WELCOME BACK TO UVIC September 2022!

! WELCOME BACK !
! to UVIC !
! September 2022 !
! … and The CALL Facility too !

A full week has  passed since classes started at UVIC! That would cover every day that has classes! It has been extremely busy on campus, especially outdoors with so many orientations, booths, tents and activities like Thunderfest for all students, especially new students! WELCOME TO UVIC!

The  Computer Help Desk had tents up at Thunderfest as well as the day before classes started last week. CHD had a brand new PRIZE WHEEL to give away prizes! YAY CHD!

A couple of photos of the tents for all the activities and staffed by ALL kinds of CHD staff from new Coops to Consultants to Supers to Full Time Staff to our Associate Director too! GREAT TEAM EFFORT FROM EVERYONE! Those tents DO require team effort to setup and take down! YAY CHD!

All sorts of exciting stuff will be happening throughout September
& all upcoming semesters!

Did you know you can reserve Student Study Spaces, including the desks at the back of The CALL Facility? There are Project Rooms in BEC, Group Study Tables in Clearihue (CALL), Virtual Reality (VR) Studio in BEC and a Digital Media Studio in HSD! ALL from THIS WEBSITE! Photos below!

A few more Dual Monitors

CALL now has DUAL MONITORS ON ALL COMPUTER WORKSTATIONS! And that is on all the Macs and WIN computers! I was able  to re-purpose a bunch of monitors heading towards recycling and they now have a new lease on life in CALL! And it did not cost a penny! I used all available cables,  monitors, dongles and power bars! BONUS FOR BEING A GREEN CALL FACILITY! Here are many UVIC Green Recycling Sites to check out too! These and the best of my Pages are always at the right hand side of each of my Bog Blog Posts

I am always tinkering with my CALL Facility orientation, starting as a PowerPoint and with the goal to be under 5 minutes TOTAL as a presentation! I have tweaked my BETA version  and now have what I think  I will use as my file! And as a YouTube video as well!

CHD Jeopardy Greg's Playlist II
                     CHD Jeopardy Greg’s Playlist II

AND I have the next CHD All Staff Training Jeopardy readyGreg’s Playlist II and all new questions, answers, prizes and lyrics and CHD questions to try and answer! I even have NEW TYPES OF QUESTIONS TOO! But you will have to wait and .. also be staff at CHD to get the invite to the training! Come for the training … but stay for the food … and CHD JEOPARDY!

And huge HUGE NEWS THATI can’t really tell you about …  but WILL! There are new computers coming! Wait, they are ALREADY HERE! But wait, they are not yet ready to deploy! YES NEW  COMPUTERS! CHD staff unpacked them and we have to store them for now, as classes have started, so maybe  by Reading Break I will  let everyone know where they will be deployed! YAY NEW COMPUTERS! Stay glued to my Bog Blog for that and any other breaking Computer Help Desk news!

And how about a new feature every so often – a Throwback Link to topics … somewhat close to this one! LOL! And even some parting advice at the end of this blog, if you read that far!  I sure hope you do!

The best feature of the CALL layout (thanks to rolling desks!) is distancing to make sure everyone has enough room, should they want it. There are lots of open workstations for students and of course, all new computers from last August 2021 too.

CALL has  hosted many mid-terms, Finals and special workshops including a Chat CafĂ© with Korea! Really! So come on down and see what you  have been missing out on as a study space for yourself and fellow students!

Thanks to EVERYONE for all your help and support over the past 2+ Covid years. Without my colleagues support and friendship, I have no idea how I would have fared! THANK YOU ALL! And hey, to quote one of my favourite  TV shows of all time …. Hill Street Blues ….. and I have to mention St. Elsewhere too. AWESOME SHOWS! ENJOY!

CALL Towering Tech Arrivals

CALL Computer Refresh Deja Vu .. All Over Again

The Recycling of CALL … and HSD!

Early Computer Help Desks!

TTFN!

