National Cyber Security Awareness Month is coming!
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October is National Cyber Security Awareness Month. The McMaster IT Security Services team will be rolling out an awareness campaign throughout the month to introduce the McMaster community to tips and resources for staying cyber safe. The campaign will feature McMaster cyber heroes and perhaps a villain or two. Spread the word with your respective areas and be on the lookout for 'cyber cat.'
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Do you manage a McMaster website? Make sure you are AODA compliant!
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The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) Web Accessibility Roadmap initiative, endorsed by IT Governance 2021, is entering phase two. The initiative intends to support and encourage the wider McMaster community to work together towards achieving WCAG 2.0 AA (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) compliance and implementing a plan to maintain compliance by the end of 2022.
For more information join the AODA Roadmap Team Channel to receive news on upcoming webinars during the month of October as well as schedule one to one consultations with our web accessibility specialist Clark Cipryk.
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NEW: ITSAC Report 2021-2022
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The Information Technology Student Advisory Committee (ITSAC) just released it's annual report outlining recommendations and feedback on the IT services at McMaster University.
ITSAC provides a forum for undergraduate and graduate students to discuss current campus technology priorities and new IT initiatives. This committee is an essential channel for ensuring students have meaningful input and involvement in enhancing the IT experience at McMaster.
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Digital Transformation in Higher Education session for McMaster IT
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On behalf of the Technology Roundtable (TRT) group, you're invited to a conversation on “Digital Transformation in Higher Education” with Susan Grajek, EDUCAUSE Vice President for Partnerships, Communities and Research. During this session, Grajek will be addressing different topics including the challenges and opportunities of incorporating technology into the higher education experience. The conversation will be held on October 7, 2022 at 11:00 AM virtually via Zoom.
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CFI invests $17.4 million in Canadian Research Data Centre Network
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The Canadian Research Data Centre Network (CRDCN), headquartered at McMaster, has received $17.4 million from the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI).
The CRDCN is being funded through CFI’s Major Science Initiatives Fund, designed to keep large, complex research facilities on the cutting edge to support Canadian and global research communities.
The funding is part of a total of more than $628 million from CFI, announced August 19th, to support 19 research infrastructure projects at 14 institutions across the country.
Co-funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and the Social Science and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), and in partnership with Statistics Canada and 33 universities across the country, the CRDCN provides researchers with unique access to Statistics Canada census and surveys, as well as to an increasing number of administrative data files.
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New McMaster Digital Spaces & Tools: McMaster Smart Campus pilot initiatives launch this fall
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This fall, McMaster’s Smart Campus approach begins to roll-out with pilot projects focused on enhancing the digital experience on campus for students and instructors alike.
McMaster’s Smart Campus approach is a compelling path to a more digitized and innovative future and is focused on creating a sustainable and equitable future through digital spaces and ‘smart campus’ initiatives.
Funded in part by McMaster’s 2021 Cisco Fast Future Innovation Award from Cisco’s Country Digital Acceleration program and launching this September, two proof of concept elements of the Smart Campus initiative will be available to the McMaster community.
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Campus Accessible Tech Space reopens, bigger and better than before
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McMaster University’s assistive technology space reopened to students after a sizeable expansion.
Located on the second floor of Mills Memorial Library, the Campus Accessible Tech Space (CATS) provides equitable resources, facilities and services to foster dignity and independence for McMaster students with varied accessibility needs.
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Important notice regarding older method/basic authentication for accessing exchange email
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Effective October 1, 2022, Microsoft will begin disabling older method/basic authentication for accessing email. If you use an email client with older method/basic authentication, you will no longer be able to access your email using that client. However, you can continue to access your emails via the web client https://office365.mcmaster.ca/ (Login on this page). All Microsoft cloud services are modern authentication capable.
Please refer to Microsoft full announcement for details.
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Start of term IT resources for students, staff and faculty, now available from UTS!
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University Technology Services (UTS) has brought together tips and recommendations to help the McMaster community get tech ready for the fall semester. In this checklist you can find information on different tools and services provided by UTS as well as links to trainings and various resources to make the most of your McMaster IT experience.
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Call for proposals and reviewers for MI's Innovations in Education Conference 2022
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This year, the Innovations in Education Conference hosted by the MacPherson Institute will explore conversations and ideas while marking the 50th anniversary of teaching and learning at McMaster. The hybrid conference will be held on Thursday, December 8 for online sessions and Friday, December 9 for in-person sessions.
Abstracts that highlight innovations in teaching and learning related to one or more of the conference sub-themes (see link below) are invited to be submitted by 5:00pm on Friday, October 7, 2022.
