UMBC Blackboard (Bb) course shells for both SP2014 and WT2014 were created on December 2, 2013.  The course shells for SP2014 are located on the Bb production server at http://blackboard.umbc.edu.  

As previously announced at the start of this semester, due to the Bb upgrade January 8-10, all WT2014 courses will be run on a separate server at http://bb-winter.umbc.edu.  All courses and organizations on the Bb production server will be unavailable during the upgrade from January 8-10.  If you require any past Bb content for your WT2014 courses please make sure to export it prior to January 8, 2014.

Enrollments for both SP2014 and WT2014 courses will continue to be updated daily. Bb shells are available for all courses (designated as lecture, lab, field or discussion) listed in the UMBC Schedule of Classes (SOC), provided that there is an instructor of record listed. The addition of new course sections and instructors will result in new Bb shells being automatically generated each morning. Student enrollment in Bb will continue to mirror the official registration in SA, and will update hourly.

If you are an instructor, and your name is not associated with the course you are teaching in the SOC, please see your departmental scheduling coordinator to get that issue resolved. Once you are listed in the SOC, your Bb course shell will be created and enrolled automatically.

Additionally, in situations where one instructor is teaching multiple sections of the same course, by default all sections will be combined into one Bb course shell. If you want to have separate shells for different sections, or if you need a shell for for a research or independent study course, please submit a new course request or submit an RT ticket with your request.

On January 23 and 24 the New Media Studio and the Department of Media and Communications Studies will offer a two-day hands-on workshop exploring digital storytelling using the iPad.   The workshop will center on the creation of short reflective digital movies using iMovie.  Through this experience, participants will gain insight into the possibilities that visual assignments offer for their own teaching.  The workshop will also include time for pedagogical discussions and showcasing what some UMBC faculty are currently doing to integrate new tools in the classroom. Participants will orient themselves with various education and digital production apps, sharing how the iPad can become a valuable asset in their classrooms (planning, content delivery, and creative production).  

We will use new iPad Airs provided for the workshop by DoIT.  Lunch will be provided by the Faculty Development Center.  The workshop will run 10:00 am to 4:00 pm each day and will be held in the Dresher Center conference room (PAH 216.)

The workshop is limited to eleven participants and is open to UMBC faculty, staff and graduate assistants.   Priority will be given to faculty.  To reserve a seat in the workshop please email shewbrid@umbc.edu .

A new phishing scam is threatening to deactivate email accounts. This email is not from UMBC. Do not click this link.

Here's what's being received:

"This E-mail is sent by the HelpDesk Expert for IT Support system for Mailbox notification and update purposes. We are conducting an email sweep upgrade due to our new login home page that is coming up soon for your better and faster server. So we are removing all unused email and registration of all active Student/Staff mail account to enable the University create new logins for our 2013/2014 students and staff. So all users are to verify there accounts.

CLICK HERE: To go to verification page and follow the instructions on the popup page

IMPORTANT NOTICE: ACCOUNT OWNER THAT REFUSES TO VERIFY/UPGRADE HIS/HER ACCOUNT WILL LEADS TO YOUR ACCOUNT DE-ACTIVATION WITHIN 48 HOURS PRIOR TO THE URGENT THAT CONTAINED IN THIS SHEET.

Copyright@2013 Help-desk Technical Support Centre."

Again: Do Not Click The Link. If you already did, please change your password immediately.

As many of you know, UMBC has had a large number of phishing attacks in the past few weeks.  This has resulted in a number of compromised accounts which the attackers are using to setup fake web pages and send out large volumes of spam.  In an attempt to better protect accounts from fake web pages, DoIT will be removing permissions from user AFS web volumes for accounts not currently using their web space (http://userpages.umbc.edu/~username).  

This will not affect anyone who currently has a web page or stop anyone from creating a web page, but will stop automated attacks and make it more difficult for attackers to setup web pages on people’s accounts.  The permission change is minor, and can be easily reversed by anyone wishing to use their web space moving forward.  

Directions for how to re-enable your web directory, as well as general information regarding using userpages, can be found at https://wiki.umbc.edu/pages/viewpage.action?pageId=31195980.  If you have questions or concerns please contact the Technology Support Center (x53838) and they will be happy to assist you.

To learn more about Baltimore GiveCamp, visit http://www.baltimoregivecamp.org, or connect with us on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter (@BmoreGiveCamp). To learn more about or register for Seminar Saturday, visit http://www.seminarsaturday.org. To find out more about the national GiveCamp movement, visit http://givecamp.org/.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VAjbDyCHUNY

Press release:  http://www.prweb.com/releases/2013/10/prweb11202568.htm