March 2022 – Updates

March Update

Wearing of masks is still recommended at UVic.
Click on ‘Updates‘ to the right to see the most recent updates.

Click the link here to get to the most recent Covid-19 information [Return to Campus].

Click on the March 28, 2022 release below to access all the links indicated

Specifically for students click here or on the menu below.

The full ‘Planning for next term‘ on December 23, 2021 press release is here.

And all the Return to Campus Updates are here.

The CALL Facility (CLE A025) is currently OPEN, weekdays only from 830am to 600pm! YAY!

To check the schedule for CALL, it is posted at the front entrance TO The CALL Facility. It is not online. A sample schedule for THIS week is to the right. I always post the following week too. There are ASL Final Exams scheduled in The CALL  Facility once the term is over. Otherwise, regular hours for students throughout the entire Final  Exam period.

GET YOUR BOOSTER DOSE!

Everyone stay safe and healthy!

Who ya gonna CALL?
THE COMPUTER HELP DESK!Stay safe everyone! 

For now, the best resource to find current information is at UVic’s COVID information site, UVic response to COVID-19 (coronavirus). The official BC site is COVID-19 (Novel Coronavirus), with multiple links throughout including the most important one on ‘Orders and notices‘.

The map I go to frequently is the ‘British Columbia COVID-19 Dashboard‘.

As always, information changes, so you can keep up to date with the BC Covid App.

And a chance to see all the Emergency Planning links from an earlier Post (and Page) below too.

  1. Emergency Planning (Take a few minutes for this site please)
  2. Emergency Procedures (And what to do … if ….)
  3. Earthquake and Tsunami (How many in the last 30 days … SEE THEM!!)
  4. An earthquake happened in Oak Bay, WHILE I WAS UPDATING THIS POST! 🔥 HOT OFF THE PRESS WINNER 🔥
  5. Snow or Extreme Weather (Yes, it snows in Victoria .. LOTS!)
  6. Specific Hazards (Nitty gritty specifics of what could happen)
  7. Campus Evacuation Procedures (Where to go ….)
  8. Emergency Planning – Events & Upcoming Training (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!)
  9. UVic Alerts (Register today, right now!)
  10. Safety Committees at UVic(Join a great committee! I did!)
  11. And .. UVic Covid Information too
  12. Province-wide restriction  🔥 HOT OFF THE PRESS WINNER 🔥
  13. BC Covid Dashboard (Added April 9, 2021)

BE SAFE EVERYONE!

Pandemic

March 3rd 2022 – Back to The Future II

Back to the Future ………… II
March 3rd 2022

 

 

 

 

 

 

There are some more changes coming to Health and Safety Meausures at UVic, announced yesterday.

A few important measures that ARE changing:

Masks will continue to be required to be worn by students at all times in study spaces, including library study spaces …..   

In-person indoor social events for employees and students can resume in alignment with our updated health and safety guidelines for gatherings and events…

Measures that are NOT CHANGING:

Proof of vaccination continues to be required to access a number of campus-based services and activities, including student housing …..

Masks must be worn in common areas of buildings, including in on-campus housing and office buildings (e.g., lobbies, hallways, bathrooms).

Masks must be worn by students at all times in classrooms except where exempt for a medical reason. Consuming food and beverages will not be permitted in classrooms until at least the end of winter term classes.

No food or beverages have been a policy in our computing facilities in CLE, BEC and HSD for literally years, so that will not be going away. And until someone can show me how they can eat or drink WITH THEIR MASK ON, it is a great policy. I have seen too many computers, desks, keyboards, mice, monitors and carpets ruined from spills. Not to  mention textbooks, mousepads, peripherals and .. guess who gets to clean the mess up! 

It makes even MORE sense during Covid too. Let’s be safe and sound. I even go outside, OUTDOORS, to have even a jelly bean, granola bar or a sip of tea. Hey, it’s Victoria, not Northern Alberta – you are not going to suffer frostbite anytime soon!

