WJON has reported that a Firehouse Subs is coming to downtown St. Cloud. According to the article Firehouse Subs has signed a lease in the Coborn Plaza and expect to be open by early July. They’ll join a pretty crowded sub sandwich group with BoDiddley’s, Jimmy John’s, Erbert and Gerbet’s, and three Subway restaurants nearby. I won’t complain about more great food options though. I’m looking forward to a New York Steamer with some of Captain Sorensen’s Datil Pepper Hot Sauce!
A while back I wrote about the latest update to the Web-based File Access method. One of the new features listed was the addition of native mobile apps. Before I go any further I want to set expectations. This is the company’s first crack at a mobile app and the functionality is very limited. The device platforms, iOS in particular, restrict many of the interactions you might expect to be able to leverage. That said, let’s start by looking at the install and configuration.
Step 1. Install Http Commander App
Download app for iOS or Android by searching for “Http Commander” from your device, and install the app once you’ve found it.
Step 2. Add New Account
Open the Htp Commander app. When you first open the app you’ll see a demo account listed for Element-IT Demo. You’ll need to add a new account. For Android users click the menu button, iOS users will see an Add option in the top menu.
Step 3a. Configure (iOS)
Name: Pick a name that makes sense to you (i.e. SCSU)
URL: webfs.stcloudstate.edu/main/ (Note: be sure to include the / at the end)
Login: STCLOUDSTATEhuskynetid
Password: Enter HuskyNetID Password
Secure Connection: ON
Step 3b. Configure (Android)
Name: Pick a name that makes sense to you (i.e. SCSU)
URL: https://webfs.stcloudstate.edu/main/ (Note: be sure to include https:// at the beginning and the / at the end)
Login: STCLOUDSTATEhuskynetid
Password: Enter HuskyNetID Password
Step 4. You’re in!
Now that you’re in you will see what I mean about limited functionality. iOS devices are not able to download files. Uploading is fairly limited too – primarily limited to pictures. Many document types can be previewed in the browser though.
Once you’ve checked out the app and its features feel free to post issues, ideas, or other feedback – we’ll pass on your thoughts to the vendor.
The Outlook Social Connector lets you see profiles and updates for people that send you email. The connector is available as a download for earlier versions of Outlook, but with Outlook 2013 it is included out of the box. I have found the using the Outlook Social Connector for LinkedIn to be very valuable, and it think it will be for you too. Even if you are not an avid user of LinkedIn and you don’t have many connections, this connector will pull information from anyone out there with a public profile (which is most folks). Let’s say that you get an email from a vendor or someone you met at a conference. You kind of remember talking to them, but you’re not totally sure. With the Outlook Social Connector connected to LinkedIn, now you can see their picture. And if you are like me you often forget names, but having a picture can help connect the dots. Ok, let’s take a look.
First things first. Getting the Outlook Social Connector connected.
Now that you have it connected let’s look at some of the features.
I hope you find this connector as valuable as I do!
For more information on what’s new in Outlook 2013 I found this site helpful: http://www.howto-outlook.com/faq/outlook2013newandchanged.htm
media:scape furniture by Steelcase provides collaborative work spaces allowing users to connect their laptops and easily flip between presenters. The demo units are on campus and we hope to gather as much feedback on these units as possible. Many have voiced the need to enhance collaboration and provide more casual computing environments. We hope that the media:scape furniture will do exactly that. There is a larger unit setup in Atwood near the Student Government office, and a smaller mobile unit setup in the Library in room 110. The smaller unit will likely be relocated to a more public location soon. I strongly encourage you to stop by and check the furniture out and provide feedback so we can learn what features are important to our community. Maybe you’ll come up with a great use case or modification that we haven’t thought of!
Here is the overview video from the company’s website.
We’ve updated the interface for the Web-based Files Access service which allows our students, faculty and staff to access to their files remotely using a web browser. The Web-based Files Access service is a key service to allow our users to work anywhere, at any time, from any device. Below is the update list from the release notes.
Check back for more documentation on the features of this service, including configuring the new mobile apps for iOS and Android.
