How to Identify Spam Email

While spam filters will catch most of it for you, every email user should know how to identify the occasional spam email that makes it through. This post contains tips to help you identify spam, but please remember: diligence alone is no replacement for good anti-malware and spam filtering software. Responding to these messages can cost you hours of frustration cleaning up a mailbox filled with spam, or a lifetime dealing with identity theft.

Check out the sample message below to learn some of the ways to identify spam email:

Never respond to or click links in a suspicious message. Simply forward the message to helpdesk@cgu.edu & then delete it.

Claremont Graduate University | Office of Information Technology

 | ACB 303 | 909-621-8174

Caring for iPads and Laptops

Proper care of electronics can extend their life and usefulness. Here are some useful guides for caring for iPads and laptops.

Caring For Your iPad
Caring For Your Laptop

MOOC Resources

Unless you have been living on a remote island with no access to the news, you have been overwhelmed with  the 'buzz' around MOOCs. Needless to say, MOOCs are a 'hot topic' with many opinions and a volatile marketplace. Of course the best way to find out what it's all about is to sign up for one - and there are multitudes! Whether it's Coursera, edX, Udacity - or even Canvas.net, there are plenty of selections available. And you won't be alone if you sign up just to 'lurk' without really participating - it's a common practice.

It makes no difference what strategy you use to become better informed, but it's definitely worthwhile to find out what all of the buzz is about. Indeed, it will probably diminish - but I doubt it will just go away. The odds are high that it will be a permanent part of the online learning landscape for years to come, but in what way it's still too early to tell. Hopefully much will be gained from this 'grand experiment' in higher education.

So, to help you get started on your investigation, I'm adding a few resources here:

• The Educause Library on MOOCs - includes articles, events, and a definition; will continue to be updated
• The Chronicle "Major Players in the MOOC Universe" - informative graphic that includes investors, professors, board members, etc.
• The Chronicle "What You Need to Know About MOOCs" - continually updated information with timeline in the Technology section

Enjoy!

Carleen

10 Tricks to Make Yourself a Dropbox Master

Sharing large files online -- files too big for e-mail attachments -- can be tricky. Dropbox works by giving you a folder on its site where you can store any files. You can share your folder with other Dropbox users, so that after you upload a large file, someone else can download it. Here are some tips and tricks to make the most use out of your Dropbox account, including getting more space!

Learn how to make yourself a Dropbox Master!

How to recognize phishing e-mails

Since the volume of spam and phishing emails is up recently, it might be wise to be familiar with how phishing emails work so they can be recognized before any damage is done.

How to recognize phishing e-mails

Secured Passwords

With Spring here it's time to change your old password! Follow the eight easy rules below as a guide.

1.     Don't use passwords that are based on personal information that can be easily accessed or guessed.
2.     Don't use words that can be found in any dictionary of any language.
3.     Make the password at least 8 characters in length.
4.     Use both lowercase and capital letters.
5.     Use a combination of letters, numbers, and special characters.
6.     Use passphrases when you can.
7.     Use different passwords on different systems.
8.     Don’t write down passwords where they are easily obtained.

CGU's Canvas Pilot

Since 2006, CGU has used Sakai as its Learning Management System (LMS). Sakai was selected consortium-wide and currently all of the Claremont institutions use Sakai as their LMS provider.

As a part of a market scan and update, last summer an LMS Review subcommittee of the Academic Computing Committee conducted an in-depth and extensive review of LMS products (Canvas, Desire2Learn, and MoodleRooms). Their recommendation was to launch Canvas Pilots to provide further opportunities for consideration and planning a possible transition from Sakai to Canvas. The pilots are:

Community College Certification Program, School of Educational Studies
Start Date June 1, 2013

SBOS Introduction to Evaluation for Development
Start Date June 2013

For further information on the review and pilots please visit the CGU LMS Review website.