UPbeat

News for and about University of Portland faculty and staff.

Information Services

After Hours and Weekend Technology Support

Technical services staff provide on-call support to campus users during evening and weekend hours. After-hours support for audio visual related services is available by calling x7774. This includes support for connecting and operating web cameras, microphones, document cameras, or other equipment to off-site computers for remote instruction, lecture capture, or video conferencing; hosting or joining a meeting in Microsoft Teams; producing, editing, and converting original video/audio files; embedding video/audio files in Moodle; or accessing video/audio files in MediaSpace.

For any other urgent technology support needs after hours, including weekends, please call campus safety (x7161) and your call will be routed to our on-call support staff as needed. We are here to help and look forward to assisting you.

Online Teaching Resources: Navigating Online Learning 

As our campus community continues to navigate the transition to online learning, the Academic Technology Services and Innovation team would like to take a moment to highlight some great resources for getting more familiar with our online instruction tools. 

Introduction to UP Moodle Guides 

Take Five: Online Synchronous Sessions  

For additional resources or help with your online learning activities, please contact atsi@up.edu. 

AV Services Office: Online Collaboration Available

Beginning March 23, the AV Services office in BC 018 has reduced staffing and will close daily at 5 p.m. However, AV Services staff remain available to assist you by phone (x7774), email (av@up.edu), or video chat (via Teams) during all of our regular hours: Monday-Thursday, 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Please don’t hesitate to contact us if you need assistance with:

  • Connecting and operating web cameras, microphones, document cameras, or other equipment to off-site computers for remote instruction, lecture capture, or video conferencing
  • Hosting or joining a meeting in Microsoft Teams
  • Producing, editing, and converting original video/audio files
  • Embedding video/audio files in Moodle
  • Accessing video/audio files in MediaSpace or any other topic where we may be able to be of service.

We are happy to support you any way we can during this time of transition to online collaboration and distance learning.

Coronavirus Cyber Crime: Please Be Vigilant

Information service would like to warn everyone to remain vigilant for scams related to Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19). Cyber criminals may send phishing emails with malicious attachments or links to fraudulent websites to trick victims into revealing sensitive information or donating to fraudulent charities or causes. Exercise caution in handling any email with a COVID-19-related subject line, attachment or hyperlink, and be wary of social media pleas, texts, or calls related to COVID-19.

We encourage individuals to remain vigilant and take the following precautions:

  • Avoid clicking on links in unsolicited emails and be wary of email attachments
  • Use trusted sources—such as legitimate, government websites—for up-to-date, fact-based information about COVID-19
  • Do not reveal personal or financial information in email, and do not respond to email solicitations for this information
  • Verify a charity’s authenticity before making donations. Review the Federal Trade Commission’s page on Charity Scams for more information
  • Continue to visit www.up.edu/coronavirus for all University communications, as well as our current guidelines, polices, and prevention measures.

If you feel you have received a phishing email please report it toabuse@up.edu.

Laptop Web Browsing Protection – Umbrella Roaming Client 

Starting Friday, March 13, information services will be installing a new piece of software on University-owned laptops. This software is called Cisco Umbrella Roaming client, a light-weight client which protects internet browsing and filters malicious content from being accessible on your laptop.

All equipment currently connected to the University’s network is already being protected with Cisco Umbrella and we want to extend that protection to University-owned laptops when they are being used remotely.  

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact the UP Help Desk at help@up.edu or x7000. 

Please Request Software for Classrooms and Labs by Feb. 28 

Information services will be updating computer lab and classroom builds for summer and fall 2020 during March. If you need new or updated software for classrooms and computer labs for summer or fall term please use this link to fill out the online survey. You can also copy and paste this URL (https://uportland.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_5sAK57IvV3S4nvn) into your browser to fill out the survey.

The software build and deployment process requires significant lead time; therefore, information services must receive your submitted software requests no later than Friday, February 28 if you want the software to appear on the computer classroom/lab software build for the Summer and/or Fall 2020 semesters.

Please contact the help desk with any questions at help@up.edu or x7000, M-F 7:30 a.m. – 5 p.mm.

Skype for Business Migrating to Teams Meetings on March 4

According to UP’s academic technology services and innovation team, Microsoft is retiring Skype for Business and has migrated all calling and conferencing functionality to the Microsoft Teams App. Calling and meeting using the Teams App is very similar to Skype. Click this link to learn more about Teams Meetings. To learn more about using Teams to communicate and collaborate with University of Portland community members and project teams, use this link.

For further information or training, please contact atsi@up.edu.

Moodle Downtime on Dec. 19

Serious referee showing time out sign over white background

Moodle will be down the evening of Thursday, December 19, from 5 to 7 p.m., so information services can install the latest security and bug fixes. There will also be improvements to the site theme and installation new plugins to give instructors more capabilities and flexibility within Moodle:

  • Group self selection: allow students to create or self-select groups in Moodle
  • Roster: faculty can view student pictures and practice learning names)
  • Collapsible Weeks/Topics: a course format that can collapse modules to save space

For real-time updates or to subscribe to email alerts for UP systems status and outages please visit our System Status page.

Any questions or concerns? Please contact atsi@up.edu.

Please Request Software for Classrooms and Labs by November 8

Information services will be updating the computer lab and classroom software builds for spring 2020 during November. If you need new or updated software for the classrooms and labs for spring term please fill out the online survey. If the software you need was available during the fall 2019 term, there is no need to request it for spring. Fill out the online form here to request new or updated software.

The software build and deployment process requires significant lead time; therefore, we must receive your submitted software requests no later than Friday, November 8 if you want the software to appear on the computer classroom/lab software build for the spring 2020 semester.

Please contact the UP Help Desk with any questions at help@up.edu or by calling x7000 Monday through Friday,  7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Complete Annual Cybersecurity Awareness Training by Nov. 1

a man in a black mask holds a laptop menacinglyInformation services provides online cybersecurity training to meet the annual requirement for staff and faculty. This year’s course includes 20 minutes of video, covering 5 core topics. Even with the most advanced security technologies such as firewalls and anti-virus tools, what cyber attackers ultimately count on is human error. In this course you will be introduced to the social engineering methods that attackers use to fool you into providing unauthorized access. By taking a few simple steps and avoiding certain actions you can help prevent cyber attacks and data theft. The course, “Cybersecurity Core Training 2019”, is accessible from the ‘Custom Course Menu’ in Moodle (https://learning.up.edu). Current staff and faculty have been auto-enrolled. The target date for completion is Friday, November 1. We also invite users to view a brief presentation that seeks to answer the question ‘Why is annual cybersecurity training required?’ The answers may surprise you!

For questions or concerns regarding this training, please contact the Technology Help Desk (x7000, help@up.edu).