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20071003 Wednesday October 03, 2007

 Time to review your website

Have you looked at your website recently?

Do you have "news" that is more than a month old on the home page?

Some counties are doing a great job posting news stories and keeping their site updated with fresh content. Some counties have only one program area with updated content and some counties sites haven't changed anything on their site since it was rolled out two years ago.

What should be updated on your county web site?

On the Home Page
  • Special announcements
    • Keep short to avoid pushing the rest of the content out of sight
    • If you want to share a lot of information, create a new page and link to it
    • Remove by deleting the content if there are no 'special announcements'
  • Message (gray box)
    • This is another place to put a brief message
    • Make sure it has current and correct information
    • Localize, Localize, Localize!
  • Image and Caption
    • A thumbnail image and a short paragraph
    • May have a link to another page
    • Great for grabbing visitors' attention
  • Events
    • Announce all of your meetings and activities 
    • The next two upcoming events will appear on the home page
  • News Stories
    • Write the articles you would if you had a column in a local daily newspaper
    • If you do write a column for your paper, post it here, too, to get more mileage out of it.
    • The last two edited stories will appear on the home page
    • These are syndicated through RSS feeds (or click on "RSS" at the bottom of your county pages) let your local papers know about your news feeds.  This may be an easier way for the news people to keep up on what you are doing and provide them with ideas for stories.
On the Category Pages (i.e. Field Crops, Community, etc.)
  • Message (gray box)
    • This is a place to put a message about what you do in your county in related to this category
    • Make sure it has current and correct information
    • Localize it!
  • Image and Caption
    • A thumbnail image and a short paragraph related to this category
    • May have a link to another page
    • Great for promoting an event or program
  • Events
    • Announce all of your meetings and activities in this category
    • The next two upcoming events in this category are displayed
    • Events can be assigned to multiple categories
  • News Stories
    • The last two edited stories in this category are displayed
    • To remove, you need to delete all the stories ever posted in this category or post two new stories
  • Featured Links
    • Links to other web pages or site related to this topic
    • Make sure they are appropriate for your county
    • Localize! Remove links that aren't apropriate for you county and add links that are appropriate.
Create NEW Content
  • You can create as many new pages as you like.
  • Link to them from any place on your county web site!
Permissions

If you don't have access rights to edit your county site,  work with your County Extension Director.  All CEDs have the ability to grant staff members editing privileges to edit the county web site.

Getting Help

If you have any questions or need help updating or adding content to your county site, please contact your Information Management Agent.


Posted by jdorner ( Oct 03 2007, 10:00:48 AM EDT / Oct 03 2007, 09:37:37 AM EDT ) Permalink Comments [0]
Trackback: http://blogs.lib.ncsu.edu/trackback/techtalk/Weblog/time_to_review_your_website

20070921 Friday September 21, 2007

 Dealing with email quota

If you have problems running over your email quota on the NCSU mail server, I've started a wiki page with some tips to help you. Cleaning Up Your Mail When You Are Close To Quota.  Please feel free to add your own tips!

You can get to these from the Intranet.  Go to: "IT Resources".  In the "E-Mail" section, click on Cleaning Up Your Mail When You Are Close To Quota.

Quick summary:
  1. Maximize your Quota
  2. Get rid of your SPAM
  3. Empty your Trash
  4. Deal with the largest messages first
If you have any questions or need help, please contact your Area Information Management Agent.


Posted by jdorner ( Sep 21 2007, 10:39:26 AM EDT / Sep 21 2007, 10:37:27 AM EDT ) Permalink Comments [0]
Trackback: http://blogs.lib.ncsu.edu/trackback/techtalk/Weblog/dealing_with_email_quota

20070912 Wednesday September 12, 2007

 University Security Update

If you have a unity account, you probably recently received a message about the new University Password Policy. 

There are a couple of points I want to make sure you take away from this message.

