Monday, July 19, 2021

ASA Weekly Tech Tips and News for July 2021

The July edition is a little early due to an eagerly awaited vacation, and the deadlines for a Google Drive and YouTube update. Please make sure you read the article below regarding the new security update to Drive. You will need to take action between July 26 and September 12 to update any shared file links or links to files you've posted on Canvas or a website. The official Google update notice indicates "some files" will be affected, but has not issued an official notice on which files, types of files or what age those files are. I would start with files created in 2017 and older. Hopefully clearer language will be forthcoming, or possibly a notice for users who have files that are affected by the update, but neither of these have been confirmed by Google. In addition to this Google Drive update, a similar thing is happening with YouTube. If you have uploaded any videos to YouTube that are classified as "unlisted" those links will also have to be updated. You'll be notified if you need to relink any of them. In addition to these updates, you'll also want to pay attention to the Infinite Campus updates - especially the new look for Instruction view, which is the view teachers use. The new look is now the only look, so you may want to check it out to become familiar with the layout by the time school starts. There is a link to a video demonstrating the changes in the Control Center to help you. Here's a list of links to all the articles in this month's post:

What to Try When a Web App Isn't Working

What to Try When a Web App Isn't Working, from Free Technology for Teachers by Richard Byrne
Six short steps to find out if the problem is with the site or something with your device. There's a video demonstrating each step, as well as a handy, dandy infographic to remind you and your students of the troubleshooting steps to follow.

How to Use Free Windows 10 Video Editor



Infinite Campus Updates

With the latest Infinite Campus update (v. 2128.3) the Instruction Control Center has the new look introduced last year. You will no longer be able to toggle to the old look. If you are unfamiliar with the new look, you may want to take some time to get used to it. Here's a summary of changes with the latest update:
  • Control Panel:  the new look is now your only option. Here is a Control Center overview video. There will be free Infinite Campus training during the week of August 2-6.
  • Assignment Updates Applied Across Sections:  Teachers now have the option to apply changes to assignments across all applicable sections. Changes are grouped by dates, grading and content. After saving a change, teachers will see a pop-up allowing them to indicate which changes should be applied to which sections. 
  • Add an Assignment to a Section Group:  Teachers now have the option of creating an assignment in the Grade Book when viewing the Grade Book for a Section Group. All sections in the Section Group are added to the assignment. The Grading options available are those that apply to all of the assignment's sections. Teachers can modify dates and grading setup by clicking Add/Edit in the Sections list.
  • Default Scoring Settings in Categories:  The Categories editor has been updated so that teachers can set default scoring information by category. For each category, teachers can select a Default Scoring Type and enter Default Points and a Default Multiplier, for all instances of the category via the table header or individually by section. When a category is selected on the assignment editor, the scoring type, points, and multiplier populate based on the default options established.
  • Multi-Aligned Assignments Issue Resolved:  reviously, if a teacher created an assignment with multiple alignments, individualized it, scored it, and then tried to remove one of the alignments, an error occurred. This has been corrected.
  • Copying Assignments:  Teachers now have the option of editing the student groups and individualization of an assignment as part of the copy process. Additionally, if a teacher changes the title of a duplicated assignment, the abbreviation is automatically updated.
If you need tutorials for any of these changes, please navigate to Campus Community. (Click on the down arrow next to Instruction in the left column and create an account if you haven't already.) In Campus Community you can find tutorials under the the Knowledge Base tab. Once in Knowledge Base, expand the Instruction section in the left column. Need help getting there? Here's a handy video to guide you. 

How to Update Google Chrome

How to Update Google Chrome, from How-To Geek by Justin Duino and Brady Gavin
Chrome updates come along at least every 6 weeks, and sometimes more often than that for security patches. While Chrome will automatically download and install the updates, they won't be applied without a restart. That's where you come in. It's important to recognize the restart for updates prompt on any device on which you use Chrome. 

Google Workspace for Education Updates


Google Drive:  Update to Some Google Drive File Links by September 12

Links to any files you have shared or posted will need to be updated between July 26 and September 12 due to a security update. The new link will add a resource key. Once the update is applied ( on Sept 13) anyone who has not yet opened a file you've previously shared will need the new link. Users who have already opened the file will still be able to use the old link. If you do not update these links, you may be contacted by those you've shared the files with to give them access after Sept 13. You can either be proactive and replace links you've posted on Canvas or a website, or shared with others, or you can wait until someone is kind enough to tell you they don't have access to your file.

Google Contacts:  New Look

Google Contacts will  now include more information. When you look up a contact, you will also be able to access recent interactions with that person through Gmail and Calendar. You'll also see their managers (assuming that information has been entered in Google). You can access Google Contacts at contacts.google.com,  from the Google app switcher (waffle), and in the side pane of Gmail and Calendar. See all the details here. 

Gmail:  Search Box Icon Change



The icon in the right side of the search box in Gmail will be changing. Instead of a down arrow, it will look like the image above. 

Google Calendar:  Indicate Whether You'll Join a Meeting Virtually or In Person



There will be a new RSVP option in Google Calendar, to indicate whether you will be attending the event virtually or in person. This will help both the event organizer and the attendees know what to expect. Now when you are attending a meeting, instead of simply clicking "Yes", you also have two other choices to indicate you are attending virtually. Not sure how to RSVP to a meeting or event request? Follow these instructions. We should start seeing this update after July 22, 2021.

Get a Free Chapter of My Favorite Book About Search Strategies

Get a Free Chapter of My Favorite Book About Search Strategies, from Free Technology for Teachers by Richard Byrne
Not only improve your Google search strategies, you can also use the author's lesson plans to teach your students better search strategies. 

How to Sort in Google Sheets

How to Sort in Google Sheets, from How-To Geek by Sandy Writtenhouse
You may not think you use Google Sheets very often, but anytime you use a form, such as for field trip permssions, you're using Google Sheets. It's helpful to know how to sort the data to best fit your needs. 

How to Filter in Google Sheets

How to Filter in Google Sheets, from How-To Geek by Sandy Writtenhouse
What is the difference between filtering and sorting? When you sort, you still see all the data in the spreadsheet. With a filter, you see only the data you wish to see based on the criteria you set. 

How To Create Interactive Checklists in Google Docs


Update To YouTube Unlisted Links

If you've published any videos to your YouTube channel with an Unlisted setting prior to January 1, 2017, you'll need to take some action on them. YouTube has rolled out a security update, making it harder to discover. If you have any videos that are affected, YouTube will notify you, so watch for an email or notification from YouTube. If you have videos that are affected, you have four options:  
  1. Do nothing and allow the video to assume the Private setting. 
  2. Complete this form to opt out of the change by July 23, 2021. 
  3. Make your unlisted video public.
  4. Re-upload the video as a new Unlisted video.


Sometimes you just quickly need to insert a simple image into your file without searching through endless images on the web. Icons 8 is an add-on to make that much simpler. 

Fact Checking Sites for Students

Fact Checking Sites for Students, from Tech & Learning by David Kapuler
This list contains 10 online sites your students can use to find unbiased information online. Most are free, but some require a paid subscription. 
Posted by at No comments:
Labels: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)