ASA Tech Tips and News for December 7, 2018

In a follow up to last week's scam article, I've include advice directly from Microsoft about the Microsoft scams. These scams are sometimes via phone, but are increasingly in the form of a pop up or browser window that starts speaking to you or locks your device until you either respond or shut down. No vendor (Microsoft, Apple, Samsung, etc.) will never contact you with suspected infection information. A legitimate warning for infection from your antivirus or malware program will never lock your device. Never pay ransom and always back up your device. Take a look at what Microsoft has to say toward the end of this post. In addition to these warnings, are easy ways to get to your G Suite apps without opening Gmail first, several "how tos" for Docs. Slides and Calendar, and how to track progress of pretty much anything in Sheets.

• G Suite for Education Shortcuts
• How to Add Page Numbers to Google Docs
• How to Add Videos to Google Slides Without Using YouTube
• How to Attach Files to Google Calendar Events
• Microsoft's Tech Service Scam Advice
• How to Create a Progress Tracker with Google Forms and Sheets
• EDU in 90:  Apps for Creating Engaging Presentations

G Suite for Education Shortcuts

G Suite for Education Shortcuts, from Free Technology for Teachers by Richard Byrne
Quickly access your G Suite apps without needing to open your Gmail to see the app switcher. You'll notice a pattern to the URLs. That makes it easier to remember the URL and access the app directly.

How to Add Page Numbers to Google Docs

How to Add Page Numbers to Google Docs, from How-To Geek by Brady Gavin
It's easily done, and very much helps with multi-page documents. You can even set a different first page.

How to Add Videos to Google Slides Without Using YouTube

How to Add Videos to Google Slides Without Using YouTube, from Free Technology for Teachers by Richard Byrne
An instructional video is included in this post to illustrate how to save the videos to Drive, and insert them into Slides from there.

How to Attach Files to Google Calendar Events

How to Attach Files to Google Calendar Events, from How-To Geek by Brady Gavin
This is especially helpful if there is an agenda, or something all attendees need to read or collaborate on before or during the meeting.

Microsoft's Tech Service Scam Advice

In a follow up to last week's post about service scams, here is the specific advice Microsoft gives about dealing with service scams, as reported in a ZDNet article, by Catalin Companu, about Microsoft making arrests for the service scams. These are the scams that either arrive by a phone call claiming to be Microsoft needing to repair something on your PC, or via pop-up message telling you your computer is infected and to call a specific number.

Below is the tried and tested advice that Microsoft has always given out to users over the past few years in regards to tech support scams, shady popups, or impromptu phone calls:

1. Microsoft will never proactively reach out to you to provide unsolicited PC or technical support. Any communication we have with you must be initiated by you.
2. Be wary of any unsolicited phone call or pop-up message on your device.
3. Do not call the phone number in a pop-up window on your device and be cautious about clicking on notifications asking you to scan your computer or download software. Many scammers try to fool you into thinking their notifications are legitimate.
4. Never give control of your computer to a third party unless you can confirm that it is a legitimate representative of a computer support team with whom you are already a customer.
5. If skeptical, take the person's information down and immediately report it to your local authorities.

How to Create a Progress Tracker with Google Forms and Sheets

How to Create a Progress Tracker with Google Forms and Sheets, from Free Technology for Teachers by Richard Byrne
No need to keep running totals manually! This would work for any goal - contests, reading logs, service hours, etc.

EDU in 90:  Apps for Creating Engaging Presentations