The Harlem Shake seems to be everywhere lately. Check out the“Harlem Shake” at SCSU news article for some pretty entertaining local renditions. YouTube itself has gotten into the game. Try searching “Do the Harlem Shake” on YouTube.
Update: The Simpsons “Homer Shake”
Sugata Mitra has won the $1 million TED Prize for his wish to build a school in the cloud. The TED Prize is meant to “inspire dreamers to think bigger about what’s possible.” Sugata’s wish is inspiring indeed.
“My wish is to help design the future of learning by supporting children all over the world to tap into their innate sense of wonder and work together. Help me build the School in the Cloud, a learning lab in India, where children can embark on intellectual adventures by engaging and connecting with information and mentoring online. I also invite you, wherever you are, to create your own miniature child-driven learning environments and share your discoveries.”
Here is Sugata Mitra talking about his wish at TED.
With $1 million, it is now more than a wish. There is a plan and ways that anyone can help. As a part of the plan they are looking for some core technology assistance including “Cloud-based software design to manage laboratory school operations and education resources.”
SCSU might not be ready to dive into Sugata’s wish just yet, but what if we started with a smaller, more local concept? I am excited about the new ISELF building that will house fantastic equipment for our students to use for their studies.
What if… we made some of the equipment available via the internet? It could be used as a “Virtual Lab” by our own students. It could be used by nearby high schools. Or, let’s get crazy, the world. This concept is already being applied today. iLabCentral is a great example project supported by the National Science Foundation.
Major leaders from the technology industry (Google, Facebook, Apple, and Mail.ru) have joined together to create a not-for-profit corporation, Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences, that will offer 5 annual prizes of $3 million to breakthrough scientists. This is pretty darn cool as most big awards like this go to established scientists that have already completed their work. Often the awards come from large government or health organizations. Changing the model may have a huge impact on research.
What If… Information Technology Services teamed up with partners and created our own award to be given to new ambitious faculty using technology in the classroom? This would give us an opportunity to connect ITS with faculty, showcase great work being done, and encourage others to use technology in new ways. There are many schools out there doing this already: Brown University, California Community Colleges, Old Dominion University, Rochester Institute of Technology
Reference Articles
eWeek: Google’s Brin, Facebook’s Zuckerberg Help Fund $3 Million Science Awards
CNN: Tech titans create $3 million ‘Breakthrough Prize’ for scientists
Gotta love MJ…
First up was a virtual tour of the ISELF building. You can look back to the previous ISELF Tour blog entry to get more info on that presentation.
Next, we met up with Sam Johnson who brought the team over to the UTVS & KVSC studios. Derrick Silvestri gave us a fun tour of UTVS where we were able to see the set used for the recent Trivia Weekend. Beam me up, Scotty! The UTVS studio was decked out as “the bridge” from Star Trek. We talked about the $4.8 million investment that will bring high definition to the TV studio. About $1 million will go to upgrade the cameras. Another big ticket item will be disk storage. Today the students use external computer hard drives. In the future they will have access to a considerable amount of fast storage area network. We also learned that UTVS has a lot of great video equipment that mass communication students are able to check out.
Jo McMullen-Boyer led the group through the KVSC studios and the new Somali Radio. The Somali Radio was the outcome of a grant from the Minnesota Legacy Fund. They told us about the music collection and how it’s organized and rated. They are digitizing their collection, but keep the CD’s around with physical notes from the reviewers attached to the media. The mixing studio in KVSC for Monday Night Live got a big makeover in 2011.
KVSC Offices
KVSC Broadcast Studio
Somali Radio
Then we followed Jared Podratz down to NHEC for a tour with Joe Meierhofer.
Beginning of NHEC Tour
NHEC Atrium Stairs
NHEC Atrium
NHEC View from Suites
NHEC Athletic Training Room. You can run the 100 yd dash in here!
Jeff in the NHEC Women’s Hockey Locker Room
I ran across this YouTube video of Alec Ausmus from UTVS getting his own tour from Joe Meierhofer that you may find interesting.
Images From the Tours:
