Zoom update (5.10.3): Polls, breakout rooms, reactions

Zoom released its latest update today, Monday, April 18, 2022. Below, I’ve listed some of the features that I find particularly useful. You can find the full list here. This update is a manual download. The easiest way to get… Read moreZoom update (5.10.3): Polls, breakout rooms, reactions

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Canvas: Tampermonkey script for setting default due time

I’ve written before about using Tampermonkey scripts for adding functionality to Canvas. If you’re not familiar with Tampermonkey scripts for Canvas, please read that post first. I have another one for my fellow intrepid Canvas users. This one comes from… Read moreCanvas: Tampermonkey script for setting default due time

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Zoom’s gallery algorithm. Are we inadvertently ignoring some students?

Why do these webcam videos appear in this particular order? [Source: https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362323-Adjusting-your-video-layout-during-a-virtual-meeting] The good folks at the MIT Teaching and Learning Lab have taken serious consideration of the algorithm Zoom uses to determine the order of webcams in Zoom’s gallery… Read moreZoom’s gallery algorithm. Are we inadvertently ignoring some students?

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Office 365: Word has a transcription feature

I have a colleague who emailed recently needing a transcript from a podcast episode. How could she get one? It’s surprisingly easy. If you do not already have the file (mp3/m4a/wav—or mp4 if it’s a video), you’ll need to get… Read moreOffice 365: Word has a transcription feature

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Zoom update includes animal avatars

In Zoom 5.10.0 (released March 21, 2022), we have some new features that instructors and their students might appreciate. This release is a manual download. Get it here. First, animal avatars. You can find the menu next to virtual backgrounds… Read moreZoom update includes animal avatars

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MS PowerToys

For Windows users, there is free collection of utilities called PowerToys that add some functionality to Windows. While there are a dozen tools in PowerToys, there are two I’m particularly enamored with: mouse utilities and video conference mute. Working with… Read moreMS PowerToys

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Zoom update: New polling questions with quiz option

Zoom has new question options available on in the latest version 5.8.3. This version is not an automatic update, so you’ll need to download it manually. Account owners and admins can enable advanced polling to allow meeting hosts to build… Read moreZoom update: New polling questions with quiz option

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Canvas enhancements

One of the advantages of using the Canvas learning management system is that it is built on a platform that makes it easy to make it do things that its inherent programming doesn’t allow it to do. By “easy,” I… Read moreCanvas enhancements

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Read Aloud for Firefox and Chrome

Some people, for a large number of reasons, have an easier time understanding written content when it is read aloud. The course management systems are getting better at this—such as Canvas’s Immersive Reader—but they still have a ways to go…. Read moreRead Aloud for Firefox and Chrome

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Looking for new ways to handle web browser bookmarks?

Let’s start with the easiest solution. Browser bookmarks bar Your web browser bookmarks bar sits directly under the search/web address bar. If it’s not there, turn it on. In Firefox, click the 3-line icon in the top right corner of… Read moreLooking for new ways to handle web browser bookmarks?

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