iPhone & iTouch Wireless Access at PSU

Hats off to the hard working folks at our Computer Support at Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences - IT Unit.  This is a special shout out to Lori and Mike that helped me recently, and I have to say, the immediate turn around just amazed me.  Thanks again Lori and Mike!!!

I recently purchased an Apple iTouch to use as a PDA and to access my Outlook email when away from the office.  I have found it to be relatively easy to start-up and use, but in the past month with the changeover of Outlook, I developed an issue that prevented me from accessing my email.

A quick email to:

AgCompSupport@psu.edu

and an even quicker response from LORI with the suggestion of deleting and recreating my profile worked as fast as I typed it in and pressed ENTER.  Lori also provided me with this "how-to" resource link for configuring iPhones (that is also good for the iTouch):   

http://agsci.psu.edu/it/how-to/configure-your-iphone

Then while arranging for my transition to my new EN computer, and with yet another quick response from MIKE, I inquired about the steps necessary to access the Penn State wireless network on my iTouch while I am at Penn State.  Mike quickly emailed this link:  

http://kb.its.psu.edu/article/1310

Here is the entirety ITS Knowledge Base sheet that Mike sent:

iPhone Wireless 2.0 Download & Installation

Fri, 02/13/2009 - 10:23

This service is only available to users with a valid Penn State Access Account. 
This installation requires the user to connect to the network called pennstate in order to download the certificate installation.

Download

• Open the Settings menu.

• Select the Wi-Fi tab.

• Select pennstate from the list of available networks.

• Wait until a check mark appears beside the pennstate network name.

• Go back to your Home screen.

• Select the Safari browser.

• Go to this website. https://www.work.psu.edu/access/dot1x/prod/      (You will have to log in with your Penn State Access Account.)

• Select Apple iPhone/iPod Touch software version 2.0 and above.
• Click Submit.

Installation

• Select Install from the install profile prompt.
• Select Install Now from the warning prompt.
• Enter your Penn State Access Account.
• Enter your Penn State Access Account password.
• Click Done from the profile installed prompt.

NOTE:  The first time you connect using the Wireless 2.0, you will be asked to accept a certificate. Click Accept.

Sharepoint Access: how to find where you are going

Okay, I know that I am the only one here that doesn't know or doesn't remember how to access the sharepoint site for PROSPER.  Here is a brief reminder to myself so I can access the quick reminder on how to find it. 

You of course can use it as well if you choose.

Here is the link to Sharepoint:  http://sharepoint.ag.psu.edu/coext/default.aspx
(You can also find it in the column on the left of this blog)

Under Workgroups in left column towards bottom, click on Family Strengths









Then, in the same column under SITES you click on Family Strengths

<  Click on Individual and Family Resilience

< Click on the Shared Documents tab








and there you are...full access to any of the documents you need to access or the folders you need to place items into.

Internet Safety: Facebook

The more I explore on technology, the scary it gets. There are folks out there that just love to harvest personal information. In some cases, it could be as simple as just wanting to sell you something. In extreme cases it reminds me of a training I attended with a police officer in Adams County that shared a story of a sting operation of an on-line predator.

They were able to draw him in, catch him and get him off of the streets, and then when they got their search warrants, discovered that he had pictures of female athletes cut out from the papers and circled in red. You just have to wonder why.

We are trying to limit some of these potential problems as we move into this century by utilizing technology more. We can do what we can do, but it falls into the laps of us parents. We are the ones that need to protect our kids and homes from these predators that look for the open doors. Doors that we are responsible for keeping closed and our families protected.

Here is one example: Facebook

What are privacy settings? Do you know how to access them and set them for security?

Do you know that if you have your settings set that friends of friends can see your information, that practically anyone can get your information?

How does Facebook make money if it is a free service to use? You know all of that personal information you put in even though you think it is totally private...you wonder what and how it can be used?

Consumer Reports June 2010 Page 26 has a great little article entitled: Facebook alert: 7 privacy risks to stop taking. Subtopics include:

• Using weak passwords
• Leaving your full birthday in your profile
• Overlooking useful privacy controls
• Posting your child's name in a caption
• Mentioning when you'll be away
• Letting search engines find you
• permitting youngsters to use Facebook unsupervised

Do your research. Think privacy and security. I am sure you could look at this list and identify something that you need to change. I have and I am very concerned about these matters.

Would you let your doors unlocked while you were away? Would you let your kids in home alone with the doors unlocked? I would bet that you wouldn't. So why not take the extra step and secure yourself.

Internet Safety

One of the greatest concerns I have as a parent is the safety of my child in general. When thinking about the Internet, that opens a whole new dimension of issues.


Think about the importance of teaching our children how to drive. Do we throw keys at them and say, "have at it, be back by 10:00."

No, by law there are requirements that our children have to progress through. A series of tasks and accomplishments have to be made before they can get behind the wheel and drive on their own.