And UVic is offering free Covid-19 Rapid Test kits. You can GET YOUR COVID TEST KIT! through thrive.uvic.ca, and I did, but you can just as easily just head over to the concessions booth area at the stadium, present your OneCard and get a free kit – SUPER FAST AND SUPER EASY! And I think  this Friday, March 4th  is the last day, so get going!!

No doubt, there will be more updates, changes and continuation  of Covid-19 updates. I will post them as they change for using our computing facilities and how life will slowly return to a ‘new normal’ at UVic. Stay safe. Stay healthy. EVERYONE!

Clicking on the menu to the side and you will get to their most recent Covid-19 information.

 

GET YOUR BOOSTER DOSE!
GET YOUR COVID TEST KIT!

Everyone stay safe and healthy!

Who ya gonna CALL?
THE COMPUTER HELP DESK!Stay safe everyone! 

For now, the best resource to find current information is at UVic’s COVID information site, UVic response to COVID-19 (coronavirus). The official BC site is COVID-19 (Novel Coronavirus), with multiple links throughout including the most important one on ‘Orders and notices‘.

The map I go to frequently is the ‘British Columbia COVID-19 Dashboard‘.

As always, information changes, so you can keep up to date with the BC Covid App.

And a chance to see all the Emergency Planning links from an earlier Post (and Page) below too.

  1. Emergency Planning (Take a few minutes for this site please)
  2. Emergency Procedures (And what to do … if ….)
  3. Earthquake and Tsunami (How many in the last 30 days … SEE THEM!!)
  4. An earthquake happened in Oak Bay, WHILE I WAS UPDATING THIS POST! 🔥 HOT OFF THE PRESS WINNER 🔥
  5. Snow or Extreme Weather (Yes, it snows in Victoria .. LOTS!)
  6. Specific Hazards (Nitty gritty specifics of what could happen)
  7. Campus Evacuation Procedures (Where to go ….)
  8. Emergency Planning – Events & Upcoming Training (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!)
  9. UVic Alerts (Register today, right now!)
  10. Safety Committees at UVic(Join a great committee! I did!)
  11. And .. UVic Covid Information too
  12. Province-wide restriction  🔥 HOT OFF THE PRESS WINNER 🔥
  13. BC Covid Dashboard (Added April 9, 2021)

BE SAFE EVERYONE!

Pandemic

January 24th 2022 – Back to The Future!

Back to the Future …………
Back to Campus
January 24th 2022
Our return to
in-person education this term

UVic is returning to in-person classroom education starting Monday, January 24th.  A message from the Provost is here. (January 20/2022)

Just click on the menu to the side and you will get to their most recent Covid-19 information [Return to Campus].

Specifically for all of January 2022 is here.

Health and Safety at UVic is here.

Most important, at least to me, is that masks must be worn at all times and no food or beverages are permitted in classrooms, labs, study spaces or libraries as below:

  • Masks will be required to be worn by students at all times in classrooms and study spaces except where exempt for a medical reason.  Consuming food and beverages will not be permitted in classrooms, labs, study spaces or libraries.
  • Masks must be worn in common areas of buildings, including in on-campus housing and office buildings (e.g., lobbies, hallways, bathrooms).

The full ‘Planning for next term‘ on December 23, 2021 press release is here.

And all the Return to Campus Updates are here.

The CALL Facility (CLE A025) is currently closed. As far as I know, The CALL Facility AND all other CHD Computing Facilities and Classrooms will re-open on Monday, January 24th. And I will be back in CALL.

GET YOUR BOOSTER DOSE!

Everyone stay safe and healthy!

Who ya gonna CALL?
THE COMPUTER HELP DESK!Stay safe everyone! 

For now, the best resource to find current information is at UVic’s COVID information site, UVic response to COVID-19 (coronavirus). The official BC site is COVID-19 (Novel Coronavirus), with multiple links throughout including the most important one on ‘Orders and notices‘.

The map I go to frequently is the ‘British Columbia COVID-19 Dashboard‘.

As always, information changes, so you can keep up to date with the BC Covid App.