1. MOST IMPORTANTLY: If you have not done so yet, update your UIA information.  (User Identification and Authentication (UIA) is an online verification procedure implemented by Resource Management and Information Systems and used by University Help Desks to identify customers who make telephone requests to those help desks to have their passwords reset.) Go to: http://www.acs.ncsu.edu/uia to select three questions that the helpdesk will use to identify you.  If you forget your password (or mistype it more than 8 times in a row), you will need to personally visit the University Help Desk with a photo ID - UNLESS you have previously updated your UIA information.  You can't do this after you have forgotten your password!!!


2. Depending on your security level, you will need to change your unity password every 365 days, 90 days or 30 days.  If you are accessing the Human Resources and Financial System (i.e. you enter your travel reimbursement requests), you will need to change your password every 90 days.  You will know when it is time because 14 days prior to needing to change your password, you will start getting a reminder when you log in.  When you see this reminder, go ahead and follow the instructions to change your password.


Posted by jdorner ( Sep 12 2007, 04:15:53 PM EDT / Sep 12 2007, 04:15:33 PM EDT ) Permalink Comments [1]
Trackback: http://blogs.lib.ncsu.edu/trackback/techtalk/Weblog/university_security_update

20070907 Friday September 07, 2007

 Change the look of a wiki

Did you know that many wikis are customizable? Some that are include the NCCE Intranet, eXtension wikis and even Wikipedia. 

You can change the way the wiki appears for you - not others, but first you have to be logged in. Why would you want to do this?  Some layouts look better on different screen resolutions or just personal preferences.

After  you've logged in, click on "Preferences" link in the upper right corner (usually - depending on how you've customized the wiki).

Then, click on the "Skin" tab.

Choose the "Skin" you like best - use the "Preview" to see how it is going to look on your computer first - and then "Save".


So, if you don't like the way the wiki is being shown on your screen, just choose a different skin.




Posted by jdorner ( Sep 07 2007, 11:19:26 AM EDT / Sep 07 2007, 11:17:38 AM EDT ) Permalink Comments [0]
Trackback: http://blogs.lib.ncsu.edu/trackback/techtalk/Weblog/change_the_look_of_a

20070711 Wednesday July 11, 2007

 Survey tools

CALS has a Survey Builder at http://ceres.cals.ncsu.edu/surveybuilder/ that we (NCCE) are welcome to use.

This is a very easy tool to use to create an online survey.

If this isn't robust enough to suit your needs, then check out some of the online survey tools like:

Instant Survey: http://www.instantsurvey.com/

SurveyMonkey: http://www.surveymonkey.com/

Zoomerang: http://www.zoomerang.com/




Posted by jdorner ( Jul 11 2007, 04:34:00 PM EDT / Jul 11 2007, 04:23:22 PM EDT ) Permalink Comments [0]
Trackback: http://blogs.lib.ncsu.edu/trackback/techtalk/Weblog/survey_tools

20070605 Tuesday June 05, 2007

 Secure your equipment

Worried about equipment theft in the workplace? Maybe you should be. There is no way to completely prevent equipment thefts from occurring, but these three small steps might help reduce the risk:

Purchase and use equipment locks like the one linked below that fits into the Kensington lock slot on many laptop and desktop computers like the Mac mini. This model allows you to set your own combination.  It costs about $35.

Place the equipment out of direct sight, if possible.

Keep your office locked when you're not there.



Posted by rconlon ( Jun 05 2007, 02:23:03 PM EDT / Jun 05 2007, 02:22:37 PM EDT ) Permalink Comments [0]
Trackback: http://blogs.lib.ncsu.edu/trackback/techtalk/Weblog/secure_your_equipment

20070510 Thursday May 10, 2007

 Viewing NCDA Soil Test Results on a Mac

If a web page doesn't work like you expect it to work, try looking at it in a different browser (Firefox, Safari on Macs or MS Internet Explorer on Windows). If it still doesn't work, let the owner of the page know.  Usually, they apreciate being told about problems so they can fix it.

A new factsheet on getting Soil Sample Results from NCDA from a Mac has been posted to the CES Wiki at: http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/admin/wiki/index.php/Viewing_NCDA_Soil_Test_Results_on_a_Mac.

If you have problems or questions, contact your IM Agent.


