet faculty and have discussion to better discern faculty needs. Here’s a short list of technologies/interests their group can help with:

Penn State Supported Services:
Voicethread
Blogs
E-Portfolio
Clickers
Streaming Server
ANGEL

Other areas of interest:
Classroom Assessment
iPad as a classroom tool (Doceri)
Educational Research
Yammer

Would you like to know more about them?

Brian has been working within Education Technology Services consulting with faculty for a number of years at Penn State. His main focus has been technologies used for classroom teaching, such as clickers, and iPad projection (Doceri). Prior to coming to Penn State, Brian has worked as a middle school History teacher, has developed curriculum for an online high school. Brian has also worked at the University of South Carolina assisting in the development of an online Public Health Training Center. He earned a Masters degree in Instructional Technology as well as his Secondary education History degree from Bloomsburg University.

Heather is completing her Ph.D. in Art Education at Penn State, where she studies activity in a large-scale online social network. Heather also has several years of experience as an instructor and instructional designer at Penn State. She has taught both online and residence courses and managed a University art gallery. Most recently, Heather worked at Education Technology Services on research and pilot studies of new education technologies.

Here’s the announcement that describes their objectives in working with us:

“Education Technology Services (ETS), a unit of Teaching and Learning with Technology within Information Technology Services, is happy to announce it is now offering pedagogical consulting services to instructors located at the Commonwealth Campuses. Beginning with the fall 2012 semester, two instructional designers will be available to assist instructors interested in using technology to improve the teaching and learning experience.

The primary mission of ETS is to provide leadership and support in the appropriate use of technology for teaching, learning, and research. By trade, our instructional designers work with instructors with the design of a new course or to modify an existing course by assisting with the arrangement of content and how it is delivered to the students. The goal is to help improve student performance by designing a course where the acquisition of the required knowledge and skills are optimized by creating a learning experience that is both appealing and productive.

Instructional Designers Brian Young and Heather Hughes are available to consult with instructors on good teaching practices potentially involving the use of technology. Both Heather and Brian have a long history of success working with instructors with the utilization of technology to improve instruction. Instructors at the Commonwealth Campuses are encouraged to contact Heather and Brian for consulting assistance on any number of technology tools including, but not limited to, our more mature technologies such as ANGEL, Adobe Connect, blogs, and podcasts as well as the newer and more experimental technologies such as Yammer, Doceri, and clickers. Heather and Brian are available to consult with instructors remotely via telephone, email, or other collaborative tools. They will also periodically visit your campus for group sessions covering multiple topics.

Please note, ETS is able to provide consulting services and is not able to support with the building and maintenance of a course. It is recommended that instructors work with their existing support team, instructional designers, multi-media specialists, teaching assistants, IT and help desk support as they are the best and most efficient way for your immediate needs to be met. Instructors should continue following the established support protocols at their respective campuses. Instructors at campuses currently providing instructional design support should continue to use their design team as their primary means of assistance. Instructors located at campuses that currently do not have the support of an instructional designer can contact ETS directly.

ETS is excited to be able to provide this consulting service to instructors at all the Commonwealth Campuses. We hope it will be a great resource for learning about and experimenting with the latest technologies to impact teaching and learning. “

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Collaboration – to build better collaboration!

Posted on September 21, 2012 | Leave a comment

Our department collaborated extensively with many people this summer to deliver our students better spaces in which to work in our dated public computer lab in General Studies 101A. We consulted with Media Commons from University Park, imagineered with EFS to customize furniture, planned and troubleshot with our Physical Plant on campus to do the hard work that needed to be done, and put our ITS heads together to compose the best possible combination of function, practicality, and aesthetics.

Until the renovation, this lab was configured as it had been for many years. Twenty-eight student workstations filled the room in four rows of tables. We provided a scanner, a signature station, a black laser printer, and a color laser printer in this space for student use. Collaboration happened in this room, but only awkwardly. Thanks to Nick Smerker for taking pre-construction shots of the lab in use, last spring:

Problems in the room ranged from issues with running cabling from the walls down the rows of desks to poor lighting to minimal space for movement to old paint and carpet and furniture. Students used the space, but primarily as a place to do the bare essentials of computing.