As an extension educator, my colleagues and I share the same concerns especially as we move into this new age and dealing with the millineal generation and their use of technology. This is a generation that was born into technology...a generation that does not even know what a "Walkman" was when it was cutting edge for us not so long ago.

As parents and as educators, we are doing a disservice if we turn over the keyboard and the mouse to our children without a little knowledge of our own? Are we turning over the keys before they have completed their "road" time?

A good place to start is by going to a website like NetSmartz.org and reading as much as you can. When it is time to make the decisions of letting your kid join Facebook, Twitter, or any number of social networking sites, you have to know what you are doing in order to protect them.

Give it a try.

http://www.netsmartz.org/

Embed a Youtube Video into your Blog - UPDATE

In my last entry, I embedded a YouTube video that I uploaded into my blog post. It is simple to do.

**Video Training Clip**

{Reminder - if these pictures are too small for you to see, you can put your cursor on them and click to enlarge them}

Open your blog and press New Post until you get this screen

next, open YouTube to the video you want and play it. Press the < Embed > Button

Right click & Copy the highligthed (in blue) code

Go to your Blog entry right click & Paste

It is as simple as that.

Video Resource: Vimeo Video

Okay, so you are familiar with YouTube. Sometimes you use it to see funny videos, sometimes you use it to get travel videos to see where you are going to visit. Here is a copy of the YouTube I uploaded from a vacation.


Well, there is another resource out there, one that can be just as useful and that is Vimeo Video.
http://vimeo.com/

Vimeo is similar to YouTube with the exception of larger videos and higher quality. Get on there and explore and you just may find information that will enhance your professional development.

Adobe Connect - My reflections

Recently, I worked with a team on the PROSPER NWG to develop and present a webinar for extension personnel interested in the project. As we utilized our previous AC training and started experiencing it first hand, there is a list of "how-to's" I would like to share so you can avoid some of the same learning opportunities that we did.


Things I learned about Adobe Connect Meetings:

When setting up the room, you can “auto-promote” folks that enter to PRESENTER status. This is okay for small meetings with a few people. If you are doing a presentation with lots of folks though, consider assigning PRESENTER status on an "as needed" basis.

Have all of the co presenters enter the room well in advance (1/2 hour was sufficient) and complete the Audio Wizard to make sure that everything is functioning {See the next blog entry on how to complete the audio wizard}

Outline expectations with participants just like you would during a face to face. You obviously do not need to tell them where the bathrooms are, but sharing what your expected procedure is for asking questions..i.e.: typing the questions in the chat box or raising your hand to speak.

There are three status levels:

Administrator – can make changes to the layout and control pods, and most importantly, assign status levels of others. Room monitor should have this status.

Presenters – these folks can control the flow of the information and can talk using the mic button

Participant – they can listen and type in the chat boxes

When conducting your meeting, assign a co presenter the task of tracking questions to come back and answer. If your expectation is to type them into the text box, the question can be cut and pasted into the NOTES pod

Another option depending upon how you are running your meeting, you can ask participants to raise their hand to indicate they would like to speak. If that happens, the Administrator can click on the person’s name in the attendance box, and give the Presenter status. It would be smart to remove that status when they are done.

Make sure to go review room expectations with my co-presenters before you start (you should have a practice run or two before you complete a webinar)

Once the leader has the room set up to share the way s/he needs it, make sure the others do not change the settings

Remind the team that whoever is in charge of operating the advance buttons on the PPT (if you use it) is the only one doing it

Do not press anything in the big gray presentation box including anything regarding Sharing

If someone is going to present/speak, encourage them to use a headset and not the built in mic on their computer…sound cuts out quite a bit

One recommendation that we received is to do the set up wizard each time to make sure things are functional…you don’t want to look like a knucklehead if your stuff doesn’t work…attached is a cheat sheet I made for some of my peers that had difficulty doing just that

Have all of your documents loaded and ready to go

If you have other presenters and you press “Share my Desktop” it means just that...you will share your desktop and they can play with your stuff

Good luck. Don't hesitate to contact me if you would like, I will be glad to share my experience with you.

Youtube Downloader

During several recent presentations, I have utilized YouTube videos to show or demonstrate different science experiments. It is not always possible to access the Internet when you are in a new venue, but it is possible to download YouTube videos to use while away.


Make sure that you follow the fair use standards though and provide citations and give credit to the posters of the material.

Here is a source that I have used: http://youtubedownload.altervista.org/

Just follow the easy instructions to download.

Once you click on your desktop icon

You will get this screen:

When you have it open on your desktop, open and search YouTube for your favorite educational video, go to search bar, right click and copy and then it will automatically enter it into the URL for you. Click OK, tell it where to save it and there you have it.

Make sure to give credit where credit is due though.

Creating a Tiny URL

Have you ever sent a really long URL link to someone in an email, only to have them tell you that they couldn't open it? Sometimes things get lost in translation or on line breaks.