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MILO's Munch and Learn and about apps and tech IP
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The McMaster Industry Liaison Office (MILO) and partners are hosting an information session about important security, intellectual property, and commercialization considerations for any research or projects that involve technologies such as applications, algorithms, and software. The session will take place on Thursday October 20, 2022 between 1:00pm and 4:00pm at the Clinic in the Health Science Library (in the Collision room). Join for an hour or an afternoon to enjoy a pizza lunch and to learn more about any or all of the following topics:
- Application research and commercialization at McMaster
- Application IP protection principles
- Application security and technical considerations
- Applications and health regulation guidance
For more information, please see below or contact Sabrina Kirby (kirbysl@mcmaster.ca)
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NEW: Explore the revamped Discover and Learn Microsoft 365 and Zoom site
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The Discover & Learn Microsoft365 and Zoom site has been updated over the summer to ensure that everyone at McMaster has quick access to the most up-to-date Microsoft & Zoom information and learning and support resources. If you're new to Microsoft 365 and Zoom, this site has got you covered. Learn all about available apps and accessibility resources, get free training sessions, and book personal consultations with the team. Also, catch up on all new features and tips with our 5-min read articles!
Stop looking for the Discover Site – always access it quickly and easily!
You can now pin the Discover app on the left navigation bar in Microsoft Teams to have quick access to the site.
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SIGN UP TODAY: Training Sessions with Microsoft 365 educators
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Registration is now open for upcoming free training sessions on MS 365 with our professionals. These trainings are open to everyone at McMaster University.
Registration is easy:
1. Visit the link below and sign in with you MacID.
2. Select your preferable date range for available trainings.
3. Select the training you would like to register for.
4. Click on the registration link and insert your information.
And you're in!
P.S. If you need customized trainings for groups, we can help. Book an appointment with Christa Morrison to plan your session.
Looking forward to meeting you during these training sessions!
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New Process for creating Microsoft Class Teams for Fall 2022
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Educators can now only create their courses’ Class Teams in Avenue To Learn (A2L). Student enrollments syncs every 24 hours. One Team gets created for every course in A2L. Join the Class Teams Community of Practice to stay up to date with Announcements and Ask Anything.
Instructions on how to create your Class Teams, and how to add TA's as an Owner for the Class Team has been shared by the Avenue To Learn Support team. Assign students the TA1 role to have them automatically added as owner of the Class Team. This will change their role in Teams at the next sync.
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Do you see recommended content in office.com? Here's what you should know
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When you sign in at office.com, or use the web version of Word, PowerPoint, or Excel, or use the desktop Windows apps, you'll see Recommended Files on your Home Page.
These recommendations allow you to keep track of work around you and quickly access files with activities you value most such as edits, mentions, meetings, and comments by people you interact with.
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McMaster IT Governance cycle resumes for Fall 2022
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Following a brief summer hiatus, McMaster’s IT Governance Committee meetings have resumed. All related information and materials are available through the IT Governance MS Teams channel.
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CYBER ALERT: A new, streamlined approach for McMaster cyber alerts and awareness
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The McMaster Information Security Services team has introduced new methods for sharing critical information and updates from the cyber security landscape (e.g. CanSSOC) with the McMaster IT community. Keep an eye on your inbox and check out the Cyber Alerts Teams channel to view past alerts.
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Have you subscribed to the UTS Service Dashboard?
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The new UTS Service Dashboard allows you to customize your preferences for alerts on upcoming planned maintenance and unplanned major service interruptions. The dashboard is built on Atlassian. You can set your preferences to receive your alerts via email and/or text for the services most relevant to your work. Subscribe today!
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McMaster Byte Size: Your monthly tech newsletter
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Have you subscribed to the monthly tech newsletter for McMaster students, staff and faculty? McMaster Byte Size includes tech news, reminders, training and more for the McMaster community to learn more about IT security, Microsoft 365 and Zoom offerings, new services and more! Have a news item to submit for an upcoming issue? Get in touch!
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Canada Alliance 2022 Conference
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The Canadian Higher Education Users Group (HEUG) is holding the Canada Alliance 2022 conference in person to Rediscover, Reconnect and Rejuvenate on November 7-8 2022, at University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario.
CHEUG Alliance is a great opportunity to network with your colleagues from other institutions from around Canada. Early bird registration has been extended till October7. McMaster IT personnel interested in attending and benefitting from the group rate can get in touch with Tanya Reid (reidt10@mcmaster.ca). McMaster IT presenters include:
- Billing Request Form/Billing Upload Form: Si Tan
- Finance Birds of a Feather: Stacey Farkas
- Procurement Card Blues? Travel And Expense Can Help: Derek Konieczny
- Out of Province Tuition Fee Increase: Aba Wadden
- Higher Ed information eco-systems in 5 years - opportunities and challenges: Dennis Tian
- Student Email Refunds: Carly Silenzi.
Register, explore the agenda and learn more about the conference on the link below.
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EDUCAUSE Annual Conference
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Mark your calendar for EDUCAUSE Annual Conference which will be held in-person in Denver, CO with an online event the following week. With the best presenters, the best content, and the best networking, the premier higher ed IT event brings together professionals and technology providers from around the world to discuss their discoveries, grow professionally, and explore solutions to continuing challenges.
Register, explore the agenda and learn more about the conference on the link below.
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Thanks for a great summer McMaster IT!
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Here's a thank you note to everyone who joined us for the events this summer. It was great meeting and connecting with you all again in-person! Here are some pictures from McMaster IT summer social and AVP and CTO Gayleen Gray's fifth anniversary at McMaster celebration.
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Have a story you want to share with the IT Community? Email Tanya Reid at tanya.reid@mcmaster.ca to feature an article!
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