We set out with several goals in mind. First, we didn’t want to lose any more workstations than possible for the room. It has only been rarely that the lab fills to capacity, but during those busy parts of the year, we can’t spare any seats. We managed to use twenty-six regular desktop computers, with seating for six laptop users – an improvement of four computers in the space. Second, we wanted to provide more effective spaces where collaboration can happen. The two collaboration tables that we imagineered each allow for two public computers with smart podium monitors to work alongside three individual laptops – when the large digital displays are turned on, all you have to do is click the “Share” button on your cable for your screen to show on the TV. The standing computer stations allow for students to use the computers to print jobs quickly without the hassle of settling into seats. Our department can adjust the station heights as we see fit, and two of them are exactly in the prescribed range for chair-bound users to use. Also, we desired to deliver a warmer, more welcoming environment – one that aligns with the beauty of the campus. Finally, we did what we could to conserve both energy resources and money. Those tables that line the walls of the new room are cycled-down from a classroom computer lab.

The feedback that we’ve received since opening the lab has been overwhelmingly positive. Students who returned this fall from previous semesters are astounded at the difference. Students who arrived for their first semester a few weeks ago have made themselves at home in the space. Use of the room seems to have increased, and if we have the opportunity to add more good collaboration spaces in other areas of the campus, we’ll seriously consider it. What do you think?

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Mid-August Update

Posted on August 10, 2012 | Leave a comment

We’re working hard to bring projects to completion!

Our UCIF classroom renovation in General Studies 207 is done. If you have any questions at all about use of technology podiums in classrooms where you’re scheduled to instruct, please contact me directly (stacigrimes@psu.edu, 717-749-6193) to set up a little orientation. We’ll set a 15 minute appointment when the room is available to run through all the functionality of the podium so that you’re comfortable using it in class. As always, if you experience a technical problem in any of your classrooms, please let us know immediately by calling or emailing the ITS Helpdesk (717-749-6300, helpdesk@ma.psu.edu). We can’t fix problems that we don’t know exist.

Another improvement project that we are working on this summer is in collaboration with the Library. The presentation space in the downstairs of the Library will now have a permanently mounted projector, in-ceiling speakers, and both desktop computer and laptop computer connections. This setup includes a small podium and will be very similar to the technology that we installed into the Heritage Room of the Mill Cafe.

You may be surprised at the drastic changes in the General Studies 101A main computer lab. We aren’t quite finished in that space yet. When we are done, your students will have two collaboration spaces to use, as well as standing computer stations for quick printing, another wheelchair accessible computer, and a multitude of public computers with standard lab software. The whole room has undergone a facelift, and the aesthetic changes are remarkable. Our goal is that all our hard work will yield a comfortable and welcoming space in which students can accomplish effective progress in their out of classroom learning experiences. Stop by when the semester begins and take a peek in! We’ll post photos when it’s done of the project in-progress. We thank the fine folks of the Physical Plant for their hard work in helping us assemble this room.

We were able to obtain a great discount from Dell by recycling old printers that we were no longer using. We’ve purchased and placed 8 new laserjet printers for public use in labs, classrooms, and other areas around campus!

Mont Alto Campus’ wireless network has been upgraded this summer with all new equipment, and with an additional 32 access points to increase broadcast range and accessiblity. Coverage is better than it ever has been. Let us know if you need help using your devices with the network.

iClickers are here! I have negotiated a loan from the manufacturer of iClickers for the duration of the fall semester. The ITS Department is receiving two sets of 40 i-Clickers each that will have an instructor remote and a receiver. If you’re interested in testing the technology, you’ll be able to sign out a set to use in your classes for a few days. Try to take advantage of these sets this fall – we’ll be returning them in December. There are already iClicker users on campus, and some students will be purchasing iClickers with their books to use this semester. Here’s a Penn State Adobe Connect info session on the use of the technology: https://meeting.psu.edu/clickers_record/ We do have Instructional Designer support for faculty who choose to use them, and can schedule individual meetings with that person, as well as workshop sessions.

Sci-Tech progress is coming along nicely. Our department is currently re-assembling classrooms. Sci-Tech 313 is going to have brand new computer desks at the beginning of the week next week. If you have office space in Sci-Tech and would like to request assistance with your technology setup, please contact us at the Help Desk to arrange an appointment with one of our staff.

New laptops and desktops have been disbursed this summer. If you are one of the faculty and staff who is due to receive a replacement, but you haven’t yet transferred into it, please call to make an appointment with us.

We hope that the remainder of your summer is relaxing and safe and fun. Here’s to a great kick-off of another exciting, productive semester. See you soon!