And a chance to see all the Emergency Planning links from an earlier Post (and Page) below too.

  1. Emergency Planning (Take a few minutes for this site please)
  2. Emergency Procedures (And what to do … if ….)
  3. Earthquake and Tsunami (How many in the last 30 days … SEE THEM!!)
  4. An earthquake happened in Oak Bay, WHILE I WAS UPDATING THIS POST! 🔥 HOT OFF THE PRESS WINNER 🔥
  5. Snow or Extreme Weather (Yes, it snows in Victoria .. LOTS!)
  6. Specific Hazards (Nitty gritty specifics of what could happen)
  7. Campus Evacuation Procedures (Where to go ….)
  8. Emergency Planning – Events & Upcoming Training (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!)
  9. UVic Alerts (Register today, right now!)
  10. Safety Committees at UVic(Join a great committee! I did!)
  11. And .. UVic Covid Information too
  12. Province-wide restriction  🔥 HOT OFF THE PRESS WINNER 🔥
  13. BC Covid Dashboard (Added April 9, 2021)

BE SAFE EVERYONE!

Pandemic

January 2022 – A bit of Both

So …………
Back to Campus January 2022
… but on-line for a couple of weeks!

UVic is back to remote learning but only until Monday January 24th, when it is expected that in person classes will resume. Make sure you keep up to date with every UVic notification about returning to campus safely.

Just click on the menu to the side and you will get to their most recent Covid-19 information [Return to Campus].

Specifically for all of January 2022 is here.

The full ‘Planning for next term‘ on December 23, 2021 press release is here.

And all the Return to Campus Updates are here.

The CALL Facility (CLE A025) is currently closed. As far as I know, The CALL Facility AND all other CHD Computing Facilities and Classrooms will re-open on Monday, January 24th. And I will be back in CALL.

GET YOUR BOOSTER DOSE!

Everyone stay safe and healthy!

Who ya gonna CALL?
THE COMPUTER HELP DESK!Stay safe everyone! 

For now, the best resource to find current information is at UVic’s COVID information site, UVic response to COVID-19 (coronavirus). The official BC site is COVID-19 (Novel Coronavirus), with multiple links throughout including the most important one on ‘Orders and notices‘.

The map I go to frequently is the ‘British Columbia COVID-19 Dashboard‘.

As always, information changes, so you can keep up to date with the BC Covid App.

And a chance to see all the Emergency Planning links from an earlier Post (and Page) below too.

  1. Emergency Planning (Take a few minutes for this site please)
  2. Emergency Procedures (And what to do … if ….)
  3. Earthquake and Tsunami (How many in the last 30 days … SEE THEM!!)
  4. An earthquake happened in Oak Bay, WHILE I WAS UPDATING THIS POST! 🔥 HOT OFF THE PRESS WINNER 🔥
  5. Snow or Extreme Weather (Yes, it snows in Victoria .. LOTS!)
  6. Specific Hazards (Nitty gritty specifics of what could happen)
  7. Campus Evacuation Procedures (Where to go ….)
  8. Emergency Planning – Events & Upcoming Training (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!)
  9. UVic Alerts (Register today, right now!)
  10. Safety Committees at UVic(Join a great committee! I did!)
  11. And .. UVic Covid Information too
  12. Province-wide restriction  🔥 HOT OFF THE PRESS WINNER 🔥
  13. BC Covid Dashboard (Added April 9, 2021)

BE SAFE EVERYONE!

Pandemic

So … What’s Next for … 2022?

So …………
What’s Next for …………..
2022!

This is basically a sequel post to my last one ‘What’s Next for September?‘ as I have not had time to post ANYTHING since returning to work on campus, full time, face to face, as everyone else did too!

BUT the exception is TODAY, my first scheduled RWA (Working Remotely) to .. work remotely once a week. Working with my amazing colleagues at CHD,  we each submitted our RWA to our Asscciate Director, making sure we cover each other on our respective RWA days. We have been doing that anyways for years, this merely formalizes it for specific days for each of us. AND if I am needed on campus that day for an orientation, demo or something … I just come to campus that day! Thanks to all  of M, T, H and G for working together on this! Teamwork and communication!

