SMUS Tech Tips: 2018

Friday 7 December 2018

Tech tip #57 - Some SDS updates and tips

Here are a few new/updated SDS features that you might want to know about:

The teacher cover page now separates today from the future, and includes information about who is covering you and whom you are covering.

SDS Calendar export includes teacher cover, lunch and quad duty, invigilations, and reports deadlines.

Home room advisors have access to the concerns/interventions information through My advisees.

For faculty using the SDS markbook to manage their marks (as opposed to Integrade, Freshgrade, Gradekeeper, MOODLE gradebook or Google sheets), assignments in the markbook have a "radio button" option, which makes it easy to input marks on a touch screen.

Another addition is that an assignment in the markbook can be designated as a "major assignment". This is then tracked on the Schedule Tests page, counting as an assessment for that week.

If you have SDS-specific questions or suggestions/comments please send them to sdshelp@smus.ca

Let me know if you have any questions or would like more information.

These tips are now being archived at the following location in a blog format: http://smustechtips.blogspot.ca

You can see a list of all the tips here: http://smustechtips.blogspot.ca/p/toc11.html

Also, please let me know if you have any tips you would like to share!

Michael Jackson

SMUS, Victoria, BC

Sent from Mail for Windows 10

Non Tech Tip (#56) - seasonal astronomy

It is time for my seasonal astronomy "non tech tip". Some of this post is a repeat of last year's one, but I have made some updates.

As we approach the December solstice on the 21st at 2:22 PMPST (http://earthsky.org/earth/everything-you-need-to-know-december-solstice) it might be good to know that the coming season is the shortest of the four! (http://earthsky.org/tonight/years-shortest-season-starts-with-december-solstice) due to the Earth being closer and moving faster (fun physics!) than in summer. Our spring and summer are a few days longer than our fall and winter!

Another strange seasonal fact is that sunsets are slightly longer at the solstices than at the equinoxes (http://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/longest-sunsets-around-solstices) due to the angle of the sun's path to the horizon. At our latitude the sun will take more than 4 minutes to set at the winter solstice. Where I am off to next week, the sun sets in just over 2 minutes!

The earliest sunset in Victoria will be next week (Dec 11, 4:18 PM) and we will have the latest sunrise right around the New Year (8:05 AM) - in time for return to school!

The shortest day in Victoria is still the 21st at 8 hours 18 minutes and 36 seconds! (almost 8 hours less than in June!) (https://www.timeanddate.com/sun/canada/Victoria)

For the latter part of December, I will be in Antarctica where the day may be almost 20 hours long on December 21st

Have a wonderful holiday season! Make the best of those brief daylight hours!
:)

Let me know if you have any questions or would like more information.

These tips are now being archived at the following location in a blog format: http://smustechtips.blogspot.ca

You can see a list of all the tips here: http://smustechtips.blogspot.ca/p/toc11.html

Also, please let me know if you have any tips you would like to share!

Wednesday 5 December 2018

SMUS Tech Tip # 55 -starting tech tips again

It has been almost a year (December 18 2017) since I last sent out a tech tip – somehow these slipped off my radar! My goal is to send these out regularly again.

I thought I would start with a list of the previous fifty or so tips:

Non Tech tip #54 - seasonal astronomy news

Tech Tip #53 - 5 Google search tips

Tech tip #52 - Sharing calendars in Outlook/Google

Tech tip #51 - Google Classroom Updates

Tech tip #50 - cloud storage (and some astronomy stuff!)

Tech tip #49 - Finding free usable images (and today's supermoon)

(Not) Tech tip #48 - The great American eclipse August 21, 2017

Tech tip #47 - Microsoft Office and Adobe Creative Suite software for teachers

Tech tip # 46 - Off-line maps for travelling with your phone or tablet

Tech tip #45 - new photocopier tips

Tech tip #44 - Pro D day materials