Weekly Tech Tips and News for June 30, 2017

Here we are, well into another beautiful summer, with yet another world-wide malware attack. Please review what you need to do to protect yourself in the first article below. If you aren't yet backing up your computer, or letting updates run as soon as you are notified - do it NOW! Don't wait until it's too late. These wide-spread attacks are not going to go away. Hopefully you are enjoying your summer so far, and getting ready for a festive 4th of July. Now matter how you celebrate, stay safe and enjoy!

• New Petya Ransomware Attack,
• Quickly Generate an Outline in Google Documents
• How to Print Google Forms
• How to Insert Non-YouTube Videos into Google Slides
• Be Internet Awesome with Google
• Soapbox - A New Tool for Creating Screencast Videos on Chromebooks
• Three Places to Find Public Domain Video Clips
• Collaborate With Students to Create Quiz Games

New Petya Ransomware Attack

Well as expected, there has been another world-wide malware attack. This attack is actually malware disguised as ransomware. It's main goal is not to make money, but to shut down entire systems. Petya doesn't just lock your files, it will lock your entire hard drive, rendering your computer unusable, and is unable to restore your files, even if you pay the ransom. Petya will also look for network connections and spread throughout an entire networked organization, infecting anything in its path, just like Wannacry did a month ago. Petya, however, has not yet been stopped, so it's out in the wild waiting to strike. All the usual reminders apply here.

• Make sure your anti-virus (AVG) is up to date and you are letting the weekly scans/updates run. 
• If you haven't yet arranged for regular back ups on your laptop or PC, don't wait any longer. Either subscribe to an online service or purchase an external USB hard drive to back up your files. You can schedule both for regular back ups. 
• The most important thing to do is make sure you are letting all updates run on your computer. Don't put those off either. Both of these attacks could have been prevented with the latest Microsoft updates. 
• Finally, be very cautious before clicking on any links. Hover over it first and confirm the URL that appears in the lower left corner of your screen is legit.

Quickly Generate an Outline in Google Documents

Quickly Generate an Outline in Google Documents, from Free Technology for Teachers by Richard Byrne
This is a very handy feature when creating a long document. It creates hyperlinks along the side of you document that allows the reader to jump to a particular section.

How to Print Google Forms

How to Print Google Forms, from Free Technology for Teachers by Richard Byrne
It is so convenient to have students or parents complete Google Forms online, however there are those who do not have internet access and need to complete the form in paper form. Here is how you can print your Google Form for those instances.

How to Insert Non-YouTube Videos into Google Slides

How to Insert Non-YouTube Videos into Google Slides, From Better Cloud Monitor
Do you have a great video for a presentation that you or one of your students recorded? If you don't want to publish it to YouTube, there is another way to insert it in your Slides presentation.

Be Internet Awesome with Google

Be Internet Awesome with Google, from Edgaged.net by Lance Yoder
Last week I touched on a new resource from Google for teaching internet safety, called Be Internet Awesome. In this post, Mr. Yoder delves into this resource more deeply, both for students and teachers. There is a teacher training course that goes along with it - this is a good idea for all teachers and child care staff to complete. It isn't difficult and doesn't take a lot of time to complete, but it's very important, especially if you supervise students online. I strongly recommend it for all staff. It takes about an hour or less, but you do not have to complete it all in one sitting, you can break it up among the 6 short units.

Soapbox - A New Tool for Creating Screencast Videos on Chromebooks

Soapbox - A New Tool for Creating Screencast Videos on Chromebooks, from Free Technology for Teachers by Richard Byrne
This is another alternative to other screencasting apps for Chrome. It has some nice features others don't have, but also some limitations. See what you think.

Three Places to Find Public Domain Video Clips

Three Places to Find Public Domain Video Clips, from Free Technology for Teachers by Richard Byrne
I've posted before about finding public domain images, but here are some places to find videos that you can use for free.

Collaborate With Students to Create Quiz Games

Collaborate With Students to Create Quiz Games, from Free Technology for Teachers by Richard Byrne
Triventy is similar to Kahoot! and Quizizz, but it also allows your students to suggest quiz questions.