And so NOW, the ultimate question is … What IS Next for 2022

I have absolutely no idea! I can only reflect on this past semester – the challenges and successes I encountered  returning to The Computer Help Desk and The CALL Facility … in a nutshell! 

The biggest change was of course, full face to face with students, staff, faculty and … SO MANY PEOPLE ON CAMPUS! Mask wearing was mandated and basically, we were all back into the swing of things … instantly!

I fielded so many requests for CALL bookings, resources, hours of operation and … bewildered 1st AND 2nd Year students being on campus for the FIRST TIME! And new Instructors, new pedagogy based on technology (Brightspace, Zoom, Teams, OAC, Echo 360, … you name it!). AND many, many regulars of CALL returned if they had not graduated already! Thank you all for your patience and for returning to The CALL Facility!

I even changed the configuration of my desk so that there would be social distancing between CHD Consultants and myself in CALL! Okay, just switched sides, but that is an important change – and now I can see people when they come into CALL!

CALL had a marked increase in usage for American Sign Language, Korean (Chat Cafe!), French, Spanish and Italian! With the need for distancing and masking, I had to modify my approach AND content to everyone, even the Instructors! That was actually SO MUCH FUN and basically I was re-learning my duties and job .. ON THE  FLY!

I literally was hosting a 3 minute ‘demo’ of what CALL is, how to use the NEW computers and even a super fast demo of Audacity at one point, using both WIN and MAC on the VDP!

Anytime you are dealing with new equipment, new computers and new students and expectations from new  Instructors …. be afraid! But I was thrilled that ALL THE COMPUTERS AND TECHNOLOGY WORKED FLAWLESSLY!

The WiFi worked flawlessly even for upwards of 40+ students and their own  laptops! The ‘Korean Chat Cafe’ with Zoom worked instantly, Brightspace was in high demand and students could CHOOSE WIN OR MAC! That was VERY welcome amongst students! And ASL mid-terms and Finals just … WORKED! CALL will be hosting the ASL Final exams which make use of webcams, Brightspace, Macs and Windows, recording and … CALL is the only facility that can offer that .. okay, CLE A103 has a room of iMacs, and they work flawlessly too! YAY TKAT!

One of my favourite tasks was creating a new Keynote for each new semester, with all the new ‘stuff’ in CALL. But it was not worth the time to do that, considering I was able to do quick demos, as the class came in, with a minimum of fuss. But, the last ‘5-ish Magic Words” lives on as a downloadable file and at YouTube too! 

Oh yes, NEW COMPUTERS and NEW FURNITURE! Just click on those links and you will see previous posts about all the new stuff, now all installed in CALL! MANY thanks to everyone at CHD who helped moving a literal ‘Mountain of Tech‘ that came in during the summer! And it would be remiss of me to again mention that CHD recycles as much as possible – plastics (hard and soft), cardboard and paper.

I also had a post talking about THIS latest refresh for CALL  too!

CALL Facility Large Screens
   CALL Facility Large Screens

The ‘NEW STUFF‘, EACH computer (Mac Minis  & DELL WIN) makes CALL quite unique! CALL is the ONLY computing facility on campus to offer: a blend of MAC and WIN computers, webcams on each computer, 24″ monitors, ethernet and solid WiFi, external optical media drives (Mac only), USB headphones with stereo microphones, private booths (with and without computers), table space, 55″ monitors at 2- ‘office/desk’ locations, 4 rolling whiteboards (2 big, 2 small) for use anywhere in CALL – AND DROP-

New CALL Furniture
                      New CALL Furniture

IN USE, unless CALL is scheduled!! Yeah, that makes CALL very, very unique! Oh and lots of new furniture too … hint, hint!