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How do I… use wireless networking on campus?

Posted on June 29, 2012 | Leave a comment

Our previous method of connecting to the wireless internet on campus is going to be going away. No longer will you be able to connect to the “Penn State” wireless connection and then use your VPN client to finalize an internet connection. The University is decommissioning this method as of July 1.

Many of you are already using the new solution.  Those of you who have University-issued laptops on our campus already have the tools available for this connection. We add the software and configuration to your laptop as part of the standard software deployment. When you see the message “Additonal information is needed to connect to PSU” in the bottom right-hand portion of your screen, click on that message. A window will appear to allow you to enter your PSU credentials. Use your PSU user name, your PSU online password (the one which you use for email and ANGEL), and then click the option to save credentials. This will allow your computer to connect to the PSU network every time it’s in range, and you should not have to enter your login information anymore.

If you’re using a personal device to connect to the wireless network, you’ll need to install and configure the network connection prior to logging into it. You can find information about that here: http://wireless.psu.edu/using.html.

We have instructions available for this configuration here in the department, and we will gladly give assistance to support use of this University-provided service.  Please do not hesitate to contact us regarding this process.

The Mont Alto ITS Helpdesk is easy to reach!
helpdesk@ma.psu.edu
717-749-6300

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Thursday news flash – Mid-Summer Department Doings

Posted on June 28, 2012 | Leave a comment

We’re nearing the end of June, and our department has made significant progress in a number of projects!  The new laptop and desktop cohort is ready for deployment.  Renovations in General Studies 207 and the General Studies computer lab are well underway. Network improvements are planned and should be scheduled soon…  And wireless network improvements are nearing the implementation stages.

There is a day scheduled in July for a visit from Brian Young, Instructional Designer at University Park and promoter of the iClicker use for pedagogy, and Nick Smerker, campus liaison to the Media Commons group.  Both Brian and Nick provide technical training as well as advisement with regards incorporation of technologies into course development.  You’re all invited to spend time with them on July 11 in General Studies 301.  One set of iClickers was received this week by the campus.  Bring questions and challenges and other related conversation with you – the session promises to be informative!

I’ve created a page that you can access by clicking on the tab above that lists our Vision, Mission, and Values.  There’s a second page tab above that allows you to peruse all the products and services that we support.  Take a look – we would be happy to tell you more about what we do.

What training do you need to better use technology as your perform your duties?  We’ll be retrieving results from this survey over the next few months to deliver relevant and timely training opportunities.

Our hope is that you are enjoying your summer and all your own doings, whether they be work or play.  Stay cool, have a safe holiday, and look for more updates from us soon!

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The Penn State Mont Alto ITS Team

Posted on May 31, 2012 | Leave a comment

We’ve assembled quite the team to lead into summer projects this year.  Anthony, Shawn, and I have been busy welcoming and helping our new director, Doug, acclimate to Penn State.  Our 2012 interns, Travis, Andrew, and Skyler, have already pitched in to assist us in several early summer activities.  So far, the summer has been successful!

Our dedicated helpdesk telephone number (717-749-6300 or extension 6300) and email address (helpdesk@ma.psu.edu) have been in use for a year now.  If you need to contact us, please don’t hesitate to use this information.

We’ll be updating this blog space with articles related to ITS-doings more regularly than we used to disperse our newsletters.  Please stop back once in a while to check out what we’ve been up to.  See you in August!

Information Technology Staff

Travis Marsik
Travis Marsik
Student Technician Supervisor
Phone: 717-749-6113
Email: tjm5419@psu.edu
Skyler O'Donnell
Skyler O’Donnell
Student Technician
Phone: 717-749-6028
Email: spo5066@psu.edu
Andrew Myers
Andrew Myers
Student Technician
Phone: 717-749-6030
Email: adm5401@psu.edu
Staci Grimes
End-User Computing Support Specialist
Mont Alto ITS Helpdesk
Phone: 717-749-6193
Email: stacigrimes@psu.edu
Anthony Ogburn
Anthony Ogburn
Information Technology Specialist
Phone: 717-749-6032
Email: anthonyogburn@psu.edu
Shawn Albright
Shawn Albright
Network & Systems Administrator
Phone: 717-749-6038
Email: shawnalbright@psu.edu
Skype: shawnpsumaits
Doug Prowant
Doug Prowant
Director of Information Technology
Phone: 717-749-6037
Email: dougprowant@psu.edu

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