Posted by jdorner ( May 10 2007, 10:38:44 AM EDT / May 10 2007, 10:38:32 AM EDT ) Permalink Comments [0]
Trackback: http://blogs.lib.ncsu.edu/trackback/techtalk/Weblog/viewing_ncda_soil_test_results

20070509 Wednesday May 09, 2007

 Importing selected images from a camera on a Mac

If you want to import all the images from a camera iPhoto it is real easy using iPhoto. Just follow the prompts when you connect your camera to the computer using a USB cable.  When it comes to a picture that you have already downloaded, it asks if you want to download the duplicates and you can indicate whether or not you want to skip all duplicates.

Downloading selected images

If you want to get just the last couple of images off the camera, you can do it one of several ways.

Image Capture

The Image Capture application lets you select images to download from  your camera.  It does not automatically import them into iPhoto, but lets you put them in any folder of your choice.  From there, you can import them into iPhoto or use any other software you like.

Use Finder

On most cameras, when you connect the camera to the Mac, a new volume is mounted.  Open Finder and  you can navigate through the folders and find the actual image files.  From there, you can drag them to your files on the Mac.

Again, this does not import them directly into iPhoto.

Memory Card

Some cameras store the pictures on memory cards.  You can get a card reader to plug into your USB port and read the card from the camera with that - using either Import from iPhoto or Finder.  You can purchase the card readers for between $20 & $30.


Posted by jdorner ( May 09 2007, 04:16:16 PM EDT / May 09 2007, 04:16:08 PM EDT ) Permalink Comments [0]
Trackback: http://blogs.lib.ncsu.edu/trackback/techtalk/Weblog/importing_selected_images_from_a

20070504 Friday May 04, 2007

 Another Way to Check IMAP mail quota

Recent cases of IMAP mail users being over their quota have generated multiple calls to the EIT Helpdesk.  An easy way to check your IMAP quota exists in Thunderbird Mail.
While in your ?inbox?, click on ?Edit? on the menu bar at the top of your screen.  A dropdown menu appears, at the bottom, click on ?Folder Properties?. A second dropdown menu shows a list of tabs (like folders in a file drawer).  The tab on the right, labeled ?Quota? will show your quota, your usage, and your percentage. After you find out your information, just click on ?OK?.

Some users are not aware that our space allocations have increased from 150 mb to 300 mb.  Please refer to John Dorner?s earlier (March 27, 2007) posting about ?Need More E-Mail Quota Space? for instructions on adding quota.



Posted by baemmons ( May 04 2007, 02:26:16 PM EDT / May 04 2007, 02:25:59 PM EDT ) Permalink Comments [0]
Trackback: http://blogs.lib.ncsu.edu/trackback/techtalk/Weblog/another_way_to_check_imap

20070425 Wednesday April 25, 2007

 Mac Software Updates

Keep Software Updates Current

Please help EIT by reminding the Mac Users in your office to keep their computer's software updates current.

Our Help Desk often discovers pending software updates when they're helping someone resolve a problem. Often the updates contain bug fixes and feature enhancements that would stop the problems from occurring in the first place. So the next time that software update window opens on your desktop, please take the time to do the update. You'll be happy you did!

Upgrade to Firefox 2

Have you added any software to your system yet? If not, here's a suggestion to start with. There is a wonderful, newer version of Firefox. Firefox 2 has an abundance of updated features, including a spell checker that works within web based forms, including the county web site application!

Read about the new features and download the update from: http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/features.html

Here are the installation instructions:

1) Download Firefox from the above web site
2) Quit your current version of Firefox, if it's running
3) Double-click on the disk image (.dmg icon) to run it
4) Drag the Firefox icon to your Applications folder
5) Replace the older version with the newer one
6) Drag the disk image and disk icon files to the trash

If you have any questions, please contact your IM Agent or call the CES Help Desk at 919-513-7000 or email ces_help@ncsu.edu.

Posted by jdorner ( Apr 25 2007, 03:38:17 PM EDT / Apr 25 2007, 03:38:07 PM EDT ) Permalink Comments [0]
Trackback: http://blogs.lib.ncsu.edu/trackback/techtalk/Weblog/mac_software_updates

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