IT News and Views

5/14/13 Update - Coming soon Google Drive storage updates

COMING SOON - Google Drive will be updating the amount of storage user can access.

• Instead of 25 GB for Gmail and another 5 GB for Drive and Google+ Photos, you’ll soon get 30 GB of unified storage for free to use as you like between Drive, Gmail, and Google+ Photos.
• Further information available here and here.

5/13/13 Update - Google Mail Security Improvement

Google has integrated the features of Google Message Security (Postini) within the Webmail interface. On June 10, 2013 LTU webmail will no longer be filtering spam through Postini. LTU webmail will be using the integrated Spam filter.

Google Integrated Spam Filter benefits:

• All mail will be accessible through your regular webmail login. There is no need for a separate login for Postini.
• You will be able to access any messages marked as spam immediately.
• You can control which individual messages are marked as spam.

A few differences for users:

• There will be no more quarantined messages. Any suspect message will be in your spam folder.
• There will also be no Message Center since you will not have any quarantined messages.
• You will be able to approve or block specific senders through the use of filters. Click here for details.
• You can apply the same filter to many users. Click here for details.

Users may use filters to assign or remove a sender from spam:

• The way to add an allowed user for an account will be by creating a filter to "Never Send it to Spam." Help with this.
• Similarly a filter can be created to send emails directly to trash. Help with this.

You may contact the Help Desk at helpdesk@ltu.edu or 248.204.2330 for assistance.

5/13/13 Update - Student Data Storage

Starting May 13, 2013, all incoming student data storage will be located on Google Drive. Students that currently have data stored on their “M” drive will continue to have access until further notice.

• Your Google Drive is accessible by logging in to your LTU email account and clicking "Drive" at the top of the window. Google Drive Support.
• Each student has 5 GB of free storage available on Google Drive with the opportunity to purchase more from Google. Click here for details.

Google Drive User benefits:

• Access your files remotely.
• Accessible on any device with internet access. Google Drive has its own mobile application.
• Send large files to your colleagues, classmates, instructors and friends directly from your Gmail account. File sharing is not limited to those with LTU accounts.
• Efficient searches by recognizing objects in your images and text in scanned documents.
• View over 30 file types right in your browser—including HD video, Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop—even if you don’t have the program installed on your computer.

As always, you may contact the Help Desk at helpdesk@ltu.edu or 248.204.2330 for assistance.

5/10/13 Update - Gmail’s New Compose Feature

The new Gmail compose and reply features, released in October 2012, are now enabled by default for all users. Users can opt out of the new Gmail compose and reply features until they're permanently enabled on April 30th, 2013.

Self-help resources

• Help Center articles
• Google Apps Learning Center, which includes an overview, user guide, video, and FAQ.

And as always, you can contact us at helpdesk@ltu.edu or 248-204-2330 for personalized assistance.

5/10/13 Update - Java 7 Security Alert Recommendations

A Java 7 security alert has been announced, which received considerable attention in the media over this past weekend. Java is a necessary component used by many applications including Blackboard and Banner. Many of our users are already using previous versions of Java which are supported for use with Banner.

To determine your current version of Java, you may visit Java's website. Do not upgrade to Java 7 if you have a previous version (Banner and portions of Blackboard use Java 6 and will not work properly with Java 7).

Until a fix has been released, you may wish to disable Java on your browser. To disable Java on various browsers, you will find instructions here. Remember that you will need to enable Java when using Blackboard or Banner.

Please follow all safe browsing guidelines, including:

• Keep your Anti-Virus software up-to-date at home and school.
• Create and use strong passwords.
• Change your passwords often.
• Beware of links in instant messages, social media, email, attachments, etc.
• Only visit reputable/familiar websites.

We recommend choosing one Browser (Internet Explorer, for example) for your Java needs and no other activities. Use another browser (Firefox or Safari) with Java disabled for your other general web browsing. Please also keep your anti-virus software up to date to help with protection and don't visit unknown websites.

As always, for any questions or concerns, please contact the LTU Help Desk at helpdesk@ltu.edu at any time. 

5/1/13 Update - Free Abaqus Software

Under our new campus agreement, students and faculty have access to Abaqus for personal computing products.

• The Abaqus student edition is available to Lawrence Tech Students and Faculty free of charge.
• For program details please see visit the Abaqus website.