New MyBobcat Portal

The Office of Information Technology would like to announce a new MyBobcat portal to be published on Monday, December 14th, 2015, as part of an upgrade to our Student Information System.  The new MyBobcat portal will serve as the main access point for our future Student Planning and Financial Aid Self-Service modules scheduled to enter service in early Spring 2016.

In preparation for the new MyBobcat portal, please be advised that WebAdvisor will not be available from Friday, December 11th, 2015, at 5:00PM until 12:00AM Monday, December 14th, 2015.  We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

Respondus LockDown Browser Instructor Training

In October, Respondus is offering training sessions for LockDown Browser and Respondus Monitor. Each 45-minute webinar provides a live demo, plus tips to get started using these applications to deter cheating during online exams.

We encourage you to sign up to these training webinars at www.respondus.com/webinars.

UPCOMING SESSIONS

LockDown Browser & Respondus Monitor: Instructor Training
Wednesday, October 7th at 3 pm ET
Thursday, October 15th at 8 pm ET
Tuesday, October 20th at 2 pm ET

New MyBobcat Login Page and Directory Location

In the next few days, you may notice a new login page for MyBobcat. The new page was designed from the ground up to be fully responsive and facilitate mobile device usability. All the links under the old page’s Guests section can be found under the Guests link on the new page.

Also, in our continuing efforts to service our community, we have added a new employee directory link to the www.stu.edu webpages. This directory can be used to search by first name, last name, or department. To access the directory, scroll to the footer section at the bottom of a www.stu.edu webpage and click on the Directory link on the right hand side. 

Network Upgrades and Maintenance

During the last few months St. Thomas University has embarked on a campus-wide network upgrade focused on delivering improvements to speed, reliability, security and ease of use. Our Internet access has been greatly augmented through new hardware purchases and a partnership with Florida LambdaRail (FLR) and Internet2. These new partnerships will provide enhanced services to popular websites like YouTube, Facebook, Netflix, Google, Microsoft, Amazon and many other popular destinations. 

Every building has also received new network switches and there are new wireless Access Points (WiFi) in every classroom and dorm room on campus.  Network security was also greatly improved by the upgrade of our Intrusion Detection System (IDS) and the deployment of a Network Access Control system which will protect and help safeguard computer usage while on our network. 

We plan on completing all of these upgrades by the second week of August, and we will continue to fine-tune the new network environment throughout the Fall Semester. 

Introduction to Canvas

We would like to announce the addition of Canvas training to our list of instructional technology resources available to our faculty on the following Canvas topics/components:

• Login
• Canvas Requirements and Recommendations
• Contacting Technical or Student Services Support 
• Dashboard
• Course Navigation
• Profile & User Settings
• Communication
• Course Announcements
• Discussions
• Files
• Quizzes
• Assignments
• Grading
• Course Statistics
• People (roster)
• Collaboration

Canvas LMS is now supported by OIT as part of our STU-HotChalk online learning project.  For additional information on Canvas LMS, please visit the Instructor Guide.

To schedule a training or learn more about our services, please send an email to the OIT Training Center at oitat@stu.edu.

Quicker, Easier Remote Desktop Connection

A VPN connection is no longer needed to connect to you STU computer from off campus.

Utilizing a Remote Desktop Gateway (RD Gateway), STU users can now connect to their campus desktop computers without having to set up virtual private network (VPN) connections. The RD Gateway not only simplifies your connection process, but also helps create a more secure, encrypted connection.

Follow the instructions below to set up a Remote Desktop connection from any off campus computer.

Note:  You must be off campus in order to establish this type of connection.  

Remote Desktop Connection Setup

  

1. Open your Remote Desktop Client or (if using Windows 7) click on the Start button and start typing “Remote Desktop” to find it.

  

2.  Enter the name of the remote computer and input your STU User name: 

3.  Click the Advanced tab to make additional changes:

4.  In Advanced settings, select Connect and don’t warn me on the drop down and then click Settings under Connect from anywhere

5.  Under RD Gateway Server Settings, select Use these RD Gateway server settings:

6.  Input remote.stu.edu as the Server name. 

7.  Check the Use my RD Gateway credentials for the remote computer box. 

8.  Click Ok

9.  Click Connect

10. Enter your password.

You should now be logged onto your campus computer. 

Personal Email Manager

The Office of Information Technology manages email filters to alleviate the amount and frequency of unsolicited email sent to your STU account.

Every afternoon, the email manager system generates an automated courtesy notification listing existing spam in your folder. 

If you feel an email may have been designated as spam erroneously by our filters, you may log in to check your spam folder manually at  www.stu.edu/pem, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Once you log in, the Personal Email Manager will allow you to Preview and/or Receive any of the emails it has designated as spam.

New Podium Technology

The Office of Information Technology is in the process of upgrading the podium equipment in the O'Malia classrooms.  The laptop-based improvements will centralize all podium functions, allowing for easier use.  Here are the steps to operate the new podium setups:

Step 1:  Turn the projector and screen ON.
Step 2:  Turn the laptop ON, and log in.

The laptops will play audio CDs, as well as video DVDs.  If you have teaching materials on VHS, please contact helpdesk@stu.edu to schedule a VHS to DVD transfer.

The Help Desk

St. Thomas University's main point of contact for all issues regarding technology, telecommunications, and media services is the Help Desk.  The Help Desk is responsible for the maintenance and service of all STU computer hardware, software, network access, wireless networks, telephones, voice-mail, mobile phones, cable television, video and audio production, and website management.

The most efficient way to reach the Help Desk is by email at helpdesk@stu.edu.

After receiving your email, the Help Desk operator will create a Trouble Ticket and assign your request to the appropriate person within OIT.

The Help Desk is also available by phone at (305) 628-6610. Calls that are received after hours, are immediately routed to our technicians via Google Voice, so we encourage you to leave a voice mail.

You can also visit our Help Desk, located in Kennedy 104, from 8AM to 5PM Monday through Friday.

For more information, please visit the Help Desk FAQ

STU's Ellucian GO Mobile App

In an additional effort to make our web presence more mobile friendly, STU has partnered with Ellucian Mobile to develop an easy to use application to meet our community’s needs.  Ellucian specializes in creating mobile apps for colleges and universities that are customizable to ensure that the users get the most out of their mobile experience. 

Available for iOS, Android, and Amazon Apps, the multiplatform app puts students, faculty, and alumni seconds away from university news, events, admissions information, as well as student-specific course schedules, grades, and notifications.

To get started, download the app to your mobile device:

·         iOS

·         Android

·         Kindle

Once downloaded, simply open the app, select St. Thomas University, and sign in using your MyBobcat credentials.

View or Add to Your Print Credit Balance

By clicking on Print Credit Balance on the www.stu.edu/print page, you can see your remaining print pages, as well as purchase additional pages and add them to your printing account.
This instructional video shows you how.