WICKET
                        WICKET

A huge, HUGE change was that WICKET was decomissioned. This was our own customizable database program that scanned every student who used CALL and recorded their attendance! My first EVER presentation for CHD was actually about the history of The CALL Facility and WICKET! It was one of the first training exercises for all our staff! But now, CALL is completely drop-in and Humanities have moved on from requiring any attendance requirements in CALL for students. 

I have even  been returning as much media and resources TO each Humanities Department, for their own decisions about what  to do with old CDs, DVDs, software, VHS tapes, etc. The CALL Facility, under the umbrella of Systems, has never ‘owned’ or ‘bought’ any language resources. That was always based on Departmental needs and their syllabus for each language course. So, returning it frees up much needed room.

And a ‘Not-So-Hidden-Agenda Item’ is to re-introduce myself, The Computer Help Desk and of course, The CALL Facility to all the new staff in each Department, usually beginning with their Office Manager! Yes, there IS a method to my madness!

I have kept a few very, VERY unique software packages, including McMaster French, the very FIRST software ever installed in CALL .. and needs MS:DOS to run! THANK YOU Patrick for keeping it going for so many years, I did not have the heart to return it for shredding! So, it lives on in 3.5″ floppy disk format in the CALL closet! The last group to use it was LMF 23 summers ago, pre-Covid.

And instead of returning to in-person training, CHD is scheduling separate 1-hour afternoon sessions on specific topics for all new and returning staff, including Coops. So that does not give me an opportunity to do a full Jeopardy. BUT, at the end of our CHD Reviews (2-3 times a week) I am hosting a ‘Blast From Your Past‘ Jeopardy! I have about 9 previous Jeopardy training sessions, 180+ ‘Questions’ and going through them all to give a sense of history and .. whimsy .. to CHD, CALL and training! A nice way to end each session too – 2 or 3 questions and have some fun at the end of some training.

What else … I decided to buy my own new PURPLE IMAC too, although it is more of a … Lavendar! My computers at home were too old to really be secure, so .. NEW  COMPUTER! 1TB SSD, 16GB RAM, extended keyboard and  …. PURPLE (Lavendar!)

And that is about it for now! A longer post, but catching up on the  most important changes and improvements in The CALL Facility.

Challenges remain – we are still in the Covid Pandemic and everyone should keep wearing your masks, social distancing, wash your hands and stay as safe and healthy as possible. I am including Covid information below as well. I hope to do more Bog Blogs in the future, especially on RWA Wednesdays! And who knows what new Tech is around the corner for us at CHD, The CALL Facility and UVic in general!

Who ya gonna CALL?
THE COMPUTER HELP DESK!Stay safe everyone! 

For now, the best resource to find current information is at UVic’s COVID information site, UVic response to COVID-19 (coronavirus). The official BC site is COVID-19 (Novel Coronavirus), with multiple links throughout including the most important one on ‘Orders and notices‘.

The map I go to frequently is the ‘British Columbia COVID-19 Dashboard‘.

As always, information changes, so you can keep up to date with the BC Covid App.

And a chance to see all the Emergency Planning links from an earlier Post (and Page) below too.

  1. Emergency Planning (Take a few minutes for this site please)
  2. Emergency Procedures (And what to do … if ….)
  3. Earthquake and Tsunami (How many in the last 30 days … SEE THEM!!)
  4. An earthquake happened in Oak Bay, WHILE I WAS UPDATING THIS POST! 🔥 HOT OFF THE PRESS WINNER 🔥
  5. Snow or Extreme Weather (Yes, it snows in Victoria .. LOTS!)
  6. Specific Hazards (Nitty gritty specifics of what could happen)
  7. Campus Evacuation Procedures (Where to go ….)
  8. Emergency Planning – Events & Upcoming Training (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!)
  9. UVic Alerts (Register today, right now!)
  10. Safety Committees at UVic(Join a great committee! I did!)
  11. And .. UVic Covid Information too
  12. Province-wide restriction  🔥 HOT OFF THE PRESS WINNER 🔥
  13. BC Covid Dashboard (Added April 9, 2021)

BE SAFE EVERYONE!

Pandemic