When you are using really long links and would like to shorten them up for a forward, try this site:

http://tinyurl.com/

An example from their website:

Turn this URL:

http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-53200-19255-0/1?type=3&campid=5336224516&toolid=10001&customid=tiny-hp&ext=unicycle&satitle=unicycle

into this tinyURL:

http://tinyurl.com/unicycles

Which one would you rather cut and paste into your browser? That's the power of TinyURL!

Access a document anywhere

If you are like me, you want to have access to certain documents no matter where you are.

• do you download documents to a thumb drive to take home?  Have you ever misplaced that drive or left it hanging in the USB port of your computer?
• have you ever emailed a document to yourself in order to work on it at home?
• have you ever been in a meeting and wished that you could access a document that you were working on so you could collaborate with your peers?

Well here is another tool you can use to have access to documents you want to work on without worrying about a thumb drive or emailing yourself.

When you start this Screenjelly videocast, click on the box in the lower right hand corner to show it full screen.

Edata System Training

As we move into the 21st century, so too should the tools we use.  Tools that will allow us to become more efficient, freeing up time that we can spend engaging in other educational pursuits.

4-H is introducing the new Edata record keeping system and the overall purpose is to:

• Allow leaders and members to electronically enter their own information in the record keeping system and bring it forward each year to update
• permit youth to sign up for projects and leaders to track the projects their members are taking
• allow 4-H members and leaders to register for events and activities
• provide an opportunity for the office to send newsletters and announcements can be delivered in “real time.” we can use it to track program involvement

{Reminder - in order to see the pictures in larger format, just move your mouse over top of it and click}

Accessing Edata
Like every other computer operation and function, there are numerous ways to get to the same point.  One way would be to access the Penn State Cooperative Extension home page by clicking on this link:       http://adams.extension.psu.edu/

You can enter the edata system via this link on the Adams Extension website.

(An alternative is to go directly to:)
http://edata.extension.psu.edu/

I would also suggest that you save this link to your Favorites.




When you click on this link, you will get this page:


Please read all of the information here, and to get additional information you can check out this link:

Please read the GREEN Box.  The major points are:

•  4-H Leaders and members will not have to complete paper enrollment each year
• Members will update their information and enter their projects and register for activities
• The information will only be available to several key state leaders, the county staff and 4-H leaders can see their club information

http://extension.psu.edu/cnregion/edata/default_files/Page391.htm


In order to access the edata system and enter your information, you will have to complete the following two tasks.  Most of you have completed the first.

Task 1:  Create an email address
Most people have an email account established through their Internet Service Provider (ISP) like Comcast or Embarq, or have an account set up through Google or Hotmail.  Any of those will suffice.  If however, you do not have an email account, contact the 4-H office and we will help you problem solve this dilemma.

Task 2:  Create a Friends Of Penn State Account
In order to get into the system and enter your information, you will have to become A Friend of Penn State.  This simple task will give you a digital identification number and use a password that you create.  You will need to write this information down as you will need to use them each time you log into the system.

To create a Friend of Penn State Account, use the link in the column to your left, or click here to start the process:  https://fps.psu.edu/

This easy to complete form starts when you click on Create an Account.

Fill out all of the boxes that have a RED *, and when you press Submit a box will pop up and give you your Digital ID and the password you entered.  You will need both of these in order to get into the system.

You are now ready to enter the Edata System.

Click on the link on the column to your left for Edata or click:  http://edata.extension.psu.edu/

When this page pops up, enter your new Digital ID and password.

You will work your way through the system, and each time you enter new information the program loads it and gives you new boxes to complete.

You will be able to sign-off on your Code of Conduct, Photo Release, and eventually a Health Form.  Once this information is captured, you will not be required to fill out these forms during that program year.

Once you have submitted all of your information, the 4-H Administrative Assistant will review all records and accept or reject them.

Organizational Leaders will be given authorization to review the records of their club members, and they will be able to okay the projects that the members have signed up for.

If you have trouble signing up or entering information or need any other technical assistance, please contact the office and ask for a 4-H Staff member.

During the 2010 program year, we want every volunteer and every member to sign-up for a Friends of Penn State Account and enter their own record into the Edata system.  If you our your club needs assistance, we can provide the necessary training and support.  Please contact us for scheduling time.

How To: Set up your Friends of Penn State Account

{Click on the box in the lower right hand corner to view full Screen}

Welcome

I want to take this opportunity to welcome you to the 4-H 4-U Productions blog.

On this site, you will be able to access asynchronous educational and enrichment material that will enhance your time as a 4-H member, leader, staff, or partner.

A variety of multi-media productions will be placed here as well as links to sites or other resources that can add to your knowledge, skills, and attitudes (good ones of course).

As you watch the growth of this site, you will notice that eventually 4-H members will take an active role in developing the content to share.  This will be a dynamic and evolutionary process, and we hope that you come along for the ride.

Regard,

Edward Bender
4-H Coordinator Adams County
Senior Extension Educator